Harvey (1950)

Elwood P. Dowd is a mild-mannered, pleasant man, who just happens (he says) to have an invisible friend resembling a 6-foot rabbit.

Director:

Henry Koster

Writers:

Mary Chase (play), Mary Chase (screenplay),

Stars:

James Stewart, Josephine Hull, Peggy Dow

Top 250 #240 | Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Stewart	...	Elwood P. Dowd
Josephine Hull	...	Veta Louise Simmons
Peggy Dow	...	Miss Kelly
Charles Drake	...	Dr. Sanderson
Cecil Kellaway	...	Dr. Chumley
Victoria Horne	...	Myrtle Mae Simmons
Jesse White	...	Wilson
William H. Lynn	...	Judge Gaffney (as William Lynn)
Wallace Ford	...	The Taxi Driver
Nana Bryant	...	Mrs. Hazel Chumley
Grayce Mills	...	Mrs. Ethel Chauvenet (as Grace Mills)
Clem Bevans	...	Mr. Herman Shimelplatzer
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gino Corrado	...	Eccentric Man (scenes deleted)
Jack Curtis	...	(scenes deleted)
Ida Moore	...	Mrs. McGiff (scenes deleted)

Storyline

The classic stage hit gets the Hollywood treatment in the story of Elwood P. Dowd who makes friends with a spirit taking the form of a human-sized rabbit named Harvey that only he sees (and a few privileged others on occasion also.) After his sister tries to commit him to a mental institution, a comedy of errors ensues. Elwood and Harvey become the catalysts for a family mending its wounds and for romance blossoming in unexpected places.

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Plot Keywords:

rabbit | mental institution | sanity hearing | bartender | psychiatrist | 

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Taglines:

The Wonderful Pulitzer Prize Play... becomes one of the Great Motion Pictures of our Time!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 October 1950 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mein Freund Harvey

Filming Locations:

Colonial Mansion, Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original Broadway production of "Harvey" by Mary Chase opened on November 1, 1944 at the 48th Street Theatre, ran for 1775 performances and won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama in 1945.

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Goofs

At the end of the movie when Harvey is supposed to be in the porch swing, you can see that someone is pulling a string on the arm of the swing to make the swing change its motion.

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Quotes

Elwood P. Dowd: Oh, you can't miss him Mrs. Chumley. He's a Pooka.
Mrs. Hazel Chumley: A Pooka? Is that something new?
Elwood P. Dowd: No. No, as I understand it that's something very old.

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Crazy Credits

At the very end Harvey opens a door and the words at the bottom of the screen say "Harvey as Himself."

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Connections

Referenced in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #18.9 (2010)

User Reviews

"Oh, so pleasant."

"Years ago, my mother used to say to me, she'd say: 'In this world, Elwood,' she always used to call me Elwood. 'In this world, Elwood, you must be oh, so smart or oh, so pleasant.' Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. And you can quote me."

• Elwood P. Dowd (James Stewart)

And, though you suspect James Stewart was never anything less than thoroughly pleasant, that quote from this completely bewitching movie, sums up perfectly the career of James Stewart and this movie in particular. It is one of those rare, rare movies that, when one has watched it, makes you want to try harder to be a nicer, better person. I recommend 'pleasant,' also. And I recommend this movie.