Our Town (1940 film)
| Our Town | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Sam Wood |
| Written by | Thornton Wilder |
| Produced by | Sol Lesser |
| Starring | William Holden Martha Scott Fay Bainter |
| Cinematography | Bert Glennon |
| Music by | Aaron Copland |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Our Town is a 1940 film adaptation of a play of the same name by Thornton Wilder starring Martha Scott as Emily Webb, and William Holden as George Gibbs. The cast also included Fay Bainter, Beulah Bondi, Thomas Mitchell, Guy Kibbee and Frank Craven. It was adapted by Harry Chandlee, Craven and Wilder, and directed by Sam Wood.
The film was a faithful reproduction of the play except for two significant changes: the film used scenery, whereas the play had not; the events of the third act, which in the play revolve around the death of one of the main characters, were turned into a dream from which Emily awakens — she is then able to resume a normal life. Producer Sol Lesser worked with Wilder in creating these changes.
A radio adaptation of the film on Lux Radio Theater on May 6, 1940, used the altered film ending.
The U.S. copyright of the film was not renewed after its first term expired in 1968. However, because it is a derivative work from a play that is still under U.S. copyright, it is not deemed to be in the public domain.[citation needed]
Cast
- William Holden - George Gibbs
- Martha Scott - Emily Webb
- Fay Bainter - Mrs. Julia Gibbs
- Dix Davis- Joe Crowell Jr.
- Beulah Bondi - Mrs. Myrtle Webb
- Thomas Mitchell - Dr. Frank F. Gibbs
- Guy Kibbee - Mr. Charles Webb
- Tim Davis - Si Crowell
- Stuart Erwin - Howie Newsome
- Frank Craven - Stage Manager
- Doro Merande - Mrs. Louella Soames
- Philip Wood - Simon Stimson
- Ruth Tobey - Rebecca Gibbs (as Ruth Toby)
- Douglas Gardiner - Wally Webb
- Arthur B. Allen - Prof. Willard (as Arthur Allen)
- Charles Trowbridge - Rev. Dr. Ferguson
- Spencer Charters - Const. Bill Warren
Awards
The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.[1] Scott, who repeated her stage role as Emily Webb, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. Aaron Copland was nominated for Best Score and Thomas T. Moulton was nominated for Best Sound.[2]
References
- ^ "NY Times: Our Town". NY Times. Retrieved 2008-12-13.
- ^ "The 13th Academy Awards (1941) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
External links
- Our Town at IMDb
- Our Town is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
- Our Town complete film on YouTube (Classics movie online)