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Johnny Belinda (1948 film)
Encyclopedia
Johnny Belinda is a 1948 American drama film based on the play
of the same name by Elmer Blaney Harris
. The movie was adapted to the screen by Allen Vincent and Irma von Cube
, and directed
by Jean Negulesco
.
The story is based on a real life incident that happened near Harris's summer residence in Fortune Bridge
, Bay Fortune, Prince Edward Island
. The title character is based on the real life of Lydia Dingwell (1852-1931), of Dingwells Mills, Prince Edward Island
. This film also expresses the consequences of spreading lies and rumors, and the horror of rape
; the latter subject then was a new subject to the films of the 1940s.
The film stars Jane Wyman
, Lew Ayres
, Charles Bickford
, Agnes Moorehead
, Stephen McNally
, and Jan Sterling
. Wyman won an Oscar for this film for Best Actress
.
It was filmed in northern California
around Mendocino
.
The film was remade first as a 1967 television movie
starring Mia Farrow
as Belinda and David Carradine
as Locky and in 1982 as another TV remake with Rosanna Arquette
as Belinda and Richard Thomas
as the Doctor.
girl, Belinda McDonald, who is befriended by the new doctor
, Dr. Robert Richardson, who comes to Cape Breton Island on the east coast of Canada
. The doctor realizes that, although she cannot hear or speak, Belinda is very intelligent. She lives on a farm
with her father, Black McDonald, and her aunt, Aggie McDonald, and rarely goes into town. The family sells farm goods to the nearby town, mainly flour
. Her father and aunt resent Belinda because her mother died giving birth to her. Dr. Richardson teaches Belinda sign language
and what things are. Over time, his affection for her grows.
The doctor’s secretary
, Stella, tries to get the doctor to court her. But the doctor does not see Stella in that way at all. After she figures out that he is becoming attracted to Belinda, she starts to resent both the doctor and Belinda.
One of the family's customers, Locky McCormick, goes to the farm when Belinda is alone and rape
s her. She becomes pregnant. When the people in town find out that she is pregnant, they suspect Dr. Richardson because he has spent a lot of time with her. As time goes by, the pressure of the rumors finally cause the doctor to look for a new practice. He decides to marry Belinda and take her and the baby with him. He goes on ahead to find both a new place to practice and a new home for them.
While he is away finding them a new home, McCormick, now married to the doctor's former secretary, Stella, decides that he wants the child that is his. He goes to visit the baby; when Black McDonald sees him, he orders McCormick to leave. McCormick confesses to Black that the baby is his and that he will come back to get the child. Black follows McCormick and threatens to expose him to the town. They fight and McCormick throws McDonald off the cliff into the sea.
Now Belinda and her aunt Aggie try to run the farm, but soon start struggling to pay the bills and keep the farm up. The town, at the urging of McCormick, has a meeting and declares Belinda "unfit" to care for the child. When McCormick and his wife come to take the baby, Belinda first makes Stella McCormick realize that she is smarter than the townspeople have given her credit for, and that she will not give up her baby without a fight. Stella confronts Locky, who confesses that the child is his. He then tries to retrieve the baby, but Belinda tries to block his path. He shoves her down and heads up the stairs. She then grabs a shotgun, and shoots and kills him. Belinda is arrested and goes on trial for murder. At the trial, Dr. Richardson testifies that McCormick raped Belinda, and that she was protecting her property and family. The court dismisses this as the doctor’s love for her, but then finally Stella, holding old deep romantic feelings for the doctor, corroborates the doctor's story, saying that her husband had confessed the truth to her on the day he was killed. Belinda is set free for protecting her baby and home.
21st Academy Awards
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
of the same name by Elmer Blaney Harris
Elmer Blaney Harris
Elmer Blaney Harris was an American author, dramatist, and playwright.- Biography :He was born in Chicago, Illinois, the youngest of eight children. He moved with his family to Oakland, California, after his father's broom factory burned to the ground...
. The movie was adapted to the screen by Allen Vincent and Irma von Cube
Irma von Cube
Irma von Cube was a German-American screenwriter. She began as an actress and a writer for films in Germany in the early 1930s, and continued when she arrived in the United States in 1938....
, and directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Jean Negulesco
Jean Negulesco
Jean Negulesco was a Romanian-born American film director and screenwriter....
.
The story is based on a real life incident that happened near Harris's summer residence in Fortune Bridge
Fortune Bridge, Prince Edward Island
Fortune Bridge is a small unincorporated area on Lot 43, East Parish, King County, Prince Edward Island, Canada. It is located west of the Town of Souris....
, Bay Fortune, Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...
. The title character is based on the real life of Lydia Dingwell (1852-1931), of Dingwells Mills, Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...
. This film also expresses the consequences of spreading lies and rumors, and the horror of rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
; the latter subject then was a new subject to the films of the 1940s.
The film stars Jane Wyman
Jane Wyman
Jane Wyman was an American singer, dancer, and character actress of film and television. She began her film career in the 1930s, and was a prolific performer for two decades...
, Lew Ayres
Lew Ayres
Lew Ayres was an American actor, best known for starring as Paul in All Quiet on the Western Front and for playing Dr...
, Charles Bickford
Charles Bickford
Charles Bickford was an American actor best known for his supporting roles. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for The Song of Bernadette , The Farmer's Daughter , and Johnny Belinda...
, Agnes Moorehead
Agnes Moorehead
Agnes Robertson Moorehead was an American actress. Although she began with the Mercury Theatre, appeared in more than seventy films beginning with Citizen Kane and on dozens of television shows during a career that spanned more than thirty years, Moorehead is most widely known to modern audiences...
, Stephen McNally
Stephen McNally
Stephen McNally was an American actor remembered mostly for his appearances in many westerns and action films. He was an attorney in the late 1930s before pursuing a career in acting.-Career:...
, and Jan Sterling
Jan Sterling
Jan Sterling was an American actress.Most active in films during the 1950s, Sterling received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in The High and the Mighty , and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the same performance...
. Wyman won an Oscar for this film for Best Actress
Best Actress
Best Actress is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to:-Film award:* Academy Award for Best Actress* Ariel Award for Best Actress...
.
It was filmed in northern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
around Mendocino
Mendocino, California
Mendocino is a census-designated place in Mendocino County, California, United States. Mendocino is located south of Fort Bragg, at an elevation of 154 feet...
.
The film was remade first as a 1967 television movie
Johnny Belinda (1967 film)
Johnny Belinda is a television movie directed by Paul Bogart and Gary Nelson. It is based upon the play, Johnny Belinda by Elmer Blaney Harris.-Cast:*Ian Bannen - Dr. Jack Richardson*David Carradine - Locky*Mia Farrow - Belinda MacDonald...
starring Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow
Mia Farrow is an American actress, singer, humanitarian, and fashion model.Farrow first gained wide acclaim for her role as Allison Mackenzie in the soap opera Peyton Place, and for her subsequent short-lived marriage to Frank Sinatra...
as Belinda and David Carradine
David Carradine
David Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
as Locky and in 1982 as another TV remake with Rosanna Arquette
Rosanna Arquette
Rosanna Lauren Arquette is an American actress, film director, and producer.-Early life:Arquette was born in New York City, the daughter of Brenda Olivia "Mardi" , an actress, poet, theater operator, activist, acting teacher, and therapist, and Lewis Arquette, an actor and director. Her paternal...
as Belinda and Richard Thomas
Richard Thomas (actor)
Richard Earl Thomas is an American actor, best known for his role as budding author John-Boy Walton in the CBS drama The Waltons.- Early life :Thomas was born Richard Earl Thomas in New York,...
as the Doctor.
Plot summary
It is the story of a deaf-muteDeaf-mute
For "deafness", see hearing impairment. For "Deaf" as a cultural term, see Deaf culture. For "inability to speak", see muteness.Deaf-mute is a term which was used historically to identify a person who was both deaf and could not speak...
girl, Belinda McDonald, who is befriended by the new doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, Dr. Robert Richardson, who comes to Cape Breton Island on the east coast of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The doctor realizes that, although she cannot hear or speak, Belinda is very intelligent. She lives on a farm
Farm
A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...
with her father, Black McDonald, and her aunt, Aggie McDonald, and rarely goes into town. The family sells farm goods to the nearby town, mainly flour
Flour
Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...
. Her father and aunt resent Belinda because her mother died giving birth to her. Dr. Richardson teaches Belinda sign language
Sign language
A sign language is a language which, instead of acoustically conveyed sound patterns, uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning—simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speaker's...
and what things are. Over time, his affection for her grows.
The doctor’s secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
, Stella, tries to get the doctor to court her. But the doctor does not see Stella in that way at all. After she figures out that he is becoming attracted to Belinda, she starts to resent both the doctor and Belinda.
One of the family's customers, Locky McCormick, goes to the farm when Belinda is alone and rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
s her. She becomes pregnant. When the people in town find out that she is pregnant, they suspect Dr. Richardson because he has spent a lot of time with her. As time goes by, the pressure of the rumors finally cause the doctor to look for a new practice. He decides to marry Belinda and take her and the baby with him. He goes on ahead to find both a new place to practice and a new home for them.
While he is away finding them a new home, McCormick, now married to the doctor's former secretary, Stella, decides that he wants the child that is his. He goes to visit the baby; when Black McDonald sees him, he orders McCormick to leave. McCormick confesses to Black that the baby is his and that he will come back to get the child. Black follows McCormick and threatens to expose him to the town. They fight and McCormick throws McDonald off the cliff into the sea.
Now Belinda and her aunt Aggie try to run the farm, but soon start struggling to pay the bills and keep the farm up. The town, at the urging of McCormick, has a meeting and declares Belinda "unfit" to care for the child. When McCormick and his wife come to take the baby, Belinda first makes Stella McCormick realize that she is smarter than the townspeople have given her credit for, and that she will not give up her baby without a fight. Stella confronts Locky, who confesses that the child is his. He then tries to retrieve the baby, but Belinda tries to block his path. He shoves her down and heads up the stairs. She then grabs a shotgun, and shoots and kills him. Belinda is arrested and goes on trial for murder. At the trial, Dr. Richardson testifies that McCormick raped Belinda, and that she was protecting her property and family. The court dismisses this as the doctor’s love for her, but then finally Stella, holding old deep romantic feelings for the doctor, corroborates the doctor's story, saying that her husband had confessed the truth to her on the day he was killed. Belinda is set free for protecting her baby and home.
Other cast members
- Stephen McNallyStephen McNallyStephen McNally was an American actor remembered mostly for his appearances in many westerns and action films. He was an attorney in the late 1930s before pursuing a career in acting.-Career:...
as Locky McCormick - Jan SterlingJan SterlingJan Sterling was an American actress.Most active in films during the 1950s, Sterling received a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in The High and the Mighty , and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the same performance...
as Stella McCormick - Rosalind IvanRosalind IvanRosalind Ivan was a stage and film character actress. Ivan appeared in 14 US films from 1944 to 1954. She had a memorable role as the nagging wife of a bank teller in Fritz Lang's film Scarlet Street...
as Mrs. Poggety - Dan SeymourDan SeymourDan Seymour was a character actor who frequently played villains in Warner Bros. films. He appeared in several Humphrey Bogart films, including Casablanca, Key Largo, and To Have and Have Not....
as Pacquet - Mabel PaigeMabel PaigeMabel Paige was an American film actress. She began acting at age 4 and went on to appear in over 50 films between 1914 and 1953...
as Mrs. Lutz - Ida Moore as Mrs. McKee
- Alan NapierAlan NapierAlan William Napier-Clavering was an English actor, best known for portraying Alfred Pennyworth in the 1960s live-action Batman television series.-Early life and career:...
as Defense Attorney
Awards
Wins:- Winner - Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture DramaGolden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture DramaThe Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951...
- Jane Wyman - Winner - Photoplay Awards Most Popular Female Star - Jane Wyman
- Co-Winner - Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - DramaGolden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - DramaThis page lists the winners and nominees for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama, since its institution in 1951. The organizer, Hollywood Foreign Press Association , is an organization of journalists who cover the United States film industry, but are affiliated with publications...
(with The Treasure of the Sierra MadreThe Treasure of the Sierra Madre (film)The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is a 1948 American film written and directed by John Huston, a feature film adaptation of B. Traven's 1927 novel of the same name, in which two Americans Fred C. Dobbs and Bob Curtin during the 1920s in Mexico join with an old-timer, Howard , to prospect for gold...
)
21st Academy Awards21st Academy AwardsThe 21st Academy Awards features numerous firsts. It was the first time a non-Hollywood production won Best Picture, Hamlet. It was the first time an individual directed himself in an Oscar-winning performance...
| Award | Result | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Best Motion Picture Academy Award for Best Picture The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only... |
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,... (Jerry Wald Jerry Wald Jerry Wald was an American producer and screenwriter for motion pictures and radio shows.Born Jerome Irving Wald in Brooklyn, New York, he had a brother and sons who were active in show business. Jerry began writing a radio column for the New York Evening Graphic while a student at New York... , Producer) |
|
| Best Director | Jean Negulesco Jean Negulesco Jean Negulesco was a Romanian-born American film director and screenwriter.... |
|
| Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... |
Lew Ayres Lew Ayres Lew Ayres was an American actor, best known for starring as Paul in All Quiet on the Western Front and for playing Dr... |
|
| Best Actress Academy Award for Best Actress Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... |
Jane Wyman Jane Wyman Jane Wyman was an American singer, dancer, and character actress of film and television. She began her film career in the 1930s, and was a prolific performer for two decades... |
|
| Best Writing, Screenplay | Irma von Cube Irma von Cube Irma von Cube was a German-American screenwriter. She began as an actress and a writer for films in Germany in the early 1930s, and continued when she arrived in the United States in 1938.... and Allen Vincent |
|
| Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the... |
Charles Bickford Charles Bickford Charles Bickford was an American actor best known for his supporting roles. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for The Song of Bernadette , The Farmer's Daughter , and Johnny Belinda... |
|
| Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the... |
Agnes Moorehead Agnes Moorehead Agnes Robertson Moorehead was an American actress. Although she began with the Mercury Theatre, appeared in more than seventy films beginning with Citizen Kane and on dozens of television shows during a career that spanned more than thirty years, Moorehead is most widely known to modern audiences... |
|
| Best Art Direction-Set Decoration (Black-and-White) | Robert Haas and William Wallace | |
| Best Cinematography (Black-and-White) | Ted McCord | |
| Best Film Editing | David Weisbart | |
| Best Music (Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture) | Max Steiner Max Steiner Max Steiner was an Austrian composer of music for theatre productions and films. He later became a naturalized citizen of the United States. Trained by the great classical music composers Brahms and Mahler, he was one of the first composers who primarily wrote music for motion pictures, and as... |
|
| Best Sound Recording | Nathan O. Levinson | |