Olivia de Havilland enters “The Snake Pit”

The Snake Pit (1948) stars two-time Best Actress winner Olivia de Havilland.

De Havilland is Virginia Cunningham, an aspiring writer and newlywed. Early in their marriage, she begins to wonder about her husband’s love for her. She becomes confused and disorientated, necessitating her commitment to a state mental institution. Her experiences in the institution are harrowing. The movie had a profound impact on the public, and many states reevaluated and changed their treatment of mental patients.

De Havilland heads an impressive cast that also includes Leo Genn as a sympathetic psychiatrist and Mark Stevens as her long-suffering husband. The cast is populated by some of the best-known character actresses of the era, including Beulah Bondi, Ruth Donnelly, and Natalie Schafer. The Snake Pit was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress (de Havilland), and Best Director (Anatole Litvak).

The movie is based on the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by Mary Jane Ward. Ward had a nervous breakdown and spent eight months at Rockland State Hospital in Orangeburg, New York. During her care, she was subjected to scalding baths and electroshock therapy, similar to what the Virginia Cunningham character experiences in the film.

Backstory
Director Litvak demanded that all the character actresses in the film be seasoned professionals. He wanted to be sure they could stand up to a talent like de Havilland. There are dozens of recognizable faces in The Snake Pit, making it a classic movie buff’s delight.

Celeste Holm (left) and Olivia de Havilland in The Snake Pit

Anatol Litvak (1902 – 1974) was a Russian-American film director. He got his start in film in Germany, but as Hitler rose to power, he moved to France and worked in the film industry there. Seeing that the rise of the Nazis wasn’t going to work in his favor, he emigrated to the United States. He had an early success with Mayerling  (1936), leading to a contract to direct at Warner Brothers. There he worked with the studio’s top stars, including Errol Flynn, Bette Davis, Paul Muni, Ida Lupino, Charles Boyer, Ann Sheridan, James Cagney, and John Garfield. Some of Livak’s films include Tovarich (1937), The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse (1938), Castle on the Hudson (1940), City for Conquest (1940), and Sorry, Wrong Number (1948).

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a British-American actress and two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner. De Havilland’s career spanned more than five decades. She was one of the leading actresses of the 1940s and was the last major surviving star from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of de Havilland’s classic films include The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), The Snake Pit (1948), and The Heiress (1949).

Click HERE to watch the film at the Internet Archive.

Click HERE to join the online discussion on April 21, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an email with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

The Snake Pit trivia

• Thirteen states amended their laws concerning mental health institutions.
• The book on which the movie was based by Mary Jane Ward was a runaway bestseller.
• Antatole Litvak and Olivia de Havilland visited several mental institutions for three months prior to filming.
• De Havilland won the New York Film Critics award in a unanimous decision. It was the first and only time this has happened.
• Ginger Rogers and Ingrid Bergman supposedly turned down the role of Virginia. Olivia de Havilland was producer Daryl F. Zanuck’s first choice for the role.

Discussion questions

• What did you think of Olivia de Havilland’s performance? Was she convincing and worthy of her Best Actress nomination?
• The supporting cast is uniformly excellent. Did any one performer stand out to you?
• Mark Stevens played de Havilland’s husband; what did you think of his performance?
• British actor Leo Genn played Dr. Kik. Was his performance believable?
• Was there a scene that was especially impactful to you?
• Did anything about the film surprise you?

Olivia de Havilland is “The Heiress”

The Heiress (1949) is an American drama produced and directed by William Wyler and starring Olivia de Havilland, Montgomery Clift, and Ralph Richardson. The supporting cast included Miriam Hopkins, Mona Freeman, Selena Royle, and Vanessa Brown.

The film takes place in New York City in 1849 and concerns one Catherine Sloper (de Havilland), a shy young woman, who lives with her wealthy father Dr. Austin Sloper (Richardson). Dr, Sloper and Catherine live in the prestigious Washington Square neighborhood.

When Catherine is introduced to Morris Townsend (Clift) at a ball, she is charmed by the handsome young man. Catherine falls madly in love with Morris. He seems gracious and caring…and loving. However, Catherine’s stern father disapproves of the relationship, concerned that Morris is only interested in Catherine because of her wealth.

Will Catherine and Morris’s relationship thrive or die over her father’s objections?

 

Montgomery Clift, Olivia de Havilland, and Ralph Richardson

William Wyler (1902 - 1981) was an American (born in Mulhouse, Alsace, then part of Germany) film director and producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Direction three times: Mrs. Miniver (1942), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), and Ben-Hur (1959). Wyler was nominated 12 times for Best Director, an Academy Award history. Wyler started working in the movie business during the silent era, eventually making a name for himself as a director in the early 1930s. He would go on to direct Wuthering Heights (1939), The Westerner (1940), and The Little Foxes (1941). Actress Bette Davis received three Oscar nominations under Wyler’s direction, winning her second Oscar for her performance in Jezebel (1938). Other popular films directed by Wyler include The Heiress (1949), Roman Holiday (1954), Friendly Persuasion (1956), The Big Country (1958), and Funny Girl 1968).

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a British-American actress and two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner. De Havilland’s career spanned more than five decades. She was one of the leading actresses of the 1940s and was the last major surviving star from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of de Havilland’s classic films include The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), The Snake Pit (1948), and The Heiress (1949).

Montgomery Clift (1920 – 1966) was an American actor. He was a four-time Academy Award nominee for Best Actor. Like Marlon Brando and James Dean, Clift was considered one of the original method actors. Clift got his start on the stage as a young man and starred opposite the likes of Tallulah Bankhead, Frederic March, and Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne. Clift’s first movie role was in Howard Hawks’s Red River (1949), starring opposite John Wayne. He went on to co-star with Olivia de Havilland in William Wyler’s The Heiress (1949). He reached superstar status in the role of George Eastman in the George Stevens production of A Place in the Sun (1951), starring opposite Elizabeth Taylor. Clift would later star in Alfred Hitchcock’s I Confess (1953) and Fred Zinnemann’s From Here to Eternity (1953). Other films followed, including Raintree County (1956), The Young Lions (1958), Lonelyhearts (1958), Suddenly, Last Summer (1959), and Wild River (1960).

Ralph Richardson (1902 – 1983) was an English stage and screen actor. Along with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, he dominated the British theatre for most of the 20^th century. Richardson worked in movies in Britain and the United States throughout his long career. Some of his famous films include The Fallen Idol (1948), The Heiress (1949), Long Day’s Journey into Night (1962), Women of Straw (1965), and Doctor Zhivago (1965).

 

Olivia de Haviland and Ralph Richardson

The Heiress trivia

• After seeing The Heiress on the Broadway stage, de Havilland approached William Wyler about directing her in a screen adaptation.
• Wyler became a fan of de Havilland’s acting talent and was annoyed by Clift’s disdain for her performance and for Ralph Richardson’s attempt to scene-steal through improvisation.
• Clift was so disappointed by his performance that he walked out of the premiere.
• Basil Rathbone played Dr. Sloper on the stage and hoped to recreate the role for the film version.
• De Havilland won her second Best Actress Academy Award for her performance.
• Wyler originally wanted Errol Flynn to play Morris.

 

Click HERE to watch the film at the Internet Archive

Click HERE to learn more about the film and preview the discussion questions. Once you RSVP, you will receive an email with a link to the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion questions

1. Many consider Olivia de Havilland’s performance as one of the greatest of the 20^th century. Do you agree?
2. When do you think Catherine’s personality began to become imbittered?
3. Montgomery Clift was unhappy with his performance. What did you think? Was he wrong to be unhappy about it?
4. What did you think of Ralph Richardson’s characterization as Dr. Sloper? Do you think he loved Catherine?
5. Do you think Morris was interested in Catherine only for her money?
6. Would Catherine have been happy with Morris if they had married?

Alan Ladd and Olivia de Havilland shine in “The Proud Rebel”

The Proud Rebel (1958) is an American western directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Alan Ladd and Olivia de Havilland. Others in the case include Dean Jagger, Cecil Kellaway, Harry Dean Stanton (billed as Dean Stanton), and David Ladd.

John Chandler (Alan Ladd), a former Confederate soldier travels to Illinois in the hope that a doctor there can cure his mute son (David Ladd). Although he’s left his military service behind him, some of the Illinois townsfolk hold it against him. A couple of toughs set him up for arrest which puts him in contact with Linnett a woman farmer (de Havilland) who is up against the Burleighs who want her land.

Linnett helps Chandler get out of jail under the condition that he help her on her farm. With Chandler’s help, Linnett’s farm is more appealing to the bullying Burleighs.

Will Chandler help Linnett keep her farm and will David get his speech back?

Olivia de Havilland, David Ladd, and Alan Ladd

Michael Curtiz (1886 -1962) was a Hungarian-American film director who worked during Hollywood’s Golden age, directing some of the best loved classics from that era including The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) Casablanca (1942), and Mildred Pierce (1945). He directed James Cagney and Joan Crawford to Best Actor/Actress Oscar wins; he put Doris Day and John Garfield on the screen for the first time, making them major movie stars in the process. He’s also responsible for the pairing of Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland, one of Hollywood’s most famous screen teams. Other films directed by Curtiz include Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), The Sea Wolf (1941), Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942), Life with Father (1947), and White Christmas (1954).

Alan Ladd (1913 – 1964) was an American actor and film producer. Before Ladd made in big in movies, he had a successful career on the radio. After numerous bit parts at just about every Hollywood studio, Paramount signed him to a long-term contract and crafted roles that propelled him to superstardom. Ladd established himself in films noir like This Gun for Hire (1942), The Glass Key (1942), and The Blue Dahlia (1946). Other important films include Two Years Before the Mast (1946) and The Great Gatsby (1949). Ladd also established himself in the western genre starring in Whispering Smith (1948) and one of the most famous westerns of all time, George Stevens’s Shane (1953). George Stevens offered the role of Jett Rink in Giant (1956) but Ladd turned it down because it wasn’t the lead. Ladd’s last film was in a supporting role in The Carpetbaggers (1964).

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a British-American actress and two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner. De Havilland’s career spanned more than five decades. She was one of the leading actresses of the 1940s and was the last major surviving star from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of de Havilland’s classic films include The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), The Snake Pit (1948), and The Heiress (1949).

The Proud Rebel trivia

• Alan Ladd, according to Olivia de Havilland, was leery of the reputation of Michael Curtiz to be tough on actors.
• Olivia de Havilland was basically retired and living Paris, France, when director Curtiz talked her into taking the role of Linnett.
• Adolphe Menjou was originally cast in the film but had to withdraw due to an injury to his leg.
• Production was halted when Curtiz had an emergency appendectomy.
• David Ladd received introducing credit even though he had appeared with his father in The Big Land (1957).
• The Ladd and de Havilland families became lifelong friends because of this film.

 

Click HERE to watch the movie on YouTube.

 

Click HERE to join the discussion on August 12, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

 

Discussion questions

1. This was an unusual film for Alan Ladd. What did you think of his performance?
2. What did you think of Olivia de Havilland’s independent woman? Was her characterization believable?
3. Young David Ladd played the mute boy. Was his performance successful? Was he believable as the son of Alan Ladd’s character?
4. The film is filled with great character actors; do you have a favorite?
5. What was the film’s theme?

 

 

Olivia de Havilland and Richard Burton in "My Cousin Rachel"

My Cousin Rachel (1952) is an American gothic mystery directed by Henry Koster and starring Olivia de Havilland and Richard Burton in his American film debut. The cast also includes Audrey Dalton, Ronald Squire, George Dolenz, and John Sutton. The screenplay was written by Nunnally Johnson, who also produced, based on the novel of the same name by Daphne Du Maurier. The cinematography was by Joseph LaShelle and the music was by Franz Waxman.

Philip Ashley (Burton) is raised by his older and wealthy cousin Ambrose Ashley on a large estate on the coast of Cornwall. Ambrose's declining health requires him to move to a warmer climate. He ends up in Florence, Italy, where he marries his cousin Rachel Sangalletti (de Havilland). Philip begins to receive disturbing letters from Ambrose complaining that Rachel and his doctor aren't treating him well.

Philip travels to Florence only to discover that Ambrose died of a brain tumor. A man named Guido Rainaldi informs him of this fact and provides a death certificate to prove it. Rachel left before Philip's arrival and according to Rainaldi, Ambrose left his entire estate to Philip (upon his 25th birthday) and nothing to Rachel. In spite of this, Philip suspects foul play in regard to his cousin's death.

Was Rachel responsible for Ambrose's death? And if so, what were her motives?

Richard Burton and Olivia de Havilland

Henry Koster (1905 - 1988) was a German-born film director. He signed a contract with Universal Pictures in 1936. At the time, he didn't speak English but he convinced the studio to let him make Three Smart Girls (1936), which was Deanna Durbin’s first starring film role. The movie was a huge success and saved Universal from bankruptcy. Koster convinced Universal to sign Abbott and Costello to a film contract. The comedy duo was a box office sensation during the 1940s, making the studio millions. Later in Koster’s career, he directed Harvey (1950), My Cousin Rachel (1952), which was Richard Burton’s American film debut. He directed Burton again the next year in The Robe, which was the first film to be filmed in CinemaScope. Other films include Desiree (1954) with Marlon Brando and Jean Simmons, Flower Drum Song (1960) starring Nancy Kwan, and The Singing Nub (1965) starring Debbie Reynolds.

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a British-American actress and two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner. De Havilland’s career spanned more than five decades. She was one of the leading actresses of the 1940s and was the last major surviving star from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of de Havilland’s classic films include The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), The Snake Pit (1948), and The Heiress (1949).

Richard Burton (1925 - 1984) was a Welsh actor who was a star on both stage and screen. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award but never won an Oscar. He made his American film debut in My Cousin Rachel (1952) for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He didn't win but his film career took off with the blockbuster Cinemascope classic, The Robe (1953) co-starring Jean Simmons and Victor Mature. Burton's other film roles include Prince of Players (1955), Alexander the Great (1956), and Look Back in Anger (1959). He hit his stride in the 1960s, marrying Elizabeth Taylor in the process after their affair during the making of Cleopatra (1963). Other films include Beckett (1964), The V.I.P.s (1963), and The Sandpiper (1965) both co-starring Taylor. He had a box office hit with the John Huston directed The Night of the Iguana (1964). Burton continued making films up until the time of his death and is remembered as one of the greatest actors of his generation.

Oliva de Havilland, Audrey Dalton, and Richard Burton

My Cousin Rachel trivia

• It was reported that Richard Burton and Olivia de Havilland didn't get along during filming.
• The film was proposed as a comeback for Greta Garbo with George Cukor directing.
• Vivien Leigh was also considered for the role of Rachel.
• The film marked the American film debut of Richard Burton.
• This was de Havilland's first film after her Oscar-winning The Heiress (1949).

Why watch this film

• It's an opportunity to see Burton early in his American film career.
• This was a prestige picture for 20th Century-Fox with de Havilland at the height of her powers.
• The production, partially filmed in Cornwall and on the Fox soundstages is impressive.
• The film was nominated for four Academy Awards including Burton's for Best Supporting Actor.
• It's a gothic mystery romance based on the novel by Daphne Du Maurier like they don't make anymore.

To watch the film on YouTube, click on the link below.

To join the discussion on April 4, 2022, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and Zoom link to the discussion.

Discussion questions

1. Do you think Philip had good reason to be suspicious of Rachel?
2. If Rachel was responsible for Ambrose's death, what were her motives?
3. What did you think of Richard Burton's film debut?
4. Did Olivia de Havilland have the right amount of mystery in her portrayal of Rachel?
5. Were you surprised by the ending?
6. What are your conclusions? Guilty or innocent?

Book review: "Olivia de Havilland: Lady Triumphant"

Olivia de Havilland: Lady Triumphant

Author: Victoria Amador

ISBN: 978-0-8131-5465-7 (trade paper edition)

Olivia de Havilland: Lady Triumphant by Victoria Amador, is one part biography, one part film history, and one part fangirl. The life of Olivia de Havilland is the story of Hollywood's Golden Age. The days when a young woman could get discovered in a play at the Hollywood Bowl while still in her teens and end up with a seven-year contract with Warner Brothers. Such is the story of Olivia de Havilland.

For many young women, being under contract to a major studio, earning a good salary, and working with leading men like Errol Flynn would be exciting enough. Being the "girl" in pictures wasn't de Havilland's idea of a career. She wanted to be taken seriously as an actress; she wanted the career that fellow Warner Brothers colleague Bette Davis had.

Jack Warner never considered de Havilland as anything more than a pretty girl to co-star with leading men like Flynn. As much as she enjoyed working with Flynn (admitting to being in love with him for a time), she wanted more challenging roles than looking pretty in beautiful clothes and period costumes. But de Havilland's beautiful face and charming demeanor hid a strong ambition and a willingness to take risks with her career.

To get the role of Melanie Hamilton in Gone with the Wind, the biggest movie production of the century, de Havilland appealed to Jack Warner's wife. She got the role, an Oscar nomination, and screen immortality. But that wasn't enough for de Havilland; she wanted better roles.

Olivia de Havilland as Melanie Hamiltion, age 23 and at 103

When presented with inferior scripts, de Havilland refused them. This put her on suspension and at odds with Warner. During the studio era, when an actor or actress refused a role assigned to them, they were put on suspension which meant they went without pay until the film they refused to do was completed. The studios would add the time spent on suspension to their contract which would keep a performer under contract indefinitely. When she thought her seven-year contract was up, Warner Brothers told her she owed them another six months work. This didn't sit well with de Havilland and at great peril to her career, she decided to take the studio to court. 

The court decided that contracts could not last past their calendar date, thus siding with the actress in what became known as the "de Havilland decision." That decision was the beginning of the end to the Hollywood studio system. After leaving Warner Brothers, de Havilland went on to win two Best Actress Academy Awards for To Each His Own (1946) and The Heiress (1949).

If you're a classic movie fan, you probably know a lot of the details of de Havilland's career. However, the author has written an engaging biography/memoir that includes her relationship and friendship with the legendary actress, giving us a glimpse at her life in Paris during her latter years. 

Disclaimer: I won Olivia de Havilland: Lady Triumphant in a contest sponsored by Classic Movie Hub. You may like them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

Joan Fontaine and Orson Welles star in “Jane Eyre”

Jane Eyre (1943) is a gothic romance directed by Robert Stevenson and starring Orson Welles and Joan Fontaine. Based on the classic novel by Charlotte Bronte, the screenplay was written by John Houseman, Aldous Huxley, and Robert Stevenson. Bernard Herrmann wrote the film score.

The plot concerns Jane Eyre, an orphan educated at Lowood, a charity institution for young girls run with brutal discipline by Mr. Brocklehurst. When Jane reaches adulthood, she advertises for a job as a governess. Edward Rochester hires her through his housekeeper Mrs. Fairfax, who at first, Jane believes to be the mistress of the house. Jane enjoys her job as governess to Adele, Mr. Rochester’s ward. In spite of Mr. Rochester’s sometimes-surly behavior, Jane finds herself drawn to him. As their relationship eventually grows into love, a secret from Rochester’s past threatens to doom them both.

Jane Eyre was filmed entirely on the sound stages at 20th Century-Fox.

Robert Stevenson (1905 – 1986) was an English film director, screenwriter, and actor. Producer David O. Selznick brought him to Hollywood where he loaned out his services as a director to other studios. In Hollywood, Stevenson directed Tom Brown’s School Days (1940), Back Street (1941) starring Charles Boyer and Margaret Sullavan, Joan of Paris (1942) starring Michele Morgan, and Dishonored Lady starring Hedy Lamarr (1947). Stevenson also directed many episodes of top television series including Gunsmoke, Jane Wyman Presents The Fireside Theatre, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Stevenson really hit his stride when he began working for the Walt Disney Studios. At Disney, he directed Johnny Tremain (1957), Old Yeller (1957), Darby O’Gill and the Little People (1959), Kidnapped (1960), The Absent-Minded Professor (1961), In Search of the Castaways (1962), The Love Bug (1968), and two of my favorites, The Misadventures of Merlin Jones (1964) and The Monkey’s Uncle (1965). None of the above Disney classics could compare, however, to the huge success of Mary Poppins (1964) which went on to win five Oscars. Stevenson directed Hayley Mills in That Darn Cat! (1965), her last movie under contract with Disney. In 1977, Variety reported that Stevenson was “the most commercially successful director in the history of films. Stevenson became an American citizen during World War II and was in the U.S. Army Signal Corps with director Frank Capra.

Orson Welles (1915- 1985) was an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, with Citizen Kane (1941) considered by many to be the greatest film of all time. Welles got his start on the stage. He formed the Mercury Theatre with John Houseman in 1937. Many of the actors from his repertory theatre starred in his first two films. Welles had a reputation for being difficult and undisciplined which contributed to his low output of films. In spite of all that, his reputation as a Hollywood genius remains untarnished.

Joan Fontaine (1917 – 2013) was a British-American actress who starred in more than 45 films during Hollywood’s “Golden Age.” After secondary roles in Gunga Din (1939) and The Women (1939), her fortunes turned with her starring role in Alfred Hitchcock’s first American film, Rebecca (1940). She was nominated for Best Actress for her role in that film but lost to Ginger Rogers. The next year, she worked with Hitchcock again in Suspicion and this time won the Best Actress Oscar, beating out her older sister Olivia de Havilland. She received a third and final nomination for The Constant Nymph (1943). Other popular Fontaine films include This Above All (1942), From This Day Forward (1946), Ivy (1947), Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948), The Emperor Waltz (1948), and Ivanhoe (1952). After the late-1950s, she appeared less in films and more on stage and television. Fontaine and her sister are the only siblings to have won major acting Academy Awards.

Helen (Elizabeth Taylor) has her hair cut by Mr. Brocklehurst much to
Jane’s (Peggy Ann Garner ) dismay.

Others in the cast include Margaret O’Brien as Adele, Peggy Ann Garner as the young Jane, Agnes Moorehead as Mrs. Reed, John Sutton as Dr. Rivers, Henry Daniell as Mr. Brocklehurst, Edith Barrett as Mrs. Fairfax, and Sara Allgood as Bessie. An eleven-year-old Elizabeth Taylor plays Jane’s childhood friend at Lowood. So unknown was Taylor at this time that she didn’t receive on-screen billing. Both Taylor and Margaret O’Brien were loaned from their home studio, M-G-M to Fox for their work in Jane Eyre.

Jane Eyre trivia:

• Director Robert Stevenson was a member of the Bronte Society.
• Composer Bernard Herrmann would go onto writing an operatic version of Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights.
• Character actress Ethel Griffies (Grace Poole) played the same character in the 1934 film version.
• Olivia de Havilland portrayed Charlotte Bronte (author of Jane Eyre) in Devotion (1946).

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

To join us on Zoom for a discussion of the film on January 12, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and link to the Zoom meeting.

Questions for discussion:

1. Why do you think there have been literally dozens of film and television adaptations of Charlotte Bronte’s novel?
2. Have you seen other film adaptations of Jane Eyre? How do they compare and contrast to the 1943 version?
3. Were Joan Fontaine and Orson Welles well cast as Jane and Mr. Rochester?
4. Did anything about the film or its production surprise you?
5. Did you have a favorite character actor in the film?

10 Things You May Not Know About Olivia de Havilland

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a two-time Academy Award Winner for Best Actress. She was the last remaining major movie star from Hollywood’s Golden Age when she passed away at her home in Paris, France, at 104.

1. De Havilland was born in Tokyo, Japan. Her father was an English professor at the Imperial University in Tokyo City at the time of her birth. Her parents were both citizens of the United Kingdom so she became an automatic citizen.

De Havilland as Alice in the Saratoga Community Players production
of Alice in Wonderland in 1933

2. She took ballet lessons at four and piano lessons at five and could read before she was six.

3. De Havilland originally planned on becoming a schoolteacher, focusing on English and speech; she received a scholarship to Mills College in Oakland, CA for this pursuit.

4. She was reluctant to become a film actress but was convinced by director Max Reinhardt (who in some respect discovered her) and producer Henry Blake to sign a contract in 1934 with Warner Bros. Her starting salary was $200 a week, an amazing sum for an 18-year-old actress.

Two perfect profiles: Olivia de Havilland and Errol Flynn in Captain Blood

5. At age nineteen, de Havilland starred opposite another newcomer, Errol Flynn in Captain Blood, released in 1935. The pairing of the two stars was so popular with the public that they made a total of eight films together.

6. De Havilland was cast as Maid Marian opposite Errol Flynn in the Technicolor classic The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). It was one of the most popular adventure films of the late 1930s.

Hattie McDaniel, (Mammy), de Havilland (Melanie), and Vivien Leigh (Scarlett) in

Gone with the Wind

7. She managed to convince Warner Bros Studio head Jack Warner (with the help of his wife) to be loaned to David O. Selznick to play Melanie Hamilton in Gone with the Wind (1939). She would receive the first of five Academy Award nominations for her role. The New York Times wrote as Melanie de Havilland’s performance “is a gracious, dignified, tender gem of characterization.”

8. In 1943 she sued Warner Bros. after her contract was up but the studio contended that she owed them an additional six months for the times she had been suspended for turning down certain roles. She won her case (known today as the De Havilland Law) but Warner Bros. blacklisted de Havilland which resulted in her not working for almost two years.

De Havilland (center) played a patient in a state mental hospital in The Snake Pit (1948)

9. In 1945, de Havilland began filming To Each His Own. She played an unwed mother who gives her child up for adoption. In the film, she ages almost 30 years. She won her first Best Actress Oscar for her performance, marking a remarkable comeback.

De Havilland and Yvette Mieux in Light in the Piazza (1962)

10. She was appointed a Chevaliler of the Legion d’honneur, the highest decoration in France in 2010 by President Nicolas Sarkozy, and was appointed Dame of the Order of the British Empire in 2017 by Queen Elizabeth II.

Olivia de Havilland stars as identical twins in “The Dark Mirror”

The Dark Mirror (1946) is an American film noir directed by Robert Siodmak, and starring Olivia de Havilland, Lew Ayres, and Thomas Mitchell. The film was written and produced by Nunnally Johnson. Milton Krasner worked as the cinematographer and Dimitri Tiomkin wrote the film’s score.

Identical twin sisters Ruth and Terry Collins (de Havilland in a dual role) are almost impossible to tell apart. After Terry visits the apartment of Dr. Frank Peralta, he is found stabbed to death. Detective Lt. Stevenson (Mitchell) suspects Terry, but she has witnesses that can vouch for her whereabouts the evening of the murder. When Stevenson discovers that Terry has an identical twin sister Ruth, identifying the murderous sister becomes more complicated.

Robert Siodmak (1900 – 1973) had a very successful career in Hollywood and is best known for his thrillers and films noir. He signed a seven-year contract with Universal and directed The Killers (1946), the film that made Ava Gardner a star. He worked with some of the top movie stars during Hollywood’s Golden Age, including Deanna Durbin, Gene Kelly, Burt Lancaster, Dorothy McGuire, Yvonne de Carlo, Olivia de Havilland, and Barbara Stanwyck. Often compared to Hitchcock in his prime, he never got the recognition that the Master of Suspense did, but most of his films hold up remarkably well and are worth watching.

Nunnally Johnson (1897 – 1977) was a journalist, screenwriter, producer, and director. He worked for many years as a writer at 20th Century-Fox before he co-founded International Pictures in 1943 with William Goetz. Johnson was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Screenplay in 1940 for The Grapes of Wrath. Johnson wrote, produced, and directed The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit (1956) and The Three Faces of Eve (1957). As a writer-producer, he is responsible for The Gunfighter (1950), My Cousin Rachel (1952), and How to Marry a Millionaire (1953). Johnson’s last credited screenplay was for The Dirty Dozen (1967).

Milton R. Krasner (1904 – 1988) was an American cinematographer. He is best known for his work at 20th Century-Fox where he filmed such classics as All About Eve (1950) and The Seven Year Itch (1955). Other notable films he photographed include Scarlett Street (1945), The Dark Mirror (1946), The Egg and I (1947), The Farmer’s Daughter (1947), Bus Stop (1956), An Affair to Remember (1957), Bells Are Ringing (1960), Sweet Bird of Youth (1962), How the West Was Won (1962), Love with the Proper Stranger (1963), and The Singing Nun (1966). Krasner won an Academy Award for his work on Three Coins in the Fountain (1954).

Dimitri Tiomkin (1894 – 1979) was a Russian-born American film composer. He received 22 Academy Award nominations and won four Oscars. Tiomkin got his big break working with director Frank Capra on the classic Lost Horizon (1937). He also collaborated with Capra on You Can’t Take it With You (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Meet John Doe (1941) and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). Tiomkin was famous for scoring western films including Duel in the Sun (1946), High Noon (1952), Giant (1956), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), and Rio Bravo (1959). Tiomkin also wrote the scores for three other Hitchcock films: Shadow of  Doubt (1943), I Confess (1953), and Dial M for Murder (1954).

Olivia de Havilland as identical twin sisters Terry and Ruth

Olivia de Havilland (1916 – 2020) was a British-American actress and two-time Best Actress Academy Award winner. De Havilland’s career spanned more than five decades. She was one of the leading actresses of the 1940s and was the last major surviving star from Hollywood’s Golden Age. Some of de Havilland’s classic films include The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Gone with the Wind (1939), Hold Back the Dawn (1941), To Each His Own (1946), The Snake Pit (1948), and The Heiress (1949).

Olivia de Havilland, Robert Siodmak, and Lew Ayres

Lew Ayres (1908 – 1996) was an American actor who had a long career in film and television. He is perhaps best known for portraying a German soldier in the film All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) and for portraying Dr. Kildare in nine movies. Ayres was a conscientious objector during World War II. This almost destroyed his career and reputation until it was revealed that he served as a non-combatant medic from 1942 to 1946. The Dark Mirror (1946) was Ayres’ first movie role after the war. In 1948 he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in the film Johnny Belinda (1948). Ayres was married to Ginger Rogers from 1934 until 1940.

Thomas Mitchell (1892 –1962) was an American character actor who had a long career in film and the theater. Mitchell was one of the most recognizable character actors in movies during the 1930s and 1940s. In 1939, Mitchell had important roles in five classic films: Stagecoach, Only Angles have Wings, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Gone with the Wind, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Mitchell won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his role as Doc Josiah Boone in Stagecoach.

The Dark Mirror trivia:

• The character of Terry is left-handed (Ruth is right-handed) and the only one of the two that smokes.
• The film is an example of Hollywood’s 1940s obsession with Abnormal psychology and Psychoanalysis.
• It was one of the top-grossing films of 1946.

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

After you watch the film, join us for a discussion on Zoom, November 17, 2020, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time. Click here for information on Zoom links and invitation.

Questions for discussion:

1. Noir or not?
2. Did you think de Havilland was successful in creating two distinct characters?
3. What did you think of the technical aspects of the film (Ruth and Terry on screen together)?
4. Did you consider the choice of music for the music box (“Frankie and Johnny”) and its significance?

Olivia de Havilland dead at 104

As Maid Marion in The Adventures of Robin Hood

Olivia de Havilland, winner of two Best Actress Academy Awards and the last remaining star of Gone with the Wind (1939) has died. She passed away in her sleep on July 25, 2020.

De Havilland was one of the last links to Hollywood’s Golden Age, having starred in so many classic films. Ironically, it was her lawsuit against Warner Brothers that helped bring down the studio system. She sued the studio for adding six months to her seven-year contract and won. Her court victory was known as the “de Havilland decision.” She was blackballed for a time by all the major studios, but she fought back and eventually reached heights few actresses ever attain.

In 1945, de Havilland signed a two-picture deal with Paramount. Her first film for that studio was The Well Groomed Bride co-starring Ray Milland, but it would her second Paramount release that would launch her career to the next level. As an unwed mother who gives up her child for adoption in Michell Leisen’s To Each His Own (1946), she won her first Best Actress Academy Award. Better roles continued with Robert Siodmak’s The Dark Mirror (1946) where she played identical twins—one good, the other a psychotic killer. One of her best roles was as Virginia Cunningham in Anatole Litvak’s The Snake Pit (1948). The film dealt with the treatment of patients suffering from mental illness under severe conditions at a state-run mental institution. The film’s success helped bring about many changes in mental hospitals.

William Wyler tapped de Havilland for the lead in The Heiress (1949). The movie was based on the Henry James novel Washington Square. For her performance, she won the New York Film Critics Award, the Golden Globe, and the Academy Award for Best Actress. Now a two-time Oscar winner, de Havilland’s services were in demand by top directors and studios. Elia Kazan wanted her for the role of Blache DuBois in his film version of A Streetcar Named Desire (1950), but she turned it down. Her Gone with the Wind co-star Vivien Leigh ended up playing Blanche, winning her second Best Actress Oscar in the process. Besides her work on the screen, de Havilland appeared on Broadway in Romeo and Juliet and Candida, taking the latter on the road.

Celeste Holm (left) and Olivia de Havilland in The Snake Pit

During the 1950s, de Havilland starred in Not as a Stranger (1955), receiving top-billing over Robert Mitchum and Frank Sinatra, The Ambassador’s Daughter (1956), and The Proud Rebel (1958). The Proud Rebel, directed by Michael Curtiz co-starred Alan Ladd who would become a lifelong friend. The Ladd family and the de Havilland family remain close to this day. In 1962 she starred in Guy Green’s Light in the Piazza. The film co-starred Rossano Brazzi with Yvette Mimiuex playing de Havilland’s mentally disabled daughter. That same year she starred on Broadway with Henry Fonda in A Gift of Time. The play brought some of the best reviews of her career. The New York World Telegram and Sun said of her performance, “It is Miss de Havilland who gives the play its unbroken continuity. This distinguished actress reveals Lael as a special and admirable woman.” Also that year-a busy one—she published her first book, Every Frenchman Has One about her attempts to adapt to living in France; it became a bestseller.

Olivia de Havilland (left) with Yvette Mimiuex in Light in the Piazza

Her movie career slowed down in the 1960s although she would appear—somewhat reluctantly—in the box office hit Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte with fellow Warner Brothers alum Bette Davis. De Havilland replaced Joan Crawford, at Davis’s request when Crawford dropped out of the film. During the 1970s, she still appeared in films, but she also appeared on television in a variety of productions including Roots: The Next Generations (1979) playing the wife of a former Confederate officer played by Henry Fonda. She won a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film in 1986 for Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna.

This brief obituary of de Havilland is only a small slice of her talent and impact on Hollywood during its most creative period. Thankfully we have her tremendous body of work which will live on for generations to come.

Olivia de Havilland is 104!

Olivia de Havilland is 103 Today!

Let that sink in for a while.

There are few living legends among us these days, but de Havilland certainly qualifies. One of the truly great movie stars from Hollywood’s classical period, she was a contemporary of Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Barbara Stanwyck, Katherine Hepburn, and of course her late younger sister, Joan Fontaine.

Olivia de Havilland (center) in The Snake Pit (1948)

A two-time Oscar winner for To Each His Own and The Heiress respectively. She also gave magical performances in The Snake Pit and The Dark Mirror. And who could forget her as Melanie Hamilton in the all-time classic Gone With The Wind. In the hands of a lesser actress Melanie would have been nothing more than a “mealy mouth ninny,” as Scarlet described her. In the hands of de Havilland, she’s a three-dimensional woman of great warmth and sincerity.

Bravo, Olivia!

Screening of “The Snake Pit” at Daystar Center September 12

“Classic Movie Man Favorites” Series: The Snake Pit (1948)
Where: Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street
When: September 12, 2017
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald

The Snake Pit (1948) stars two-time Best Actress winner Olivia de Havilland, who turned 101 on July 1st!

De Havilland is Virginia Cunningham, an aspiring writer and newlywed. Early in their marriage, she begins to wonder about her husband’s love for her. She becomes confused and disorientated, necessitating her commitment to a state mental institution. Her experiences in the institution are harrowing. The movie had such an impact on the public that many states reevaluated and changed their treatment of mental patients.

De Havilland heads an impressive cast that also includes Leo Genn as a sympathetic psychiatrist and Mark Stevens as her long-suffering husband. The cast is populated by some of the best-known character actresses of the era, including Beulah Bondi, Ruth Donnelly, and Natalie Schafer. The Snake Pit was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress (de Havilland), and Best Director (Anatole Litvak).

The movie is based on the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by Mary Jane Ward. Ward had a nervous breakdown and spent eight months at Rockland State Hospital in Orangeburg, New York. During her care, she was subjected to scalding baths and electroshock therapy, similar to what the Virginia Cunningham character experiences in the film.

Backstory
Director Litvak made sure that all the character actresses in the film were seasoned professionals. He wanted to make sure that they could stand up to a talent like de Havilland. There are dozens of recognizable faces in The Snake Pit, making it a classic movie buff’s delight.

This is part of the “Classic Movie Man Favorites” series.

Celeste Holm and Olivia de Havilland in The Snake Pit

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion

Twice a month we screen classic films and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.

Stephen Reginald is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked at various positions within the publishing industry for over 25 years. Most recently he was executive editor for McGraw-Hill’s The Learning Group Division. A long-time amateur student of film, Reginald hosts “Chicago Film Club,” a monthly movie event held in the South Loop, for the past two years. Reginald has also taught several adult education film classes at Facets Film School, Chicago.

Happy 101st birthday to Olivia de Havilland!

Today is Olivia de Havilland’s 101st birthday. The screen legend is the only surviving major cast member of the Civil War classic Gone With the Wind (1939). She’s also the most famous surviving actress from Hollywood’s Golden Age, outliving her younger sister, Joan Fontaine who passed away in 2013 at 96.

Olivia de Havilland in perhaps her most famous role as Melanie Hamilton
in Gone With the Wind

De Havilland is a two-time Oscar winner for To Each His Own (1946) and The Heiress (1949). Her first Oscar nomination was for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Melanie Hamilton in Gone With the Wind. She received two other Best Actress nominations for Hold Back the Dawn (1941), famously losing to her sister, and The Snake Pit (1948). For The Snake Pit she won the National Board of Review Award and New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress. The Snake Pit exposed the poor conditions in state mental institutions. It had such an impact on audiences in 1948 that many states adopted new rules and regulations regarding the treatment of mental patients in state-run institutions.

De Havilland and her attorneys recently announced that they are suing FX and producer Ryan Murphy “over unauthorized use of her [de Havilland’s] identity in Feud: Bette and Joan.” De Havilland sued Warner Bros. in 1943 over the studio practice of adding the time an actor spent on suspension to his/her long-term contract. Her suit helped end the power and control of the major Hollywood studios which led to their decline.

De Havilland’s first film role was in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1935). Her last big screen appearance was in The Fifth Musketeer (1979). In between there were some great movies and performances. Below is a list of some of the best.

Captain Blood (1935) – her first pairing with Errol Flynn
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) – another pairing with Flynn (their third) in glorious Technicolor

Dodge City (1939) – her fifth picture with Flynn, also starring Ann Sheridan; one of the earliest Technicolor westerns
Gone With the Wind (1939) – her first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress; she lost to costar Hattie McDaniel
Santa Fe Trail (1940)) – one of the top films of the year and another pairing with Flynn
They Died with Their Boots On (1941) – the final pairing of de Havilland with Flynn
The Strawberry Blonde (1941) – a great screen pairing with James Cagney and an up-and-coming Rita Hayworth
Hold Back the Dawn (1941) – on loan to Paramount, she was nominated for Best Actress under the direction of Mitchell Leisen; she lost to her sister Joan Fontaine for her work in Suspicion (1941)

Charles Boyer and de Havilland in Hold Back the Dawn

The Male Animal (1942) – good comedy role based on the James Thurber Broadway hit co-starring Henry Fonda
Princess O’Rourke (1943) – delightful comedy that was a forerunner to Roman Holiday (1953)
To Each His Own (1946) – her first Best Actress Oscar win, once again she was under the direction of Mitchell Leisen
The Dark Mirror (1946) – interesting dual role for de Havilland, playing identical twin sisters, one good one bad
The Snake Pit (1948) – an amazing performance of a woman suffering from mental illness

The Heiress (1949) – de Havilland goes from meak and mild to cold and ruthless in this classic based on Henry James’s Washington Square
My Cousin Rachel (1952) – notable as Richard Burton’s film debut, but it features a finely shaded performance from de Havilland as the mysterious Rachel
The Proud Rebel (1958) – one of my favorite de Havilland performances; she plays a tough woman rancher who befriends a man and his handicapped son

de Havilland with David Ladd, Alan Ladd

Light in the Piazza (1962) – beautifully photographed melodrama set in Rome
Hush…Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964) – interesting film for the pairing of de Havilland with old friend Bette Davis