Cynthia (film)
| Cynthia | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Cynthia poster | |
| Directed by | Robert Z. Leonard |
| Produced by | Edwin H. Knopf |
| Written by |
Harold Buchman Charles Kaufman Buster Keaton |
| Based on |
The Rich, Full Life by Viña Delmar |
| Starring |
Elizabeth Taylor Mary Astor George Murphy |
| Music by | Bronislau Kaper |
| Cinematography | Charles Edgar Schoenbaum |
| Edited by | Irvine "Cotton" Warburton |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date |
|
Running time | 98 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,318,000[1] |
| Box office | $1,648,000[1] |
Cynthia is a 1947 film starring Mary Astor, Elizabeth Taylor, and George Murphy. It, by Harold Buchman and Charles Kaufman, is based on the play The Rich, Full Life by Viña Delmar.[2]
Plot summary
In school, baseball hero Larry Bishop (George Murphy) impresses a girl, Louise (Mary Astor), and they fall in love. Both coincidentally have dreams of traveling to Vienna, Austria someday to continue their education, Larry in medicine, Louise in music.
When she becomes pregnant, Louise and Larry marry and move to his hometown in Illinois, a small town called Napoleon. He takes a job in Dingle's hardware store and they raise a daughter, Cynthia (Elizabeth Taylor), who has chronic health problems and is quite frail. Fifteen years later, the Bishops are having trouble making ends meet, Larry can't afford to buy the home that they rent, and they no longer have any illusions about the adventurous lives they intended to lead.
Dr. Fred Jannings (Gene Lockhart) has been the family's physician since Cynthia's birth, and he strongly recommends against her doing any strenuous activities. Louise ignores this advice and lets Cynthia take a role in the school musical, but her health fails, causing Larry to be angry with his wife.
Cynthia falls for a classmate, Ricky Latham (James Lydon), in the meantime. Louise encourages them to go together to the school prom - Cynthia's first ever date, over her stern husband's objections. But as the bills and worries mount, Larry loses his patience and his job one day after his boss, J.M. Dingle (Harlan Briggs), objects to his coming late to work. After returning home, Larry tells Louise that they can now leave Napoleon and go to Chicago. But Louise has decided to use her money to buy the house, and Cynthia no longer wants to go either, because she is now going steady with Jimmy. In the end, the family unites to embrace the future, satisfied when Larry's boss comes back, hat in hand, asking him to return to his job.
Cast
- Elizabeth Taylor as Cynthia Bishop
- George Murphy as Larry Bishop
- S. Z. Sakall as Professor Rosenkrantz
- Mary Astor as Louise Bishop
- Gene Lockhart as Dr. Fred I. Jannings
- Spring Byington as Carrie Jannings
- James Lydon as Ricky Latham
- Scotty Beckett as Will Parker
- Carol Brannan as Fredonia Jannings
- Anna Q. Nilsson as Miss Brady
- Morris Ankrum as Mr. Phillips, the High-School Principal
- Kathleen Howard as McQuillan
- Shirley Johns as Stella Regan
- Barbara Challis as Alice
- Harlan Briggs as J.M. Dingle
- Will Wright as Gus Wood
- Minerva Urecal as Maid (uncredited)
Reception
According to MGM records the film earned $1,206,000 in the US and Canada and $442,00 elsewhere, resulting in a loss of $280,000.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study .
- ↑ Article on film at Turner Classic Movies accessed 8 Jan 2014
External links