The Best of Everything (1959)

An expose of the lives and loves of Madison Avenue working girls and their higher ups.

Director:

Jean Negulesco

Writers:

Edith Sommer (screenplay), Mann Rubin (screenplay)

Stars:

Hope Lange, Stephen Boyd, Suzy Parker

Nominated for 2 Oscars.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Hope Lange	...	Caroline Bender
Stephen Boyd	...	Mike Rice
Suzy Parker	...	Gregg Adams
Martha Hyer	...	Barbara Lamont
Diane Baker	...	April Morrison
Brian Aherne	...	Fred Shalimar
Robert Evans	...	Dexter Key
Brett Halsey	...	Eddie Harris
Donald Harron	...	Sidney Carter
Sue Carson	...	Mary Agnes
Linda Hutchings	...	Jane
Lionel Kane	...	Paul Landers
Ted Otis	...	Dr. Ronnie Wood
Louis Jourdan	...	David Savage
Joan Crawford	...	Amanda Farrow

Storyline

With her unofficial fiancé Eddie Harris studying in England for a year, Radcliffe educated Caroline Bender decides to get her first ever job as a secretary at Manhattan located Fabian Publishing, which offers its employees "the best of everything". There, she finds her story is somewhat similar to all the other secretaries, who are biding their time in the secretarial pool either before getting married - to a current or future beau - or moving on to their dream job. In the latter category is aspiring actress Gregg Adams, who with fellow secretary, the naive and inexperienced April Morrison, become Caroline's new roommates. Caroline also finds that as a secretary to the editors, she has to learn the special needs and foibles of each. They include the "witch" Amanda Farrow whose demanding exterior masks a truly lonely woman, the aging Lothario Fred Shalimar, and the understanding Mike Rice, whose best friend is a bottle of booze. The path to true happiness for each of Caroline, Gregg ...

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Plot Keywords:

actress | publishing house | unfaithfulness | adultery | vocational obsession | 

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Taglines:

THESE ARE THE GIRLS who want the best of everything... but often settle for a lot less!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 October 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

Las audaces

Filming Locations:

Alfred E. Smith Housing Project, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jerry Wald Productions, The Company of Artists

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie includes several references to other Twentieth Century Fox productions of the era: the paperback book rack seen in many scenes features a movie tie-in edition of The Diary of Anne Frank with Millie Perkins on the cover and at one point the editor mentions the upcoming soft cover version of Sons And Lovers, the movie version of which was produced by Jerry Wald and released in 1960. Perhaps not coincidentally, Diane Baker co-stars in "Anne Frank" as well as this film.

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Goofs

When Hope Lange returns with Stephen Boyd to his apartment, they sit on the couch and their shoulders are about a foot apart. When the camera cuts to a closer shot, their shoulders are touching. There was no opportunity to move closer with the quick cut.

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Quotes

Amanda Farrow: When you finish the slush files, then you may go. But I want my comments on each.
Caroline Bender: Typed?
Amanda Farrow: No Miss Bender. Beat it out on a native drum.

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Connections

Referenced in Working Girl (1988)

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Soundtracks

Again
(uncredited)
Music by Lionel Newman
Played when Caroline is introduced over drinks

User Reviews

What Is Best For Everyone?

The Best of Everything is a high gloss large screen soap opera which follows the careers of four career women, Hope Lange, Suzy Parker, Diane Baker, and Martha Hyer at a New York publishing firm. What's the best for some women is not necessarily the best for all.

Presiding over this group of young fillies is wise old mare Joan Crawford who's been around the track a few times on screen and in real life. She looks right at home as the boss lady as well she should have at this point.

Around the time she was making The Best of Everything Joan Crawford became a widow when her fourth husband, Alfred Steele died. It was a particularly traumatic event for her, she woke up one morning and found him dead in bed next to her. She inherited all of his stock in Pepsi Cola where he was the board chairman and during the same period as The Best of Everything was being made, she wound up the queen bee at Pepsi Cola. Life does sometimes imitate art. So that authority as she barks out dictation and coffee orders to Hope Lange rings real true.

In fact all the women here with the exception of Lange are in for some rough sledding. It's rough for Lange too, but she literally makes the best of everything.

What a collection of stinkers the men are in this film. The best of them, Stephen Boyd, is a heavy drinker. The others Louis Jourdan, Robert Evans, and Brett Halsey, are as slimy a collection of rodents as ever gathered for one film.

I can't forget Brian Aherne either who's the fanny pinching head of this publishing firm. Half that office would have sexual harassment suits going today.

Some nice location shots of New York in the fifties make the film a real treat. Catch it by all means.