Margie (film)

Margie
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Henry King
Produced by	Walter Morosco
Written by	F. Hugh Herbert Ruth McKenney Richard Bransten
Starring	Jeanne Crain
Music by	Alfred Newman
Cinematography	Charles G. Clarke
Editing by	Barbara McLean
Distributed by	Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
Release date(s)	October 16, 1946
Running time	94 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1,680,000

Margie is a 1946 American film directed by Henry King.

Plot

Starting in 1946, Margie is a housewife who looks back to her teenage life in the 1920s. Back then, she was a joyful, high-spirited girl living with her dominant but good-hearted grandmother McSweeney. She did not have many friends, except for her neighbor Marybelle Tenor, an outgoing teen who had a relationship with the handsome but dimwitted jock Johnny Green. Margie secretly had a small crush on Johnny as well, but she was more smitten with Ralph Fontayne, a popular professor who taught French at her high school. Meanwhile, fellow teen Roy Hornsdale was in love with Margie and attempted to court her, without any luck. Her grandmother thought he was a suitable partner for her, but Margie had more interest in either John or Mr. Fontayne.

One day, Margie entered a debate competition. There, she was reunited with her father, who lived apart from her. Not much later, Margie went ice skating with her friends, when she suddenly fell. She was helped by Mr. Fontayne, who then realized how special Margie was. When the homecoming dance was finally nearing, Margie's date Roy was not allowed to attend the dance. Margie was devastated, but her grandmother assured her that she had arranged a mysterious substitute. McSweeney contacted Margie's father to attend the dance with his daughter. However, before he was able to arrive Mr. Fontayne stopped by, to tell Margie how well she did on her latest paper.

Margie, who did not know who was replacing Roy as her date, mistook Mr. Fontayne for being the substitute. When Fontayne explained he is merely stopping by for the compliment and that he is actually taking Miss Palmer, who works at the school library, to the dance, Margie burst out in tears. In the end, she decided to attend the dance anyways, escorted by her father. Fast forward to the present, it turns out Margie is married to Fontayne, who now is the principal at the same high school.

Cast

• Jeanne Crain as Marjorie 'Margie' MacDuff
• Glenn Langan as Professor Ralph Fontayne
• Lynn Bari as Miss Isabel Palmer
• Alan Young as Roy Hornsdale
• Barbara Lawrence as Marybelle Tenor
• Conrad Janis as Johnny 'Johnikins' Green
• Esther Dale as Grandma McSweeney
• Hobart Cavanaugh as Mr. Angus MacDuff
• Ann E. Todd as Joyce, Margie's teenage daughter
• Hattie McDaniel as Cynthia

Production

In January 1945, 20th Century Fox paid $12,500 for a story written by Ruth McKenney and her husband Richard Bransten.^[1] For the screenplay adaption, F. Hugh Herbert used elements from the film Girls' Dormitory (1936).^[1]

The male lead was initially offered to Cornel Wilde, but he refused it and was put on suspension by the studio.^[1] Next, Richard Jaeckel was announced as the male lead, but he was eventually replaced by Glenn Langan.^[1]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "Notes for Margie (1946)". Turner Classic Movies. http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=82900&category=Notes. Retrieved 2010-02-03. 

External links

• Margie (film) at the Internet Movie Database