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IMDbPro

A Letter to Three Wives

  • 19491949
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 43m
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
9.8K
YOUR RATING
Kirk Douglas, Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain, Paul Douglas, Jeffrey Lynn, and Ann Sothern in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
Trailer for this old comedy - drama
Play trailer2:42
1 Video
80 Photos
  • Comedy
  • Drama
  • Romance
A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands - but she does not say which one.A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands - but she does not say which one.A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands - but she does not say which one.
IMDb RATING
7.7/10
9.8K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Joseph L. Mankiewicz
  • Writers
    • Vera Caspary(adaptation)
    • John Klempner(Cosmopolitan Magazine novel)
    • Joseph L. Mankiewicz(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Jeanne Crain
    • Linda Darnell
    • Ann Sothern
Top credits
  • Director
    • Joseph L. Mankiewicz
  • Writers
    • Vera Caspary(adaptation)
    • John Klempner(Cosmopolitan Magazine novel)
    • Joseph L. Mankiewicz(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Jeanne Crain
    • Linda Darnell
    • Ann Sothern
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 90User reviews
    • 58Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Won 2 Oscars
      • 5 wins & 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    A Letter To Three Wives
    Trailer 2:42
    A Letter To Three Wives

    Photos80

    Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain, and Ann Sothern in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Jeanne Crain and Ann Sothern in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Jeanne Crain and Jeffrey Lynn in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain, Ann Sothern, and John Venn in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Jeanne Crain and Jeffrey Lynn in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain, and Ann Sothern in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Linda Darnell, Jeanne Crain, and Ann Sothern in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Kirk Douglas in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Kirk Douglas in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Linda Darnell and Paul Douglas in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Kirk Douglas and Ann Sothern in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
    Jeanne Crain and Paul Douglas in A Letter to Three Wives (1949)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Jeanne Crain
    Jeanne Crain
    • Deborah Bishopas Deborah Bishop
    Linda Darnell
    Linda Darnell
    • Lora Mae Hollingswayas Lora Mae Hollingsway
    Ann Sothern
    Ann Sothern
    • Rita Phippsas Rita Phipps
    Kirk Douglas
    Kirk Douglas
    • George Phippsas George Phipps
    Paul Douglas
    Paul Douglas
    • Porter Hollingswayas Porter Hollingsway
    Barbara Lawrence
    Barbara Lawrence
    • Babe Finneyas Babe Finney
    Jeffrey Lynn
    Jeffrey Lynn
    • Brad Bishopas Brad Bishop
    Connie Gilchrist
    Connie Gilchrist
    • Ruby Finneyas Ruby Finney
    Florence Bates
    Florence Bates
    • Mrs. Manleighas Mrs. Manleigh
    Hobart Cavanaugh
    Hobart Cavanaugh
    • Mr. Manleighas Mr. Manleigh
    James Adamson
    • Porter's Butleras Porter's Butler
    • (uncredited)
    Joe Bautista
    • Thomasinoas Thomasino
    • (uncredited)
    Patti Brady
    Patti Brady
    • Kathleenas Kathleen
    • (uncredited)
    Ralph Brooks
    • Bookie Dancer at Country Clubas Bookie Dancer at Country Club
    • (uncredited)
    John Davidson
    John Davidson
    • Johnas John
    • (uncredited)
    Sayre Dearing
    Sayre Dearing
    • Country Club Memberas Country Club Member
    • (uncredited)
    Franklyn Farnum
    Franklyn Farnum
    • Country Club Memberas Country Club Member
    • (uncredited)
    Sam Finn
    • Second Waiteras Second Waiter
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Joseph L. Mankiewicz
    • Writers
      • Vera Caspary(adaptation)
      • John Klempner(Cosmopolitan Magazine novel)
      • Joseph L. Mankiewicz(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      (at around 1h 16 mins) To get the proper look of derision from Linda Darnell in the scene where she stares at a photo of Addie, director Joseph L. Mankiewicz used a picture of Otto Preminger, the director who had given Darnell such a hard time on the set of Forever Amber (1947).
    • Goofs
      For Deborah's car's exterior shots, a Ford was used, but for the interior shots it's a Mercury. The cars are very similar, but note the "Mercury" on the glove box, and the difference in the dashboards when Rita runs up to the car for a few seconds.
    • Quotes

      Mrs. Finney: Can't we have peace in this house even on New Year's Eve?

      Sadie: You got it mixed up with Christmas. New Year's Eve is when people go back to killing each other.

    • Connections
      Featured in The Screen Writer (1950)
    • Soundtracks
      Wein, weib und Gesang, Op. 333 (Wine, Women and Song)
      (uncredited)

      Music by Johann Strauss

      Waltz danced by Deborah and Brad at the country club

    User reviews90

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Sharp Satire
    Jeanne Crain was a very pretty girl, Ann Sothern was chiefly noted for her comic turns, and Linda Darnell was a memorable beauty--but although all three appeared in popular films none were particularly celebrated for their acting talents until Joseph L. Mankiewicz tapped them for the roles of three society wives in this poison pen letter to both sexes. Wickedly witty in script, and remarkably acid in tone, A LETTER TO THREE WIVES would put every one involved in the film firmly on the Hollywood map.

    Three society wives (Crain, Sothern, and Darnell) are committed to hosting a children's picnic on an isolated island--and as the ferry prepares to depart they receive a letter from town femme fatale Addie Ross (never seen but memorably voiced by Celeste Holm.) Addie informs them that she is leaving town forever... but has decided to take one of their husbands along as a memento. And each of the three wives, cut off from the outside world for the day, is left to wonder: when I go home tonight, will my husband still be there? During the day each of the wives recalls scenes from her marriage. Deborah (Craine) arrived in town as a pretty but very awkward farm girl fresh out of the navy and with a wardrobe consisting of a single and very ugly mail-order dress; she has never felt entirely secure. Rita (Sothern) is married to a schoolteacher, and has committed the unpardonable sin of becoming the writer of a popular radio show that brings her more money than her husband will ever earn. And Lora Mae (Darnell) was a beauty born on the wrong side of the tracks who connived her way into a wealthy marriage and now specializes in bickering with her gruff and boorish husband. And always they have been victim to Addie--a woman who "has class," who stings them with competition and evil wit, and who has their husbands eating out of her hand.

    Although the construction is artificial, the script is wickedly knowing, painting a truly subversive vision of American marriage and mores of the late 1940s. Of the three leads, Ann Sothern dominates with her spirited "Rita"--but Darnell has the best of the script, a series of manipulations and drop-dead quips and ripostes, and Crain is perfectly cast as the insecure beauty who is as out of place as a dove at a gathering of eagles. The supporting cast, which includes Kirk Douglas, Thelma Ritter, and Connie Gilchrist is remarkably fine as well. And before all is said and done, small town society gets raked over coals.

    If A LETTER TO THREE WIVES has a flaw, it is the same flaw that would trouble Mankiewicz's later and even more celebrated ALL ABOUT EVE: the point of view that a woman is ultimately nothing without a man, an idea that tends to limit the scope of the film and at times even belittle its characters. Some viewers may also be disappointed with the film's conclusion, which--although extremely ironic--lacks the sharp bite you might expect. Even so, this is a truly memorable and often very funny film, and one that deserves to be seen more often today than it usually is.

    Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer
    helpful•31
    7
    • gftbiloxi
    • Apr 1, 2005

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • February 3, 1949 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • A Letter to Five Wives
    • Filming locations
      • Lake Mahopac, New York, USA
    • Production company
      • Twentieth Century Fox
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross worldwide
      • $14,768
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 43 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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