The Magnificent Yankee | |
---|---|
Directed by | John Sturges |
Written by | Emmet Lavery (play) Francis Biddle |
Produced by | Armand Deutsch |
Starring | Louis Calhern Ann Harding Eduard Franz Philip Ober |
Cinematography | Joseph Ruttenberg |
Edited by | Ferris Webster |
Music by | David Raksin |
Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date |
|
Running time | 89 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $639,000 [1] [2] |
The Magnificent Yankee is a 1950 American biographical film adapted by Emmet Lavery from his 1946 play of the same title, which was in turn adapted from the 1942 book Mr. Justice Holmes by Francis Biddle. The story examines the life of United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.
The film was directed by John Sturges, with stars Louis Calhern, Ann Harding, Eduard Franz, and Philip Ober. Calhern created the role of Oliver Wendell Holmes in the original Broadway production. Calhern began as a leading man in silent films but became primarily a character actor with the arrival of the sound era. His portrayal of Holmes was his only true starring role in a sound film. A grateful Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer purchased the film rights to the play specifically for Calhern in appreciation for his consistently fine work in many supporting roles during his years with the studio.
The film was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Louis Calhern) and Best Costume Design, Black-and-White.
A Hallmark Hall of Fame television production of the same title was broadcast in 1965 starring Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne.
This article needs a plot summary.(February 2024) |
Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes spends his leisure time at his home, where he entertains guests with the assistance of his loving wife, Fanny. His most trusted friend is Judge Louis Brandeis, with whom he spends hours debating the law. When Fanny dies, Holmes is heartbroken and aimless, but he finds direction again by dedicating himself to his court duties and teaching the Harvard law clerks who come to work for him.
The film was well received by critics. While produced on a relatively modest budget, the movie initially earned just $487,000 in the US and Canada and $76,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss to MGM of $471,000. [1]
Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
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Academy Awards | Best Actor in a Leading Role | Louis Calhern | Nominated | [3] |
Best Costume Design – Black-and-White | Walter Plunkett | Nominated | ||
Golden Globe Awards | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama | Louis Calhern | Nominated | [4] |
For his score for this film, David Raksin incorporated the songs "The Battle Hymn of the Republic", "Auld Lang Syne," and a portion of "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square." Raksin also conducted the score. [5]
The complete score was issued on CD in 2009, on Film Score Monthly records.
Carl Henry Vogt, known by his stage name Louis Calhern, was an American actor. Described as a “star leading man of the theater and a star character actor of the screen,” he was appeared in over 100 roles on the Broadway stage and in films and television, between 1923 and 1956. He was nominated for the Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for portraying U.S. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes in the 1950 film The Magnificent Yankee.
Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court concerning enforcement of the Espionage Act of 1917 during World War I. A unanimous Supreme Court, in an opinion by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., concluded that Charles Schenck and other defendants, who distributed flyers to draft-age men urging resistance to induction, could be convicted of an attempt to obstruct the draft, a criminal offense. The First Amendment did not protect Schenck from prosecution, even though, "in many places and in ordinary times, the defendants, in saying all that was said in the circular, would have been within their constitutional rights. But the character of every act depends upon the circumstances in which it is done." In this case, Holmes said, "the words used are used in such circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent." Therefore, Schenck could be punished.
Whitney v. California, 274 U.S. 357 (1927), was a United States Supreme Court decision upholding the conviction of an individual who had engaged in speech that raised a clear and present danger to society. While the majority of the Supreme Court Justices voted to uphold the conviction, the ruling has become an important free speech precedent due a concurring opinion by Justice Louis Brandeis recommending new perspectives on criticism of the government by citizens. The ruling was explicitly overruled by Brandenburg v. Ohio in 1969.
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1902 to 1932. Holmes is one of the most widely cited and influential Supreme Court justices in American history, noted for his long tenure on the Court and for his pithy opinions—particularly those on civil liberties and American constitutional democracy—and deference to the decisions of elected legislatures. Holmes retired from the Court at the age of 90, an unbeaten record for oldest justice on the Supreme Court. He previously served as a Brevet Colonel in the American Civil War, in which he was wounded three times, as an associate justice and chief justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, and as Weld Professor of Law at his alma mater, Harvard Law School. His positions, distinctive personality, and writing style made him a popular figure, especially with American progressives.
David Raksin was an American composer who was noted for his work in film and television. Raksin had more than 100 film scores and 300 television scores to his credit. Some sources called him the "Grandfather of Film Music".
John Eliot Sturges was an American film director. His films include Bad Day at Black Rock (1955), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), The Magnificent Seven (1960), The Great Escape (1963), and Ice Station Zebra (1968). In 2013 and 2018, respectively, The Magnificent Seven and Bad Day at Black Rock were selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Hugo Wilhelm Friedhofer was an American composer and cellist best known for his motion picture scores.
The Unknown Man is a 1951 American courtroom drama film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Walter Pidgeon, Ann Harding and Barry Sullivan.
The Man with a Cloak is a 1951 American film noir crime-thriller-drama directed by Fletcher Markle and starring Joseph Cotten, Barbara Stanwyck, Louis Calhern, and Leslie Caron, and based on "The Gentleman from Paris", a short story by John Dickson Carr.
Philip Nott Ober was an American screen and stage actor who later retired from performing to be a foreign service diplomat.
Right Cross is a 1950 American sports drama film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, directed by John Sturges, written by Charles Schnee and starring June Allyson, Ricardo Montalbán, Dick Powell, Lionel Barrymore and Marilyn Monroe.
Annie Get Your Gun is a 1950 American musical Technicolor comedy film loosely based on the life of sharpshooter Annie Oakley. The Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer release, with music and lyrics by Irving Berlin and a screenplay by Sidney Sheldon based on the 1946 stage musical of the same name, was directed by George Sidney. Despite several production and casting problems, the film won the Academy Award for Best Scoring of a Musical Picture and received three other nominations. Star Betty Hutton was recognized with a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress.
Eduard Franz Schmidt was an American actor of theatre, film and television. Franz portrayed King Ahab in the 1953 biblical low-budget film Sins of Jezebel, Jethro in Cecil B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments (1956), and Jehoam in Henry Koster's The Story of Ruth (1960).
The Oliver Wendell Holmes House is a historic house at 868 Hale Street in the Beverly Farms section of Beverly, Massachusetts. Built c. 1880, this modest Victorian wood-frame house was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1972, as the only surviving structure associated with the life of Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841–1935), whose summer home it was from 1909 until his death.
The Vintage is a 1957 American crime drama film directed by Jeffrey Hayden and starring Pier Angeli, Mel Ferrer, John Kerr, Michèle Morgan and Theodore Bikel. The screenplay was written by Michael Blankfort, based on a novel by Ursula Keir. The film was distributed by MGM.
The Magnificent Yankee is a 1965 biographical film in the Hallmark Hall of Fame television anthology series. The film was adapted by Robert Hartung from the Emmet Lavery 1946 play of the same title, which was in-turn adapted from the 1942 book Mr. Justice Holmes by Francis Biddle. The story examines the life of United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes. Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne won Primetime Emmy Awards for their performances. Eduard Franz reprised his role as Louis Brandeis from the original 1950 film version.
Two Weeks with Love is a 1950 romantic musical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by Roy Rowland and based on a story by John Larkin, who co-wrote the screenplay with Dorothy Kingsley.
Edgar Barrier was an American actor who appeared on radio, stage, and screen. In the 1930s he was a member of Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre and was one of several actors who played Simon Templar on The Saint radio show. He also appeared in two films with Welles, Journey into Fear (1943) and Macbeth (1948). Barrier also appeared in the 1938 Welles-directed short, Too Much Johnson, which was long believed lost but was rediscovered in 2013.
Thomas Francis Kelly, professionally known as Tommy Kelly, was an American child actor. He played the title role in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in 1938 based on Mark Twain's novel of the same name.
The Taft Court refers to the Supreme Court of the United States from 1921 to 1930, when William Howard Taft served as Chief Justice of the United States. Taft succeeded Edward Douglass White as Chief Justice after the latter's death, and Taft served as Chief Justice until his resignation, at which point Charles Evans Hughes was nominated and confirmed as Taft's replacement. Taft was also the nation's 27th president (1909–13); he is the only person to serve as both President of the United States and Chief Justice.
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