Miracle in the Rain
Encyclopedia
Miracle in the Rain is a novella
by American
writer Ben Hecht
, published in The Saturday Evening Post
bimonthly magazine on April 3, 1943 and adapted by him into a feature film released on March 31, 1956.
film adaptation is directed by Rudolph Maté
and stars Jane Wyman
as a lonely office worker and Van Johnson
as the happy-go-lucky soldier whom she meets during a downpour. Playing Jane Wyman's friend is character actress Eileen Heckart
, in her feature film debut. The music is by Franz Waxman
and the black-and-white cinematography is by Russell Metty
. A subplot about the heroine's father, which was not part of the original story, has been added to the screenplay.
The film was produced on location in New York City
, with several sequences filmed in Central Park
and St. Patrick's Cathedral
.
Later, Ruth tells Art that Agnes tried to kill herself after Harry left and still hopes for his return. On their next date, Art sings for Ruth "I'll Always Believe in You," the lyrics he and his friend have written for Harry's song. As Ruth and Art walk through Central Park, Ruth voices her fears about the war and Art tells her she must have faith. They then encounter Sgt. Gil Parker, while he takes snapshots of his new bride, Arleene Witchy, who works as a striptease dancer. Gil asks Art to take their picture and then offers to photograph Art and Ruth. In private, Gil warns Art that his division will soon be shipped overseas, but Art refuses to believe the rumor. At the lagoon, where children are sailing toy boats, Art recognizes the name of an elderly man, Commodore Eli B. Windgate. "Windy," as he is now called, is a former yacht owner who owned many of the surrounding buildings before losing his fortune. Art, who hopes to be a reporter after the war, senses a good feature story and interviews Windy on the spot. He then takes Ruth to the New York Times Building and convinces the city editor to let him write the story. Instead of taking payment, Art asks to be considered for a reporting job after the war. On their next date, Art arrives late riding on a truck filled with other soldiers. Having only a few minutes before he will be shipped out, he asks Ruth to marry him when he returns and, to allay her fears, says he still has the lucky Roman coin.
For three months, Ruth writes Art every day, but receives no letters in return. Finally, a specially delivered letter arrives, informing her that Art died on the battlefield and that his dying wish was that she be told he still loves her. Ruth despairs, although her friends and co-workers try to console her. Millie, moved by Ruth's misfortune, drops Jalonik as her lover and takes another job. Grace finds Ruth mourning in Central Park and takes her to St. Patrick's Cathedral, where Ruth lights candles under the statue of St. Andrew. Jalonik, hoping Ruth will fill the void left by Millie in his personal life, takes her to the Café Normandy to cheer her up, but Ruth is too grief-stricken to pay attention to him. Art's friend Dixie publishes Harry's song under his own name, and when Harry hears it on the radio, he calls Agnes to ask her what happened to his manuscript. When Agnes answers the phone, he loses his nerve and hangs up. Although he has written several letters to Agnes, Harry always loses courage and tears them up.
Ruth returns often to the statue of St. Andrew and talks to the young priest there. Losing interest in life, she ignores a cold, which turns into pneumonia. Mrs. Hammer, the upstairs neighbor who has often helped Ruth care for Agnes, now helps Agnes nurse Ruth. One rainy night, the feverish Ruth leaves the apartment while her mother dozes off, just before Harry, having mustered his courage, goes there to apologize to Agnes for leaving. Ruth's parents realize Ruth is missing just as Grace telephones. Hearing the Ruth has gone, Graces realizes that Ruth must have gone to the cathedral. Ruth is climbing the cathedral steps when she hears Art calling to her. In her delirium, she sees Art come to her and tell her that love never dies. Because he no longer needs the Roman coin, Art gives it to Ruth. Soon after, the priest finds Ruth passed out on the steps. Graces arrives a moment later. When the priest finds the coin clasped in Rth's hand, he shows it to Grace, who recognizes it and realizes that, for a brief time, Art returned to Ruth.
and M. K. Jerome, lyrics by Ned Washington
.
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht
Ben Hecht was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, and novelist. Called "the Shakespeare of Hollywood", he received screen credits, alone or in collaboration, for the stories or screenplays of some 70 films and as a prolific storyteller, authored 35 books and created some of...
, published in The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post
The Saturday Evening Post is a bimonthly American magazine. It was published weekly under this title from 1897 until 1969, and quarterly and then bimonthly from 1971.-History:...
bimonthly magazine on April 3, 1943 and adapted by him into a feature film released on March 31, 1956.
Film version
Hecht's 19561956 in film
The year 1956 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 5 - The Ten Commandments opens in cinemas and becomes one of the most successful and popular movies of all time, currently ranking 5th on the list of all time moneymakers * February 5 - First showing of documentary films by...
film adaptation is directed by Rudolph Maté
Rudolph Maté
Born in Kraków , Maté started in the film business after his graduation from the University of Budapest. He went on to work as an assistant cameraman in Hungary and later throughout Europe, sometimes with noted colleague Karl Freund...
and stars Jane Wyman
Jane Wyman
Jane Wyman was an American singer, dancer, and character actress of film and television. She began her film career in the 1930s, and was a prolific performer for two decades...
as a lonely office worker and Van Johnson
Van Johnson
Van Johnson was an American film and television actor and dancer who was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios during and after World War II....
as the happy-go-lucky soldier whom she meets during a downpour. Playing Jane Wyman's friend is character actress Eileen Heckart
Eileen Heckart
Eileen Heckart was an American actress of stage, screen, and television.-Early life:Heckart was born Anna Eileen Heckart in Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of Esther and Leo Herbert. She was legally adopted by her grandfather, J.W. Heckart. Her family was of Irish and German descent...
, in her feature film debut. The music is by Franz Waxman
Franz Waxman
Franz Waxman was a German-American composer, known for his bravura Carmen Fantasie for violin and orchestra, based on musical themes from the Bizet opera Carmen, and for his musical scores for films....
and the black-and-white cinematography is by Russell Metty
Russell Metty
Russell Metty, A.S.C. was an American cinematographer, who worked on many films during the Forties, Fifties and Sixties.-Career:...
. A subplot about the heroine's father, which was not part of the original story, has been added to the screenplay.
The film was produced on location in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, with several sequences filmed in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
and St. Patrick's Cathedral
St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York
The Cathedral of St. Patrick is a decorated Neo-Gothic-style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States...
.
Plot
In New York City in 1942, secretary Ruth Wood lives quietly with her ailing mother Agnes. Ruth's co-workers at Excelsior Shoe Manufacturing Co. are Grace Ullman and Millie Kranz, a young blonde who is having an affair with her married boss, Stephen Jalonik. Also in the office is Monty, a young shipping clerk classified by the draft as 4-F, who monitors the war's campaigns on a world map pinned to the wall. One evening after work, when a cloudburst forces Ruth and other pedestrians to take shelter in the vestibule of an office building, Arthur Hugenon, a cheerful, talkative G.I. stationed in the area, surprises the shy Ruth by starting a conversation. When he invites her to dinner, she declines, saying that her housebound mother is expecting her. Undeterred, Art buys food for three at a delicatessen and accompanies Ruth home. Agnes, who has distrusted men since her husband Harry left her for another woman ten years earlier, receives Art with little enthusiasm. During the meal, Art, who grew up on a Tennessee farm, captivates Ruth with his stories and afterward entertains them by playing the piano. Upon finding the manuscript of an unfinished song Harry composed, Art asks permission to take it back to camp, where he and an Army buddy will write lyrics for it. On the weekend, Art takes Ruth and Grace to a matinee. On their way to a restaurant, they stop at an auction and Ruth impulsively bids on an antique Roman coin, which she gives to Art for good luck. At the Café Normandy, where they have dinner, Ruth is unaware that the piano player is her father, whom she has not seen since he left Agnes. However, Harry recognizes Ruth and confides to the bartender that he has been too ashamed to return to his family.Later, Ruth tells Art that Agnes tried to kill herself after Harry left and still hopes for his return. On their next date, Art sings for Ruth "I'll Always Believe in You," the lyrics he and his friend have written for Harry's song. As Ruth and Art walk through Central Park, Ruth voices her fears about the war and Art tells her she must have faith. They then encounter Sgt. Gil Parker, while he takes snapshots of his new bride, Arleene Witchy, who works as a striptease dancer. Gil asks Art to take their picture and then offers to photograph Art and Ruth. In private, Gil warns Art that his division will soon be shipped overseas, but Art refuses to believe the rumor. At the lagoon, where children are sailing toy boats, Art recognizes the name of an elderly man, Commodore Eli B. Windgate. "Windy," as he is now called, is a former yacht owner who owned many of the surrounding buildings before losing his fortune. Art, who hopes to be a reporter after the war, senses a good feature story and interviews Windy on the spot. He then takes Ruth to the New York Times Building and convinces the city editor to let him write the story. Instead of taking payment, Art asks to be considered for a reporting job after the war. On their next date, Art arrives late riding on a truck filled with other soldiers. Having only a few minutes before he will be shipped out, he asks Ruth to marry him when he returns and, to allay her fears, says he still has the lucky Roman coin.
For three months, Ruth writes Art every day, but receives no letters in return. Finally, a specially delivered letter arrives, informing her that Art died on the battlefield and that his dying wish was that she be told he still loves her. Ruth despairs, although her friends and co-workers try to console her. Millie, moved by Ruth's misfortune, drops Jalonik as her lover and takes another job. Grace finds Ruth mourning in Central Park and takes her to St. Patrick's Cathedral, where Ruth lights candles under the statue of St. Andrew. Jalonik, hoping Ruth will fill the void left by Millie in his personal life, takes her to the Café Normandy to cheer her up, but Ruth is too grief-stricken to pay attention to him. Art's friend Dixie publishes Harry's song under his own name, and when Harry hears it on the radio, he calls Agnes to ask her what happened to his manuscript. When Agnes answers the phone, he loses his nerve and hangs up. Although he has written several letters to Agnes, Harry always loses courage and tears them up.
Ruth returns often to the statue of St. Andrew and talks to the young priest there. Losing interest in life, she ignores a cold, which turns into pneumonia. Mrs. Hammer, the upstairs neighbor who has often helped Ruth care for Agnes, now helps Agnes nurse Ruth. One rainy night, the feverish Ruth leaves the apartment while her mother dozes off, just before Harry, having mustered his courage, goes there to apologize to Agnes for leaving. Ruth's parents realize Ruth is missing just as Grace telephones. Hearing the Ruth has gone, Graces realizes that Ruth must have gone to the cathedral. Ruth is climbing the cathedral steps when she hears Art calling to her. In her delirium, she sees Art come to her and tell her that love never dies. Because he no longer needs the Roman coin, Art gives it to Ruth. Soon after, the priest finds Ruth passed out on the steps. Graces arrives a moment later. When the priest finds the coin clasped in Rth's hand, he shows it to Grace, who recognizes it and realizes that, for a brief time, Art returned to Ruth.
Cast
- Jane WymanJane WymanJane Wyman was an American singer, dancer, and character actress of film and television. She began her film career in the 1930s, and was a prolific performer for two decades...
[Ruth Wood] - Van JohnsonVan JohnsonVan Johnson was an American film and television actor and dancer who was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios during and after World War II....
[Arthur "Art" Hugenon] - Peggie CastlePeggie CastlePeggie Castle was an American actress who specialized in playing the "other woman" in B-movies. She was also billed under the names Peggy Castle and Peggie Call.-Career:...
[Millie Kranz, blonde secretary at Ruth's workplace] - Fred ClarkFred ClarkFrederick Leonard Clark was an American film character actor.-Career:Born in Lincoln, California, Clark made his film debut in 1947 in The Unsuspected. His 20-year film career included almost 70 films, and numerous television appearances...
[Stephen Jalonik, office manager at Ruth's workplace] - Eileen HeckartEileen HeckartEileen Heckart was an American actress of stage, screen, and television.-Early life:Heckart was born Anna Eileen Heckart in Columbus, Ohio, the daughter of Esther and Leo Herbert. She was legally adopted by her grandfather, J.W. Heckart. Her family was of Irish and German descent...
[Grace Ullman, Ruth's workplace friend] - Josephine HutchinsonJosephine HutchinsonJosephine Hutchinson was an American actress.She was born in Seattle, Washington. Her mother, Leona Roberts, was an actress best-known for her role as "Mrs. Meade" in Gone with the Wind. Through her mother's connections, Hutchinson made her film debut at the age of thirteen in The Little Princess,...
[Agnes Wood, Ruth's mother] - William GarganWilliam GarganWilliam Gargan, born William Dennis Gargan July 17, 1905 in Brooklyn, New York, USA and died February 17, 1979 aged 73 on a flight between New York and San Diego.He was an American motion picture, television and radio actor...
[Harry Wood, Ruth's father]
- Marcel DalioMarcel DalioMarcel Dalio was a French character actor. He had major roles in two of Jean Renoir's most famous films, Grand Illusion and The Rules of the Game.- Biography :...
[Marcel, waiter at Café Normandy] - George Givot [Maitre d' at Café Normandy]
- Barbara NicholsBarbara NicholsBarbara Nichols was an American actress who often played brassy comic roles in a number of films in the 1950s and 1960s.-Early life and Career:...
[Arlene Witchy, exotic dancer newly married to Sergeant Gilbert Parker] - Halliwell HobbesHalliwell HobbesHalliwell Hobbes was an English actor.-Life:His stage debut was in Sir Frank Benson's company in 1898, playing in Shakespearean rep alongside actors such as Ellen Terry and Mrs Patrick Campbell...
[Ely B. "Windy" Windgate, former millionaire (surname given as "Wingate" in heading of Art's story in The New York Times, but as "Windgate" within the body of the article)] - Paul PicerniPaul Picerni-Life and career:Picerni was born in New York City, New York. He was an Eagle Scout who joined the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, where he served as a B-24 Liberator bombardier in the China-Burma-India Theater. He flew 25 combat missions with the 493rd Bomb Squadron of the 7th...
[Priest at St. Patrick's Cathedral] - Alan KingAlan King (comedian)Alan King was an American actor and comedian known for his biting wit and often angry humorous rants. King became well known as a Jewish comedian and satirist. He was also a serious actor who appeared in a number of movies and television shows. King wrote several books, produced films, and...
[Sergeant Gilbert "Gil" Parker] - Irene Seidner [Mrs. Hamer, Ruth's neighbor]
- Arte JohnsonArte JohnsonArthur Stanton Eric "Arte" Johnson is an American comic actor. Johnson was a regular on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In. His best-remembered "character" was that of a German soldier with the catchphrase: "Verrrry interesting, but...['stupid', 'not very funny', and other variations]".-Early life:Johnson...
[Monty, office boy at Ruth's workplace]
Unbilled speaking roles (in order of appearance)
- Walter Kingson [Unseen narrator: "Champion of all the cities of the Earth is the towering, golden city of New York."]
- Marian Holmes [Mrs. Sara Rickles, receptionist at Ruth's workplace: "Your wife called two minutes ago."]
- Ray Walker [Mr. McGuire, salesman at Ruth's workplace: "Hiya, slaves. I'm tackling Poughkeepsie today."]
- Minerva UrecalMinerva UrecalMinerva Urecal was an American actressBorn as Minerva Holzer, Urecal was originally a radio and stage performer. She made her film debut in 1933...
[Delicatessen proprietress: "A corned beef, fresh. Eh, you like some baloney? It's a good."] - Frank J. Scannell [Auctioneer: "Seventy seven, the luckiest number in the world. Now we have something special — a genuine Roman coin."]
- Peter Mamakos [Headwaiter at Café Normandy: "We don't take reservations on Saturday night. You know that."]
- Jess Kirkpatrick [Andy, bartender at Café Normandy: "Whatsa matter, Harry? You got a little pale."]
- Norbert Schiller [Doctor Zero, eccentric character seen pacing in outer office of The New York Times city editor: "Phfft, phfft."]
- Charles MeredithCharles Meredith (actor)Charles Meredith was an American film and television actor. When Meredith died, The Incredible Mr. Limpet was said to be his last film.-Selected filmography:...
[The New York Times representative: "Doctor Zero? Our city editor asked me to tell you that The New York Times has no interest in stories about the end of the world."] - Grandon Rhodes [Mr. Baldwin, The New York Times city editor: "I hear you ran into a story in the park. Rowboat turn over?"]
- Harry Harvey, Jr. [The New York Times office boy: "It's right in the second drawer."]
- Paul Smith [Dixie Dooley, Art's Army buddy: "We can't stay more than three minutes, Art."]
- Michael Vallon [Flower vendor passing in a horse-drawn wagon: "Fresh flowers, nice fresh flowers."]
- Glen Vernon [Emcee at The Garden of Bali, 52nd Street: "Come on, come on, let's bring the little lady back, no extra charge. Here she is, Arlene Witchy."]
- Malcolm AtterburyMalcolm AtterburyMalcolm Atterbury was a stage and vaudeville actor who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is probably most well known as Bixby in Wagon Train and Lee Reinhard in Dragnet...
[Special Delivery man with letter from the battlefield: "Miss Ruth Wood? Special Delivery for you."] - Roxanne Arlen [Attractive new secretary who has been hired to replace Millie Kranz: "Yes, Miss Ullman."]
Song
The melody by Ruth's father, to which Art added words and turned into a song, is "I'll Always Believe in You", music by Ray HeindorfRay Heindorf
Ray Heindorf was an American songwriter, composer, conductor, and arranger.-Early life:Born in Haverstraw, New York, Heindorf worked as a pianist in a movie house in Mechanicville in his early teens. In 1928, he moved to New York City, where he worked as a musical arranger before heading to...
and M. K. Jerome, lyrics by Ned Washington
Ned Washington
Ned Washington was an American lyricist.-Biography:Washington was nominated for eleven Academy Awards from 1940 to 1962...
.
External links
- Miracle in the Rain at the Notable Names Database
- Miracle in the Rain at TV GuideTV GuideTV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
- Miracle in the Rain at DVD VerdictDVD VerdictDVD Verdict is a judicial themed website for DVD reviews. The site was founded in 1999. Current editor in chief is Michael Stailey, who also reviews for Rotten Tomatoes...
- Miracle in the Rain at Classic Film Guide
- Miracle in the Rain at Cinema Crazed
- Miracle in the Rain at Ozus' World Movie Reviews
- Miracle in the Rain at Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings
- Miracle in the Rain at The Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
- Miracle in the Rain {along with 1945's The Clock, 1988's Crossing Delancey and 1959's A Summer Place} at Reel Film Reviews
- screen captures from Miracle in the Rain at DVD Beaver