Stage Door (1937)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Gregory La Cava

Writers:

Morrie Ryskind (screenplay) and
Anthony Veiller (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

8 October 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Brilliant In Cast And Story

Plot:

A boardinghouse full of aspiring actresses and their ambitions, dreams and disappointments.

Plot Keywords:

Broadway | Ambition | Boardinghouse | Nightclub | Tutor

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 1 win

Cast

Katharine Hepburn	...	Terry Randall
Ginger Rogers	...	Jean Maitland
Adolphe Menjou	...	Anthony Powell
Gail Patrick	...	Linda Shaw
Constance Collier	...	Miss Luther
Andrea Leeds	...	Kay Hamilton
Samuel S. Hinds	...	Henry Sims
Lucille Ball	...	Judith
Franklin Pangborn	...	Harcourt
William Corson	...	Bill
Pierre Watkin	...	Carmichael
Grady Sutton	...	Butch
Frank Reicher	...	Stage Director
Jack Carson	...	Mr. Milbanks
Phyllis Kennedy	...	Hattie

Runtime:

92 min | West Germany:83 min (TV)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | USA:Approved (PCA #3486) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | France:U

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

In an interview in "Hollywood the Golden Years: The RKO Story" (1987), Katharine Hepburn relates that she was upset that she was given the diminished role of a character that she felt was pointless to the script. Hepburn asked director Gregory La Cava what was the essential point of her character. He responded "She is the human question mark." She then asked what that meant, and he replied "____ damned if I know!"

Quotes:

Jean Maitland: We started off on the wrong foot. Let's stay that way.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Operation Double 007 (#6.8)" (1993)

Soundtrack:

Put Your Heart Into Your Feet and Dance

What happened to the great movies like this one?

Something very sinister happened to movies between 1937 and the 1950s that made this kind of film impossible to make. It's a terrific example of ensemble acting, with no one taking a back seat to anyone else. Ginger Rogers is absolutely amazing, especially after seeing some of the fluffy stuff she did with Astaire. It's hard to believe this is the same actress.

The dialogue zips along with lighting speed including some great laugh-out-loud one-liners. What a wonderful script! Very much like "Grand Hotel" in its structure and shockingly adult themes.

The relationships between all the women are so complex it's hard to believe it was actually made when it was. It makes men look very bad - at best we're imbeciles, at worst, Svengalis. And it has the same kind of uneasiness and disillusionment with the theater that "Sunset Boulevard" had with the movies. I wish there were more like it.