The Major and the Minor (1942)

A woman disguises herself as a child to save on a train fare and is taken in charge by an army man who doesn't notice the truth.

Director:

Billy Wilder

Writers:

Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder

Stars:

Ginger Rogers, Ray Milland, Rita Johnson

3 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ginger Rogers	...	Susan Applegate
Ray Milland	...	Major Philip Kirby
Rita Johnson	...	Pamela Hill
Robert Benchley	...	Albert Osborne
Diana Lynn	...	Lucy Hill
Edward Fielding	...	Colonel Oliver Slater Hill
Frankie Thomas	...	Cadet Osborne
Raymond Roe	...	Cadet Anthony Wigton Jr.
Charles Smith	...	Cadet Korner
Larry Nunn	...	Cadet Babcock
Billy Dawson	...	Cadet Miller
Lela E. Rogers	...	Mrs. Applegate (as Lela Rogers)
Aldrich Bowker	...	Reverend Doyle
Boyd Irwin	...	Major Griscom
Byron Shores	...	Captain Durand

Storyline

New York working girl Susan Applegate is desperate to go home to Iowa but does not have the railway fare so she disguises herself as a child to ride half fare. Enroute she meets Philip Kirby, an Army major teaching at a military school.

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Plot Keywords:

military school | older woman younger man relationship | conundrum | army officer | steaming open an envelope | 

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Taglines:

Is She A Kid - Or Is She Kidding?

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 December 1942 (Mexico)

Also Known As:

Der Major und das Mädchen

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$928,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$6,380,000, 31 December 1942

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the train station scene, a young girl shows her mother a magazine at the newsstand entitled "Why I Hate Women: By Charles Boyer." Boyer had starred in Hold Back the Dawn (1941) which had been co-written by Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett.

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Goofs

In the train station she swipes a light colored(yellow or white?) balloon to help her in her disguise as a child under 12; once she is seated on the train the balloon is much darker (red?). When she stands as the conductors are questioning her the balloon is lighter, but when she sits down and the guy next to her pops the balloon it is dark again.

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Quotes

Major Kirby: You know Su-Su, you're a very peculiar child.
Susan Applegate: You bet I am.

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Connections

Referenced in Shadows of Suspense (2006)

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Soundtracks

Lover
(1932) (uncredited)
Music by Richard Rodgers
Played at the dance

User Reviews

Half fare please!

Billy Wilder and his excellent collaborator, Charles Brackett, knew what the movie going public of the time wanted to see. So, it's not a surprise they achieved a great hit with "The Major and the Minor". One has to go back to the time this film was made to realize what the creators of this comedy accomplished. This marked the first Hollywood film Mr. Wilder directed and his touch is everywhere. The movie stands the passage of time.

"The Major and the Minor" works because of its two stars. Ginger Rogers and Ray Milland were versatile actors who showed perfect chemistry in the film. Both do excellent work guided by the masterful hand of Billy Wilder.

Ginger Rogers' take on the little girl is fine. Of course, we, the viewers, know what is going on, but to the rest of the people she is nothing but the innocent, and young SuSu Applegate. Ray Milland, on the other hand, is proper throughout the film until the end, when the mystery is solved. Mr. Milland's timing is impeccable and he makes his Maj. Kirby a sort of absent minded "uncle" to the young SuSu.

Billy Wilder showed a flair for this type of comedy. He got wonderful supporting performances from Rita Johnson and the disarming Diana Lynn, as the two sisters with different viewpoints on everything. Also, the opening sequence involving the incomparable Robert Benchley shows us a lecherous man who has hired the grown up Susan for a scalp treatment, that in his mind will lead into something else. Mr. Benchley and Ms. Rogers are hilarious.

This film established Billy Wilder as a director who went far and enjoyed a long career.