| JUNE 2005 JAMES STEWART |
| EXISTING REVIEWS You Can't Take It With You - 1938 Mr. Smith Goes to Washington - 1939 The Philadelphia Story - 1940 It's a Wonderful Life - 1946 The Man Who Knew Too Much - 1956 Vertigo - 1958 and Firecreek - 1968 |
| NEW REVIEWS FOR THIS FEATURE Destry Rides Again - 1939 Call Northside 777 - 1948 Winchester '73 - 1950 Harvey - 1950 The Glenn Miller Story - 1953 Rear Window - 1954 and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance - 1962 |
Born in 1908, Jimmy Stewart has gone down in cinema and cultural history as an American Icon,
equal in status yet different in nature to the likes of John Wayne. Whereas those Western film
heroes represent that rugged and rough never-say-die aspect of American life, Stewart came to
become a symbol of the earnestness and honesty of the American spirit. In his films, Stewart was
easy going and for the most part, non-threatening. His laid back naturalism on screen endeared
audiences to him.
His early roles in the mid to late 1930s cemented his "aw shucks" demeanor into the American
popular conscience. From the virtuous sheriff in "Destry Rides Again" to the crusader of American
patriotism in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," Stewart became a poster boy for integrity. In truth,
Stewart was the All-American kid. As a boy, he'd been a Boy Scout, and as a young adult he
excelled and attended Princeton University and studied architecture.
When World War II touched the United States in 1941, Stewart volunteered for the Air Corps and
trained pilots to fly B-17 Flying Fortresses before he went to Europe himself in 1943 and flew 20
missions over Nazi-occupied Europe in B-24 Liberator bombers.
equal in status yet different in nature to the likes of John Wayne. Whereas those Western film
heroes represent that rugged and rough never-say-die aspect of American life, Stewart came to
become a symbol of the earnestness and honesty of the American spirit. In his films, Stewart was
easy going and for the most part, non-threatening. His laid back naturalism on screen endeared
audiences to him.
His early roles in the mid to late 1930s cemented his "aw shucks" demeanor into the American
popular conscience. From the virtuous sheriff in "Destry Rides Again" to the crusader of American
patriotism in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," Stewart became a poster boy for integrity. In truth,
Stewart was the All-American kid. As a boy, he'd been a Boy Scout, and as a young adult he
excelled and attended Princeton University and studied architecture.
When World War II touched the United States in 1941, Stewart volunteered for the Air Corps and
trained pilots to fly B-17 Flying Fortresses before he went to Europe himself in 1943 and flew 20
missions over Nazi-occupied Europe in B-24 Liberator bombers.
| Jimmy Stewart as Jefferson Smith in Frank Capra's "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." |
Stewart's career is a legacy of amazing and varied performances in a range of
genres from comedy to action to thrillers. In his early career, Stewart worked with
legendary director Frank Capra on three classics, including "You Can't Take It With
You" which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1938, the legendary "Mr.
Smith Goes to Washington" and Capra's Christmas classic, "It's a Wonderful Life," in
which Stewart finds himself in the hands of Clarence, the angel who shows him that
life is worth living.
Before the outbreak of war, Stewart also managed to play alongside Cary Grant and
Katharine Hepburn in George Cukor's comedy, "The Philadelphia Story," in which
Stewart plays a reporter looking for the dirt on an aristocratic couple and ends up
falling for the bride-to-be. The role earned him an Academy Award. He also played
the leading man in "The Shop Around the Corner," a romantic comedy so popular it
was recently remade with Tom Hanks and retitled, "You've Got Mail."
After the war, Stewart wanted to toughen up his image and took more rugged roles in
Westerns like "Winchester '73" and urban crime dramas including the film noir, "Call
Northside 777," in which he plays a journalist trying to exonerate an innocent man.
In the 1950s, Stewart minted some classic films, including one of his favorite films,
"Harvey," a comedy about a man named Elwood P. Dowd who genuinely believes
that his best friend is an invisible rabbit over six feet in height named Harvey.
That same decade, Stewart also started a successful career in Westerns and formed
a working relationship with director Anthony Mann. Together, they made a number
of successful Westerns, including "The Man From Laramie," "The Far Country," and
"Bend of the River."
However, the films Stewart is best remembered for in the 1950s are his
collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, including "Rear Window," "The Man Who Knew
Too Much," "Vertigo" and "Rope."
genres from comedy to action to thrillers. In his early career, Stewart worked with
legendary director Frank Capra on three classics, including "You Can't Take It With
You" which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1938, the legendary "Mr.
Smith Goes to Washington" and Capra's Christmas classic, "It's a Wonderful Life," in
which Stewart finds himself in the hands of Clarence, the angel who shows him that
life is worth living.
Before the outbreak of war, Stewart also managed to play alongside Cary Grant and
Katharine Hepburn in George Cukor's comedy, "The Philadelphia Story," in which
Stewart plays a reporter looking for the dirt on an aristocratic couple and ends up
falling for the bride-to-be. The role earned him an Academy Award. He also played
the leading man in "The Shop Around the Corner," a romantic comedy so popular it
was recently remade with Tom Hanks and retitled, "You've Got Mail."
After the war, Stewart wanted to toughen up his image and took more rugged roles in
Westerns like "Winchester '73" and urban crime dramas including the film noir, "Call
Northside 777," in which he plays a journalist trying to exonerate an innocent man.
In the 1950s, Stewart minted some classic films, including one of his favorite films,
"Harvey," a comedy about a man named Elwood P. Dowd who genuinely believes
that his best friend is an invisible rabbit over six feet in height named Harvey.
That same decade, Stewart also started a successful career in Westerns and formed
a working relationship with director Anthony Mann. Together, they made a number
of successful Westerns, including "The Man From Laramie," "The Far Country," and
"Bend of the River."
However, the films Stewart is best remembered for in the 1950s are his
collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, including "Rear Window," "The Man Who Knew
Too Much," "Vertigo" and "Rope."
| ABOVE: Jimmy Stewart spies on his neighbors in Alfred Hitchcock's suspense classic, "Rear Window." BELOW: Stewart and Doris Day in Hitchcock's "The Man Who Knew Too Much." |
Stewart said on numerous occasions that his favorite Hitchcock picture in which he
acted was "Rear Window." In it, Stewart plays a photojournalist with a broken leg
stuck in his apartment in a wheelchair. With nothing better to do, he starts spying on
people in the apartment complex with his camera and thinks one of the neighbors
murdered someone. Stewart, limited to a wheelchair for the entire production, gives
an amazing performance. Stuck in one place, his emotions run wild and he verges
on paranoia.
Stewart was no stranger to suspense, having just a few years before starred
opposite Marlene Dietrich in "No Highway In the Sky" in which he plays an airplane
designer on the maiden voyage of one of his passenger jets when he realizes it is
going to crash. No one believes him, but his honesty as a performer leaves no doubt
in the minds of the audience that he is scared out of his mind.
Later in his career, Stewart caused some waves with the controversial Otto
Preminger film, "Anatomy of a Murder," in which explicit language was used during
the courtroom scenes to describe the mechanics of the crime. By today's standards,
not a big deal. In 1959, another can of worms entirely. A gutsy move on Stewart's
part to take such a role, but it worked in his favor.
In the 1960s, Stewart found his lighter side again in family comedies like "Mr. Hobbs
Takes a Vacation" and "Dear Brigitte," in which Stewart plays a father whose son is
obsessed with French model Brigitte Bardot. Stewart continued to star in Westerns,
including the epic "How the West was Won" and "The Man Who Shot Liberty
Valance" with John Wayne.
In 1965, Stewart starred with Richard Attenborough in the survival drama, "Flight of
the Phoenix." In the film, Stewart is a veteran pilot. While flying oil workers out of the
desert, the plane crashes in a sandstorm and they make the crazy decision to build a
new plane to escape and survive. As the story plays out, the characters become
more dehydrated, their decisions are more and more erratic. Stewart has never
been more gripping, playing an aging man unsure of his abilities. This film was
recently remade with Dennis Quaid in Stewart's role.
Stewart's last performance was voice work in the animated "An American Tail: Fievel
Goes West." He also made regular hilarious appearances on The Tonight Show with
Johnny Carson in his retirement. He died of a pulmonary embolism in 1997 at 89
years of age.
acted was "Rear Window." In it, Stewart plays a photojournalist with a broken leg
stuck in his apartment in a wheelchair. With nothing better to do, he starts spying on
people in the apartment complex with his camera and thinks one of the neighbors
murdered someone. Stewart, limited to a wheelchair for the entire production, gives
an amazing performance. Stuck in one place, his emotions run wild and he verges
on paranoia.
Stewart was no stranger to suspense, having just a few years before starred
opposite Marlene Dietrich in "No Highway In the Sky" in which he plays an airplane
designer on the maiden voyage of one of his passenger jets when he realizes it is
going to crash. No one believes him, but his honesty as a performer leaves no doubt
in the minds of the audience that he is scared out of his mind.
Later in his career, Stewart caused some waves with the controversial Otto
Preminger film, "Anatomy of a Murder," in which explicit language was used during
the courtroom scenes to describe the mechanics of the crime. By today's standards,
not a big deal. In 1959, another can of worms entirely. A gutsy move on Stewart's
part to take such a role, but it worked in his favor.
In the 1960s, Stewart found his lighter side again in family comedies like "Mr. Hobbs
Takes a Vacation" and "Dear Brigitte," in which Stewart plays a father whose son is
obsessed with French model Brigitte Bardot. Stewart continued to star in Westerns,
including the epic "How the West was Won" and "The Man Who Shot Liberty
Valance" with John Wayne.
In 1965, Stewart starred with Richard Attenborough in the survival drama, "Flight of
the Phoenix." In the film, Stewart is a veteran pilot. While flying oil workers out of the
desert, the plane crashes in a sandstorm and they make the crazy decision to build a
new plane to escape and survive. As the story plays out, the characters become
more dehydrated, their decisions are more and more erratic. Stewart has never
been more gripping, playing an aging man unsure of his abilities. This film was
recently remade with Dennis Quaid in Stewart's role.
Stewart's last performance was voice work in the animated "An American Tail: Fievel
Goes West." He also made regular hilarious appearances on The Tonight Show with
Johnny Carson in his retirement. He died of a pulmonary embolism in 1997 at 89
years of age.
| ABOVE: Stewart plays a hardened gunfighter looking for his double-crossing brother in "Winchester '73." BELOW: Stewart, late in his career, plays a veteran pilot stranded in the desert after a crash in the original "Flight of the Phoenix." |
| Today there is a Jimmy Stewart Museum dedicated to his memory in Indiana, Pennsylvania, where he was born. Visit www.jimmy.org for more information. |