''They Knew What They Wanted'' is a 1940 film directed by

Garson Kanin Garson Kanin (November 24, 1912 – March 13, 1999) was an American writer and director of plays and films. Early life Garson Kanin was born in Rochester, New York; his family later relocated to Detroit then to New York City. He attended ...

, written by

Robert Ardrey Robert Ardrey (October 16, 1908 – January 14, 1980) was an American playwright, screenwriter and science writer perhaps best known for '' The Territorial Imperative'' (1966). After a Broadway and Hollywood career, he returned to his academi ...

, and starring Carole Lombard, Charles Laughton and

William Gargan William Dennis Gargan (July 17, 1905February 17, 1979) was an American film, television and radio actor. He was the 5th recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1967, and in 1941, was nominated for the Academy Award for Be ...

. It is based on the 1924 Pulitzer Prize winning play '' They Knew What They Wanted'' by

Sidney Howard Sidney Coe Howard (June 26, 1891 – August 23, 1939) was an American playwright, dramatist and screenwriter. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1925 and a posthumous Academy Award in 1940 for the screenplay for ''Gone with the Wind''. ...

. For his performance Gargan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Plot

When visiting San Francisco, Tony Patucci, an aging illiterate winegrower from the Napa Valley, sees waitress Amy Peters and falls in love. Returning home, he persuades his foreman Joe, an incorrigible womanizer, to write her a letter in Tony's name. Tony's courtship by mail culminates with a proposal, and when she requests a picture of him, he sends one of Joe. Amy accepts and goes to Napa to be married. Although horrified to discover that her prospective husband is the portly Tony, she decides to go through with the marriage. However, while Tony is in bed after an accident, Amy and Joe have an affair. Two months later, as Tony plans the wedding, she discovers that she is pregnant. Upon learning this, Tony pummels Joe, who leaves the vineyards. but forgives Amy, and insists that they still be married. But she is unable to forgive herself, so she leaves with the priest who has come to marry them, while Tony looks on, hoping that she will return one day.

Main cast

* Carole Lombard as Amy Peters * Charles Laughton as Tony Patucci *

as Joe *

Harry Carey Harry Carey may refer to: *Harry Carey (actor) (1878–1947), American actor * Harry Carey Jr. (1921–2012), American actor * Harry Carey (footballer) (1916–1991), Australian rules footballer See also * Henry Carey (disambiguation) * Harry Car ...

as the Doctor * Frank Fay as Father McKee * Joe Bernard as the R.F.D. * Janet Fox as Mildred *

Lee Tung Foo Lee Tung Foo (also known as Frank Lee) was a Chinese American Vaudeville performer born in California who performed in English, German, and Latin.

as Ah Gee *

Karl Malden Karl Malden (born Mladen George Sekulovich; March 22, 1912 – July 1, 2009) was an American actor. He was primarily a character actor, who according to Robert Berkvist, "for more than 60 years brought an intelligent intensity and a homespun aut ...

as Red (his debut role) *

Victor Kilian Victor Arthur Kilian (March 6, 1891 – March 11, 1979) was an American actor who was blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studio bosses in the 1950s. Early life, career, and homicide Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, Victor Kilian began his ca ...

as the Photographer

Reception

The film recorded a loss of $291,000.

was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Other versions of the play

This marked the only time the play was filmed under its original title. Two previous film versions had been made: a silent film called '' The Secret Hour'' (1928), with

Jean Hersholt Jean Pierre Carl Buron (12 July 1886 – 2 June 1956), known professionally as Jean Hersholt, was a Danish-American actor. He is best known for starring on the radio series '' Dr. Christian'' (1937–1954) and in the film '' Heidi'' (1937).Obitu ...

in the Laughton role, and an early talkie entitled ''

A Lady to Love ''A Lady to Love'' is a 1930 American pre-Code drama film directed by Victor Sjöström and written by Sidney Howard. It stars Vilma Bánky, Edward G. Robinson, Robert Ames, Richard Carle and Lloyd Ingraham. The film was released on February ...

'' (1930), with Edward G. Robinson in the role. Years later, in 1956,

Frank Loesser Frank Henry Loesser (; June 29, 1910 – July 28, 1969) was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', among others. He won a Tony ...

turned the play into a semi-operatic musical entitled ''

The Most Happy Fella ''The Most Happy Fella'' is a 1956 musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The story, about a romance between an older man and younger woman, is based on the 1924 play '' They Knew What They Wanted'' by Sidney Howard. The show i ...

''. This was not filmed, but was videotaped in 1980 and shown on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

References

External links

* * * 1940 films 1940 romantic drama films American black-and-white films Remakes of American films American films based on plays American romantic drama films 1940s English-language films Films about infidelity Films directed by Garson Kanin Films produced by Erich Pommer Films scored by Alfred Newman Films set in the San Francisco Bay Area Films with screenplays by Robert Ardrey RKO Pictures films 1940s American films {{romantic-drama-film-stub