Woman's World (1954)

An executive plans to fill a high-ranking position by interviewing the candidates' wives.

Director:

Jean Negulesco

Writers:

Claude Binyon, Russel Crouse

Stars:

Van Heflin, Lauren Bacall, Cornel Wilde

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Clifton Webb	...	Ernest Gifford
June Allyson	...	Katie Baxter
Van Heflin	...	Jerry Talbot
Lauren Bacall	...	Elizabeth Burns
Fred MacMurray	...	Sid Burns
Arlene Dahl	...	Carol Talbot
Cornel Wilde	...	Bill Baxter
Elliott Reid	...	Tony Andrews
Margalo Gillmore	...	Mrs. Evelyn Andrews
Alan Reed	...	Tomaso
David Hoffman	...	Jabernowski

Storyline

Needing to fill the position of general manager of his company, and believing that an executive's wife is crucial to her husband's success, auto industry mogul Gifford brings three couples to New York to size up: Jerry and Carol: he hard-driven and self-reliant, she willing to use her beauty to further her husband's career; Sid and Elizabeth, he ulcer-ridden and torn between achieving success and restoring their troubled marriage, she positive that his job will kill him, but gamely agreeing to play the good wife for the duration; and down-to-earth Bill, whose good-natured Katie fears that his promotion would spell the end of their idyllic familiy existence.

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Plot Keywords:

f rated | executive | promotion | manager | company | 

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Taglines:

The Year's Most Star-Brilliant Cast !

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 September 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Woman's World

Filming Locations:

Mill Neck Manor, Mill Neck, Long Island, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,250,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (optical prints) 4-Track Stereo (Western Electric Recording) (magnetic prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Ford Motor Company concept cars or "dream cars" that appear in Woman's World are the black Ford X-100, the white Mercury XM-800, and the red Lincoln XL-500.

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Goofs

When we first see the new Gifford black convertible, actually the Ford X-100, in the lobby of the Gifford building the top and side windows are closed. In the next shot they are open and the occupant closes them, supposedly at the first drop of rain.

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Connections

Featured in La noche de...: Negociador (2016)

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Soundtracks

Blue Moon
(uncredited)
Music by Richard Rodgers
Played when everyone sits down after dancing

User Reviews

Corporate World Takes Notice of Managers' Wives

In the 1950's, there were three excellent movies about the corporate world: "Executive Suite" (1954), "Woman's World" (1954), and "Patterns" (1956). June Allyson was lucky to be in the first two movies. "Executive Suite" - a heavy drama about replacing the deceased CEO; and in "Woman's World" - a serious comedy about replacing the general manager. What all three movies have in common, is that they are perfectly cast.

In "Woman's World", the concern is picking the right man with the right wife for the job. Of the three movies mentioned, this is my favorite movie about the corporate world. It's been fifty years since these movies have been made and no current movie has come close to portraying the business world. Back then when there was censorship, the movie world was still able to make good movies about the business world. There should be no excuse why writers can't make movies like they did years ago. Only on television, they did succeed and make the TV movie, "Barbarians at the Gate" (1993).

There are three separate stories about three couples being considered for the job. All three couples were perfectly cast, however, they never worked as couples again. They should have! Of the three couples, my favorite were Van Heflin and Arlene Dahl, portraying a married couple from Texas. They were a great team! Arlene Dahl complimented Van Heflin and Clifton Webb.

While Clifton Webb, the CEO of the automobile company, was looking for the next general manager, he was at his most attractive and authoritative best. Rounding out the cast, the next two big roles were played by Elliott Reid, playing the nephew, and by Margalo Gillmore, as the sister-in-law. They were never better!