Written for the screen by Donald Ogden Stewart and an uncredited Waldo Salt, it is considered among the best examples of a comedy of remarriage, in which a couple divorce, flirt with outsiders and then remarry. The genre was popular in the 1930s and 1940s at a time when divorce was considered scandalous and the depiction of extramarital affairs was blocked by the Production Code.[6][7]
The film was Hepburn's first hit following several flops that caused her placement on a 1938 list of actors considered to be "box office poison" compiled by theater owner Harry Brandt.[8] Hepburn starred in the play and acquired the film rights, with the help of Howard Hughes,[9] to control it as a vehicle for her screen comeback.[10]
Mike carries Tracy into the house after a midnight dip.
Tracy Lord is the elder daughter of a wealthy Philadelphia Main Line socialite family. She was married to C.K. Dexter Haven, a yacht designer and member of her social set, but divorced him two years prior because, according to her father, he does not meet the standards that she sets for all her friends and family. She is soon to marry the wealthy George Kittredge.
In New York, Spy magazine publisher Sidney Kidd is eager to cover the wedding and assigns reporter Mike Connor and photographer Liz Imbrie. Kidd intends to use the assistance of Dexter, who has been working for Spy in South America. Dexter tells Kidd that he will introduce them as friends of Tracy's brother Junius, a diplomat in Argentina. Tracy is not fooled, but Dexter tells her that Kidd has threatened her family's reputation with an innuendo-laden article about her father's affair with a dancer. Tracy deeply resents her father's infidelity, which has prompted her parents to live separately. Nonetheless, to protect her family's reputation, she agrees to let Mike and Liz stay and cover her wedding.
Dexter is welcomed by Tracy's mother Margaret and teenage sister Dinah, much to Tracy's frustration. She soon discovers that Mike has admirable qualities and finds his book of short stories in the library. As the wedding nears, she finds herself torn among George, Dexter, and Mike.
The night before the wedding, Tracy becomes drunk, kisses Mike and takes an innocent midnight swim with him. When George observes Mike carrying Tracy into the house afterward, he assumes the worst. The next day, George tells her that he was shocked and feels entitled to an explanation before proceeding with the wedding. She admits to having no excuse and realizes that he does not really know her and has loved her as an idealized, perfect angel, so she cancels the engagement.
Tracy realizes that the guests have arrived and are waiting for the wedding ceremony to begin. Mike quickly volunteers to marry her, but she graciously declines because she perceives that Liz is in love with him. Dexter then offers to remarry her, and she gladly accepts.
"Everyone had enormous fun on the movie. The days and nights were sweltering that summer of 1940, but nobody cared. Cary got along very well with Kate Hepburn. She enjoyed him pushing her through a doorway in one scene (so she fell over backward) so much that she had him do it to her over and over again. There was a scene in which she had to throw Cary out the door of a house, bag and baggage, and she did it so vigorously he fell over and was bruised. As he stood up, looking rueful, Kate said, "That'll serve you right, Cary, for trying to be your own stuntman."
Broadway playwright Philip Barry wrote the play specifically for Hepburn, who financially supported the play and declined a salary in return for a percentage of the profits.[14] Her costars were Joseph Cotten as Dexter Haven, Van Heflin as Mike Connor and Shirley Booth as Liz Imbrie.[4]
The original play, starring Hepburn, ran for 417 performances.[4]
Hepburn had hoped to create a film vehicle for herself that would erase the label of "box office poison" that she had acquired after a number of commercial failures (such as Bringing Up Baby). Howard Hughes purchased the film rights for the play and gave them to her. Hepburn then sold the rights to MGM's Louis B. Mayer for $250,000 and the power of final approval of the film's producer, director, screenwriter and cast.[10][14]
Hepburn as Tracy Lord and Stewart as Mike Connor
Hepburn selected director George Cukor, with whom she had worked for A Bill of Divorcement (1932) and Little Women (1933), and Barry's friend Donald Ogden Stewart, a writer experienced with adapting plays to the screen.[14] Stewart, who won an Oscar for the script, said that "getting an Oscar for The Philadelphia Story was the easiest Oscar you could imagine. All you had to do was get out of the way." He wrote the script while listening to a tape recording of a live performance of the play to ensure that he preserved the lines that received the most laughter.[15]
Hepburn wanted Clark Gable to play Dexter Haven and Spencer Tracy to play Mike Connor, but both had other commitments.[11] The pairing of Cukor and Gable might have been problematic in any case, as they had clashed during the filming of the recent Gone with the Wind, with Cukor replaced by Gable's friend Victor Fleming.[16] Grant agreed to play the part only if he were afforded top billing and that his salary would be $137,000, which he donated to the British War Relief Society.[17]
According to the documentary MGM: When the Lion Roars, after Mayer purchased the film rights, he was skeptical about Hepburn's box-office appeal and took the unusual precaution of engaging two top male stars (Grant and Stewart) to support Hepburn.
The film was in production from July 5 to August 14, 1940,[18] five days under schedule,[10] at MGM's studios in Culver City.[19]
Reception
Release
Theatrical trailer
The film premiered in New York City on December 26, 1940 and was shown in select theaters in December, but MGM had agreed to hold its general release until January 1941 to avoid competition with the stage play[10] that was touring the country.[4] It entered general American release on January 17, 1941.[20] It broke a box-office record at Radio City Music Hall by earning $600,000 in just six weeks.[citation needed]
According to MGM records, the film earned $2,374,000 in the U.S. and Canada, and $885,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $1,272,000.[1]
Critical reception
Grant as C.K. Dexter Haven, and John Howard as George Kittredge
Writing for The New York Times in 1940, Bosley Crowther wrote that the film "has just about everything that a blue-chip comedy should have—a witty, romantic script derived by Donald Ogden Stewart out of Philip Barry's successful play; the flavor of high-society elegance, in which the patrons invariably luxuriate; and a splendid cast of performers headed by Hepburn, Stewart, and Grant. If it doesn't play out this year and well along into next, they should turn the Music Hall into a shooting gallery ... Metro and Director George Cukor have graciously made it apparent, in the words of a character, that one of 'the prettiest sights in this pretty world is the privileged classes enjoying their privileges'. And so, in this instance, will you, too."[21]
Life named The Philadelphia Story its film of the week in January 1941, describing it as "among the best funny pictures" of the year.[22]
The film has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 101 reviews, with an average rating of 9/10. The consensus reads: "Offering a wonderfully witty script, spotless direction from George Cukor, and typically excellent lead performances, The Philadelphia Story is an unqualified classic."[23] Rotten Tomatoes has also ranked it as the best romantic comedy of all time.[24] The film holds a 96 rating on Metacritic.
In 1995, the film was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.[12]
^ abcdMelear, Mary Anne (February 27, 2023). "The Philadelphia Story". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
^Eyles, Allen; Gillet, John (1986). "David Ogden Stewart: Politically Conscious". In McGilligan, Patrick (ed.). Backstory: Interviews with Screenwriters of Hollywood's Golden Age. University of California Press. pp. 344–345. ISBN978-0520056893.
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