Woman of the Year (1942)

Director:

George Stevens

Writers:

Ring Lardner Jr. (screenplay) and
Michael Kanin (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

19 January 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance | Sport

Tagline:

The picture of the year!

Plot:

Rival reporters Sam and Tess fall in love and get married, only to find their relationship strained when Sam comes to resent Tess' hectic lifestyle.

Plot Keywords:

Love | Reporter | Newspaper | Cooking | Gender Roles

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Spencer Tracy	...	Sam Craig
Katharine Hepburn	...	Tess Harding
Fay Bainter	...	Ellen Whitcomb
Reginald Owen	...	Clayton
Minor Watson	...	William J. Harding
William Bendix	...	'Pinkie' Peters
Gladys Blake	...	Flo Peters
Dan Tobin	...	Gerald Howe
Roscoe Karns	...	Phil Whittaker
William Tannen	...	Ellis
Ludwig Stössel	...	Dr. Lubbeck (as Ludwig Stossel)
Sara Haden	...	Matron
Edith Evanson	...	Alma
George Kezas	...	Chris
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Herbert Ashley	...	Stage Doorman (uncredited)
Dorothy Ates	...	Phone Girl (uncredited)
Brooks Benedict	...	Clayton's Secretary (uncredited)
John Berkes	...	Pal (uncredited)
Symona Boniface	...	Tess' Party Guest (uncredited)
Elfriede Borodin	...	Leni (uncredited)
Jack Carr	...	Fat Baseball Spectator (uncredited)
Ann Codee	...	Madame Sylvia (uncredited)
Jimmy Conlin	...	Reporter at Bar (uncredited)
Jules Cowles	...	Joe the Bartender (uncredited)
Fern Emmett	...	Justice of the Peace's Wife (uncredited)
Lisa Golm	...	Yugoslav Consul's Wife (uncredited)
Carey Harrison	...	Spaniard (uncredited)
Winifred Harris	...	Chairlady (uncredited)
Bern Hoffman	...	Hindu Man at Party (uncredited)
William Holmes	...	Man at Banquet (uncredited)
Ben Lessy	...	Punchy (uncredited)
Murdock MacQuarrie	...	Head Copy Reader (uncredited)
Edward McWade	...	Adolph (uncredited)
Frank Mills	...	Mug (uncredited)
Gerald Mohr	...	Radio Emcee (uncredited) (voice)
Sergio Orta	...	Mr. Yes (uncredited)
George Ovey	...	Little Sports Reporter (uncredited)
Jack Raymond	...	Mug (uncredited)
Cyril Ring	...	Mr. Harding's Chauffeur (uncredited)
Henry Roquemore	...	Marcus P. Calverton, Justice of the Peace (uncredited)
Cy Schindell	...	Pinkie's listener in bar (uncredited)
Harry Semels	...	Mug (uncredited)
Walter O. Stahl	...	Yugoslav Consul (uncredited)
Ray Teal	...	Married Sports Reporter (uncredited)
Harry Tenbrook	...	Mug (uncredited)
Michael Visaroff	...	Russian Guest (uncredited)
Harry Wilson	...	Lubbeck's Bodyguard (uncredited)
Duke York	...	Football player (uncredited)
Joe Yule	...	Building Superintendent (uncredited)

Directed by
George Stevens

Writing credits
Ring Lardner Jr.		(screenplay) and
Michael Kanin		(screenplay)
John Lee Mahin		uncredited

Produced by
Joseph L. Mankiewicz	....	producer

Original Music by
Franz Waxman

Cinematography by
Joseph Ruttenberg

Film Editing by
Frank Sullivan

Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons

Set Decoration by
Edwin B. Willis

Costume Design by
Adrian		(gowns)

Makeup Department
Sydney Guilaroff	....	hair stylist
Jack Dawn	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Robert A. Golden	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Randall Duell	....	associate art director

Sound Department
Douglas Shearer	....	recording director

Production Companies

• Loew's

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1942) (USA) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2006) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Living Colour Entertainment (2009) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1997) (USA) (DVD) (as MGM/UA Home Video)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | Russian | German | Spanish | Greek

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

New Zealand:PG | USA:Approved (certificate #7844) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | Germany:6

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Loew's

Trivia:

Hepburn refused to reveal who wrote the screen play to Louis B. Mayer until after he bought the project from Hepburn. Hepburn was afraid that Mayer would low-ball the two authors (Michael Kanin and Ring Lardner Jr.) because at the time they were both relatively unknown.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the first scene in the bar, in which all are listening to the NBC Radio program "Information, Please", the dial of the AM radio on the shelf behind the bar changes location between long shots and close-ups. It is correct in close-up, at 660kHz, one of the broadcast frequencies NBC used in New York City in the 1940s, and at 880kHz in long shots, the frequency of the New York City CBS affiliate.

Quotes:

Tess Harding: Sam, why can't we sit down like adults and patch this thing up?
Sam Craig: I'm afraid that might become a habit. Then we'd wind up with a patchwork quilt for a marriage.

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions: America's Greatest Love Stories (2002) (TV)

Katharine Hepburn was the woman of every year.

In their first of nine co-star rings, Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy play Tess Harding and Sam Craig, reporters at a newspaper who get married. Naturally, Sam assumes that Tess will "settle down" and just be a wife, but she is very independent, with events to cover all over the world. They sort of forget that they're married.

You just can't beat a pairing like Tracy and Hepburn. "Woman of the Year" moves along like a...I can't even come up with a good comparison, but I basically mean that it's very brisk. It's impossible not to like this movie. You would have to be a full-scale sourpuss not to like this movie. A comedy classic.