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The Philadelphia Story (film)
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==Reception== ===Release=== [[File:Philadelphia Story, The - (Trailer).ogv|thumb|Theatrical trailer]] The film premiered in New York City on December 26, 1940 and was shown in select theaters in December, but MGM had agreed to hold its general release until January 1941 to avoid competition with the stage play<ref name="tcmnotes" /> that was touring the country.<ref name="ibdb" /> It entered general American release on January 17, 1941.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Philadelphia Story β Overview |url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/12778/the-philadelphia-story#overview |website=Turner Classic Movies}}</ref> It broke a box-office record at [[Radio City Music Hall]] by earning $600,000 in just six weeks.{{Citation needed|date=April 2023}} According to MGM records, the film earned $2,374,000 in the U.S. and Canada, and $885,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $1,272,000.<ref name="Mannix" /> ===Critical reception=== [[File:Philadelphia Story 12.jpg|thumb|Grant as C.K. Dexter Haven, and John Howard as George Kittredge]]Writing for ''The New York Times'' in 1940, [[Bosley Crowther]] wrote that the film "has just about everything that a blue-chip comedy should haveβa witty, romantic script derived by Donald Ogden Stewart out of Philip Barry's successful play; the flavor of high-society elegance, in which the patrons invariably luxuriate; and a splendid cast of performers headed by Hepburn, Stewart, and Grant. If it doesn't play out this year and well along into next, they should turn the [[Radio City Music Hall|Music Hall]] into a shooting gallery ... Metro and Director George Cukor have graciously made it apparent, in the words of a character, that one of 'the prettiest sights in this pretty world is the privileged classes enjoying their privileges'. And so, in this instance, will you, too."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Crowther |first=Bosley |author-link=Bosley Crowther |date=December 27, 1940 |title=A Splendid Cast Adorns the Screen Version of 'The Philadelphia Story' at the Music Hall |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F04E0D71F3CE73ABC4F51DFB467838B659EDE |access-date=December 18, 2011 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> [[Life (magazine)|''Life'']] named ''The Philadelphia Story'' its film of the week in January 1941, describing it as "among the best funny pictures" of the year.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=Jan 6, 1941 |title=Movie of the week: The Philadelphia Story |pages=31 |magazine=LIFE |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M0oEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA31 |access-date=April 26, 2023}}</ref> The film has a [[List of films with a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes|100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes]] based on 101 reviews, with an average rating of 9/10. The consensus reads: "Offering a wonderfully witty script, spotless direction from George Cukor, and typically excellent lead performances, ''The Philadelphia Story'' is an unqualified classic."<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 1, 1940 |title=The Philadelphia Story |url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/philadelphia_story/ |access-date=June 10, 2021 |website=Rotten Tomatoes}}</ref> Rotten Tomatoes has also ranked it as the best [[romantic comedy]] of all time.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Best Romantic Comedies |url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/guides/best_romantic_comedies/# |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211145650/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/guides/best_romantic_comedies/ |archive-date=February 11, 2009 |website=Rotten Tomatoes}}</ref> {{Metacritic film prose|96|13|access-date=March 7, 2025}}<ref>{{Cite Metacritic |title=The Philadelphia Story |id=the-philadelphia-story |type=movie |access-date=March 7, 2025}}</ref> The film was the last of four starring Grant and Hepburn following ''[[Sylvia Scarlett]]'' (1935), ''[[Bringing Up Baby]]'' (1938), and ''[[Holiday (1938 film)|Holiday]]'' (1938). ===Awards and nominations=== The film was nominated for six [[Academy Award]]s, winning two ([[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] and [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]). [[James Stewart]] did not expect to win and felt that the award was given to him as compensation for his role in ''[[Mr. Smith Goes to Washington]]'' the previous year.<ref name=tcmarticle /> Stewart later provided his [[Oscar statue]] for use in his father's hardware store in [[Indiana, Pennsylvania]], where it was displayed for many years.<ref name="Campisi Love">{{cite news |last1=Campisi |first1=Gloria |title=TOWN'S LOVE FOR STEWART NEVER FALTERED |url=https://greensboro.com/towns-love-for-stewart-never-faltered/article_e7fa5dc6-f788-56db-9a70-69d03c33d2cf.html |access-date=December 25, 2024 |work=Greensboro News & Record |date=July 3, 1997}}</ref><ref name="Life Hero">{{cite web |title=Jimmy Stewart, 1945: A War Hero Comes Home |date=April 29, 2013 |url=https://www.life.com/people/jimmy-stewart-photos-of-a-world-war-ii-hero-homecoming-1945/ |publisher=Life Magazine |access-date=December 25, 2024}}</ref> {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" |- ! Award ! scope="col" style="width:30%;"| Category ! Nominee(s) ! Result ! Ref. |- | rowspan="6"| [[13th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]] | [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Outstanding Production]] | [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] | {{nom}} | align="center" rowspan="6"| <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1941 |title=The 13th Academy Awards (1941) Nominees and Winners |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |access-date=August 12, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706093728/http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/legacy/ceremony/13th-winners.html |archive-date=July 6, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> |- | [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]] | [[George Cukor]] | {{nom}} |- | [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] | [[James Stewart]] | {{won}} |- | [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] | [[Katharine Hepburn]] | {{nom}} |- | [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress|Best Supporting Actress]] | [[Ruth Hussey]] | {{nom}} |- | [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Screenplay]] | [[Donald Ogden Stewart]] | {{won}} |- | [[National Film Preservation Board]] | colspan="2"| [[National Film Registry]] | {{won|Inducted}} | align="center"| <ref name=":2" /> |- | rowspan="2"| [[1940 New York Film Critics Circle Awards|New York Film Critics Circle Awards]] | colspan="2"| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film|Best Film]] | {{nom}} | align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nyfcc.com/awards/?awardyear=1940 |title=New York Film Critics Circle Awards: 1940 Awards |publisher=[[New York Film Critics Circle]] |access-date=August 15, 2021}}</ref> |- | [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]] | Katharine Hepburn | {{won}} |- | Online Film & Television Association Awards | colspan="2"| Film Hall of Fame: Productions | {{won|Inducted}} | align="center"| <ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.oftaawards.com/film-hall-of-fame/film-hall-of-fame-productions/ |title=Film Hall of Fame: Productions |publisher=Online Film & Television Association |access-date=August 15, 2021}}</ref> |} The film was named the third-best of the year by ''[[The Film Daily]]''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Aitchison |first=Marion |date=January 14, 1942 |title=Time Reviewers Again Pick Eight Out of Ten Winners |work=[[Tampa Bay Times|St. Petersburg Times]] |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19420114&id=fDVPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ZU0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=7475,2925517&hl=en}}</ref> In 1995, the film was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the [[Library of Congress]] and was selected for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]].<ref name=":2" /> The film was included in various [[American Film Institute]] lists: * 1998: [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies]] β #51<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI's 100 Yearsβ¦100 Movies |url=https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-movies/ |access-date=2024-09-09 |website=[[American Film Institute]] |language=en}}</ref> * 2000: [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs]] β #15<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs |url=https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-laughs/ |access-date=September 9, 2024 |website=American Film Institute}}</ref> * 2002: [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions]] β #44<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions |url=https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-passions/ |access-date=September 9, 2024 |website=[[American Film Institute]]}}</ref> * 2007: [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition)]] β #44<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) |url=https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-movies-10th-anniversary-edition/ |access-date=September 9, 2024 |website=[[American Film Institute]]}}</ref> * 2008: [[AFI's 10 Top 10]] β #5 Romantic Comedy Film<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI's 10 Top 10: Top 10 Romantic Comedy |url=http://www.afi.com/10top10/category.aspx?cat=2 |access-date=July 17, 2016 |website=[[American Film Institute]]}}</ref>
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