The War Against Mrs. Hadley

The War Against Mrs. Hadley (1942)

AS TIMELY AS TODAYS HEADLINES!

Wealthy American society matron, Stella Hadley refuses to sacrifice her material comforts to aid the war effort until she realizes that her selfishness is cheating the boys overseas who are fighting for her freedom.

Date of release
1942-08-07
TMDB
5.3 / 10 (9)
Runtime
1h 26m
Genres
Drama
Director
Harold S. Bucquet

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Awards: 0 · Nominations: 1

The War Against Mrs. Hadley is a 1942 American drama film directed by Harold S. Bucquet and starring Fay Bainter and Edward Arnold. The plot depicts how wealthy society matron Stella Hadley selfishly refuses to sacrifice her family or material comforts during World War II, until tragedy strikes an old rival. The script by George Oppenheimer was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Production

According to George Oppenheimer, who wrote the screenplay, the idea for the script came to him immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor. But it was not until mid-March 1942 that he had worked out the story in his head. He pitched the idea the last week of March to his friend, Irving Asher, who was a producer at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). According to Oppenheimer, Asher was "immediately enthusiastic". A few days later, Louis B.

Oppenheimer wrote the script in just under seven weeks. Considered a B movie because of its low budget and lack of major stars, production fell under the control of Dore Schary, then supervisor of B picture units at MGM. Irving Asher would produce. Pre-production was under way in April when MGM decided to allow Irving Asher to leave the United States in June for the United Kingdom.

MGM said on April 14, 1942, that 25-year-old actor Robert Sterling would "star" opposite newcomer Jean Rogers in the picture. MGM then announced the names of much of the rest of the major cast on April 27, saying Fay Bainter, Van Johnson, and Spring Byington would star.

The studio also announced on April 27 that George Oppenheimer had scripted the film, which would begin principal photography in mid May. Bainter later said she was reluctant to play the part because the character of Mrs. Hadley was so unlikeable, but she felt the redemption scenes at the end gave her an opportunity for some excellent acting. The studio said on April 29 that Harold Bucquet would direct the picture.

Principal photography began at the MGM studio on May 11, 1942, and concluded on June 5, 1942.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

Recommended