The Philadelphia Story
Selected by the Actors Branch.
Selected by the Actors Branch.
Philip Barry wrote his stage comedy The Philadelphia Story for Katharine Hepburn who helped produce the Broadway production. Its smash success reignited Hepburn’s career and led to director George Cukor’s popular film adaptation, with Hepburn reprising her role as socialite Tracy Lord, Cary Grant as her ex-husband, and James Stewart (in his Academy Award–winning performance) as a love-struck reporter. Donald Ogden Stewart won an Oscar for adapting the Barry play, and the film also earned nominations for Best Picture, Cukor’s direction, Hepburn’s performance, and Ruth Hussey’s role as a wisecracking magazine photographer.