Marty and Cindy converse about the theatric nature of All About Eve

All About Eve1950 • 138 minutes • 20th Century-FoxWritten & Directed by Joseph L. MankiewiczProduced by Darryl F. Zanuck

Principal Cast

• Bette Davis as Margo Channing
• Anne Baxter as Eve Harrington (a.k.a. Gertrude Slescynski)
• George Sanders as Addison DeWitt
• Celeste Holm as Karen Richards
• Gary Merrill as Bill Simpson
• Hugh Marlowe as Lloyd Richards
• Thelma Ritter as Birdie Coonan
• Marilyn Monroe as Miss Claudia Casswell
• Gregory Ratoff as Max Fabian
• Barbara Bates as Phoebe

◆ THE SOURCE MATERIAL▸ The film is based on "The Wisdom of Eve," a roughly three-and-a-half-page short story by Mary Orr, published in Cosmopolitan magazine in May 1946. Orr received no screen credit on the finished film.▸ The working title Best Performance was changed to All About Eve by Darryl F. Zanuck after he read a line of Addison DeWitt's opening narration in the script.

◆ CASTING & PRE-PRODUCTION▸ Darryl F. Zanuck originally wanted Jeanne Crain for Eve Harrington. When Crain became pregnant, Mankiewicz's final choice was Anne Baxter, whom he believed possessed a "bitch virtuosity" that Crain could not provide.

◆ BETTE DAVIS▸ Davis completed all of her scenes in just 16 days.▸ Bette Davis had just turned 42 when she took on the role of Margo Channing.

◆ THE CAST▸ Celeste Holm: On her first day on set, Holm walked over and said "Good morning" to Davis. Davis replied: "Oh shit, good manners." Holm later said she never voluntarily spoke to Davis again for the rest of the production. Years later, Davis said the "only bitch in the cast" was Holm.▸ George Sanders: All About Eve was Sanders's personal favorite among his own films. He called it "witty, sophisticated, and brilliantly written and directed." The role of Addison DeWitt was his only Oscar nomination — and he won.

◆ ON SET & PRODUCTION▸ The theatre scenes were shot at San Francisco's Curran Theatre at 445 Geary Street, a few blocks from Union Square. The theater remains in business as of 2022.▸ The film's budget was $1.4 million. It grossed $8.4 million at the box office.

◆ SCORE, DIALOGUE & HIDDEN DETAILS▸ "Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night" was voted the #9 greatest movie quote of all time by the American Film Institute.▸ As Margo drunkenly ascends the staircase after the cocktail party, the song "Stormy Weather" plays in the background — a pointed allusion to the turbulence ahead in her life.

◆ THE TALLULAH BANKHEAD MYTHOLOGY▸ Bankhead even considered suing 20th Century-Fox, but decided against it because Davis "did such a good job. I've just been witched out of $1,000,000 by Bette being as good as me."

◆ LIFE IMITATING ART▸ Bette Davis fell in love with Gary Merrill during production. They married in July 1950, weeks after filming wrapped, and adopted a daughter they named Margot — after Margo Channing.▸ In 1983, Anne Baxter stepped into Bette Davis's role on the television series Hotel after Davis fell ill. Davis never returned to the show.

◆ AWARDS & RECORDS▸ The film is the only picture in Oscar history to receive four female acting nominations in a single year: Davis and Baxter for Best Actress; Holm and Ritter for Best Supporting Actress.▸ George Sanders's Oscar for Best Supporting Actor was his only career nomination. He won on his first and only try.

◆ LEGACY & CULTURAL FOOTPRINT▸ All About Eve was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry in 1990, among the first 25 films chosen that year, deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."▸ The AFI ranked it #16 on its 1998 list of the 100 Greatest American Films.

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