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Kitty Foyle - 1940
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Coming up next is 1940's "Kitty Foyle", the story of a young woman's life as she looks back over past events as she is about to make a decision that will change her future.
The film's cast includes Ginger Rogers, Dennis Morgan, James Craig, Eduardo Ciannelli, Ernest Cossart, Gladys Cooper, Odette Myrtil, Walter Kingsford, Nella Walker, Kay Linaker, and Florence Bates.
Kitty Foyle is a young woman with a problem on her hands. She's got two suitors, and both are very interested in long term commitments.
The first is Dr. Mark Eisen, and he's asked Kitty a very serious question. When he asks her to marry him, he wants to be sure she's understood what he's asking her. "You asked me to marry you, didn't you?" she responds. "That's exactly it," he says. She smiles with "I got it. That's why I said yes."
When he leaves her at her apartment to make arrangements, Kitty is met by Wyn Strafford III, a man from a prominent Philadelphia family and someone with whom Kitty has been in love with for a long time. Wyn tells Kitty he's leaving for South America, and while he can't commit to marriage, he wants her to join him.
After Wyn leaves, Kitty excited begins packing. But as she packs, she begins to think her decision over. Should she go with Wyn or should she marry Mark?
We flashback to the first time Kitty met Wyn. He was an acquaintance of her father's, and the chemistry is evident right from the start.
Wyn hires Kitty to work as a secretary at his Philadelphia magazine. The more time they spend together, the more they fall in love.
Kitty's father cautions her to be careful about Wyn. He tells her to be careful of believing in fairytales. But Kitty brushes him off, "After all, the prince and Cinderella lived happily ever afterwards." Her father scoffs and says, "Yes, and that’s where these writing fellows are
smart, too. They always end the story
before it really begins."
Kitty's father is proved right, however. Soon, Wyn's magazine has to fold. Sadly, Wyn doesn't have the strength to defy his family and marry someone beneath his social tier.
With her father now dead, Kitty heads for New York, where she becomes a salesgirl at a cosmetics store. She's pretty good at selling high end items, too. When a customer makes a comment about the price, Kitty convinces her it's the right choice, because "How else could we keep the wrong person from wearing it?"
Kitty mistakenly presses the burglar alarm one day. So, to save her job she pretends to faint in all the commotion.
The doctor who comes to her "rescue" is Mark (the man who asked her to marry him at the beginning of the film). He blackmails her into dating him when he sees through her ruse and threatens to tell her employer.
She agrees to the date. No sooner has Mark gone, then Kitty's employer comes to her aid and splashes a vaseful of water on her. Kitty's learned her lesson about lying.
On the night of her date with Mark, Kitty is sorely disappointed. Instead of going out, he insists on staying in and playing cards and drinking coffee. "I thought we had a date tonight," she mentions to Mark. He looks at her quizzically, "Well, what do you think's been going on here for the past three hours?" She looks right back at him with disgust, "Well, for one thing, I've slowly grown to hate you."
The date turns out to be some sort of test that Mark has devised, and Kitty has passed. To her great surprise, she agrees to go to the movies with him later in the week.
And the two start spending a lot of time together. Kitty grows to like Mark immensely.
Just as things are going so well with Mark, who should pop back in Kitty's life but Wyn, who has tracked her down.
All of Kitty's old feelings for Wyn coming flooding back to her. He tells her that he's ready to stand up to his family and marry her. She agrees to become Mrs. Wyn Strafford, a member of one of the "Main Line" Philadelphia family, something she's always aspired to. They marry secretly, and then go to Philadelphia.
But when she goes to meet the Strafford family, Kitty finds a chilly reception. They tell her they plan on sending her to "finishing school" to polish up her rough edges. When she tells them that she and Wyn plan to live in New York, the family informs her that Wyn will be disinherited because of a clause in the family will that says he must remain in Philadelphia and work in the family business.
Realizing that Wyn doesn't have the strength to face poverty, Kitty decides to leave him, but not before giving the family a piece of her mind. When Wyn's Uncle Kennett says, "But, Miss Foyle, thou art not being quite reasonable about this", Kitty responds with "Says thou".
Back in New York after her divorce, Kitty renews her acquaintance with Mark. He knows all about her marriage, and he's willing to give them a second chance.
But before her relationship with Mark can take off, Kitty finds out that she's expecting Wyn's baby. She also finds out that any hopes of a reconciliation with Wyn are not to be, as Wyn's engagement has just been announced.
Kitty looks forward to becoming a mother. Sadly, the baby is born dead and she has to cope with that loss without Wyn by her side.
A few years later, Kitty has reluctantly returned to Philadelphia to head up a branch of the cosmetic store she works for. One of the clients is Mrs. Wyn Strafford, who comes in with her little boy. When she's alone with the boy, Kitty gives him something to secretly give to Wyn.
We return to the present, where Kitty leaves her apartment to head off to her new life. She leaves a note with the doorman for the man she has not chosen, and heads off in a cab to meet the man she has chosen and their new life together.
Cast rundown:
Ginger Rogers................................Kitty Foyle
Dennis Morgan...............................Wyn Strafford VI
James Craig...................................Dr. Mark Eisen
Eduardo Ciannelli............................Giono
Ernest Cossart................................Tom Foyle
Gladys Cooper.................................Mrs. Strafford
Odette Myrtil..................................Delphine Detaille
Walter Kingsford.............................Mr. Kennett
Nella Walker...................................Aunt Jessica
Kay Linaker.....................................Veronica Strafford
Florence Bates................................Customer
And that's it for Kitty Foyle. Ginger Rogers went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actress with her portrayal as the title character. She also popularized the "Kitty Foyle dress" which was debuted in this film and instantly copied by thousands of women all over the United States.
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