Critic Reviews. This page was last edited on 17 November 2020, at 03:01. Zanuck did not feel Baxter's segment was as strong as the other three, so it was cut. They won't know which one until that night. 0 trailer Exclusive content Archival features 1 photos The film"s page. The film was adapted from the novel, A Letter to Wive Fives by John Klempner, published three years prior. Lora Mae grew up poor, not just on the "wrong side of the tracks," but literally next to the railroad tracks where passing trains shake the family home periodically. A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands - but she does not say which one. Equal parts melodramatic and comedic, it deals with issues of gender and class that don't fit into modern society. A man is reunited with his childhood friend and her husband, who believe he knows the truth about the death of her rich aunt years earlier. From the iconic to the eclectic, relive the most memorable moments from the Oscars red carpet. 'A Letter to Three Wives' has been overshadowed by the success of Mankiewicz's magnificent 'All About Eve' which he made the following year, but on release it was a great success, winning Mankiewicz two Oscars for writing and directing, (he was to win the same two awards for 'All About Eve') and being nominated for Best Picture, losing out to 'All the King's Men'. Linda Darnell is wonderful and Paul Douglass makes his screen debut. Rita's flashback recalls a dinner party she gave for Mrs. Manleigh. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Technical Specs. A Letter to Three Wives won Mankiewicz his first Oscars (for Screenplay and Director, both of which he’d repeat the following year with All About Eve, which would additionally net Best Picture), and well deserved each was. In the film, she is shown only once and from behind. I’ve never read the book and after researching the plot, probably wouldn’t if I ever found a copy that is long out of print. A Letter to Three Wives But before allowing the women to be… ‎Watch trailers, read customer and critic reviews, and buy A Letter to Three Wives directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz for $9.99. A Letter to Three Wives was an Academy Award winning film up for Best Picture the year of release. A Letter to Three Wives appears in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1 on this single-sided, double-layered DVD; due to those dimensions, the image has not been enhanced for 16X9 televisions. A Letter to Three Wives Par Joseph L. Mankiewicz. With its biting humor and clever dialogue, 1949s A Letter to Three Lives is a relatively uncelebrated classic. Letter to Three Wives is a romantic mystery. In the novel, Lora May (not Lora Mae) is less a gold digger than a woman who has always been dominated by her wealthy husband; Rita is trying to succeed in a second marriage with a man she has never felt passionate about; and Deborah is a plain and quiet ex-spinster whose "catch" of a husband has been disappointed in her lack of success in society. (Which I don’t know if there was — I haven’t seen any readers who got confused yet, but I also avoid reading as many reviews as possible, so it may be out there). These three wives are boarding a boat filled with children going on a picnic when a messenger on a bicycle hands them a letter addressed to all three from Addie who has just left town with one of their husbands. In 1900, a young widow finds her seaside cottage is haunted and forms a unique relationship with the ghost. Dale O'Connor , Jeanne Crain was a very pretty girl, Ann Sothern was chiefly noted for her comic turns, and Linda Darnell was a memorable beauty--but although all three appeared in popular films none were particularly celebrated for their acting talents until Joseph L. Mankiewicz tapped them for the roles of three society wives in this poison pen letter to both sexes. Rita (Sothern) is married to a schoolteacher, and has committed the unpardonable sin of becoming the writer of a popular radio show that brings her more money than her husband will ever earn. Their individual musings take the form of revealing flashbacks into their interconnected lives. In the letter, the friend says she has run off with one of the three women's husbands. A Letter to Three Wives Synopsis: Lora May Hollingsway, who grew up next to the wrong side of the tracks, married her boss who thinks she is just a gold digger. Deborah grew up on a farm. Three women are going on a trip that leaves incommunicado with the rest of the world and before they leave; a woman who either has a history or relationship with each of their husbands ... See full summary ». To his shock, Lora Mae claims she did not hear a word he said. Directed by (1) Writing credits (3) Cast (29) Produced by (1) Music by (1) Cinematography by (1) Film Editing by (1) Art Direction by (2) Set Decoration by (2) Costume Design by (1) Makeup Department (2) Production Management (1) The first part of Mankiewicz’s never-repeated Oscar double whammy of winning both Best Director and Best Screenplay two years in a row, “Wives” is a prelude on the theme of jealousy to its more sinister sister film “All About Eve.” The film is about three women who receive a letter from their mysterious friend addie, who also narrates the story, telling them she’s run off with one of their husbands, they have to wait until they get home to find out who. D: Joseph L. Mankiewicz (known for "All About Eve") Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Southern [PREMISE - Three wives from a semi-upperclass neighborhood receive a letter from a girlfriend who has just moved away from town. During the day each of the wives recalls scenes from her marriage. Publication date 1985-12-16 Topics Loni Anderson, Stephanie Zimbalist, Michele Lee, family, 80s, wives Language English. Add the first question. One of three women is about to loose her husband to a home wrecker but even with all kinds of both legitimate and false clues you don't find out who until the last minutes of the film. It stars Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, Jeffrey Lynn, Paul Douglas, Kirk Douglas, Thelma Ritter and was distributed by 20th Century Fox.It was nominated for 3 Academy Awards and won 2 Oscars in 1950. "Take out one of the wives," Zanuck replied. However, she is comforted by Brad's friend Rita, a career woman who writes stories for sappy radio soap operas. [5], When Baxter was cast, in April 1948, the film was still known under its working title A Letter to Four Wives. A Letter to Three Wives is an omnibus film, its three stories ingeniously interlocked through meetings among the characters, flashbacks, and the voice-over of an unseen romantic catalyst, the town siren, Addie Ross (Addie's purring, sultry voice is that of Celeste Holm). Posted in Films from 1940, MY FAVORITE FILMS | Tagged 1940 - The Letter, 1941 - The Great Lie, 1942 - Now Voyager, 1943 - Shadow of a Doubt, 1944 - Double Indemnity, 1945 - Leave Her to Heaven, 1946 - The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, 1947 - Out of the Past, 1948 - I Walk Alone, 1949 - A Letter to Three Wives | 9 Replies There is something of a 'woman are silly' theme lurking in the early scenes of … Mankiewicz is understandably considered a writer first – so many words in his movies! As for the other two wives, Martha and her husband locked horns over child-rearing issues, while Geraldine was devoting excessive time and money to her singing career with few results. Joseph Mankiewicz's unique intriguing comedy stars Ann Southern, Linda Darnell and Jeanne Crain as three wives who must wait out a long day to learn which of them has lost her husband to another woman. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career, and he twice won the Academy Award for both Best Director and Best Writing, Screenplay for A Letter to Three Wives (1949) and All About Eve (1950). It stars Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, Paul Douglas in his film debut, Kirk Douglas, Jeffrey Lynn, and Thelma Ritter. Certificate: Passed As Deborah leaves to find Brad and reconcile with him, Porter then tells Lora Mae that, with his admission in front of witnesses, she can divorce him and get what she wants. A Letter to Three Wives [Poster, 842*1200px, 0.28mb] 5 of 26 high-resolution movie posters in this group. Does the Chloe Zhao DGA win make ‘Nomadland’ unbeatable at the Oscars for Best Picture? [5] In October 1946, F. Hugh Herbert was assigned to write the screen adaptation. A Letter to Three Wives lost the best picture award to All the King's Men. A letter is addressed to three wives, Deborah Bishop (Jeanne Crain), Rita Phipps (Ann Sothern) and Lora Mae Hollingsway (Linda Darnell), who are on the beach, awaiting to take a ferry ride, while attending an annual picnic in New York’s affluent Westchester County. Use the HTML below. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the Creative Commons CC0 License; all unstructured text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. Celeste Holm does a fabulous job narrating the film through Addie’s point of view. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. A Letter to Three Wives was a major hit when it was released, winning Oscars for writing and directing and it should have won Best Picture that year as well. Now, however, it seems she's left town for good. As three wives, friends from the same town, board a boat for a day-long charity cruise, they are handed a note from a mutual friend saying that … A Letter To Three Wives TV Movie 1985. Added to Watchlist. On January 20, 1949, A Letter to Three Wives premiered at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands...but she does not say which one. When Porter complains about his wife dancing with another man, Deborah tells him he has no idea how much Lora Mae really loves him, but Porter is certain Lora Mae only sees him as a "cash register." Though this 1080p/AVC MPEG-4 effort from Fox looks like it might have been struck from the same source material, additional clean-up seems to have been performed. The film was adapted by Vera Caspary and Joseph L. Mankiewicz from A Letter to Five Wives, a story by John Klempner that appeared in Cosmopolitan, based on a 1945 novel by Klempner. She forgot that her husband's birthday was that night, and only remembered when a birthday present, a rare Brahms recording, arrived from Addie Ross. Get a sneak peek of the new version of this page. These three wives are boarding a boat filled with children going on a picnic when a messenger on a bicycle hands them a letter addressed to all three from Addie who has just left town with one of their husbands. 1985 Location. She sets her sights on her older, divorced employer, Porter, the wealthy owner of a statewide chain of department stores. In said letter it’s revealed by their friend, Addie Ross (an unseen Celeste Holm), that she’s run off with one of their husbands. Klempner's novel was A Letter to Five Wives. One of three women is about to loose her husband to a home wrecker but even with all kinds of both legitimate and false clues you don't find out who until the last minutes of the film. Search for "A Letter to Three Wives" on Amazon.com, Title: A Letter to Three Wives While the picture is standout in every aspect, there are two factors mainly responsible for its overall quality. Take the Quiz: A Letter to Three Wives. 'A Letter to Three Wives' underwent a restoration prior to its 2005 DVD release, and it was a good one, but the picture quality still pales when compared to this pristine Blu-ray transfer. All structured data from the file and property namespaces is available under the Creative Commons CC0 License; all unstructured text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. When the women return from the picnic, Rita is overjoyed to find her husband at home. Deborah (Craine) arrived in town as a pretty but very awkward farm girl fresh out of the navy and with a wardrobe consisting of a single and very ugly mail-order dress; she has never felt entirely secure. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. At one point, the film was called A Letter to Four Wives. A Letter to Three Wives (1949) - IMDb. A Letter to Three Wives 1949 | Comedy | Jeanne Crain | Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz - YouTube. Which husband… Crime, Certificate: Passed Recommended byMarjane Satrapi. It was very well written and has a good twist at the end. Rita Phipps makes as much money writing radio scripts at night as her school teacher husband does. Expecting the usual loss, a boxing manager takes bribes from a betting gangster without telling his fighter. They work out their issues and she vows not to let herself be pushed around by Mrs. Manleigh. Wickedly witty in script, and remarkably acid in tone, A LETTER TO THREE WIVES would put every one involved in the film firmly on the Hollywood map.Three society wives (Crain, Sothern, and Darnell) are committed to hosting a children's picnic on an isolated island--and as the ferry prepares to depart they receive a letter from town femme fatale Addie Ross (never seen but memorably voiced by Celeste Holm.) She tells him she wants her picture on a piano: her own piano in her own home. As three female friends (Crain, Darnell and Sothern) head off on a day-long boating excursion with a school group, each receives the same letter from town flirt Addie Ross claiming she has absconded with one of their husbands. Each woman is forced to examine the flaws in their own marriages to determine which man has left with Addie. Her husband George, a schoolteacher, feels somewhat emasculated since she earns much more money, but refuses to leave his teaching job, which he thinks is important despite the low pay. Then studio head Darryl F. Zanuck and Mankiewicz eventually decided in mid-1948 to focus on only three marriages, thus retitling it to A Letter to Three Wives. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. An unscrupulous movie producer uses an actress, a director and a writer to achieve success. Select from premium A Letter To Three Wives of the highest quality. Aug 15, 2019 - Explore Elizabeth Ayala's board "A Letter to Three Wives 1949", followed by 1514 people on Pinterest. Addie Ross, leading town socialite, has never failed to make men happy and women miserable. Lora May Hollingsway, who grew up next to the wrong side of the tracks, married her boss who thinks she is just a gold digger. Of the three leads, Ann Sothern dominates with her spirited "Rita"--but Darnell has the best of the script, a series of manipulations and drop-dead quips and ripostes, and Crain is perfectly cast as the insecure beauty who is as out of place as a dove at a gathering of eagles. An uncredited Celeste Holm provides the voice of Addie Ross, the unseen woman who wrote the titular letter. Her first experience with the outside world came when she joined the Navy WAVES during World War II, where she met her future husband, upper-class Brad. View production, box office, & company info. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Now, however, it seems she's left town for good. It stars Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, Paul Douglas in his film debut, Kirk Douglas, Jeffrey Lynn, and Thelma Ritter. And each of the three wives, cut off from the outside world for the day, is left to wonder: when I go home tonight, will my husband still be there? by Joseph L. Mankiewicz 1h43 1949 United States. A Letter To Three Wives TV Movie 1985. In the letter, the friend says she has run off with one of the three women's husbands. Letter to Three Wives Release Date. 100% (1/1) His lover Irene and memories of his past yield him a broader perspective. Publication date 1985-12-16 Topics Loni Anderson, Stephanie Zimbalist, Michele Lee, family, 80s, wives Language English. A Letter to Three Wives (1949) tells the story of a woman who mails a letter to three women, telling them she has left town with the husband of one of them. Watch on Prime Video rent/buy from $3.99. An uncredited Celeste Holm provides the voice of Addie Ross, the unseen woman who wrote the titular letter. They won't know which one until that night. Two wives were lost in the transition to the screen. Rita Phipps makes as much money writing radio scripts at night as her school teacher husband does. Finally convinced of her love, Porter asks her to dance. [5] Vera Caspary adapted the story to A Letter to Four Wives. [5] Melville Baker and Dorothy Bennett wrote the first treatments of the script. Jeffrey Lynn (1909 - 1995) Actor, "BUtterfield 8", "The Roaring Twenties", "A Letter to Three Wives". “A Letter to Three Wives” is director Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s gushy fun deconstruction of 50s domestic life. With Jeanne Crain, Linda Darnell, Ann Sothern, Kirk Douglas. Much has been written about All About Eve, one of the great films of all time with an iconic lead performance from Bette Davis. A Letter to Three Wives maybe a little too soapy and frothy to be much more than an entertainment, but it is at least a very entertaining one. Starring Ann Sothern, Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain. A year later, Mankiewicz won the same pair of Oscars for “All About Eve”; “A Letter to Three Wives” is the deeper film. And what words they are! A Letter to Three Wives is the type of film that could only work in the late 40's and 50's. Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Oscars love directors who write their movies, Biography: Darryl F. Zanuck: 20th Century Filmmaker. “A Letter to Three Wives,” however, was an explosive revelation of his genius. The film won the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and was nominated for Best Picture. The voice of Addie Ross bids all a good night. Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. Rate. 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