The Women… It’s All About Men!

THE WOMEN; 1939; Studio: MGM; Director: George Cukor; Cast: Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Paulette Goddard, Joan Fontaine.

With over 130 speaking parts, this is a rare film that features not a single male actor; men are discussed but never seen nor heard throughout the entire movie. Based on the sharp-witted and satirical 1936 play by Clare Boothe Luce, the film follows a number of female high society Manhattanites and their interwoven lives and relationships,which are often influenced by gossip.  Although shot in black and white, a six-minute sequence at a fashion show was filmed in Technicolor, and only recently restored after years of being omitted from the movie; director George Cukor was on record as saying he disliked that scene, and an alternate black-and-white version of the sequence can be seen on DVD. As one of the best films in a year often considered Hollywood’s finest, it’s all the more shocking that the movie garnered no Academy Award nominations.  “A woman’s compromised the day she’s born.”

Appreciation for the expert commentary on “The Women” goes to Dr. Arnold Blumberg.  THANKS DOC!!  Doc is an educator, publisher, author, comic and pop culture historian, and former museum curator.  He was the editor of The Overstreet Comic Book Price guide and teaches courses in everything from comics to zombies to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  Find him on Twitter @DoctoroftheDead.