''Sullivan's Travels'' is a 1941 American

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

written and directed by

Preston Sturges Preston Sturges (; born Edmund Preston Biden; August 29, 1898 – August 6, 1959) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film director. In 1941, he won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for the film '' The Great McGinty'' (1940), h ...

. A satire on the film industry, it follows a famous Hollywood comedy director (

Joel McCrea Joel Albert McCrea (November 5, 1905 – October 20, 1990) was an American actor whose career spanned a wide variety of genres over almost five decades, including comedy, drama, romance, thrillers, adventures, and Westerns, for which he bec ...

) who, longing to make a socially relevant drama, sets out to live as a tramp to gain life experience for his forthcoming film. Along the way he unites with a poor aspiring actress (

Veronica Lake Constance Frances Marie Ockelman (November 14, 1922 – July 7, 1973), known professionally as Veronica Lake, was an American film, stage, and television actress. Lake was best known for her femme fatale roles in film noirs with Alan Ladd ...

) who accompanies him. The title is a reference to ''

Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', or ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'' is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan ...

'', the 1726 novel by satirist

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Du ...

about another journey of self-discovery. ''Sullivan's Travels'' received disparate critical reception: ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described it as "the most brilliant picture yet this year", praising Sturges's mix of escapist fun with underlying significance, and ranked it as one of the ten best films of 1941. But ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' said that it lacked the "down to earth quality and sincerity which made turges'sother three pictures of 1941 – ''

The Great McGinty ''The Great McGinty'' is a 1940 political satire comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, starring Brian Donlevy and Akim Tamiroff and featuring William Demarest and (in her final screen appearance) Muriel Angelus. It was Sturges's fir ...

'', ''

The Lady Eve ''The Lady Eve'' is a 1941 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda.Christmas in July'' – "a joy to behold". Over time, the film's reputation has improved tremendously. Media historian Hal Erickson classified it as a "classic", "one of the finest movies about movies ever made" and a "masterpiece".Erickson, Ha
"Sullivan's Travels" (Allmovie)
/ref> In 1990, it was selected for preservation in the United States

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception ...

by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The libra ...

as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Plot

John L. Sullivan is a popular young Hollywood director of profitable but shallow comedies. Dissatisfied with making such films as ''Ants in Your Plants of 1939'', he tells his studio boss, Mr. LeBrand, that he wants his next project to be a serious exploration of the plight of the downtrodden, based on the novel ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' LeBrand wants him to direct another lucrative comedy instead, but Sullivan refuses. He wants to "know trouble" first hand, and plans to travel as a tramp so he can make a film that truly depicts the sorrows of humanity. His British butler and valet both openly question the wisdom of his plan. Sullivan dresses as a hobo and takes to the road, followed by staff in a bus imposed on him for his own safety by the studio. Neither party is happy with the arrangement, and Sullivan, after trying to lose the bus in a fast-paced car chase, eventually persuades his guardians to leave him alone and arranges to rendezvous with them later in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

. However, he soon returns to Los Angeles. There, in a diner, Sullivan meets a struggling young actress who has failed to make it in Hollywood and is just about to give up and go home. She believes he is a penniless tramp and buys him breakfast. In return for her kindness, Sullivan retrieves his car from his estate and gives her a ride. He neglects to tell his servants that he has returned, however, so they report the car stolen. Sullivan and the girl are briefly apprehended by police, but let free. He and the girl return to his palatial mansion. After seeing how wealthy he is, the girl shoves him into his swimming pool for deceiving her. However, when he insists on going out again, she goes with him, over his objections, disguised as a boy. This time Sullivan succeeds. After riding in a cattle car, eating in

soup kitchen A soup kitchen, food kitchen, or meal center, is a place where food is offered to the hungry usually for free or sometimes at a below-market price (such as via coin donations upon visiting). Frequently located in lower-income neighborhoods, soup ...

s and sleeping in homeless shelters with the girl (where someone steals his shoes), Sullivan finally decides he has had enough. His experiment is publicized by the studio as a huge success. The girl wants to stay with him, but Sullivan reveals to her that he is married, lovelessly, to someone else, having entered the union solely to reduce his income taxes. Worse, the plan backfired, with Sullivan's joint returns higher than when he was single and his wife's having an affair with his business manager. Sullivan decides to thank the homeless for the insights he's gained by handing out five-dollar bills, but is knocked unconscious, has his money stolen, and is stuffed in a

boxcar A boxcar is the North American (AAR) term for a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is considered one of the most versatile since it can carry most ...

leaving the city by the assailant. The thief then gets run over by another train, sending $5 bills raining everywhere. When the mangled body is found a special ID card his valet had sewn into Sullivan's shoes is discovered in the sole of the pair the man has on, identifying him as Sullivan. Great woe in Hollywood follows. Meanwhile, Sullivan wakes up in another city, with no memory of who he is or how he got there. A yard bull finds him and accosts him for illegally entering the rail yard. In his confused state, Sullivan hits the man with a rock, badly injuring him and earning a six year sentence of hard labor in a work camp. He gradually regains his memory. In the camp, he attends a showing of

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

's 1934 '' Playful Pluto'' cartoon, a rare treat for the prisoners, and is surprised to find himself laughing along with them. Unable to convince anybody either that he is Sullivan or communicate with the outside world, he comes up with a solution: after learning of his unsolved "killing" on the front page of an old newspaper, he confesses to being the murderer. When his picture makes the front page he is recognized by friends and released. His "widow" has already married his business manager, meaning she'll have to give him a divorce or be charged with bigamy. Sullivan's boss finally tells him he can make ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?''. Sullivan says that he has changed his mind: He wants to continue making comedies, having learned the value they contribute to society, especially to those who have too little else to bring them joy.

Cast

Themes

The film's primary theme is best summed up in the last line of dialogue as spoken by Sullivan: "There's a lot to be said for making people laugh. Did you know that's all some people have? It isn't much, but it's better than nothing in this cockeyed caravan." The scene in which the prisoners are taken to watch the 1934

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

cartoon '' Playful Pluto'' takes place in a Southern black church; the film treats the African-American characters there with a level of respect unusual in films of the period. The Secretary of the

NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&n ...

Walter White Walter White most often refers to: * Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad'' * Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP Walter White may also refer to: Fictional characters ...

, wrote to Sturges:

I want to congratulate and thank you for the church sequence in ''Sullivan's Travels''. This is one of the most moving scenes I have seen in a moving picture for a long time. But I am particularly grateful to you, as are a number of my friends, both white and colored, for the dignified and decent treatment of Negroes in this scene. I was in Hollywood recently and am to return there soon for conferences with production heads, writers, directors, and actors and actresses in an effort to induce broader and more decent picturization of the Negro instead of limiting him to menial or comic roles. The sequence in ''Sullivan's Travels'' is a step in that direction and I want you to know how grateful we are.

Production

Development

Paramount purchased Sturges's script for ''Sullivan's Travels'' for $6,000. He wrote the film as a response to the "preaching" he found in other comedies "which seemed to have abandoned the fun in favor of the message." The film as released opens with a dedication:

To the memory of those who made us laugh: the motley mountebanks, the clowns, the buffoons, in all times and in all nations, whose efforts have lightened our burden a little, this picture is affectionately dedicated.

This was originally intended to be spoken by Sullivan. Sturges wanted the film to begin with the prologue: "This is the story of a man who wanted to wash an elephant. The elephant darn near ruined him." Paramount contracted with the Schlesinger Corp., who made the Warner Bros. ''

Looney Tunes ''Looney Tunes'' is an American animated comedy short film series produced by Warner Bros. starting from 1930 to 1969, concurrently with its partner series '' Merrie Melodies'', during the golden age of American animation. ...

'' and ''

Merrie Melodies ''Merrie Melodies'' is an American animated series of comedy short films produced by Warner Bros. starting in 1931, during the golden age of American animation, and ending in 1969. Then some new cartoons were produced from the late 1970s to the ...

'' cartoons, to make an animated main title sequence, but this was not used in the film, if it was ever actually produced. The censors at the Hays Office had objections to the script they received. They felt that the word "bum" would be rejected by British censors, and warned that there should be no "suggestion of sexual intimacy" between Sullivan and The Girl in the scenes in which they are sleeping together at the mission.

Casting

Sturges wrote the film with

in mind, but found the female lead—

—through the casting process. Before Lake was cast,

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic sc ...

was considered, as well as

Frances Farmer Frances Elena Farmer (September 19, 1913August 1, 1970) was an American actress and television hostess. She appeared in over a dozen feature films over the course of her career, though she garnered notoriety for sensationalized accounts of her l ...

Filming

''Sullivan's Travels'' went into production on May 12, 1941 and wrapped on July 22. Location shooting took place in

Canoga Park Canoga Park is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. Before the Mexican–American War, the district was part of a rancho, and after the American victory it was converted into wheat farms and ...

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

Castaic Castaic () (Chumash: ''Kaštiq''; Spanish: ''Castéc'') is an unincorporated community in the northwestern part of Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 19,015. For statistical purposes the Census Bureau ...

and at

Lockheed Air Terminal Lockheed (originally spelled Loughead) may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Lockheed Corporation, a former American aircraft manufacturer * Lockheed Martin, formed in 1995 by the merger of Lockheed Corporation and Martin Marietta ** Lockheed Mar ...

. Lake was six months pregnant at the beginning of production, a fact she did not disclose to Sturges until filming began. Sturges was so furious that, according to Lake, he had to be physically restrained.Steffen, Jame
"Sullivan's Travels" (TCM article)
/ref> Sturges consulted with Lake's doctor to see if she could perform the part, and hired former

Tournament of Roses The Rose Parade, also known as the Tournament of Roses Parade (or simply the Tournament of Roses), is an annual parade held mostly along Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena, California, Pasadena, California, United States, on New Year's Day (or on Mon ...

queen Cheryl Walker as Lake's double.

Edith Head Edith Head (October 28, 1897 – October 24, 1981) was an American costume designer who won a record eight Academy Awards for Best Costume Design between 1949 and 1973, making her the most awarded woman in the Academy's history. Head is cons ...

, Hollywood's most renowned costume designer, was tasked to find ways of concealing Lake's pregnancy. Reportedly, Lake was disliked by a few of her co-stars. McCrea refused to work with her again, and subsequently turned down a lead role with her in ''

I Married a Witch ''I Married a Witch'' is a 1942 American fantasy romantic comedy film, directed by René Clair, and starring Veronica Lake as a witch whose plan for revenge goes comically awry, with Fredric March as her foil. The film also features Robert Benchl ...

''.

Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated, versatile stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary '' Variety'', April 16, 1975, ...

, who took the latter part, didn't much enjoy working with Lake, either. However, McCrea got along famously with Sturges, and afterward presented him with a watch engraved "for the finest direction I've ever had." Sturges' assistant director,

Anthony Mann Anthony Mann (born Emil Anton Bundsmann; June 30, 1906 – April 29, 1967) was an American film director and stage actor. Mann initially started as a theatre actor appearing in numerous stage productions. In 1937, he moved to Hollywood where ...

, also was influenced heavily by his experience on the production. There were some minor problems during filming. Sturges had wanted to use a clip from a

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is conside ...

film for the church scene, but was turned down by Chaplin and the Disney cartoon substituted instead. Lake does parody Chaplin's "Little Tramp" character earlier in the film. Also, the poverty montage was scheduled to take three hours to film, but took seven hours. The film cost $689,000 to produce, some $86,000 over budget.

Release

The film was given a pre-screening for critics on December 4, 1941, before premiering in

Jackson, Tennessee Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Tennessee, United States. Located east of Memphis, it is a regional center of trade for West Tennessee. Its total population was 68,205 as of the 2020 United States census. Jackson ...

on December 29, 1941. Its Hollywood premiere occurred on February 12, 1942, at the Los Angeles Paramount Theatre. When the film was released, the U.S.

Office of Censorship The Office of Censorship was an emergency wartime agency set up by the United States federal government on December 19, 1941 to aid in the censorship of all communications coming into and going out of the United States, including its territories ...

declined to approve it for export overseas during wartime, because of the "long sequence showing life in a prison chain gang which is most objectionable because of the brutality and inhumanity with which the prisoners are treated." This conformed with the office's standing policy of not exporting films that could be used for propaganda purposes by the enemy. The producers of the film declined to make suggested changes that could have altered the film's status.

Critical response

''Sullivan's Travels'' was not immediately successful at the box office as were earlier Sturges films such as ''

'' and ''

The Lady Eve ''The Lady Eve'' is a 1941 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda.The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called the film "the most brilliant picture yet this year" and praised Sturges' mix of escapist fun with underlying significance, ''

'' said that it lacked the "down to earth quality and sincerity which made turges'sother three pictures a joy to behold" and that "Sturges...fails to heed the message that writer Sturges proves in his script. Laughter is the thing people want—not social studies." ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' review said that "anyone can make a mistake, Preston Sturges, even. The mistake in question is a pretentious number called ''Sullivan's Travels''." Nevertheless, the ''Times'' named it as one of the ten best films of 1941, and the

National Board of Review The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered an early harbinger of the film awards season that culminat ...

nominated it as best picture of the year. Over time, the reputation of the film has improved tremendously, and it is now considered a classic; at least one reviewer called it Sturges's "masterpiece" and "one of the finest movies about movies ever made." It has a 100% approval rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 8.66/10. ''Diabolique'' magazine said in 2020 "The Girl",

, "is captivating, magical, and extremely sexy, whether sitting on McCrea’s lap in a bathrobe and combing his hair or walking along the road in a hobo overcoat...She wasn’t great with all her dialogue but Sturges made her spit it out at rapid-fire pace and protected her limitations. It’s a performance for the ages."

Home media

''Sullivan's Travels'' was released on video in the U.S. on March 16, 1989, and re-released on June 30, 1993. The film was re-released in the UK with a restored print on May 12, 2000.

The Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home video, home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scho ...

issued a special edition DVD of the film on August 21, 2001, before reissuing a newly-restored version of the film both DVD and

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

in 2015.

Legacy

In 1990, ''Sullivan's Travels'' was selected for preservation in the United States

by the

as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." In 2007, the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

ranked it as the No. 61 Greatest American Movie of All Time. In addition, the movie's poster was ranked as No. 19 of "The 25 Best Movie Posters Ever" by ''Premiere''. A 2010 special issue of ''

Trains In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and transport people or freight. Trains are typically pulled or pushed by locomotives (often know ...

'' magazine ranked ''Sullivan's Travels'' 25th among the 100 greatest train movies. The film is recognized by

in these lists: * 2000: AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs – No. 39 * 2006: AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers – No. 25 * 2007: AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) – No. 61 The two Writers Guilds of America voted the screenplay for ''Sullivan's Travels'' as the 29th greatest ever written, as well as the 35th funniest. ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'', the non-existent book that Sullivan wants to adapt for the screen, was used as the title of a

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

by the

Coen brothers Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...

in 2000.

Adaptations

On November 9, 1942, ''Lux Radio Theatre'' broadcast a radio adaptation of ''Sullivan's Travels'' with

Ralph Bellamy Ralph Rexford Bellamy (June 17, 1904 – November 29, 1991) was an American actor whose career spanned 65 years on stage, film, and television. During his career, he played leading roles as well as supporting roles, garnering acclaim and ...

in the lead role and Veronica Lake reprising her role.

Notes

References

External links

*''Sullivan’s Travels'' essa

by Julie Grossman at

* * * * *
''Sullivan’s Travels: Self-Portrait in a Fun-House Mirror''
an essay by Stuart Klawans at the

Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films." Criterion serves film and media scholars, cine ...

Review
by

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

in ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' (1942) * "Sullivan’s Travels" essay by Daniel Eagan in ''America's Film Legacy: The Authoritative Guide to the Landmark Movies in the National Film Registry'', A&C Black, 2010 , pp. 341–34

{{Authority control 1941 films 1940s screwball comedy films American black-and-white films American comedy road movies American satirical films American screwball comedy films 1940s English-language films Films about film directors and producers Films directed by Preston Sturges Films set in Los Angeles Films set in the Las Vegas Valley Great Depression films Paramount Pictures films United States National Film Registry films Universal Pictures films Films with screenplays by Preston Sturges Films set on trains Films about Hollywood, Los Angeles 1941 comedy films 1940s comedy road movies 1940s American films