The Letter
Starring: Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall, James Stephenson
Director: William Wyler
Writer: Howard Koch, William Somerset Maugham
Producer: Hal B. Wallis
The Letter is a 1940 American crime film noir melodrama directed by William Wyler, and starring Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall and James Stephenson. The screenplay by Howard E. Koch is based on the 1927 play of the same name by W. Somerset Maugham, derived from his own short story. The play was first filmed in 1929 by director Jean de Limur, starring Jeanne Eagels.
Trivia
- Nominated for: Academy Award for Best Picture; Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor; Academy Award for Best Actress; Academy Award for Best Director; and 3 more.
- Based on The Letter (1927 play by W. Somerset Maugham).
- The Production Code Administration rejected the original story adaptation that Warner Bros.
- Pictures submitted on the grounds that it contained adultery and unpunished murder, so a new final scene was added in which the widow Hammond takes her revenge.
- Hammond was also changed from Hammond's Chinese mistress to his Eurasian wife to placate the Hays code.
Previous Showings
9 Runs • 6 Festivals
5,773 tickets sold
Original Billings: 2 runs (May 8, 1929 - January 2, 1941)
Original Run: May 8 - 10, 1929 (Wednesday - Friday)
All runs on record (9):
- May 8 - 10, 1929 (Wednesday - Friday)Jeannie Eagles
- January 2, 1941 (Thursday - Saturday)Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall
- April 22 - 23, 1995 · 743 ticketsw/ Now, Voyager
- August 19 - 20, 2004 · 663 ticketsSummer 2004w/ Dark Victory
- June 7 - 10, 2008 · 1,518 ticketsSummer 2008 Bette Davis, James Stewart, silent films and more!w/ Now, Voyager
- December 10 - 11, 2011 · 533 ticketsFall 2011w/ Now, Voyager
- June 27 - 30, 2015 · 864 ticketsSummer 2015 Forty Classics from the Golden Age Including Kurosawa in Augustw/ The Little Foxes
- August 19 - 21, 2017 · 930 ticketsWarner Brosw/ Mildred Pierce
- September 4 - 6, 2019 · 522 ticketsSummer 2019w/ Now, Voyager