AB's Top Classic & Screwball Comedies:
Most of these wonderful gems are from the mid 1930's-1950's. I've included a few from the 60's that I love and an occasional Pre-Code film. Some are musical/comedies but heavy on the comedy. Enjoy, AB:)
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- DirectorH.C. PotterStarsLoretta YoungJoseph CottenEthel BarrymoreAfter leaving her family's farm to study nursing in the city, a young woman finds herself on an unexpected path towards politics.I recorded this off TCM in January 2012 after waiting for years for it to play on TV (I believe it was the TCM premiere, but I might be mistaken). It's still not available on DVD which is a shame. They did replay it on TCM in Summer 2012, so hopefully it will be popular and remain on their regular rotation. Meanwhile, I DVR'd it and am not erasing it. It's definitely in my top 10 movies of all time along with The More the Merrier.
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsJean ArthurJoel McCreaCharles CoburnDuring the World War II housing shortage in Washington, two men and a woman share a single apartment and the older man plays Cupid to the other two.
- DirectorLeo McCareyStarsIrene DunneCary GrantRalph BellamyA married couple file an amicable divorce, but find it harder to let go of each other than they initially thought.
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsCary GrantKatharine HepburnJames StewartWhen a rich woman's ex-husband and a tabloid-type reporter turn up just before her planned remarriage, she begins to learn the truth about herself.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsWilliam PowellIrene DunneElizabeth TaylorA straitlaced turn-of-the-century father presides over a family of boys and the mother who really rules the roost.
- DirectorNorman JewisonStarsDoris DayJames GarnerArlene FrancisA homemaker's sudden rise to fame as a soap spokesperson leads to chaos in her home life.
- DirectorH.C. PotterStarsCary GrantLaraine DayCharles BickfordA gambler has plans to swindle money from a charity program, but starts to have second thoughts when he falls for a rich society girl.
- DirectorGarson KaninStarsGinger RogersDavid NivenCharles CoburnAn unemployed woman discovers an abandoned baby on the steps of an orphanage, and accepts an offer to take responsibility for the child in return for a job.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsGlenn FordGeraldine PageAngela LansburyBubbly, middle-aged Evie Jackson has been single and alone for quite some time. When she attends a postmasters' convention at a New York City hotel, she meets rakish greeting card salesman Harry Mork and falls in love.
- DirectorH.C. PotterStarsCary GrantMyrna LoyMelvyn DouglasA man and his wife decide they can afford to have a house in the country built to their specifications. It's a lot more trouble than they think.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsGregory PeckAudrey HepburnEddie AlbertA bored and sheltered princess escapes her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome.
- DirectorPeter GodfreyStarsBarbara StanwyckDennis MorganSydney GreenstreetA food writer who has lied about being the perfect housewife must try to cover her deception when her boss and a returning war hero invite themselves to her home for a traditional family Christmas.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsCary GrantDoris DayGig YoungA rich businessman and a young woman are attracted to each other, but he only wants an affair while she wants to save herself for marriage.
- DirectorPeter TewksburyStarsRod TaylorJane FondaCliff RobertsonOn a Sunday, Eileen Tyler, still a virgin, leaves Albany to visit her airline pilot brother in New York but a chance encounter with a man on a city bus threatens to derail her upcoming marriage to boyfriend Russ.
- DirectorBlake EdwardsStarsCary GrantTony CurtisJoan O'BrienDuring World War II, a commander finds himself stuck with a decrepit (and pink) submarine, a con man executive officer, and a group of army nurses.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliStarsSpencer TracyJoan BennettElizabeth TaylorThe father of a young woman deals with the emotional pain of her getting married, along with the financial and organizational trouble of arranging the wedding.
- DirectorFrank CapraStarsClark GableClaudette ColbertWalter ConnollyA rogue reporter trailing a runaway heiress for a big story joins her on a bus heading from Florida to New York and they end up stuck with each other when the bus leaves them behind at one of the stops along the way.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsJune AllysonPeter LawfordMargaret O'BrienThe four daughters of a New England family fight for happiness during and after the Civil War.
- DirectorGarson KaninStarsIrene DunneCary GrantRandolph ScottMissing for seven years and presumed dead, a woman returns home on the day of her husband's second marriage.
- DirectorStuart HeislerStarsGary CooperLoretta YoungWilliam DemarestA good-natured saddle tramp traveling with his sidekick is mistaken for a ruthless outlaw with a price on his head.
- DirectorIrving ReisStarsCary GrantMyrna LoyShirley TempleA high school girl falls for a playboy artist, with screwball results.
- DirectorCharles WaltersStarsDoris DayDavid NivenJanis PaigeDrama professor turned theater critic balances his home life and career when he moves to the country with his wife and their four sons.
- DirectorHenry KosterStarsCary GrantLoretta YoungDavid NivenA debonair angel comes to Earth to help an Episcopalian bishop and his wife in their quest to raise money for the new church.
- DirectorRobert Z. LeonardStarsJoan CrawfordRobert TaylorGreer GarsonA successful novelist falls in love with her married publisher, to the consternation of her boyfriend, who arranges for her to meet the publisher's wife.
- DirectorCharles VidorStarsGrace KellyAlec GuinnessLouis JourdanWhen a crown prince visits, the princess's mother tries to push the prince into marrying her daughter by presenting a "rival" at the ball - her children's handsome tutor.