Harvey (1950)

Due to his insistence that he has an invisible six foot-tall rabbit for a best friend, a whimsical middle-aged man is thought by his family to be insane - but he may be wiser than anyone knows.

Director:

Henry Koster

Writers:

Mary Chase (from the Pulitzer Prize Play by), Mary Chase (screenplay)

Stars:

James Stewart, Wallace Ford, William H. Lynn

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

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

animal character name as title | rabbit | mental institution | nurse outfit | nurse uniform | 

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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 | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish Latin

Release Date:

21 December 1950 (USA)

Also Known As:

Harvey

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 111 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Josephine Hull's Oscar winning performance in this film is her only Academy Award nomination.

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Goofs

After Wilson has a scuffle with patrons in Charlie's they return to the booth and there were four drinks on the table. Stewart's character had ordered and the bar keep had brought only three.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mailman: Is this 348?
Elwood P. Dowd: Yes, it is.
Mailman: I gotta special delivery here.
Elwood P. Dowd: Oh, that sounds interesting.
Mailman: It's for Dowd.
Elwood P. Dowd: Dowd. Dowd's my name. Elwood P. Let me give you one of my cards.
Mailman: That won't be necessary sir. Just, eh, sign right here. Beautiful day.
Elwood P. Dowd: Oh, every day's a beautiful day.

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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 Have I Got News for You: Episode #48.5 (2014)

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Soundtracks

My Love
(uncredited)
Written by Jack Brooks

User Reviews

A moving story of a man and his pooka...

To tell you the truth, I had no idea HARVEY would be this good, but it was. It's not an incredibly deep film, just good-natured.

I'm not sure if these next comments will throw a lot of people off, but I wonder about the controversial nature of the story as well, particularly for a movie made in the 1950's. I mean, after all, this is a movie that does touch on topics of alcoholism, mental illness, spirits, Celtic mythology, and magic. C'mon, we live in a society where Harry Potter cannot exist without receiving a light pounding.

I was also impressed with the development of the Elwood P. Dowd character as portrayed by James Stewart. I just love how the movie shows how he touches the lives of everyone around him. In an age of cinema where supporting characters are immediately cast off after being introduced, I don't think there is a single supporting actor whose character is not developed in this film. I particularly liked the relationship between the doctor and Elwood. I can honestly say that Elwood P. Dowd is one of the most memorable characters I have come across in film along with Molly the Gangster in Charley Varrick and Hal the Computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

I also think this movie does an excellent job highlighting those who do represent the salt of the earth in our society, even if they do exhibit behavior that is outside social norms. This is a very good film. See it with a pooka!