Pillow Talk (1959)

A man and a woman who share a party line cannot stand each other, but he has fun romancing her with his voice disguised.

Director:

Michael Gordon

Writers:

Stanley Shapiro (screenplay), Maurice Richlin (screenplay)

Stars:

Rock Hudson, Doris Day, Tony Randall

Won 1 Oscar. Another 5 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rock Hudson	...	Brad Allen
Doris Day	...	Jan Morrow
Tony Randall	...	Jonathan Forbes
Thelma Ritter	...	Alma
Nick Adams	...	Tony Walters
Julia Meade	...	Marie
Allen Jenkins	...	Harry
Marcel Dalio	...	Pierot
Lee Patrick	...	Mrs. Walters
Mary McCarty	...	Nurse Resnick
Alex Gerry	...	Dr. A.C. Maxwell
Hayden Rorke	...	Mr. Conrad
Valerie Allen	...	Eileen
Jacqueline Beer	...	Yvette
Arlen Stuart	...	Tilda

Storyline

In New York, the interior decorator Jan Morrow and the wolf composer Brad Allen share a party line, but Brad keeps it busy most of the time flirting with his girlfriends. They do not know each other but Jan hates Brads since she needs the telephone for her business and can not use it. Coincidently Jan's wealthy client Jonathan Forbes that woos her is the best friend of Brad and he comments with him that he feels an unrequited love for Jan, who is a gorgeous woman. When Brad meets Jan by chance in a restaurant, he poses as a naive tourist from Texas named Rex Stetson and seduces her. But Jonathan hires a private eye to find who Rex Stetson is.

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Plot Keywords:

telephone party line | telephone | split screen | womanizer | bare chested male | 

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Taglines:

Footloose bachelor...beautiful career girl...and the world's most fascinating pastime!

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

7 October 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

Problemas de alcoba

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Gross USA:

$18,750,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arwin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastman Color)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although Doris Day and Rock Hudson were never romantically involved - she took her marriage vows seriously and he was a deeply closeted gay man - from the moment they met, there was an immediate mutual respect that resulted in a lifelong friendship and a pranksterIsh sense of fun that radiated from the screen whenever they worked together.

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Goofs

When "Rex" takes Jan for a drive, horse-drawn carriage is shown in long shot, but they sit in a Buggie.

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Quotes

Brad Allen: Look, I don't know what's bothering you, but don't take your bedroom problems out on me.
Jan: I have no bedroom problems. There's nothing in my bedroom that bothers me.
Brad Allen: Oh-h-h-h. That's too bad.

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Crazy Credits

As Doris Day sings 'Pillow Talk' over the closing credits, the film finishes with 'the end' on two horizontal pillows' followed by 'not quite' 'not quite' 'not quite' 'not quite' stacked vertically on four pillows.

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Connections

Referenced in Pocket Dragon Adventures: Pillow Squawk (1998)

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Soundtracks

Possess Me
by Joe Lubin and I.J. Roth
Performed by Doris Day (uncredited)

User Reviews

Predictable, but a delight.

This first teaming of Doris Day and Rock Hudson is a delightful, visually beautiful comedy - old-fashioned but hardly dated. The two stars make a charming, shiny couple (it's easy to see why they were so popular in their time) and Thelma Ritter steals the show in a needless but funny supporting role. The only problem you may have is that the course of the plot seems to be thoroughly predetermined from the first frame, but the film does a pretty good job of delaying the inevitable. Great sound effects, too. (***)