Carole Lombard, Cary Grant, and Kay Francis star in “In Name Only”

In Name Only (1939) stars Carole Lombard and Cary Grant in rare dramatic form in this marital melodrama directed by John Cromwell (Since You Went Away).

Grant is Alec Walker, a man stuck in a loveless marriage with his wife Maida (Kay Francis). Maida married Alec for his money and his social position; she never loved him. One afternoon Alec runs into Julie (Lombard), a commercial artist with a young daughter named Ellen (Peggy Ann Garner). They are instantly attracted to each other, but Maida stands in the way of their happiness.

Lombard, Grant, and Francis mug for this publicity photo for In Name Only.

Although the public loved Lombard and Grant for their comedy performances, both are believable as a couple deeply in love. Will their love survive Maida’s intrigue?

One of the great melodramas of the late-1930s, In Name Only was praised by the critics. Variety said, “In the steering of the story director John Cromwell has made every situation as believable as could be accomplished in order to sustain the dramatic undercurrent, strife and the beleaguered romance which has developed. Cary Grant and Carole Lombard emerge highly impressive.” Frank Nugent of the New York Times called the film “Soap opera par excellence…blessed with a peerless cast.”

Click HERE to watch the movie at the Internet Archive.

Click HERE to join the online discussion on March 17, 2025, Central Time. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation and link to join the discussion on Zoom.

In Name Only trivia

• Photoplay magazine named Lombard and Grant as the best movie performers for the month of October 1939.
• Katharine Hepburn was supposed to play the female lead and reunite with Grant, but due to the failure of Bringing Up Baby, Lombard was brought on board to replace her.
• The Hollywood Reporter said that Douglas Fairbanks Jr. was set to play the role of Alec.
• Lombard insisted on casting her friend Kay Francis in the role of Maida after Francis was dropped from Warner Bros.
• The home used as the location for the garden party, is the front portico of the old Selznick Studio in Culver City, where Gone with the Wind (1939) was being filmed at the same time as In Name Only.
• This was Peggy Ann Garner’s first credited role.
• In Name Only premiered in New York at the city’s famed Radio City Music Hall on August 4, 1939 where it was held over for several weeks.

Discussion questions

1. What did you think of the acting of Grant and Lombard? Were they convincing
2. Was Lombard right to insist that Kay Francis play the part of Maida? Was Francis convincing as the gold-digging wife?
3. Was the romantic triangle realistic and/or believable?
4. Charles Coburn did a rare dramatic turn as the father of Alec. What did you think of his performance?
5. Was there anything about this film that surprised you?
6. Did In Name Only remind you of any other films?

Great Films of 1939: "In Name Only" June 11 at Daystar Center

Great films of 1939: In Name Only
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street, Chicago, IL
When: June 11, 2016
Time: 6:45 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald

In Name Only (1939) stars Carole Lombard and Cary Grant in rare dramatic form in this marital melodrama directed by John Cromwell (Since You Went Away).

Grant is Alec Walker, a man stuck in a loveless marriage with his wife Maida (Kay Francis). Maida married Alec for his money and his social position; she never loved him. One afternoon Alec runs into Julie (Lombard), a commercial artist with a young daughter named Ellen (Peggy Ann Garner). They are instantly attracted to each other, but Maida stands in the way of their happiness.

Carole Lombard, Cary Grant and Kay Francis mug for the camera in this
publicity photo for In Name Only

Although the public loved Lombard and Grant for their comedy performances, both are believable as a couple deeply in love. Will their love survive Maida’s intrigue?

One of the great melodramas of the late-1930s, In Name Only was praised by the critics. Variety said, “In the steering of the story director John Cromwell has made every situation as believable as could be accomplished in order to sustain the dramatic undercurrent, strife and the beleaguered romance which has developed. Cary Grant and Carole Lombard emerge highly impressive.” Frank Nugent of the New York Times called the film “Soap opera par excellence…blessed with a peerless cast.”

In Name Only premiered in New York at the city’s famed Radio City Music Hall on August 4, 1939 where it was held over for several weeks.

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

Before the movie, grab a cup of coffee from Overflow Coffee Bar, located within the Daystar Center. 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.

Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

Classic Movie Man's Favorite Christmas Movies: 2013 Edition

It’s become an annual feature on this blog to write about my favorite classic Christmas movies. In the movies, the Christmas season can be portrayed as incredibly sentimental, sad or tragic. Here are a few classics that use the holiday as a backdrop to the overall narrative. This list includes some of my favorite movies, featuring some of Hollywood’s legendary stars—like they don’t make any more. Enjoy!


Little Women—1933 The definitive version of the Louisa May Alcott novel stars Katharine Hepburn and
Joan Bennett as Jo and Amy March respectively. Set during and after the American Civil War, the story centers around the March sisters and their mother, Marmee. Their lives are turned upside down while Mr. March is away from home, fighting for the Union Army. Surviving without Mr. March is a challenge for Marmee and the girls who are beholden to their rich Aunt March, played by the always enjoyable, Edna May Oliver. During the Christmas season, the girls don’t receive much in the way of gifts, but they share a love and bond that make the spirit of the holiday rich and meaningful. A wonderful film to watch any time of the year, but it really glows around Christmas time. Little Women also features one of Hepburn’s best performances. Other standouts in the cast include, Bennett, Frances Dee as Meg, Jean Parker as the doomed Beth, Spring Byington as Marmee, and Paul Lukas as Professor Bhaer.

Backstory: Little Women has been remade several times for television and for theatrical release. After the 1933 version, the 1949 Little Women with June Allyson, Peter Lawford, Margaret O’Brien, Elizabeth Taylor, and Janet Leigh is worth watching too. Filmed in glorious M-G-M Technicolor, it looks like a Christmas postcard.

Ching-Ching on Christmas morning 

Stowaway—1936 This popular Shirley Temple vehicle was considered one of her best when released. Temple plays Barbara “Ching-Ching” Stewart, an orphan living in China. While in Shanghai, Ching-Ching becomes a stowaway on the same ship as Tommy Randall (Robert Young), a rich playboy traveling around the world by luxury liner. Also on board is Susan Parker (Alice Faye), the traveling companion to Mrs. Hope, the mother of Susan’s ex-fiance. Of course Tommy and Susan fall in love and adopt little Ching-Ching. Along the way there are some nice tunes for Temple and Fay to sing, including “Goodnight My Love” and “That’s What I Want for Christmas.” The latter is sung during the last few minutes of the movie as the new family celebrates the Christmas holiday together for the very first time. The song, along with the film, was enormously popular. As Temple movies go, this is one of my favorites. Young and Faye have a warm and realistic chemistry on screen and the film includes the wonderful Arthur Treacher, part of the “Shirley Temple Stock Company.” If you’ve never seen a Temple film before, this is a good one to watch as a primer.

Backstory: The New York Times reviewer thought Stowaway was Temple’s best film since Little Miss Marker (1934). Temple followed up this hit with two blockbusters in 1937:  Wee Willie Winkie directed by John Ford and Heidi directed by Allan Dwan.

Carole Lombard, Cary Grant, and Kay Francis make up
the triangle In Name Only.

In Name Only—1939 This movie melodramatic stars popular screwball comedy icons Carole Lombard and Cary Grant. Kay Francis also stars as Grant’s wife, more interested in money and position than love. Grant plays Alec Walker, a rich businessman from a well-respected family. Discouraged and despondent over his loveless marriage to Maida (Francis), Alec’s spirits are temporarily lifted when he runs into Julie Eden (Lombard) and her young daughter, Ellen (an unbilled Peggy Ann Garner). Julie is a widow and a commercial artist in New York City. Alec and Julie meet by accident, and develop a friendship that quickly turns into love. Julie realizing there is no future with a married man tries to break things off, but Alec is persistent. Maida has so manipulated Alec’s parents that they cannot see her deception. They take her side against their own son and look down their noses at Julie. When Maida refuses to give Alec a divorce, all seems lost. On Christmas Eve, Alec gets himself good and drunk and he ends up sick with pneumonia (thanks to sitting in front of an open window all night). In the hospital, Alec asks for Julie. Julie goes to be by his side, but is shunned by Alec’s parents and their family doctor. At the hospital, Julie confronts Maida. Maida reveals to Julie that she never loved Alec and that she’s holding out for the old man’s money, just as Mr. and Mrs. Walker enter the hospital room and hear their duplicitous daughter-in-law’s scheme. Alec’s parents finally wise to Maida declare that she won’t get a penny of their money. This event frees Alec and Julie to be together, enabling them to share a very Merry Christmas, even if it’s in a hospital room.

Backstory: Kay Francis was one of the biggest movie stars in the world in the early and mid 1930s. At the time this film was released, her career was on a downward spiral. Lombard who knew Francis from her Paramount contract days, offered Francis the plum role of Maida and gave her equal billing with herself and Cary Grant. The New York Times called the film “soap opera par excellence, blessed with a peerless cast.”

Irena (Simone Simon) sings carols in the snow.

The Curse of the Cat People—1944 A Christmas movie you say? Yes, indeed! As a sequel to Cat People, it stands on its own merits as an original work of movie storytelling. The film concerns the story of Amy (Ann Carter), an introverted little girl who spends all her time daydreaming. She conjures up an imaginary friend Irena (Simone Simon), the late first wife of her father (Kent Smith), something that baffles her parents, since Irena’s name has never been mentioned in their house. Amy also befriends Mrs. Farren, (Julia Dean) an elderly woman who is estranged from her own daughter, Barbara (Elizabeth Russell) who is desperate for some emotional connection to her mother. During the Christmas holiday, Amy sees Irena in her backyard in a beautiful gown. As party guests inside Amy’s house are singing carols, Irena sings a carol to Amy in French. Shortly after this event, Irena tells Amy that she is leaving her and she won’t be visiting her again. Distraught by this news and her parents growing frustration with what to do, Amy runs away from home during a snowstorm. She ends up at the home of Mrs. Farren, hoping to find some comfort. She does for a moment until Mrs. Farren drops dead before her. Barbara approaches Amy with murder in her eyes, but suddenly melts when Amy, imagines that Barbara is Irena—calling her “my friend.” Instead of straggling the child, which is what we think is about to happen, Barbara returns the embrace that Amy gives her, her features and body language softening. The Curse of the Cat People is an interesting look at the imaginary life of a child and the parent-child relationship.

Backstory: This was the first film to be directed by Robert Wise (West Side Story, The Sound of Music) who took over for the original director, Gunther von Fritsch. The New York Time’s Bosley Crowther called the film “a rare departure from the ordinary run of horror films [which] emerges as an oddly touching study of the working of a sensitive child’s mind.”

The poster gives you an idea that all is not too, too serious!

Lady on a Train—1945 This interesting mix of film noir and screwball comedy stars a very blond Deanna Durbin as a young women on her way to New York during the Christmas holiday. Traveling to Grand Central Station, debutante Nikki Collins (Durbin) witnesses a murder from her train car window. When the police ignore her story as the tale of someone with an overactive imagination, Nikki solicits the help of mystery novelist Wayne Morgan (David Bruce). Nikki tries to figure out who killed Josiah Waring and why? She suspects Arnold Waring (Dan Duryea), but there’s something odd about Arnold’s cousin, Jonathan Waring (Ralph Bellamy). Of course Deanna gets to sing several songs, including “Give Me a Little Kiss,” and “Night and Day,” while she’s sleuthing. She sings the Christmas hymn “Silent Night” to her father (who is never seen) over the telephone. Durbin sings the carol, reclining on her hotel bed bathed in the most becoming movie star lighting imaginable. As the plot thickens and Nikki gets closer to the truth her own life is in peril. The movie features a supporting cast of film noir and screwball comedy pros, including the aforementioned Duryea and Bellamy, Edward Everett Horton, Elizabeth Patterson, and William Frawley. The film moves along at a clip and balances the serious with the comedy well. A treat for Durbin fans for sure, but it should also please fans of film noir and screwball comedies as well.

Backstory: Deanna Durbin married the French director, Charles David (her third husband). She abandoned her Hollywood career in 1948, married David in 1950 and together they relocated to France where she remained until her death in 2013.

There are so many great classic movies to watch during the holidays. The above are just a small sampling. For a list of some other classic Christmas movies, click on the links below.

Classic Movie Man's Favorite Christmas Movies
Classic Movie Man’s Favorite Christmas Movies: 2011 Edition
Classic Movie Man’s Favorite Christmas Movies: 2012 Edition