1946 in film
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The year 1946 in film involved some significant events, including the release of the decade's highest-grossing film, The Best Years of Our Lives, which won seven Academy Awards.
Top-grossing films (U.S.)
The top ten 1946 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
| Rank | Title | Distributor | Domestic rentals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Best Years of Our Lives | RKO | $10,170,000[1] |
| 2 | Duel in the Sun | Selznick International | $8,700,000[1] |
| 3 | The Jolson Story | Columbia | $7,600,000[2] |
| 4 | Blue Skies | Paramount | $5,700,000[2] |
| 5 | Saratoga Trunk | Warner Bros. | $5,148,000[3] |
| 6 | The Razor's Edge | 20th Century Fox | $5,000,000[2] |
| 7 | Night and Day | Warner Bros. | $4,990,000[3] |
| 8 | Notorious | RKO | $4,850,000[4] |
| 9 | The Yearling | MGM | $4,768,000[5] |
| 10 | Till the Clouds Roll By | $4,748,000[5] |
Events
- February 14 - Charles Vidor's Gilda starring Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford shows audiences one of the most famous scenes of the 20th century: Rita Hayworth singing "Put The Blame On Mame".
- November 21 – William Wyler's The Best Years of Our Lives premieres in New York featuring an ensemble cast including Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, and Harold Russell.
- December 20 – Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life, featuring James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Henry Travers, and Thomas Mitchell opens in New York.
Awards
| Category/Organization | 4th Golden Globe Awards February 26, 1947 |
19th Academy Awards March 13, 1947 |
|---|---|---|
| Best Film | The Best Years of Our Lives | |
| Best Director | Frank Capra It's a Wonderful Life |
William Wyler The Best Years of Our Lives |
| Best Actor | Gregory Peck The Yearling |
Fredric March The Best Years of Our Lives |
| Best Actress | Rosalind Russell Sister Kenny |
Olivia de Havilland To Each His Own |
| Best Supporting Actor | Clifton Webb The Razor's Edge |
Harold Russell The Best Years of Our Lives |
| Best Supporting Actress | Anne Baxter The Razor's Edge | |
Notable films released in 1946
United States unless stated
A
- Angel on My Shoulder
- Anna and the King of Siam, starring Irene Dunne, Rex Harrison and Linda Darnell
- Aru yo no Tonosama
B
- Bad Bascomb, starring Wallace Beery, Margaret O'Brien and Marjorie Main
- The Bandit of Sherwood Forest, starring Cornel Wilde
- The Beast with Five Fingers, starring Robert Alda and Peter Lorre
- Beauty and the Beast (La Belle et la Bête), directed by Jean Cocteau, starring Jean Marais and Josette Day
- The Best Years of Our Lives, directed by William Wyler, starring Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews and Harold Russell – winner of 8 Oscars
- Beware, directed by Bud Pollard, starring Louis Jordan
- The Big Sleep, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall
- Black Beauty, starring Mona Freeman and Richard Denning
- The Blue Dahlia, starring Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake
- Blue Skies, starring Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire
- Boom in the Moon, starring Buster Keaton
- A Boy and His Dog, starring Harry Davenport
C
- The Captive Heart, the first Prisoner of War film from World War II
- Canyon Passage, starring Dana Andrews
- Centennial Summer
- The Chase
- Children of Paradise (U.S. release)
- Cloak and Dagger
- Cluny Brown, starring Charles Boyer and Jennifer Jones
D
- The Dark Corner, starring Lucille Ball and Mark Stevens
- The Dark Mirror, starring Olivia de Havilland
- Deception
- Decoy, a film noir starring Jean Gillie
- Devotion
- The Diary of a Chambermaid
- Dragonwyck, starring Gene Tierney
- Dressed to Kill, a Sherlock Holmes mystery directed by Roy William Neill, starring Basil Rathbone as Holmes, and Nigel Bruce as Watson (released in U.K. as Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Code)
- Duel in the Sun, starring Jennifer Jones, Gregory Peck, Joseph Cotten and Lillian Gish
G
- Gallant Journey, directed by William A. Wellman
- Gilda, starring Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford
- Great Expectations, directed by David Lean, starring John Mills, Jean Simmons and Valerie Hobson
- Green for Danger, starring Alastair Sim and Trevor Howard
- The Green Years
H
- The Harvey Girls, directed by George Sidney, starring Judy Garland and John Hodiak
- Henry V (U.S. release)
- Humoresque, starring Joan Crawford and John Garfield
I
- I See a Dark Stranger
- It's a Wonderful Life, directed by Frank Capra, starring James Stewart, Donna Reed and Lionel Barrymore
- Ivan the Terrible
J
- The Jolson Story, a biopic of Al Jolson starring Larry Parks
K
- The Kid from Brooklyn
- The Killers, directed by Robert Siodmak, starring Burt Lancaster and Ava Gardner
L
- Let There Be Light, documentary directed by John Huston
- Little Giant, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello
M
- Make Mine Music
- Magnificent Doll, starring Ginger Rogers and David Niven
- A Matter of Life and Death, written and directed by Powell and Pressburger, starring David Niven
- Monsieur Beaucaire, starring Bob Hope
- The Murderers Are Among Us (Die Mörder sind unter uns), starring Hildegard Knef
- My Darling Clementine, directed by John Ford, starring Henry Fonda and Linda Darnell
N
- Night and Day
- A Night in Casablanca with the Marx Brothers
- No Regrets for Our Youth (Waga seishun ni kuinashi)
- Nobody Lives Forever
- Notorious, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman
O
- The Outlaw (re-release)
- The Overlanders
P
- Paisan, directed by Roberto Rossellini (Italy)
- Patrie, directed by Louis Daquin (France)
- People Are Funny, starring Jack Haley
- The Postman Always Rings Twice, starring Lana Turner and John Garfield
R
- The Razor's Edge, starring Tyrone Power and Gene Tierney
- Renegade Girl, starring Ann Savage
- The Return of Monte Cristo, starring Louis Hayward
- Road to Utopia, starring Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour and Bob Hope
S
- The Seventh Veil (U.S. release)
- She-Wolf of London. starring June Lockhart
- Shoeshine (Sciuscià), directed by Vittorio De Sica
- Shock, directed by Alfred L. Werker, starring Vincent Price and Lynn Bari
- Sister Kenny, starring Rosalind Russell
- Somewhere In The Night, starring John Hodiak
- Song of the South by Walt Disney, combines animation and live action.
- The Spiral Staircase, starring Dorothy McGuire
- A Stolen Life, starring Bette Davis
- The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, starring Barbara Stanwyck
- The Strange Woman, starring Hedy Lamarr and George Sanders
- The Stranger, directed by and starring Orson Welles, Loretta Young and Edward G. Robinson
T
- Terror by Night, a Sherlock Holmes mystery directed by Roy William Neill, starring Basil Rathbone as Holmes, and Nigel Bruce as Watson
- Theirs Is the Glory
- Three Strangers
- Three Wise Fools, starring Margaret O'Brien and Lionel Barrymore
- The Time of Their Lives, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello
- To Each His Own, starring Olivia de Havilland
- Tomorrow Is Forever, starring Orson Welles
- Two Sisters from Boston, starring Kathryn Grayson, June Allyson, Lauritz Melchior, Jimmy Durante and Peter Lawford.
U
- Utamaro and His Five Women (Utamaro o meguru gonin no onna)
V
W
- Wake Up and Dream
- Wanted for Murder
- The Wife of Monte Cristo, directed by Edgar G. Ulmer
- Without Reservations
Y
- The Yearling, starring Gregory Peck and Jane Wyman
Serials
- Daughter of Don Q
- Chick Carter, Detective
- The Crimson Ghost
- Hop Harrigan
- King of the Forest Rangers, starring Larry Thompson
- Lost City of the Jungle
- The Mysterious Mr. M
- The Phantom Rider, starring Robert Kent and Peggy Stewart
- The Scarlet Horseman
- Son of the Guardsman
Short film series
- Shirley Temple (1932–1946)
- The Three Stooges (1934–1959)
- Popular Science (1935–1950)
Animated short film series
- Mickey Mouse (1928–1952)
- Looney Tunes (1930–1969)
- Terrytoons (1930–1964)
- Merrie Melodies (1931–1969)
- Popeye (1933–1957)
- Color Rhapsodies (1934–1949)
- Donald Duck (1936–1956)
- Pluto (1937–1951)
- Andy Panda (1939–1949)
- Goofy (1939–1953)
- Bugs Bunny (1940–1962)
- Tom and Jerry (1940–1958)
- The Fox and the Crow (1941–1950)
- Woody Woodpecker (1941–1949)
- Mighty Mouse (1942–1955)
- Droopy (1943–1958)
- Chip and Dale (1943–1956)
- Screwball Squirrel (1944–1946)
- Yosemite Sam (1945–1963)
- George and Junior (1946–1948)
Births
- January 5 – Diane Keaton, American actress, producer and director
- January 6 - Cheng Pei-pei, Chinese actress (d. 2024)
- January 7 – Arnis Līcītis, Latvian actor (d. 2022)
- January 16 - Kabir Bedi, Indian actor
- January 19 – Dolly Parton, American country singer and actress
- January 20 – David Lynch, American director
- January 26 – Gene Siskel, film critic, Siskel and Ebert (d. 1999)
- February 2
- Blake Clark, American stand-up comedian, actor and voice actor
- J. E. Freeman, American actor (d. 2014)
- February 4 - Ivano Marescotti, Italian actor (d. 2023)
- February 5 – Charlotte Rampling, English actress
- February 7 – Pete Postlethwaite, English actor (d. 2011)
- February 8 – Alex Diakun, Canadian actor
- February 13 – Joe Estevez, American actor, director and producer
- February 20 – Brenda Blethyn, English actress
- February 21
- Tyne Daly, American actress
- Anthony Daniels, English actor, voice actor and mime artist
- Alan Rickman, English actor (d. 2016)[6]
- March 1 - Lana Wood, American actress and producer
- March 6 - Martin Kove, American actor and martial artist
- March 7
- Dan Grimaldi, American actor
- John Heard, American actor (d. 2017)
- March 9 - Alexandra Bastedo, British actress (d. 2014)
- March 12
- Dean Cundey, American cinematographer and filmmaker
- Liza Minnelli, American singer and actress
- Frank Welker, American actor, voice actor and former stand-up comedian
- March 21 – Timothy Dalton, British actor
- March 27 - Carl Weintraub, American actor
- March 28 – Dianne Wiest, American actress
- March 29 – Paul Herman, American actor (d. 2022)
- April 3 - Nicholas Jones, English character actor
- April 5
- Jane Asher, English actress
- Björn Granath, Swedish actor (d. 2017)
- April 12 – Ed O'Neill, American actor and comedian
- April 15
- Bob DeSimone, American actor
- Michael Tucci, American actor
- April 19 – Tim Curry, English actor and singer
- April 20 – Haruhiko Yamanouchi, Japanese actor
- April 23 – Blair Brown, American actress
- April 25
- Andrzej Seweryn, Polish actor and director
- Talia Shire, American actress
- April 29 – Wayne Robson, Canadian actor (d. 2011)
- May 1
- Joanna Lumley, British actress
- John Woo, Hong Kong director, producer and screenwriter
- May 2 – David Suchet, English actor
- May 9 – Candice Bergen, American actress
- May 11 – Ago Roo, Estonian actor
- May 13 – Tim Pigott-Smith, English actor (d. 2017)
- May 18 – Andreas Katsulas, American actor (d. 2006)
- May 19 – André the Giant, French professional wrestler and actor (d. 1993)
- May 20 – Cher, American singer and actress
- May 22 – Jack Kehler, American character actor (d. 2022)
- June 1 – Brian Cox, Scottish actor
- June 3 – Penelope Wilton, English actress
- June 5 - John Bach, British-born New Zealand actor
- June 8 - Alan Scarfe, British-Canadian actor
- June 12 - Jack Thibeau, American actor
- June 15
- Angela Down, English actress
- Roy Holder, English actor (d. 2021)
- June 26
- June 28
- Bruce Davison, American actor and director
- Gilda Radner, American comedian and actress (d. 1989)
- July 2 – Ron Silver, American actor (d. 2009)
- July 6 – Sylvester Stallone, actor and director
- July 10 – Sue Lyon, actress (d. 2019)
- July 13 – Cheech Marin, American actor and comedian
- July 14 – Vincent Pastore, American actor
- July 16
- Dave Goelz, American puppeteer and actor
- Richard LeParmentier, American actor (d. 2013)
- July 17 – Alun Armstrong, English actor
- July 18 – Dicken Ashworth, English actor
- July 20 - Randal Kleiser, American director, producer, screenwriter and actor
- July 22 – Danny Glover, actor and director
- July 27 – Rade Šerbedžija, Croatian actor, director and musician
- August 6 – Peter Simonischek, Austrian actor (d. 2023)
- August 9 - Alain Dorval, French voice actor of Sylvester Stallone, from 1976 to 2024 (d 2024).
- August 16 – Lesley Ann Warren, American actress and singer
- August 19
- Ti Lung, Hong Kong actor
- Christopher Malcolm, Scottish actor, director and producer (d. 2014)
- August 24 - BP Fallon, Irish actor
- August 26 - Alison Steadman, English actress
- August 29 – Lindy Davies, Australian actress and director
- August 30 - Peggy Lipton, American actress, model and singer (d. 2019)
- September 1 - Susan Backlinie, American actress and stuntwoman (d. 2024)
- September 5 – Dennis Dugan, American director, actor, writer and comedian
- September 13 – Frank Marshall, American producer and director
- September 15
- Tommy Lee Jones, actor
- Oliver Stone, director and producer
- September 18
- Struan Rodger, British actor
- Gailard Sartain, American actor
- September 25 - Drew Snyder, American actor
- September 28
- Peter Egan, British actor
- Jeffrey Jones, American actor
- October 2 – Dale Soules, American actress
- October 4 – Susan Sarandon, American actress
- October 6 - John Hostetter, American actor and visual artist (d. 2016)
- October 10
- Charles Dance, English actor
- Ben Vereen, American actor
- October 15 – John Getz, American actor
- October 16 - Suzanne Somers, American actress and singer (d. 2023)
- October 22 – Richard McGonagle, American actor
- October 27 – Ivan Reitman, Slovakian-born Canadian director and producer (d. 2022)
- October 31 – Stephen Rea, Northern Irish actor
- November 3
- Michael Champion, American singer, musician and actor (d. 2021)
- Tom Savini, American prosthetic makeup artist, actor, stunt performer and director
- November 4 - John Callen, English-born New Zealand actor and director
- November 6 – Sally Field, actress
- November 7 – John Aylward, American actor (d. 2022)
- November 16 - Dan Shor, American actor, director and writer
- Novemb
- Sullivan Walker, Trinidadian actor (d. 2012)
- Samuel E. Wright, American actor and singer (d. 2021)
- November 21 - Andrew Davis, American director, producer and writer
- November 22 – Paul A. Partain, American actor (d. 2005)
- November 26 - Mark L. Lester, American director, screenwriter and producer
- December 1 - Maggie Steed, English actress and comedian
- December 8
- Frank Pesce, American actor (d. 2022)
- John Rubinstein, American actor, composer and director
- December 14 – Patty Duke, American actress (d. 2016)
- December 16 - Charles Dennis, Canadian actor, director and screenwriter
- December 17
- Jayne Eastwood, Canadian actress and comedian
- Eugene Levy, Canadian actor
- December 18 – Steven Spielberg, American director and producer
- December 19 - Robert Urich, American actor and producer (d. 2002)
- December 20 – John Spencer, American actor (d. 2005)
- December 21 - Josh Mostel, American actor
- December 24 - Daniel Beretta, retired French voice actor and singer (d. 2024).
- December 25 – Stuart Wilson, English actor
- December 31 - Margaret Travolta, American actress
- unknown – Omar Al-Shammaa, Lebanese actor, voice actor
Deaths
- January 13 – Enid Stamp Taylor, English actress
- February 5 – George Arliss, English actor
- April 1 – Noah Beery Sr., American actor
- June 23 – William S. Hart, American actor
- July 10 - Slim Summerville, American actor and director
- August 8 – Paul Porcasi, Italian actor
- August 10 – Léon Gaumont, French film pioneer
- August 12 – Egon Brecher, Austrian actor, director
- August 13 – H. G. Wells, British science fiction writer
- August 26 – Jeanie MacPherson, American actress and screenwriter
- August 28 – Florence Turner, American actress
- September 21 – Olga Engl, Austrian actress
- October 8 – John St. Polis, American actor
- November 2 – Gabriel Gabrio, French actor
- November 18 – Donald Meek, Scottish-American actor
- December 12 – Renée Jeanne Falconetti, French actress
- December 25 – W. C. Fields, American comedian and actor
Film Debuts
- Patricia Barry – Her Kind of Man
- Raymond Burr – Without Reservations
- Hamilton Camp – Bedlam
- Gianna Maria Canale – The Black Eagle
- Kirk Douglas – The Strange Love of Martha Ivers
- William Fawcett – Stars Over Texas
- John Hoyt – O.S.S.
- Martha Hyer – The Locket
- Burl Ives – Smoky
- Burt Lancaster – The Killers
- Gina Lollobrigida – The Black Eagle
- Lois Maxwell – A Matter of Life and Death
- Slim Pickens – Smoky
- Liam Redmond – I See a Dark Stranger
- Yvonne Sanson – The Black Eagle
- Emil Sitka – One Exciting Week
- Hal Smith – Stars Over Texas
References
- ^ a b "All-Time Top Grossers". Variety. 18 January 1950. p. 18. Retrieved 3 December 2023 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ a b c Finler, Joel Waldo (2003). The Hollywood Story. Wallflower Press. pp. 356–357. ISBN 978-1-903364-66-6.
- ^ a b Warner Bros financial information in The William Shaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 26 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
- ^ "Richard B. Jewell's RKO film grosses, 1929–51: The C. J. Trevlin Ledger: A comment". Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Volume 14, Issue 1, 1994.
- ^ a b The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
- ^ "Alan Rickman obituary". the Guardian. 14 January 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2021.