Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

When a nice old man who claims to be Santa Claus is institutionalized as insane, a young lawyer decides to defend him by arguing in court that he is the real thing.

Director:

George Seaton

Writers:

George Seaton (written for the screen by), Valentine Davies (story)

Stars:

Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara, John Payne

Won 3 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Maureen O'Hara	...	Doris Walker
John Payne	...	Fred Gailey
Edmund Gwenn	...	Kris Kringle
Gene Lockhart	...	Judge Henry X. Harper
Natalie Wood	...	Susan Walker
Porter Hall	...	Granville Sawyer
William Frawley	...	Charlie Halloran
Jerome Cowan	...	Dist. Atty. Thomas Mara
Philip Tonge	...	Julian Shellhammer

Storyline

At the Macy's Department Store Thanksgiving Day parade, the actor playing Santa is discovered to be drunk by a whiskered old man. Doris Walker, the no nonsense special events director, persuades the old man to take his place. The old man proves to be a sensation and is quickly recruited to be the store Santa at the main Macy's outlet. While he is successful, Ms. Walker learns that he calls himself Kris Kringle and he claims to be the actual Santa Claus. Despite reassurances by Kringle's doctor that he is harmless, Doris still has misgivings, especially when she has cynically trained herself, and especially her daughter, Susan, to reject all notions of belief and fantasy. And yet, people, especially Susan, begin to notice there is something special about Kris and his determination to advance the true spirit of Christmas amidst the rampant commercialism around him and succeeding in improbable ways. When a raucous conflict with the store's cruelly incompetent psychologist erupts, Kris ...

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Plot Keywords:

christmas movie | santa claus | christmas | delusion | girl | 

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Taglines:

You've got them mixed up! You're making a mistake. You're making a mistake with the reindeer. Tsk tsk tsk

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Dutch

Release Date:

22 December 1947 (France)

Also Known As:

Christmas Miracle on 34th Street

Filming Locations:

Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$2,650,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min 101 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gene Lockhart, who played the judge, co-starred in another Christmas classic, playing Bob Cratchit in Edwin L. Marin's A Christmas Carol (1938).

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Goofs

RH Macy passed away in 1877. No way he could have been affiliated with the store in the 1940's.

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Quotes

District Attorney: What is your name?
Kris Kringle: Kris Kringle.
District Attorney: Where do you live?
Kris Kringle: That's what this hearing will decide.
Judge Henry X. Harper: A very sound answer, Mister Kringle.
District Attorney: Do you really believe that you're Santa Claus?
Kris Kringle: Of course.
District Attorney: [long pause] The state rests, your honor.

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Alternate Versions

Also available in two computer colorized versions. The film was first colorized in 1985 by Color Systems Technology, Inc. and again in 2006 by Legend Films using much-improved technology. Prints came with a disclaimer: "It has been altered without the participation of the principal director, screenwriter and other creators of the original film."

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Connections

Referenced in Law & Order: Castoff (1998)

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Soundtracks

Sabre and Spurs
(1918) (uncredited)
Music by John Philip Sousa
Played when Doris is in her apartment and at other times during the parade

User Reviews

Edmund Gwenn as Santa: a deserving Oscar winner

A perfectly-cast Christmas confection that surpasses all expectations and really does make viewers laugh and tear up. Corny? Yes. Overacted? In some scenes, yes. Dated? Perhaps. But the message of belief, ultimately, is timeless and the silvery black and white cinematography is wonderful. And yes, there's Edmund Gwenn as the department store Santa who really is. A most deserving recipient of the Supporting Actor Oscar, Gwenn seems like an incredibly nice man--maybe because he never has to force kindliness; more than that, he has an innate happiness and twinkle that comes from within. He truly glows in this part. Maureen O'Hara, John Payne, Thelma Ritter (in a wonderful bit) and precocious Natalie Wood are also excellent in this classic fairy tale. It is a film without artifice. It glows, too. **** from ****