History
Screenwriter and director Valentine Davies was wondering when Christmas had become so commercialized while standing in line at a yet unnamed department store. Inspiration immediately followed, but it was only an idea. Instead of writing it himself, he took it to fellow writer/director George Seaton who titled this idea involving a cynical little girl, a single mother, and an old man who believes himself to be Santa Claus "The Big Heart." Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck then sent producer William Perlberg and Seaton a memo on November 6, 1946 wanting to "definitely use John Payne for Fred. Mark Stevens does not fit the part at all and in any event it is essential that we have a box-office name with [Maureen] O'Hara, as the only conceivable excuse we have for making the picture from a box-office standpoint is the combination of O'Hara and Payne, who have already established themselves." But the studio chief did have a few problems with the script feeling like "Doris is overdrawn. I feel that she is so cold, cut and dried, that an audience will have a difficult time forgiving her. Perhaps if there were a way to bring out quicker the hurt in her background and past life we might be able to understand her. ... Furthermore, I do not believe the characterization is either plausible or true to life."
But the bigger worries were reserved over using Macy's and Gimbels's names. Fox even went as far as to convince both department stores' representatives that they would not be allowed to see anything until it was finished. The setting between American Thanksgiving to Christmas was also kept secret from the press. Fox even went as far as to put together a non-Christmas themed trailer attempting to throw off the scent of any possible Yuletide cheer. A fictional producer not sure how to describe what was now entitled "Miracle on 34th Street" runs into multiple stars from Rex Harrison to Peggy Ann Garner on the Fox backlot where even they try to describe the movie. Zanuck even shot for the freshly re-titled picture to be released in May in favor of the bigger numbers of summer moviegoers.
Maureen O'Hara immediately was cast as the single working mother, although having just got back to her native Ireland to visit family she hadn't seen in seven years. World War 2 had prevented her from visiting her country. It was only a few days into her trip when Fox told her to report back to the states and quickly. "I was heartbroken, furious and reduced to tears. I almost refused to go back, but knew I had no choice. I was madder than a wet hen the whole flight back. ... I later learned that the reason why I was so urgently brought back to New York was so we could film the Thanksgiving Day parade sequences while the parade was actually happening. They weren't going to run the parade more than once on our account. These sequences, like the one with Edmund riding in the sleigh and waving to the cheering crowd, were real-life moments in the 1946 Macy's parade. It was a mad scramble to get all the shots we needed, and we got to each scene only once. " (Tis Herself: An Autobiography. O'Hara, Nicoletti. 2005) There was one interior done while in New York City in the Supreme Court building. Even Macy's original Santa Claus, Charles W. Howard, acted as technical advisor.
"New York remained bitterly cold that winter -- so cold, in fact, that the cameras froze on one occasion and would not turn over. We were shooting the sequence at the end of the film in which Natalie [Wood] sees the house that she asked Kris Kringle for [on 24 Derby Road in Port Washington] [...] Luckily, a very kind woman, Vaughn Mele, lived across the street from where we were filming and offered us her home to thaw out the cameras. We gratefully accepted, and I was happy for the chance to thaw out myself as well. The cameras got the preferred treatment, in front of the fire, and we were all seated in the back, away from its heat. [ ...] I was so grateful for her hospitality that I took her and her husband to dinner at the "21" Club that night. She was so thrilled she couldn't eat a bite and only drank a glass of milk!"
Now entitled "Miracle on 34th Street," the film was finally and separately screened for both Macy's and Gimbels executives who still held its fate. It was a go. The film officially premiered May 2, 1947 but didn't premiere in New York City until June 4th. Bosley Crowther of "The New York Times" "heartily recommend [ed ] the Roxy's new picture [...] As a matter of fact, let's go further: let's catch its spirit and heartily proclaim that it is the freshest little picture in a long time, and maybe even the best comedy of the year. If that sounds like wild enthusiasm for a picture devoid of mighty stars and presented without the usual red-velvet-carpet ballyhoo, let us happily note that it is largely because this job isn't loaded to the hubs with all the commercial gimmicks that it is such a delightful surprise. Indeed, it is in its open kidding of "commercialism" and money-grubbing plugs that lies its originality and particularly winning charm."
Janet Leigh was happily dating Arthur Loew, Jr. which didn't make RKO head Howard Hughes very happy. She made sure when Hughes did manipulate her into a date to invite her parents to go with them to the Sportman's Lodge. "The three of them had a wonderful time and I was bored to tears. I mean, it was fun because I saw Mom and Dad were having a good time." (Janet Leigh: A Biography. Capua. 2013) Some time after the disastrous date, Bennie Thau, vice president of MGM, asked Leigh into his office. ""Janet, I have wonderful news, RKO is going to borrow you for three pictures. You'll be working with Robert Mitchum and John Wayne. It's a tremendous opportunity for you."" Janet tried to explain what she was dealing with with Hughes.
"Thau just said, "Now honey, we're sure there's nothing to worry about. This is a business situation, nothing more. There's no funny business. We're talking about a lot of money at stake here. So you go and do as we say." And I must have still looked nervous because he added, "Look, I'm a phone call away if I'm wrong." And that was all they wanted to hear about that." Weeks later, MGM announced through the New York Times that "Janet Leigh Gets 2 RKO Film Leads" when in reality it was three but for how much was undisclosed. One of those films was the then titled "Christmas Gift" opposite Wendell Corey and Robert Mitchum, who was doing a little better than Leigh was.
Mitchum had been arrested for marijuana possession August 31, 1948 along with actress Lila Leeds, dancer Vickie Evans and Robin Ford, a real estate man at the two womens' home in Laurel Canyon. The "raiding party viewed proceedings for two and a half hours through a rear bedroom window after "bribing [Leeds's] dogs with food." (St. Petersburg Times - Google News Archive Search) Mitchum was released on a $1,000 bail, but was taken to trial in February 1949. He was found guilty of criminal conspiracy to possess marijuana and was sentenced to 60 days, which was reduced to 50 for good behavior. Mitchum "did his time in an L.A. county jail and the Wayside Honor farm in Castaic, Calif., where, as a brickmaker, he was voted "Mr. Cement Block of 1949 by his fellow inmates. Released in March, he called his stay at the farm an "experience every tax payer should go through." (Robert Mitchum arrested for possession | EW.com)
RKO stood by him and, according to the Hollywood Reporter late July 1949 just weeks after "Christmas Gift" started shooting on the 11th, planned on rushing "Christmas Gift" to capitalize on Robert Mitchum's popularity. The studio was intent on cleaning up his image when his films were being considered to be banned in some states. It also worked in RKO's favor having just acquired and becoming the sole owner of Mitchum's contract through paying David O'Selznick $400,000 for his share. "Christmas Gift" or "The Man Who Played Santa Claus" which eventually came to be called "Holiday Affair" would put Mitchum in an uncharacteristic romantic comedy lead. The set was a relaxed one, despite what Leigh had to have been feeling through the paranoia and Mitchum being fresh out of jail.
"It was a very happy set and we did good work. Although I wasn't thrilled about having to do it, Holiday Affair turned out to be another I loved. ... [ It] proved a delightful film. It's become a Christmas staple on TV. And I enjoyed working with Bob Mitchum and Wendell Corey I think. Bob was such a free soul. Much of the time, I didn't know what to make of him. He was so funny and so relaxed he sometimes seemed in danger of falling over. But, he was always professional. Both he and Wendell Corey would try to shock me; they knew a patsy when they saw one. During the big Christmas dinner scene, Bob and Wendell each put a hand on my leg. Oh, they never followed through on any of this, they just liked to tease their victim."
Leigh also had learning experiences with the 8-year-old actor who played her son. "In one scene [Gordon Gebert) started playing with his breakfast cereal. Janet stopped delivering her lines, since this activity was not in the script. [ Producer/Director Don] Hartman told her it was a mistake because Gerbert was behaving naturally and she should have improvised, staying in character. After that she never stopped a take again." When Mitchum's Steve Mason gives her Connie Ennis a "Merry Christmas kiss" in the kitchen, Leigh later recounts that "the expression that is on my face of being overwhelmed was for real." Even Mitchum stood by its randomness. "I wanted to make the kiss memorable, as though the characters were never going to see each other again. The perks of being an actor are at times not bad."
But Howard Hughes managed to squirm his way into production despite giving his producer and director Don Hartman complete freedom. Hughes had the final say on Leigh's wardrobe, makeup, and hair. He also amped up the marketing, supervising the ad campaign into something like a sex comedy. "Baby, you're just what I want for Christmas" was one of the tag lines in a speech bubble next to Mitchum's face as he looks over to Leigh. Another tag line read "when Mitchum kisses 'em , they hear bells ... wedding bells!"
The now titled "Holiday Affair" wrapped on September 2nd, 1949 and premiered at Loew's State in New York City on November 23rd. It would lose $300,000 at the box office despite having opened nationally on December 24, 1949. Bosley Crowther of the New York Times called the film "lightweight in story and treatment, it is one of those tinsel-trimmed affairs which will likely depend for popularity upon the glamour potential of its stars. [ ...] No doubt, a great many people will find this sugar to their taste. This corner finds it much too saccharine for either credibility or delight." Variety was a little more positive, describing "Holiday Affair" as "a warm Christmas offering that concerns itself charmingly with the antics of humans during the Yuletide, developing a lot of rich comedy-drama in doing so." The Modern Screen called it "unusually charming," noting that the film's "characters are nice, it's dialogue is extra good, its acting warm and real." Showmen's Trade Review found it an "amusing romantic comedy that is certain to delightfully and thoroughly entertain everyone" but ended cautiously with "name draw, though strong, isn't sufficient to bring in justifiable returns, but the general excellence of the picture will create word-of-mouth that should push it into the money-making class."
"I believe... I believe... It's silly, but I believe... anything can change a life that's ready to be changed."
Connie Ennis (Janet Leigh) has been a widow for some years now since losing her husband to WW2. Now she has finally settled her sights on lawyer Carl Davis (Wendell Corey), whom she has been dating for many years. The problem is is that she cannot fully committ. Connie has an eight-year-old son, Timmy, who has been marked the man of the house. Maybe, just maybe, she finds herself sweeping his hair to the side to look more like his father and probably calls him "Mr. Ennis" one too many times without ever realizing what she is really doing.
But Connie is a single woman living in New York City and has a successful job as a comparison shopper until an army vet department store clerk in the form of Steve Mason (Robert Mitchum) refunds her money for a toy train when he should have reported her. The kind gesture only helps him lose his job, but his consolation prize involves spending the whole day with Connie helping with her shopping work. It only becomes a matter of hours when Steve finds himself fully immersed in her life and meeting the boyfriend and the son who he immediately sparks a friendship with and a Christmas promise.
Doris Walker is also a semi-hardened single mother working in proximity to a department store. As the event director of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, she begs a man that goes by the name of Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn) to play Santa at the last minute when the both of them discover the already hired Santa actor is drunk. The curiously strange Kringle does so well, he ends up hired to play Santa for the season at Macy's. The problem is that he does not adhere to the rules in pinpointing the "customers" to the different departments in only the famous store.
Doris is lucky in her predicament and it comes in the form of a neighbor, an attractive attorney Fred Gailey (Fred Payne), who babysits her 9-year-old daughter Susan (Natalie Wood) and may have his sights on her. He lets Susan watch the parade from his apartment and even takes her to see Santa. But Susan was raised to not believe in myths or fairy tales and is just not impressed with Kringle. But when the "Santa impersonator" starts speaking Dutch to a little girl from The Netherlands who doesn't know how to speak English, Susan is, as the kids say in our current day, shook.
But Doris attempts to convince the older man to tell her daughter that he is not Santa although he says that he actually is. She ends up firing Kris Kringle although receives a bonus from Macy himself for bringing such a convincing Santa Claus into the store. It all spirals way out of control involving the famous rivalry between Gimbels and Macy's, a psychological evaluation, and a nursing home where someone who may just be Santa Claus is institutionalized in and considered insane.
If you can believe it, I actually saw "Holiday Affair" first and immediately found it charming and fun. While "Miracle on 34th Street" is obviously and extremely well-loved and Oscar-winning material, it is just as charming and fun, but I still saw "Holiday Affair" first.
The Don Hartman film has a few more perks than just the magical realism if Santa Claus exists or not. It is about real people. It is about the holidays not being as easy as people think. It is also remarkably lady-power fueled for a 1940s film and I think this fact often flies over the average moviegoers perception of "Holiday Affair." In a time when women struggled for agency , Janet Leigh's Connie Ennis has enough of it to make her way in the world and with an 8-year-old son! She herself holds the reigns of whom she wants to be with, the free-spirited Steve or the steady and reliable and almost more of a friend Carl. The problem is that she channels those reigns through her son which she practically suffocates herself with with the need to be with the more reliable man.
Steve Mason finally buckles down realizing the situation. "Carl isn't the real threat to me. Maybe I'm not to him. This isn't two fellows and a girl, you know. This is two fellows, a girl and her husband. I can't fight a shadow - I tried - competition's too tough. You were even going to play it safe and settle for someone you didn't love so you wouldn't be unfaithful to your husband. ... All anybody wants is for you to live in the present and not be afraid of the future. You know, maybe it could happen again if you quit pretending that something that's dead is still alive."
While I can understand that a lot of current feminists would call this piece of Lennart's dialogue an immediate mansplanation on the surface, it's not that Steve is actually explaining Connie to herself, but trying to get through to a place that she has deadened herself to. If another woman character was brought onto the film to have this same conversation with Connie, she could be doubly perceived as one of those women who just don't support women. Regardless, the root of all of this is about Connie's true agency that she has kept locked up. "Holiday Affair" is a brevy of psychological effects of the widows of WW2 and it's truly remarkable. Let me reiterate the fact that Carl and Steve are never pitted against one another or do they look at one another as threats! They come across more amused over one another's existence. Carl even semi-heartedly helps Steve get out of an arrest when he's suspected of stealing supposedly gifted salt and pepper shakers he was given on Christmas Day!
It may also be telling that this film was written by a woman and not a man like "Miracle on 34th Street" had been with its themes of consumerism and male power over corporation culture . By 1949, Isobel Lennart had been successful with light musical fare from "Anchors Aweigh" (1945) to "It Happened in Brooklyn" (1947). But her best work and strongest female characters had fully manifested later in her career with "Love Me or Leave Me" in 1955 and adapting her own stage play of "Funny Girl" in 1968 for which she won the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written American Musical. "Holiday Affair" is a fantastic little fable that all women, whether widowed or not, deserve to chase after the guy that makes your knee caps melt.
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