Remember the Night (1940)

A shoplifter and her prosecutor fall in love, creating tensions for his career and family.

Director:

Mitchell Leisen

Writer:

Preston Sturges (original screenplay)

Stars:

Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Barbara Stanwyck	...	Lee Leander
Fred MacMurray	...	John Sargent
Beulah Bondi	...	Mrs. Sargent
Elizabeth Patterson	...	Aunt Emma
Willard Robertson	...	Francis X. O'Leary
Sterling Holloway	...	Willie
Charles Waldron	...	Judge in New York
Paul Guilfoyle	...	District Attorney
Charles Arnt	...	Tom (as Charlie Arnt)
John Wray	...	Hank
Thomas W. Ross	...	Mr. Emory
Fred 'Snowflake' Toones	...	Rufus (as Snowflake)
Tom Kennedy	...	'Fat' Mike
Georgia Caine	...	Lee's Mother
Virginia Brissac	...	Mrs. Emory

Storyline

Just before Christmas, Lee Leander is caught shoplifting. It is her third offense. She is prosecuted by John Sargent. He postpones the trial because it is hard to get a conviction at Christmas time. But he feels sorry for her and arranges for her bail, and ends up taking her home to his mother for Christmas. Surrounded by a loving family (in stark contrast to Lee's own family background) they fall in love. This creates a new problem: how do they handle the upcoming trial?

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Plot Keywords:

smother mother | manipulative mother | jail sentence | screwball comedy | christmas | 

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Taglines:

THE LAW SAID SHE WAS BAD...HE SAID SHE'S TERRIFIC! (original print ad-all caps)

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 January 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Recuerdo de una noche

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$167,800, 31 January 1940

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min 86 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since. Its earliest documented telecast took place in Phoenix Saturday 21 February 1959 on KVAR (Channel 12); as the Holiday Season approached, it picked up steam and was first aired in Chicago 15 November 1959 on WBBM (Channel 2), in Omaha 17 December 1959 on KETV (Channel 7), in Johnstown 18 December 1959 on WJAC (Channel 6), in Pittsburgh 23 December 1959 on KDKA (Channel 2), in both Seattle and Toledo 25 December 1959 on KIRO (Channel 7) and WTOL (Channel 11) and in Milwaukee 26 December 1959 on WITI (Channel 6). It was first released on DVD 8 November 2010 by as part of the Turner Classic Movies Vault Collection, again by TCM in Blu-Ray 3 November 2014, and since that time began enjoying airings on their cable TV station; it was also released in UK on DVD 1 January 2014 as part of Odeon Entertainment's Hollywood Studio Collection.

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Goofs

When Fred MacMurray is milking the cow, Barbara Stanwick pushes it knocking the thermos from MacMurray's hand. It falls upside down but when the camera returns it is right side up.

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Quotes

Customs Official: And what is your reason for going through Canada?
John Sargent: I'm a fugitive from justice.
Lee Leander: You sound like a fugitive from a nut house.
Customs Official: Go ahead, sir, go ahead.

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Connections

Referenced in The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

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Soundtracks

(Back Home Again in) Indiana
(1917) (uncredited)
Music by James F. Hanley
Lyrics by Ballard MacDonald
Played by the band and sung by an unidentified male quartet at the nightclub
Played also at the barn dance and often in the score

User Reviews

Charming, Sentimental Christmas Comedy

When you think of holiday classics you might not think of "Remember The Night." You may have never even heard of it. But it is a must see and as good as "Miracle on 34th St." or "It's a Wonderful life."

Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck star perfectly together (before they re-teamed for "Double Indemnity.")

He is a prosecutor for the district attorney, she a shoplifter who gets caught stealing some jewelry just before Christmas. With the Christmas weekend holiday approaching, he arranges her bail so she won't be locked up over the holiday. Thinking he only did this so she would, um you know ... she shows up at his apartment as he is preparing to go home for the holiday. He convinces her that he's not after her uh ... you know.

Over dinner they discover they are both from Idaho, "how'd you like to go home for Christmas?. he asks her. He offers to drop her off at her folks on the way to his.

A road trip, comedy, drama, funny and likable supporting characters, and love and tears follow. Also, a wonderful moral to the story. All this without bit of sex, a word of profanity, violence or an explosion. This picture is for all ages. It won't offend or insult anyone.

Don't miss it.