 In 1961 , Rossen co @-@ wrote , produced and directed The Hustler . Drawing upon his own experiences as a pool hustler , he teamed with Sidney Carroll to adapt the novel of the same name for the screen . The Hustler was nominated for nine Academy Awards and won two . Rossen was nominated as Best Director and with Carroll for Best Adapted Screenplay but did not win either award . He was named Best Director by the New York Film Critics Circle and shared with Carroll the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written Drama . The Hustler was an enormous popular success and is credited with sparking a resurgence in the popularity of pool in the United States , which had been on the decline for decades . 
