The nominees were ...
- Judith Anderson in Rebecca
- Jane Darwell in The Grapes of Wrath
- Ruth Hussey in The Philadelphia Story
- Barbara O'Neil in All This, and Heaven Too
- Marjorie Rambeau in Primrose Path
... when they should have been ...
- Judith Anderson in Rebecca
- Jane Darwell in The Grapes of Wrath
- Ruth Hussey in The Philadelphia Story
- Mildred Natwick in The Long Voyage Home
- Gail Patrick in My Favorite Wife
And the Oscar went to ...
Ma Joad was a plum role, and every character actress of a certain age, such as Beulah Bondi, campaigned for it. Darwell was a veteran who had made her first movies in 1913 and made her last screen appearance as the "Feed the Birds" woman in Mary Poppins -- a career that spanned fifty years. Walt Disney himself asked her to come out of retirement for her final role.
... when it should have gone to ...
Liz Embrie is one of those "gal pal" roles that cry out for the likes of Eve Arden or Celeste Holm -- who actually played the role in High Society, the musical remake of The Philadelphia Story. (Today the part would be written for a "gay best friend" and be played by Sean Hayes or Andrew Rannels.) But Hussey plays it to perfection, not only the wisecracks but also the wistful realization that James Stewart is smitten with Katharine Hepburn and not with her. It is, sadly, the only major movie role that Hussey ever landed after her film debut in 1937, when MGM, having spotted her in a touring company of Dead End, signed her to a contract. With a few exceptions -- she played Jordan Baker in the 1949 film version of The Great Gatsby and Bob Hope's wife in The Facts of Life -- she spent most of her movie career in B pictures, then did stage and television work before retiring in 1973.
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| Ruth Hussey and James Stewart in The Philadelphia Story |
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