MovieChat Forums > Holiday (1938) Discussion > Hepburn made the film flop?!

Hepburn made the film flop?!

posted 12 years ago by MyMovieTVRomance
9 replies | jump to latest

I just watched this delightful film a bit ago, on TCM, and when it was over, host Robert Osborn revealed some interesting information, stating that the film was a big flop when it came out, mainly(?) because audiances in 1938 were completely uninterested in seeing K. Hepburn in ANYTHING! In fact, he went on to say, that she, along with several other prominant actresses (including Joan Crawford!) were considered "box-office poison! And. I was just very suprised to hear this! While I already knew about Craford being thought of that way (having seen "Mommie Dearest many times), I really was surprised that K. Hepburn was thought of that way---esp. as she was voted by AFI as being the greatest American actress of all time!

So, could someone tell me, please, if she wasn't loved in the 1930s, when did her star begin to rise? I'd like to know why she wasn't well-received back then, when did she start becoming well-recieved, and how could a star who was so panned by critics and the public (as I understand it) become well-received at all? What caused the transition? I look forward to reading everyone's thoughts one this.

I am the movies I love! (^_^)

[–] novastar_6 12 years ago

This is one time when I think our old buddy Robert is wrong. Yes Katharine WAS considered box office poison in the 30s, started in the early 30s, but this movie flopped because this was still in the Depression era and people were not impressed with Grant's character who had an opportunity to work and threw it away, though the rest of us would love to be able to do what he did. But as to when her success started to take off, I think it started when she did the Philadelphia Story 2 years after this movie, and then she started doing movies with Spencer Tracy and that seems to be when people really started to love her, though I've always believed some of her best roles were from the 'poison' era.

[–] Lysandra_Yaxley 12 years ago

I watched Holiday for the first time in a long time on TCM a couple of days ago (along with the other Kate/Cary films) and I think you totally nailed it. I find the film annoying. I can imagine what depression era audiences thought. Holiday was a play that Philip Barry wrote in the 1920s. It is totally out of place in the midst of the depression. And it just doesn't ring true even now. Couple that with KH's box office poison status, it's easy to see why it flopped.

In addition, the role of Linda Seton doesn't really suit Kate very well and Cary is at his over the top worst; almost as bad as Arsenic and Old Lace. Of the four films they made, I personally like Cary best in Sylvia Scarlett maybe because it's closest to the life he had actually lead so that he seems more connected to the part than any of the other films they made.

[–] novastar_6 12 years ago

I thought the role of Linda Seton suited her VERY well, certainly a hell of a lot better than if she was going to be Julia that's for sure.

[–] flaiky 12 years ago

I have to say, I find it strange to hear someone say she didn't suit the character of Linda Seton. That sort of "rich girl rebelling against convention" is exactly the sort of role she was perfect at. I wouldn't put it in her top 10 performances, but it's definitely a great character for her.

That is a masterpiece of understatement.

[–] novastar_6 10 years ago

I have to say, I find it strange to hear someone say she didn't suit the character of Linda Seton. That sort of "rich girl rebelling against convention" is exactly the sort of role she was perfect at. I wouldn't put it in her top 10 performances, but it's definitely a great character for her.

I agree, and disagree, I'd put it at her top #1 performance, because she has everything, comedy, heart, drama, love, her monologues about her home, her family, her mother, her dreams, it's all spectacular.

[–] d.doherty 8 years ago

All the great stars had periodic lows in their careers, Hepburn more than most.

She was more or less fired from RKO in 1938 after flopping with Cary Grant in BRINGING UP BABY.

She had no contract and accepted a one picture deal to appear in HOLIDAY at second string studio, Columbia. Carey and she again bombed at the box office with HOLIDAY.

Faced with no film offers at all, she returned to the New York stage.

[–] DeepFriedJello 8 years ago

Interesting thread. I didn't know KH was ever considered poison. I think the idea that Grant's character is wanting to turn down a job during the depression, and run off and be a rich bum is disturbing.

[–] HomerParrish 10 years ago

I can see this. It really doesn't fit well as a depression era film, where every citizen is fighting their guts out just to get a job, just to survive. And Cary Grant's character is willing to throw it all away. Certainly this was not appropriate for the time.

[–] flaiky 12 years ago

So, could someone tell me, please, if she wasn't loved in the 1930s, when did her star begin to rise? I'd like to know why she wasn't well-received back then, when did she start becoming well-recieved, and how could a star who was so panned by critics and the public (as I understand it) become well-received at all?

She was a huge star at the start of the 1930s (due to appearing in a succession of popular films), but then became unpopular over the course of the decade. She then became popular again, and The Philadelphia Story was very useful for this: Tracy Lord starts of as a rather unrelatable character, and then she gradually gets more and more human and you feel sympathy for her. You realise that she isn't as stuck up as you thought, and that she's actually rather vulnerable and "just wants to be loved". I think audiences almost felt like they were watching the real Hepburn here, since the role is so perfect for her (it was tailored specifically for her after all) and so they came to "understand" her and feel some love for her. And since it was one of the most popular films of the year, the effect was widespread.

She followed it up with Woman of the Year, which followed a similar format and was also extremely popular. The association with Spencer Tracy, one of the most popular actors of the era, helped her to no-end throughout the 1940s. And then in the 1950s she regularly played spinsters roles, which always garnered a lot of sympathy and helped people understand and accept her rather unique personality. She also began to take on a lot of challenging literary roles (on stage and screen) which increased her reputation. By the 1960s, she was basically a legend.

That is a masterpiece of understatement.