Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

Matt and Christina Drayton are a couple whose attitudes are challenged when their daughter brings home a fiancé who is black.

Director:

Stanley Kramer

Writer:

William Rose

Stars:

Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier, Katharine Hepburn

Won 2 Oscars. Another 8 wins & 20 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Spencer Tracy	...	Matt Drayton
Sidney Poitier	...	John Prentice
Katharine Hepburn	...	Christina Drayton
Katharine Houghton	...	Joey Drayton
Cecil Kellaway	...	Monsignor Ryan
Beah Richards	...	Mrs. Prentice
Roy Glenn	...	Mr. Prentice (as Roy E. Glenn Sr.)
Isabel Sanford	...	Tillie (as Isabell Sanford)
Virginia Christine	...	Hilary St. George
Alexandra Hay	...	Carhop
Barbara Randolph	...	Dorothy
D'Urville Martin	...	Frankie
Tom Heaton	...	Peter
Grace Gaynor	...	Judith
Skip Martin	...	Delivery Boy

Storyline

Joey Drayton brings her fiancé, Dr. John Prentice, home to sunny San Francisco to meet her affluent parents. Their liberal persuasions are now put to the test, for although the young man is an ideal choice (he's highly and internationally respected in the medical field, and he's impeccably mannered, handsome, well dressed and of a respectable California family), he's black. The film, which covers one busy day in the Drayton home, is essentially a drawing-room comedy, a series of cross-conversations between the young doctor and the girl's parents, and finally between all sets of parents and offspring. A simple dinner is extended to include the doctor's parents, who fly up from Los Angeles for the evening, and the crusty but benevolent old Irish priest, a friend of the family. Thus, the title of the film . . .

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Plot Keywords:

doctor | dinner | father son relationship | world health organization | interracial romance | 

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Taglines:

a love story of today

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 December 1967 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rat mal, wer zum Essen kommt

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Sunset Gower Studios - 1438 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$56,700,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was instrumental in largely ending the marketing consideration of how films featuring African-American characters and themes were assumed to be likely rejected by mainstream audiences in the Southern States of the USA. In that regard, the film was such a major widespread success throughout the entire USA, including the South, that the marketing factor would never again be considered a major problem for any major film release.

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Goofs

The aircraft shown in the opening sequence is a United Airlines DC-8 and is supposed to be the same flight. However, the aircraft shown flying over San Francisco has registration number N8022U and the aircraft shown landing has registration number N8035U.

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Quotes

[first lines]
John: You know, I just had a thought. Why don't I go check into a hotel and get some rest, and you go find your folks?

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Connections

Referenced in Suburgatory: The Wishbone (2012)

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Soundtracks

"Glory of Love"
(1936)
Written by Billy Hill
Sung by Jacqueline Fontaine at the restaurant
Sung offscreen by a chorus during opening and closing credits
Played in the score often

User Reviews

Overlook the "dated" aspect.

This film is of course dated in many portions but still remains a powerful motion picture over thirty years after its release. Superb acting and dialog is what overcomes the dated aspect. Hepburn and Tracy are Matt and Christina Drayton a wealthy and successful couple who have a daughter named Joey played by Katherine Houghton who comes home and tells them she has met the man of her dreams. The only problem in the story is that he is of a different race. Sidney Poitier is John Wade Prentice a successful individual who is the man of Joeys dreams and is of the different race. The Draytons are people who in theory hold no prejudice toward any one regardless of their race, color or creed but now have those same views put harshly to the test when it's their own daughter involved. Sort of like the NIMBY philosophy "YES YES build more prisons, build more nuclear power plants, build more missile silos but Not In My BackYard! " Sure I believe in interracial marriage as long as it's not my daughter".

John Wades parents essentially share the same views as the Draytons. However Johns parents particularly his father played by Roy E. Glenn Sr. seems more realistic when speaking to his child about the situation than does Matt Drayton. He tells his son the way it really is and most likely will be. "You'll even be illegal in some states" he reminds his son. The two couples eventually come to grips with the fact that no matter what they say they will not be able to prevent their two children from going through with their plans. Spencer Tracy throughout his film career delivered many powerful lines of dialog. The final moments of this film he delivers perhaps his greatest. Which also turned out to be his last. AFI ranked this film number ninety-nine on their list of top one hundred. Because of it's powerful story and social issue it deserved to be higher. Other films that deal with interracial marriage to see are 1956's GIANT and 1961's Bridge to the Sun.