As three volunteering women rush aboard a river-boat that takes children from underprivileged families on an annual daytrip, they receive an unexpected letter from one of their friends explaining that she has left their quaint little city behind with one of their beloved husbands in tow, putting each into a state of crisis. This is the suspenseful hook for the 1949 romantic drama A Letter to Three Wives, written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
The letter writer is voice over narrator Addie Ross (Oscar winner Celeste Holm) – the sultry, well connected dame is never shown, and the husband she has run off with is also left in the dark until almost the very end. Doing their duty as good citizens, Deborah Bishop (Jeanne Crain), Lora Mae Hollingsway (Linda Darnell), and Rita Phipps (Ann Sothern), three longtime friends, take the kids on the cruise and stop off to have a picnic, each flashing back (at a moment when they are not busy) to a time in which their significant other may have shown their true colours in regards to Addie.
Deborah, the only one of the group not from their hometown, is a country girl who is a tad self-conscious about her less than posh upbringing – she met her World War 2 serving husband, Brad Bishop (Jeffrey Lynn), while she volunteered with the Navy WAVES. Lara Mae is extremely ambitious, setting her sights on her rich, and much older boss, Porter Hollingsway (Paul Douglas), in a very clever way. From an impoverished background (literally living directly next to the wrong side of the train tracks), some may see her as a gold digger, though she has a big heart. Rita, the sole of the three working outside of the home, is a career driven woman who is married to measly earner George Phipps (Kirk Douglas), a schoolteacher overshadowed by her radio writing job and antics. Each of the three men seemingly has a reason to leave his wife, each of the women feeling as if their man’s typical routine the morning of the fateful day was a bit off. What will come of their marriages and friendships?
With a unique and exciting structure, Mankiewicz took home both ‘Best Writing, Screenplay’ and ‘Best Director’ at the Academy Awards. Based on John Klempner’s novel which appeared in Cosmopolitan, two wives were eliminated (one of which was actually written into an earlier version of the script – she was to be played by Anne Baxter), trimming the story down to a more manageable three. A clever filmmaker, Mankiewicz was bested by the censors when they denied two words from his script (laxative and toilet), though he got his revenge by writing a clever, double-entendre filled piece of dialogue revolving around “penetration” and “saturation”. Another interesting example, upon needing the perfect reaction from Linda Darnell as she glares at an image of Addie, he placed a photo of director Otto Preminger, who constantly berated her on the set of Forever Amber (if you listen to my interview with Keir Dullea, you will get another excellent and similar viewpoint on the surly filmmaker).
Also a premier example of promotion and advertising by the studio (Twentieth Century Fox), the voice of Addie was kept a secret, and many different “Who is Addie?” contests were run to draw people into the theatres (guess the voice, win a prize).
Another piece of trivia to impress your friends with: Mankiewicz won the same two Oscars the next year for All About Eve – the only time this has ever happened. And, in an eerie connection to life, Darnell and Mankiewicz had an affair while making the film (Darnell calling the director the great love of her life), and the actress wanted the filmmaker to leave his wife and run away with her – though he refused.
A Best Picture nominee, A Letter to Three Wives is an excellent, character driven romantic drama with just the right amount of suspense. Featuring stellar performances (including a memorable turn from uncredited Thelma Ritter – in one of her first screen roles), fluid direction, engaging editing, weird transitional sound effects, and so much more, it is definitely worth checking out. So, make sure to write a letter to yourself reminding you to track it down, no point feigning deafness with this one.