Loretta Young & Celeste Holm in Clare Boothe Luce's "Come To The Stable" (1949)
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- Опубліковано 6 вер 2024
- Two French nuns, Sisters Margaret (Loretta Young) and Scolastica (Celeste Holm), come to the small New England town of Bethlehem to build a hospital.
Amelia Potts (Elsa Lanchester), a painter of religious pictures, is puzzled as to why they chose Bethlehem. Sister Margaret replies that they had received a postcard with a reproduction of a nativity scene painted by Miss Potts, entitled "Come to the Stable." Miss Potts' neighbor is Composer Robert 'Bob' Mason (Hugh Marlowe).
The Bishop is unable to help the Sisters financially with their project however, but does give them a small amount of money to tide them over.
They return to Bethlehem, Bob's assistant, Anthony James (Dooley Wilson) offers them a ride from the railroad station in Bob's jeep. Instead, the Sisters borrow the jeep to go to New York City to find Mr. Luigi Rossi (Thomas Gomez), a "bookie", and ask him to donate his land. But, Rossi intends to build his retirement home on the site. However, Rossi's son was killed in action near their hospital in Rouen, and changes his mind. The land is theirs.
In Bethlehem, Bob and his girl friend, Kitty Blaine (Dorothy Patrick), listen to a recording of a new song he has composed when the Sisters come to thank him for the use of the jeep. Bob then announces that he will be going to Hollywood for a few weeks to work on a picture.
Later, the Sisters acquire a three-month option on a former witch hazel bottling plant opposite the Rossi property, for use as a temporary shelter. Eleven more nuns and a chaplain arrive from France,. They all must raise the additional money needed, or they all must leave.
When Bob returns from Hollywood with Kitty and three house guests, he discovers that the nuns are having a produce-and-arts sale in Miss Potts's yard and Bob insists that she evict all the nuns.
On the day before the option is to lapse, the nuns find themselves $500 short of the necessary amount. That evening, after Kitty performs Bob's new song for his guests, they hear the nuns singing a hymn which they recognize as being similar to Bob's song. Concerned about being accused of plagiarism, Bob swears that he first thought of the melody after his Army outfit landed in France four years earlier. Guest Al Newman, a music critic, identifies it as an ancient Gregorian chant.
The next morning, Bob visits the real estate agent and arranges to buy the plant in order to keep it out of the nuns's hands.
Later, Bob discovers that their Mother House is in Normandy, near where he was stationed. When the Sisters ask him to pray for them, Bob is moved to change his mind about their project, and soon he, Kitty, Miss Potts, Mr. Rossi and the Bishop attend the dedication of the temporary home of the hospital of St. Jude.
A 1949 American Black & White comedy drama film directed by Henry Koster, produced by Samuel G. Engel, screenplay by Oscar Millard and Sally Benson, based on a story by Clare Boothe Luce, cinematography by Joseph LaShelle, starring Loretta Young, Celeste Holm, Elsa Lanchester, Hugh Marlowe, Thomas Gomez, Dorothy Patrick, Basil Ruysdael, Dooley Wilson, Regis Toomey, and Mike Mazurki. Final screen appearance of Pati Behrs.
Dooley Wilson is more often associated with his turn as Sam, the piano player, in "Casablanca" (1942).
It was nominated at the 22nd Academy Awards held on March 23, 1950, at the RKO Pantages Theatre, honoring the films in 1949 for Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Loretta Young), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Celeste Holm and Elsa Lanchester), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White (Lyle R. Wheeler, Joseph C. Wright, Thomas Little, and Paul S. Fox), Best Cinematography, Best Music, Song (Alfred Newman and Mack Gordon for "Through a Long and Sleepless Night") and Best Writing, Motion Picture Story.
Clare Boothe Luce story was based on the founding of the Abbey of Regina Laudis in Bethlehem, Conn., which was founded in 1947 by Mother Benedict Duss, O.S.B. and Mother Mary Aline Trilles de Warren, O.S.B. of the Benedictine Abbey of Notre Dame de Jouarre in France. Hollywood actress, Dolores Hart, entered the convent in 1963, later becoming Abbess, and the subject of the documentary, "God Is the Bigger Elvis" (2012).
Noted playwright Clare Boothe Luce (1903-1987), converted to Catholicism courtesy of Bishop Fulton J. Sheen. She was managing editor of "Vanity Fair" (1932-1934), Time magazine's war correspondent during World War II, and conceived "Life Magazine", which her husband Henry Luce (founder and publisher of Time magazine) published. A Republican US Congresswoman from Connecticut (1943-1947), and U.S. Ambassador to Italy (1953-1956). She had a lifelong love affair with Bernard Baruch, an American financier and an advisor to US Presidents from Woodrow Wilson to Franklin Roosevelt.
This is a charmingly entertaining tale is the best of the religious-themed pictures in the post-WWII era, with music direction by Lionel Newman that tugs at the tear ducts.
Loretta Young,one of my favorite actors.So beautiful,so elegant and graceful.
Amazing Actress
I cant put into words the beautiful message and remembering all those dedicated devoted people who have made the world a so much better place for all humanity Thk you very much for this podcast
I wish wonderful miracles could still happen to beautiful souls
What a sweet beautiful film. No romance or violence or baddies - every characters soul is touched for good. Beautiful.
Don’t remember this movie but I’m in with anything with Elsa Lanchester. Thanks for sharing.
Would have been nice to know what happens @1:29:44. just kind of skips a few seconds. Did he give the $500, or offer to buy & donate the building? We're left to wonder.
They threatened to tell the mobster. 😂
I really dislike religion...but I liked this! I mean, what's not to enjoy about a fish-out-of-water movie about two nuns trying to put together a children's hospital whose moral is that you can achieve your goals with tenacity, sweetness and mostly utter naivete? What makes this work is that it's mostly written, directed and played as a comedy; whenever it threatens to get all pious it inserts a joke, or some rowdy kids, or a friendly dog. (My favorite instance is when director Henry Koster puts a cute girl in tennis shorts in the left half of the frame because...well, just because.) Loretta Young (not my favorite actress) is just fine as the sister from Chicago, while Celeste Holm (who made this between two Best Picture Oscar winners, Gentleman's Agreement and All About Eve) as the sister from Paris, adopts a French accent that's really cute and adorable and...oops, I forgot. She's playing a nun. Excuse me! 7/10.
If you take the dogmatic stance then most will now days not embrace the love of Jesus