Gentleman’s Agreement: 1947 Best Picture

1947’s “Gentleman’s Agreement” won the Best Picture Oscar at the 20th Academy Awards. the film was based upon the best-selling novel of the same name by Laura Z. Hobson and tells the story of a gentile writer who poses as a Jew to get a first-hand experience with anti-Semitism for a magazine article. The film was nominated for a total of 8 awards and, in addition to Best Picture, won Best Director (Elia Kazan), and Best Supporting Actress (Celeste Holm). Anne Revere was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

An 11-year-old Dean Stockwell played Gregory Peck’s son in the film. Stockwell, like Roddy McDowall, is one of the child actors who went on to have a successful acting career as an adult.

The 4 other films nominated for Best Picture in 1947 were:

• The Bishop’s Wife – a romantic comedy starring Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David Niven. Out of its 5 nominations, it won Best Sound, Recording.
• Crossfire – a drama also dealing with anti-Semitism, a change from the novel it was based on which dealt with homophobia. It starred Robert Young and Robert Mitchum and got 5 nominations but no wins.
• Great Expectations – a slimmed down adaptation of the Dickens classic starring John Mill and Valerie Hobson. It also featured Alec Guinness in his first speaking role. Out of 5 nominations, it won Best Cinematography, Black-and-White and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White
• Miracle on 34th Street – this much-loved Christmas classic starred Maureen O’Hara and John Payne but it was supporting actors, Edmund Gwenn and 8-year old Natalie Wood who stole movie-goers’ hearts. Gwenn picked up the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as Kris Kringle. The other 2 Oscars it got were Best Writing, Original Story (Valentine Davies) and Best Writing, Screenplay (George Seaton).

Best Actor and Best Actress went to the leads in two films not nominated for Best Picture: Ronald Colman in “A Double Life” and Loretta Young in “The Farmer’s Daughter.”

Here are some Jeopardy! clues on “Gentleman’s Agreement”
THE “DUCE” YOU SAY $400: It was Darryl F. Zanuck’s job on “All About Eve” & “Gentleman’s Agreement”
OSCAR WINNERS OF YORE $2000: Gregory Peck gets the scoop on anti-semitism in this film adapted by Moss Hart
POSSESSIVE MOVIES $400: Gregory Peck plays Green/Greenberg: “____ Agreement”
MOVIE CLASSICS $400: In “Gentleman’s Agreement”, he played a writer posing as a Jew to expose anti-semitism

More 1947 film clues
THE MACY’S PARADE: BEHIND THE SCENES $1000: (Kelly presents the clue from the workshop.) This 1947 movie which used footage of actual floats gave many Americans a love for the Macy’s parade
CHARLIE $1000: One of his last film roles was as the swindling wife murderer in 1947’s “Monsieur Verdoux”
A.K.A. $200: Gretchen Young, who played “The Farmer’s Daughter” on film
BOXING MOVIES $2000: John Garfield earned an Oscar nomination for playing a corrupt boxer who becomes champ in this 1947 film
FROM SCREEN TO STAGE $600: The musical “Here’s Love” was based on this 1947 film in which the real Kris Kringle is hired to work at Macy’s
MR. MOVIEFONE $1600: You’ve selected upcoming releases for June 1947. Press 1 for this film with Maureen O’Hara, sure to become a classic
SIDESHOW CINEMA $1600: Tyrone Power descends to a job as a carnival geek in this 1947 release
LOUIS ARMSTRONG $800: Armstrong performed “Basin Street Blues” in this 1947 film that shares its name with his hometown
OLD RADIO ADVENTURES $1000: “The Adventures Of” this “Farewell, My Lovely” detective debuted in 1947, long before the Mitchum film
MOVIE DEBUTS $800: No bones about it: this “Star Trek” actor made his film debut in the 1947 thriller “Fear in the Night”
MOVIE GEOGRAPHY $1000: Luckily, the 1947 Alan Ladd film named for this city wasn’t a “black hole” in his career
DIRECTORS $600: Elia Kazan directed both this 1947 play, that made Marlon Brando a star, & the 1951 film
LLOYDERING $600: This silent screen comedian came out of retirement to act in a 1947 film “The Sin of Harold Diddlebock”
THE MOVIES $400: The 1947 “Best Song” Oscar went to “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” from this Disney Film
THE MOVIES $200: Edmund Gwenn won the 1947 “Best Supoporting Actor” Oscar for his portrayal of Kris Kringle in this film
CLASSIC CINEMA $200: Though it takes place at Christmastime, this 1947 Edmund Gwenn film was released in June
THE MOVIES $400: 1st paired in 1947’s “I Walk Alone”, their latest film together was 1986’s “Tough Guys”