Imitation of Life (1934 film)

Imitation of Life
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	John M. Stahl
Produced by	Carl Laemmle Jr.
Written by	William J. Hurlbut Novel: Fannie Hurst Uncredited: Finley Peter Dunne Walter Ferris Bianca Gilchirst Victor Heerman Sarah Y. Mason Samuel Ornitz Arthur Richman Preston Sturges
Starring	Claudette Colbert Warren William Rochelle Hudson Ned Sparks Louise Beavers Fredi Washington Juanita Quigley
Music by	Heinz Roemheld (uncredited)
Cinematography	Merritt B. Gerstad
Editing by	Philip Cahn Maurice Wright
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date(s)	November 26, 1934 (1934-11-26)
Running time	111 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Imitation of Life is a 1934 American drama film directed by John M. Stahl. The screenplay by William Hurlbut, based on Fannie Hurst's 1933 novel of the same name, was augmented by eight additional uncredited writers, including Preston Sturges and Finley Peter Dunne. The film stars Claudette Colbert, Warren William and Rochelle Hudson and features Louise Beavers and Fredi Washington.

The film was released by Universal Pictures on November 26, 1934, and later re-issued in 1936. A 1959 remake with the same title stars Lana Turner.

In 2005, Imitation of Life was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry, and it was named by Time in 2007 as one of "The 25 Most Important Films on Race".

Plot

White widow Bea Pullman (Claudette Colbert) and her daughter Jessie (Juanita Quigley as a toddler, Marilyn Knowlden as an eight-year-old) take in black housekeeper Delilah Johnson (Louise Beavers) and her daughter, light-complexioned Peola (Sebie Hendricks) — exchanging room and board for work, even though Bea is struggling to make ends meet herself. Delilah and Peola quickly become like family to Jessie and Bea. They particularly enjoy Delilah's pancakes, made from a special family recipe. Five years later, Jessie and Peola prove to be challenging children to raise: Jessie is demanding, not particularly studious, relying instead on her charm, and is the first person to call Peola "black" in a hurtful way, making it clear that their childhood idyll is doomed. Peola does not tell her classmates at school that she is "colored" and is humiliated when her mother shows up one day, revealing her secret.

Bea finds it difficult to make a living selling pancake syrup (as her husband had done). Using her wiles to get a store on the busy Atlantic City boardwalk refurbished for practically nothing, she opens a pancake restaurant on the boardwalk (with Delilah cooking in the front window). Later, at the suggestion of a passerby, Elmer Smith (Ned Sparks), she sets up an even more successful pancake flour corporation, marketing Delilah as an Aunt Jemima-like figure. She gives Delilah a 20% interest in the business but Delilah continues to act as Bea's housekeeper. As a result, Bea becomes a wealthy business woman, but all is not well as the story advances ten years.

Claudette Colbert

Eighteen-year-old Jessie (Rochelle Hudson), home on college vacation, falls in love with her mother's boyfriend, Stephen Archer (Warren William), who is unaware at first of her affections. Meanwhile, Peola (Fredi Washington), ashamed of her African-American heritage, attempts to pass as white, breaking Delilah's heart. Peola runs away from her Negro college and takes a job as a cashier in a white store. When her mother and Bea track her down, she is again humiliated to be identified as black and ultimately tells her mother that she is going away, never to return, so she can pass as a white woman without the fear that Delilah will show up. Delilah is literally heartbroken and, in a melodramatic scene, takes to her bed and dies, murmuring Peola's name and forgiving her. The black servants are glimpsed singing a spiritual as she passes, Bea holding her hand at the end. Delilah's last wish had been for a large, grand funeral, complete with a marching band and a horse-drawn hearse. Just before the processional begins, a remorseful, crying Peola appears, begging her mother to forgive her.

Peola returns to her Negro college and presumably abandons her efforts to pass as white. The film ends with Bea breaking her engagement with Stephen because of the situation with Jessie and doesn't want to hurt her feelings while being with him; although Bea promises to come find him once Jessie has forgotten him. The movie ends with Bea embracing Jessie while remembering Jessie's insistent demands for her toy duck (her "quack quack") back when she was a toddler.

Cast

• Claudette Colbert as Beatrice "Bea" Pullman
• Warren William as Stephen "Steve" Archer
• Rochelle Hudson as Jessie Pullman, Age 18
• Ned Sparks as Elmer Smith
• Louise Beavers as Delilah Johnson
• Fredi Washington as Peola Johnson, Age 19
• Juanita Quigley as Baby Jessie Pullman, Age 3
• Alan Hale as Martin, the Furniture Man
• Henry Armetta as The Painter
• Wyndham Standing as Jarvis, Beatrice's Butler

Cast notes:

• Child actress Jane Withers has a small part as a classmate of Peola, her fifth movie appearance.
• Franklin Pangborn appears uncredited as "Mr. Carven"

Theme

The theme of the movie, to the modern eye, deals with very important issues — passing, the role of black servants in white families, maternal affection—and remains very watchable. Some scenes seem to have been consciously filmed to highlight the fundamental unfairness of Delilah's position—for example, when, in Bea's fabulous NYC mansion, Delilah descends down the shadowy stairs to the basement where she lives while Bea, dressed in the height of fashion, floats up the stairs to her rooms, rooms that have been built on Delilah's recipe. Others highlight the similarities between the two mothers, both of whom adore their daughters and are brought to grief by their self-centeredness. Still others permit the audience to view Delilah as a figure of fun, often because of her ignorance about finance or her desire to stay in her humble role, yet by the end of the movie—especially with the long processional portraying a very dignified black community, Delilah has become a saintly icon to Bea and the audience.

Production

Fannie Hurst's inspiration in writing her novel Imitation of Life was a road trip to Canada she took with her friend, the black short-story writer and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston. The novel was originally to be called Sugar House but was changed just before publication.

Universal borrowed Warren William from Warner Bros. for the male lead, but the studio had first wanted Paul Lukas for the part. The actress playing "Jessie" as a baby changed her name from "Baby Jane" to "Juanita Quigley" during production of the film.

Universal had difficulty receiving approval from the censors at the Hays Office for the original script they submitted for Imitation of Life. Joseph Breen objected to the elements of miscegenation in the story, which "not only violates the Production Code but is very dangerous from the standpoint both of industry and public policy." They also objected to some language in the script, and a scene where a black boy is nearly lynched for approaching a white woman whom he believed had invited his attention. Breen continued to refuse to approve the script even up to July 17, when the film had already been shooting for two weeks.

Imitation of Life was in production from June 27 to September 11, 1934, and was released on November 26 of that year.

All versions of Imitation of Life issued by Universal after 1938, including TV, VHS and DVD versions, feature re-done title cards in place of the originals. Missing from all of these prints is a title card with a short prologue that apparently was included in the original release. It reads:

Atlantic City, in 1919, was not just a boardwalk, rolling-chairs and expensive hotels where bridal couples spent their honeymoons. A few blocks from the gaiety of the famous boardwalk, permanent citizens of the town lived and worked and reared families just like people in less glamorous cities.

The scene in which Elmer approaches Bea with the idea to sell Delilah's pancake mix to consumers refers to a legend about the origins of Coca-Cola's success, and has been credited with solidifying into popular consciousness the (untrue) secret of Coke's success — that is, to "bottle it".

Awards and honors

Imitation of Life was nominated for three Academy Awards - Best Picture, Best Assistant Director for Scott R. Beal, and Sound Mixing for Theodore Soderberg.

In 2005, Imitation of Life was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry, and it was named by Time in 2007 as one of The 25 Most Important Films on Race, as part of the magazine's celebration of Black History Month

DVD

Both the original 1934 film and its remake were issued in 2003 on a double-sided DVD from Universal Home Entertainment. The movie as well as the 1959 remake were re-released on DVD and Blu-ray as part of Universal's 100th Anniversary on January 10, 2012.

References

Further reading

• Courtney, Susan (1998). "Picturizing Race: Hollywood's Censorship of Miscegenation and Production of Racial Visibility through Imitation of Life". Genders. http://www.genders.org/g27/g27_pr.html. Retrieved 2007-04-02. 

External links

• Imitation of Life (1934) at the Internet Movie Database
• Imitation of Life (1934) at the TCM Movie Database
• Imitation of Life (1934) at AllRovi
• Screen shots from both versions