"Come Live with Me" was being made as World War II was underway in Europe. Hedy Lamarr (nee Hedwig Eva Kiesler), had left her native Austria (and first husband) for Paris in 1937. She was hired by MGM and moved to America where she made her first American film, "Algiers," in 1938. The U.S. was not yet in the war, yet war headlines filled the newspapers in January 1941 when "Come Live with Me" appeared in theaters. But with no mention of the war at all in the film, it's probably set in the late 1930s, before Germany started its offensives. No doubt many moviegoers were intrigued by the film's theme as well as enjoying seeing James Stewart and Lamarr, who had fast become a star.
Lamarr is Johnny Jones, a foreign citizen with money who wants to stay in the U.S. after her visa has expired. She is the love interest of a married wealthy American publisher, Barton Kendrick (played by Ian Hunter). She wants to find a husband as a way to become a citizen. She runs into Bill Smith (played by Stewart) who is an out-of-work, down on his luck writer. So, she proposes a marriage of convenience between Smith and Jones. She provides funds for his bare necessities -- $17.80 per week if he will marry her, and that will keep him while he resumes his writing. Of course, he plans to pay every penny of that back when he strikes it rich. The two don't live together.
A love triangle is part of the story, because Jones has been the love interest of a married man for the past year. Barton Kendrick (played by Ian Hunter) is a wealthy publisher. His wife, Diana (played by Verree Teasdale) reads the manuscript of a story Smith has written and sent to Kendrick publishing. It's a story about an out of work American who meets an Austrian immigrant who wants to stay in America
One can guess where the story goes from there, and the best funny stuff in the film happens toward the end. It's an OK film that's mostly a light comedy romance. The plot is skimpy and the dialog has just occasional lines of humor here and there. A better screenplay could have made this a very good comedy. And, the way the characters play their roles – especially Lamarr, it's hard to believe the romance. It just comes on at the last minutes in the film.
This film is far down on the list of Stewart movies, but it's about in the middle of Lamarr's. Even though she was for some time labeled the most beautiful woman in the world, and she had some talent, Lamarr's films mostly were forgettable. Her two best films with memorable roles were "Algiers" of 1938 and "Comrade X" of 1940. She was offered better stuff in her early career but turned down the female leads in two films that are classics – "Gaslight" (1940 English production) and "Casablanca" of 1942. Still, this is a film that most people should enjoy,
Lamarr quit acting after 1958. She was just 44 years old and on her fifth marriage. It was her longest that she thought might last. She was unlucky in love and married and divorced one more time. Her last marriage ended in 1964. She had two children with second husband John Loder (1943-47) and she had one adopted daughter. She died alone in her home in Casselberry, Florida, at age 85 in 2000.
Lamarr may be the only screen actor to be in the National Inventors Hall of Fame. She was inducted in 2014 along with former Hollywood composer George Antheil. At the start of World War II, the two invented a frequency hopping technique that could be used by the Allies to prevent jamming of torpedo guidance systems. Apparently, it wasn't used by the U.S. until 1962, but later became an important aspect for wireless communications. The inventors received no compensation for their discovery. The original 1942 patent expired and the technique became part of the public domain.
Here are some of my favorite lines from the film. For a few more comedy lines, see the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page of the movie. Jimmy Stewart recites the first and last stanzas of Christopher Marlowe's poem, "Come live with me and be my love."
Bill, "My name's Smith." Johnny, "My name's Jones." Taxi driver, "Let's see – Smith and Jones, and I'm Snow White."
Johnny, "Mr. Smith, it's such a wonderful thing." Bill, "Why?" Johnny, "That you haven't any money." Taxi driver, "And I thought I'd heard everything."
Bill, as he and Johnny enter his apartment, "It's just a little place, but its dreary." Pointing out his empty book case, "If you want to browse among my books, the pawnshop's just around the corner."
Bill, "Would you like to have some music? I could open the window and get the radio from across the street."
Johnny, "I came here to ask you to marry me." Bill, "Why?" Johnny, "Because you have no money." Bill, looking befuddled, "Well, this is so sudden." Johnny, "I was afraid you wouldn't understand." Bill, "Yeah, yeah, well, I see your point."
Lamarr is Johnny Jones, a foreign citizen with money who wants to stay in the U.S. after her visa has expired. She is the love interest of a married wealthy American publisher, Barton Kendrick (played by Ian Hunter). She wants to find a husband as a way to become a citizen. She runs into Bill Smith (played by Stewart) who is an out-of-work, down on his luck writer. So, she proposes a marriage of convenience between Smith and Jones. She provides funds for his bare necessities -- $17.80 per week if he will marry her, and that will keep him while he resumes his writing. Of course, he plans to pay every penny of that back when he strikes it rich. The two don't live together.
A love triangle is part of the story, because Jones has been the love interest of a married man for the past year. Barton Kendrick (played by Ian Hunter) is a wealthy publisher. His wife, Diana (played by Verree Teasdale) reads the manuscript of a story Smith has written and sent to Kendrick publishing. It's a story about an out of work American who meets an Austrian immigrant who wants to stay in America
One can guess where the story goes from there, and the best funny stuff in the film happens toward the end. It's an OK film that's mostly a light comedy romance. The plot is skimpy and the dialog has just occasional lines of humor here and there. A better screenplay could have made this a very good comedy. And, the way the characters play their roles – especially Lamarr, it's hard to believe the romance. It just comes on at the last minutes in the film.
This film is far down on the list of Stewart movies, but it's about in the middle of Lamarr's. Even though she was for some time labeled the most beautiful woman in the world, and she had some talent, Lamarr's films mostly were forgettable. Her two best films with memorable roles were "Algiers" of 1938 and "Comrade X" of 1940. She was offered better stuff in her early career but turned down the female leads in two films that are classics – "Gaslight" (1940 English production) and "Casablanca" of 1942. Still, this is a film that most people should enjoy,
Lamarr quit acting after 1958. She was just 44 years old and on her fifth marriage. It was her longest that she thought might last. She was unlucky in love and married and divorced one more time. Her last marriage ended in 1964. She had two children with second husband John Loder (1943-47) and she had one adopted daughter. She died alone in her home in Casselberry, Florida, at age 85 in 2000.
Lamarr may be the only screen actor to be in the National Inventors Hall of Fame. She was inducted in 2014 along with former Hollywood composer George Antheil. At the start of World War II, the two invented a frequency hopping technique that could be used by the Allies to prevent jamming of torpedo guidance systems. Apparently, it wasn't used by the U.S. until 1962, but later became an important aspect for wireless communications. The inventors received no compensation for their discovery. The original 1942 patent expired and the technique became part of the public domain.
Here are some of my favorite lines from the film. For a few more comedy lines, see the Quotes section under this IMDb Web page of the movie. Jimmy Stewart recites the first and last stanzas of Christopher Marlowe's poem, "Come live with me and be my love."
Bill, "My name's Smith." Johnny, "My name's Jones." Taxi driver, "Let's see – Smith and Jones, and I'm Snow White."
Johnny, "Mr. Smith, it's such a wonderful thing." Bill, "Why?" Johnny, "That you haven't any money." Taxi driver, "And I thought I'd heard everything."
Bill, as he and Johnny enter his apartment, "It's just a little place, but its dreary." Pointing out his empty book case, "If you want to browse among my books, the pawnshop's just around the corner."
Bill, "Would you like to have some music? I could open the window and get the radio from across the street."
Johnny, "I came here to ask you to marry me." Bill, "Why?" Johnny, "Because you have no money." Bill, looking befuddled, "Well, this is so sudden." Johnny, "I was afraid you wouldn't understand." Bill, "Yeah, yeah, well, I see your point."