Queen for a Day (1951)

Interesting facts

Queen for a Day is a 1951 American anthology comedy film directed by Arthur Lubin, written by Seton I. Miller and starring Jack Bailey, Jim Morgan, Fort Pearson, Melanie York, Cynthia Corley, Kay Wiley and Helen Mowery. The film is related to the quiz show Queen for a Day, which aired on radio beginning in 1945 and was hosted on television by Bailey from 1956–1964. The film was released on July 7, 1951 by United Artists.

Production

Queen for a Day was a popular radio quiz show in the 1940s and 1950s with an audience of five million listeners. Film rights to the show had been optioned by Seymour Nebenzal and Jesse L. Lasky, but neither had exercised the option. In September 1949, Robert Stillman, a former associate of Stanley Kramer, bought the screen rights.

In November 1949, Seton I. Miller signed to be an associate producer and to write the script.

Stillman had originally planned to film four stories. In January 1950, he acquired the screen rights to the story "The High Diver" by John Ainsworth and Faith Baldwin's 1948 magazine story "This Gossamer World". Stillman purchased Dorothy Parker's story "Horsie" in June.

Director Arthur Lubin was hired in February 1950. Lubin directed the entire film, which was unusual for anthology films of the time, many of which featured separate directors for each segment. Filming began in September 1950.

Most of the 36 actors cast were relative unknowns to film, although some had theater experience, such as Darren McGavin, who had appeared on stage in Death of a Salesman. Stillman reportedly invited Mickey Rooney's son Mickey Rooney Jr. to play a role in "This Gossamer World", but the younger Rooney refused.

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