Marty and Cindy look at the most famous movie about an imaginary 6' 3.5" rabbit

◆ THE SOURCE MATERIAL

Play by Mary Chase; premiered November 1, 1944 at the 48th Street Theatre — Frank Fay as Elwood, Josephine Hull as Veta

Ran 1,775 performances through January 1949 — fifth longest Broadway run to that point

Won Chase the 1945 Pulitzer Prize for Drama — the fourth woman to receive it

In the original draft, Harvey was an invisible canary written for Tallulah Bankhead; the rabbit and púca concept came in rewrites

A púca is a shape-shifting spirit from Celtic mythology, associated with mischief and social outcasts

Universal paid a record $1 million for the film rights in 1947; Chase retained final approval over any actor cast as Elwood

Chase co-wrote the screenplay with Oscar Brodney

◆ CASTING & PRE-PRODUCTION

Bing Crosby was the studio's first choice; he passed, fearing fans would read the role's drinking as reflecting on him

Others considered: Cary Grant, Gary Cooper, Jack Benny, James Cagney, and Harold Lloyd

Stewart played Elwood on Broadway in summer 1947, then returned in 1948 specifically to lobby for the film role

Josephine Hull, Victoria Horne, and Jesse White all reprised their Broadway roles — White's was also his film debut

◆ JAMES STEWART

Instead of a flat fee, Stewart took a percentage of profits from Harvey and Winchester '73 (both 1950), paid over time to minimize taxes

He suggested Koster widen shots to leave room in the frame for Harvey's implied presence; Koster accepted

Stewart named Elwood P. Dowd his favorite role and returned to it four more times through 1975

Stewart said Hull had the hardest job: she had to believe and not believe in Harvey simultaneously, within single scenes

◆ THE CAST

Josephine Hull won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress — her only nomination; also won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama

Peggy Dow retired from acting in 1951 to marry, making Harvey one of her final screen appearances

Cecil Kellaway: two-time Oscar nominee; brought warmth to Dr. Chumley as he gradually falls under Harvey's influence

Jesse White reprised his Broadway role as Wilson the orderly — later became the original Maytag repairman beginning in 1967

◆ ON SET & PRODUCTION

Koster gave Harvey his own chair on set and a place at the lunch table — the entire cast maintained the fiction throughout production

Harvey receives an on-screen credit: "Harvey as Himself" — during which a door slowly swings open by an unseen force

Cinematographer William Daniels had shot Greed and Ninotchka and won an Oscar for The Naked City (1948)

◆ DIALOGUE & HIDDEN DETAILS

"Well, I've wrestled with reality for thirty-five years, Doctor, and I'm happy to state I finally won out over it."

Each character's reaction to Elwood's introductions serves as a quick character test — those who humor him warmly tend to be decent

Elwood mentions Harvey can stop time; audiences tend to remember the film as longer and fuller than its 104 minutes

◆ AWARDS & RECORDS

Academy Awards: Stewart nominated for Best Actor (lost to José Ferrer, Cyrano de Bergerac); Hull won Best Supporting Actress

Golden Globes: Hull won Best Actress in a Drama; Stewart nominated for Best Actor

AFI ranked Harvey #35 on its 100 Greatest American Comedy Films list

◆ LEGACY & CULTURAL FOOTPRINT

1999: Miramax acquired rights; Universal wanted Jim Carrey, New Line wanted Adam Sandler — neither version produced

2012: Broadway revival at Studio 54 — Jim Parsons as Elwood, Jessica Hecht as Veta

1951: Dooley Wilson (Casablanca's Sam) starred as Elwood in the Negro Drama Guild production, with Butterfly McQueen as Myrtle Mae

The play has been in near-continuous performance somewhere in the world since 1944

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