Book Review: Making The Best Years of Our Lives: The Hollywood Classic That Inspired a Nation

The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) is one of the most honored and beloved films from Hollywood's

Golden Age. It was released over 75 years ago. Author and film historian, Alison Macor has written a very readable narrative on how this ground-breaking film got made.

It all started with a short article that producer Samuel Goldwyn's wife, Frances read in Time entitled "The Way Home" about returning Marines after the war. Goldwyn wasn't interested in making a film like that but he was shrewd enough to register "The Way Home" as a possible movie title.

While browsing a bookshelf at the Goldwyn studio, the director Willliam Wyler came across the novel Glory for Me written by MacKinlay Kantor. Goldwyn wanted to have playwright Robert E. Sherwood adapt the book for the screen, but Sherwood was busy and wasn't sure the subject of soldiers readjusting to life after World War II would be relevant by the time the production made it to the screen. 

Teresa Wright and Dana Andrews in a crucial scene from
The Best Years of Our Lives

Well, Goldwyn was nothing if not persistent. Eventually, Sherwood would write the screenplay and the whole project would come together under the direction of William Wyler, who was at the tail end of his contract with Goldwyn. Amazingly, everything jelled to create a truly memorable motion picture.

Macor has done scrupulous research in putting the pieces together on how The Best Years of Our Lives came to be. From its beginning as an idea to its casting, everything you ever wanted to know about the making of this beloved classic in Macor's book.

Cinematographer Greg Toland and director William Wyler discuss how
to shoot a scene with Dana Andrews and Virginia Mayo.

As someone who truly loves The Best Years of Our Lives (I have my own DVD copy), I was a little uncertain if it would meet my expectations. It did and then some.

If you love The Best Years of Our Lives and/or you love learning how the old studio system worked, Making The Best Years of Our Lives, is a great read and you'll learn a lot.

The book is available from Amazon or wherever books are sold.

• 
  
  Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of Texas Press (June 7, 2022)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 240 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1477318917
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1477318911
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.1 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.9 x 9 inches

Sylvia Sidney and Joel McCrea star in “Dead End”

Dead End (1937) is a crime melodrama directed by William Wyler and starring Sylvia Sidney and Joel McCrea. The supporting cast includes Humphrey Bogart, Wendy Barie, Claire Trevor, and Allen Jenkins. The screenplay was written by Lillian Hellman, and based on the play Dead End (1935) by Sidney Kingsley. The cinematography was by Greg Toland (Citizen Kane, Wuthering Heights, The Best Years of Our Lives) and the music was by Alfred Newman.

Tommy Gordon (Billy Halop) is the leader of a gang of poor kids on their way to being more than petty criminals, is being raised by his older sister Drina (Sydney). Drina works hard to provide for Tommy and to keep him from the criminal element that he seems to admire.

Mobster Hugh “Baby Face” Martin (Bogart) returns to the neighborhood to visit his mother and girlfriend (Trevor), causing commotion and excitement among the young gang members. Dave Connell (McCrea) recognized Martin who was raised on the same street as he, warns him to stay away. Martin ignores Dave.

Dave is a trained architect, but hasn’t been able to gain employment in his chosen field, works odd jobs to make ends meet. He is involved with a rich debutante Kay Burton (Barrie). The relationship is doomed due to the fact that Dave is poor and Kay is used to a life of comfort and ease. Eventually, Dave finds himself drawn to Drina, someone he has known from his childhood.

Will Dave, Drina, and Tommy escape the dead end of their current existence?

Joel McCrea, Sylvia Sidney, and Billy Halop

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 record. 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).

Sylvia Sydney (1910 – 1999) was an American stage and film actress. Sydney was a major movie star during the depression with starring roles in An American Tragedy (1931), Fury (1936), Dead End (1937). In 1936, she starred in The Trail of the Lonesome Pine, an early three-strip Technicolor film. When Sydney made Sabotage, she was the highest-paid actress in movies, earning $10,000 per week. She made a total of $80,000 for that film. Later in her career, she appeared in supporting roles in Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams (1973), Beetlejuice (1998), Used People (1992), and Mars Attacks! (1996) which was her final film role.

Joel McCrea (1905 – 1990) was an American movie star who appeared in over 100 films. During his almost-five-decades career, McCrea worked with some of the top directors in Hollywood including Alfred Hitchcock (Foreign Correspondent 1940), Preston Sturges (Sullivan’s Travels 1941, The Palm Beach Story 1942), and George Stevens (The More the Merrier 1943). McCrea worked opposite some of the top leading actresses of the day including Miriam Hopkins, Irene Dunne, Veronica Lake, Claudette Colbert, and Barbara Stanwyck with whom he made six films. He was the first actor to play Dr. Kildare in the film Internes Can’t Take Money (1937) costarring Stanwyck. McCrea married actress Frances Dee in 1933. The two were married until McCrea’s death in 1990.

Joel McCrea, Allan Jenkins, and Humphrey Bogart

Humphrey Bogart (1899 – 1957) was an American film and stage actor. He is one of the most famous and popular movie stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Nicknamed Bogie, the actor toiled in supporting roles in both A and B pictures for a decade before his breakout role as Roy Earle in High Sierra (1941). Many more film roles followed including The Maltese Falcon (1941), Casablanca (1942), Key Largo (1948), and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948). His career continued with good roles in films like In a Lonely Place (1950), The Caine Mutiny (1954), and Sabrina (1954) co-starring William Holden and Audrey Hepburn. Bogart died from cancer in 1957.

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

To join the discussion on August 15, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to join the discussion on Zoom.

Dead End trivia

• The was the first appearance of The Dead End Kids who went on to make movies under various names until 1958.
• Sylvia Sydney was borrowed from Walter Wanger and Humphrey Bogart was borrowed from Warner Bros. for their roles.
• The set for Dead End was one of the most elaborate and realistic sets ever created.
• Samuel Goldwyn supposedly said of the Dead End set, "Why do directors always want these slums to be so dirty? Clean it up!" Director Wyler convinced Goldwyn that most slums weren't clean. 

Discussion questions

1. The movie was based on a very successful stage play. Does the film feel like a filmed stage play?
2. Sylvia Sidney was a huge star when the film was released. What did you think of her performance as Drina?
3. Bogart was still playing gangsters and second leads at this point in his career. Was he convincing as mobster Hugh "Baby Face" Martin?
4. This film was released at the height of the depression. What do you think audiences thought about when the film premiered?
5. Claire Trevor was barely on screen for five minutes but she was still nominated for Best Supporting Actress. Do you think she deserved the nomination?

Screening of "Stella Dallas" at Daystar Center March 11

“Stanwyck on State Street” Film Series: Stella Dallas (1937)
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street, Chicago, IL
When: March 11, 2017
Time: 6:45 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald


Growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, young Stella Martin (Stanwyck) manages to catch the eye of Stephen Dallas (John Boles), a well-bred business executive. The two fall in love and marry. For a time they’re happy, but after the birth of their daughter, Laurel (Anne Shirley), the marriage begins to deteriorate. Stella wants to go out dancing and rub elbows with the upper-class folks at the country club. Stephen expects his wife to be content to stay at home with their child, a much quieter existence than the life Stella desires. They eventually divorce, with Stella having the main custody of Laurel. Stella is determined to give her daughter the things she never had, but when Stephen begins a new relationship, Stella feels her closeness with Laurel slipping away. Always putting her daughter’s happiness above her own, Stella faces a choice no mother should have to make.

Barbara Stanwyck and Marjorie Main in Stella Dallas

Stanwyck received the first of her four Best Actress Oscar nominations for her role as Stella. Stanwyck was so determined to get the part that she submitted to a screen test—something unheard of for a star of her caliber. She convinced the director (King Vidor) and the producer (Samuel Goldwyn) that she could be convincing as a mother, especially as the character ages into midlife. The supporting cast includes Marjorie Main, Barbara O’Neil, and a very young Tim Holt.

Anne Shirley, who turned 18 during the filming of Stella Dallas had this to say about Stanwyck: “She was prepared to the very top of her ability. Dialogue learned perfectly. Hair, clothes, energy ready.”

This film is part of the “Stanwyck on State Street” series.

Check out the introduction to Stella Dallas by Robert Osborne and Drew Barrymore.

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.

Looking for more "Stanwyck on State Street?" Look for The Mad Miss Manton to screen on April 1. This screwball comedy paired Stanwyck and Henry Fonda for the first time. They made a total of three movies together: The Mad Miss Manton (1938), The Lady Eve, and You Were Meant for Me (both 1942).

Book Review: Hollywood Enigma: Dana Andrews

Hollywood Enigma: Dana Andrews by Carl Rollyson
The University Press of Mississippi, 2012

Dana Andrews was one of Hollywood’s biggest stars during the mid-1940s to early 1950s. A basically decent man, Andrews struggled with alcoholism for decades. His addiction affected his film career; other stars got roles that should have gone to him.

Carl Rollyson’s biography is comprehensive and fascinating. Rollyson obviously respects his subject, however, he is objective when it comes to some of the unattractive and disturbing incidents in Andrews’s life.

Andrews was born in Collins, Mississippi in 1904. His father, a Baptist minister, moved the family to Huntsville, Texas to accept a pastorate there. Somewhat rebellious, Andrews’s pursuit of an acting career was shunned by his strict parents. A talented singer, Andrews also studied opera. As soon as he was able, he moved to California to pursue his dream of acting success. He eventually became a regular performer at the famed Pasadena Playhouse where he met second wife, Mary Todd.

Andrews as Fred Derry in The Best Years of Our Lives,
perhaps his finest screen performance

Hollywood eventually came calling and Andrews was signed by legendary independent filmmaker Samuel Goldwyn in 1938. After some small and supporting roles in films like the Ox-Box Incident, Andrews hit pay dirt as Lieutenant Mark McPherson in Laura, playing opposite Gene Tierney. A critical and financial success, Dana Andrews was now a full-fledged movie star. Success, and all the trappings that came with it, was tough for Andrews to handle. His drinking started to get in the way of his career and personal life. Amazingly, for the years he was a major star, his drinking rarely affected his on-screen work.

Andrews worked with major directors like John Ford, Otto Preminger, Fritz Lang, William Wyler, and Lewis Milestone. If it weren’t for his drinking, Andrews may have starred in the classic films Gentlemen’s Agreement and Twelve O’Clock High, both going to Gregory Peck. He finally conquered his demons late in life and was able to enjoy acting on the stage with his wife. A family man at heart, Andrews loved his wife and family passionately, if not perfectly. Apart from learning a lot about Andrews the man and actor, the reader comes away with an understanding of what the life of a movie star was like under the studio system. As you might imagine, it wasn’t as glamorous as we were led to believe. Rollyson’s work is respectful and objective, painting a rich portrait of one of Hollywood’s most beloved  movie stars.

Hollywood Enigma: Dana Andrews is available at Amazon.com and bookstores everywhere.

Rollyson is a professor of journalism at Baruch College, CUNY. He is the author of more than thirty books, including the forthcoming American Isis: The Life and Death of Sylvia Plath and biographies of Marilyn Monroe, Lillian Hellman, Martha Gelhorn, Norman Mailer, Rebecca West, and Susan Sontag. He is the advisory editor of the Hollywood Legends Series.

Take a look at the Dana Andrews blogathon posts to learn more about the actor and his most famous movie roles by clicking here.

Farley Granger, Star of Hitchcock's "Strangers on a Train" Dies at 85

Farley Granger (1925-2011), star of the Alfred Hitchcock classics Rope (1948) and Strangers on a Train (1951) died on Sunday. He was 85. 

The North Star was Farley Granger's first movie role.

Teenage Movie Star
Plucked from obscurity by a talent scout representing Samuel Goldwyn, Granger starred along side Dana Andrews, Anne Baxter, and Walter Houston in his very first film, The North Star (1943). The plot revolved around the residents of a Ukrainian village preparing for a Nazi invasion in the early days of World War II. Lewis Milestone directed the movie written by playwright Lillian Hellman. Milestone directed the anti-war classic All Quiet on the Western Front (1930). 

The Purple Heart was Granger's second film.

Navy Blue
Granger’s boyish good looks made him an instant hit with film fans. After The North Star, he again starred alongside Andrews in The Purple Heart (1944). After completing that film, Granger went into military service in the Navy. 

Granger, James Steward, and John Dall in Alfred Hitchcock's Rope

Post-War Movie Career
Upon his return to Hollywood after the war, Granger was loaned out to Hitchcock for Rope (1948) starring James Stewart. The film about two young men who murder a former schoolmate for the thrill of it was quite jarring for post-World War II audiences. Considered a classic today by many modern critics, the film wasn’t well received when originally released. Granger went on to star as Bowie in the Nicholas Ray classic They Live By Night (1949).  

Most Famous Role
Probably his most famous role was that of tennis pro Guy Haines in the Hitchcock directed Strangers on a Train (1951). In the film, Granger is manipulated by an obsessed, opportunistic fan (Robert Walker) who concocts a plan to “swap murders.”  The climax on a run-away carousel is one of the most famous in the history of cinema. 

Granger, left, with Robert Walker in Strangers on a Train

Stage Struck
Being under contract to Goldwyn was confining for Granger, who found himself constantly suspended for turning down film assignments. Eventually he bought himself out of his contract so he could pursue a career on Broadway. While he was learning how to navigate the stage world, Granger supported himself by starring on TV during its Golden Age in the 1950s. During this period, he made the occasional film like The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing (1955), but Granger remained a mainstay on the small screen well into the 1960s. Although the stage career never turned out the way he had hoped it would, Granger did have some memorable roles. He starred as the king in The King and I at New York's City Center in 1960 and played John Proctor in the 1964 Broadway production of Arthur Miller's the Crucible.

In 2007, Granger published his autobiography, Include Me Out: My Life From Goldwyn to Broadway, written with his longtime companion, Robert Calhoun.

Loretta or Cary: Who Is more Beautiful?

Loretta Young: a photographer's dream

The Faces of Beauty
Both Loretta Young and Cary Grant were known as much for their classic movie star looks as their acting abilities. Young, a star since the days of silent films, is considered one of the screen’s great beauties. Her big expressive eyes and lovely cheekbones made her a photographer’s dream. Grant’s was the face that the top female stars of the 1930s wanted next to theirs on the big screen.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...
When Young and Grant costarred together in The Bishop’s Wife (1947), audiences were faced with two of the most beautiful and most photographed faces in the movies. With those two great faces on the screen side by side, the question comes up; who is the most beautiful of all?

Publicity photograph of Cary Grant

Dressed to Impress
In the film, Grant plays a very dashing angel named Dudley. Dressed by five-time Oscar-winner Irene Sharaff, Grant looked as if he just walked off the set of Hitchcock’s Notorious (1946). He’s as dapper as, well, Cary Grant. Young on the other hand, plays Julia Brougham, the wife of a Bishop (David Niven). Throughout the movie, Young is dressed modestly, but beautifully. Likewise, her hairstyle is pulled back, simply styled, but framing that beautiful, luminous face.

Vanity, Vanity
Like the public that adored them, Young and Grant were aware of their respective good looks and did all they could to present themselves on screen in the best way possible. The story goes that when director Henry Koster blocked out a two-shot between Young and Grant, both protested that the blocking did not exploit the best sides of their faces. To appease the two stars, Koster had them look out a window in the same direction. This shot satisfied Young and Grant because their best sides (the left sides of their faces) were photographed.

I'm not Paying for Half a Face

 Tyrone Power and Young

When producer Samuel Goldwyn saw the dailies (film shot that day), he was critical of Koster’s decision to shoot the scene in such a manner. When Koster asked Young and Grant to explain why the shot was set up and filmed this way, Goldywn let go with one of his famous “Goldwynisms.” He said to both stars “Look, if I'm only getting half a face, you're only getting half a salary!” Young and Grant, both being freelance movie stars and not contracted to a major movie studio were also conscious of workplace politics.

After that confrontation with the boss, the subject of what side of their faces looked better on film never came up again.

The "Wright" Stuff: Teresa Wright Makes Her Mark

Studio portrait of Teresa Wright

"I only ever wanted to be an actress, not a star."
During the early 1940s, few movie actresses made the impact that Teresa Wright did. Wright was Oscar-nominated for the first three movies she appeared in, a record that no other actor or actress has accomplished. Embraced by the public and critics as well, Wright never wanted to be a movie star.

Muriel Teresa Wright was born in 1919 in New York City. After seeing Helen Hayes on the stage, Wright decided she wanted to be an actress. After gaining experience in regional theater, she decided to try her luck on Broadway during the late 1930s.

Early Broadway Success
Almost immediately, Wright found herself playing a small role in Thorton Wilder’s Our Town. During the play’s run, she understudied for Martha Scott, who had the lead role of Emily. When Martha Scott left for Hollywood, Wright stepped into the lead. After her success in Our Town, she was cast as Mary Skinner in an even bigger success, Life With Father. During one performance, a talent scout from the Samuel Goldwyn studios noticed something special about Wright.

Goldwyn was looking for someone to play Bette Davis’s daughter in his production of The Little Foxes, someone who would be able to stand up to the formidable Miss Davis on the big screen. The talent scout thought Wright was up to the task. Before long, she was brought to Hollywood and signed a long-term contract with Goldwyn.

When The Little Foxes was released in 1941, Wright was nominated for Best Supporting Actress, alongside Bette Davis who was nominated for Best Actress. The Goldwyn talent scout’s faith in Wright was validated.

Hot Property
Samuel Goldwyn immediately arranged for Wright to costar in William Wyler’s production of Mrs. Miniver at MGM starring Greer Garson and Walter Pigeon. After she completed that film, she was costarring opposite Gary Cooper in The Pride of the Yankees, directed by Sam Wood. Both Mrs. Miniver and The Pride of the Yankees were released in 1942 and Wright was showered with critical accolades once again.

During that eventful 1942, Wright found herself nominated for both Best Supporting Actress for Mrs. Miniver and Best Actress for The Pride of the Yankees! She lost the Best Actress award to Greer Garson, but won the Best Supporting Actress award for her role as Garson’s daughter-in-law in Mrs. Miniver.

Hitchcock Comes a Calling
When director Alfred Hitchcock was casting Shadow of a Doubt, he considered  Wright for the lead role of Charlotte (Charlie) Newton. He wanted her for her obvious talent, but Hitchcock also wanted her because she was considered a hot property and her appeal would add to the box office. He was correct on both counts. From the start Hitchcock was impressed not only with Wright’s talent, but her professionalism on the set. Wright’s characterization is a tour-de-force. She begins the film as a naive, innocent girl and ends it as a mature worldly-wise young woman.

Wright is top billed in the Hitchcock classic

During its initial release, Shadow of a Doubt  was a critical and popular success. Today it is considered Hitchcock’s first great American film. Unlike his earlier U.S. movies, Shadow of a Doubt was set in a small American town populated with average people living seemingly average lives. The notion that innocence and evil live side by side would become a popular theme that Hitchcock would continue to explore in later films.

Wright starred alongside some of the biggest male stars of the 1940s.

A Major Star
After working with Hitchcock, Wright became a major star, appearing opposite some of Hollywood’s most famous leading men, including Dana Andrews, Robert Mitchum, Ray Milland, and Gary Cooper (after Pride of the Yankees, they starred together again in Casanova Brown). During the late 1940s, Wright lost out on two important film roles that hurt her career.
  

Pursued is considered the first psychological western.

The Roles That Got Away
Wright’s husband, Niven Busch was a screenwriter and popular novelist. He wrote the best-selling novel Duel in the Sun and adapted the screenplay for producer David O. Selznick. Wright was set to star as the half-breed Pearl Chavez. The role was to be a change of pace for the actress. During production, Wright became pregnant and had to drop out. Jennifer Jones, another actress with a girl-next-door image picked up the role and a Best Actress nomination to boot.

The role of Pearl Chavez was written for Wright.

The next role that Teresa Wright lost, again due to pregnancy, was the portrayal of Julia Broughan in The Bishop’s Wife. The role eventually went to Loretta Young, and again, another box office hit slipped through Wright’s fingers.

You're Fired!
In 1948, Wright made a movie for Goldwyn called Enchantment. Goldwyn had high hopes for the film and Wright had one of the key roles. When production wrapped, Wright didn’t particularly like the result. Scheduled to travel to publicize the film, Wright said she was ill and couldn’t participate. Goldwyn didn’t believe Wright and he fired her. Overnight, Wright was a star without a studio. Used to making $5000 a week and $200,000 per picture, Wright was now a freelance artist during a turbulent time in Hollywood. The major studios were losing money because they were forced to give up their theater ownership, which reaped them huge profits.

Wright was Marlon Brando's first leading lady.

In 1950, Wright agreed to star opposite a Hollywood newcomer named Marlon Brando in what would be his very first film, The Men. The film was an independent low-budget production for which Wright accepted a salary of $25,000. Wright said that after she made that film for that low fee, she was rarely given A-list material again. She still had starring roles in movies, but none matched the quality of her early successes.

Wright Finds Work During Television's "Golden Age"
Instead of giving up on acting, Wright started working in TV during its golden age. She was Emmy-nominated for playing Annie Sullivan in a TV production of The Miracle Worker five years before the film version was made. Later she portrayed famed photographer Margaret Bourke-White in a 1960 TV production. In addition to her TV work, Wright went back to Broadway starring in The Country Girl, Bell, Book and Candle, The Heiress, and Death of a Salesman opposite George C. Scott.

During the 1970s, Wright occasionally worked in films and television. During this period she had roles in Roseland and Somewhere in Time. Her last major role was playing Miss Birdie, Matt Damon’s landlady, in John Grisham’s The Rainmaker in 1977.

Teresa Wright died of a heart attack on March 6, 2005. She was 86 years old.