Judith Traherne
Encyclopedia
Judith Traherne is a fictional character in Edmund Goulding
's Dark Victory
.
) asks her what happened, Judith proclaims that she saw double and was uncertain. She later seeks the medical advice of Dr. Frederick Steele (George Brent
) and receives a harmful diagnosis. She has a brain tumor
and must be operated on immediately.
After this she finds that the effort was worthless and that she only has months to live. She literally begins living life like every day is her last, and becomes romantically involved with Dr. Steele and marries him. They buy a little house in the country and begin a quaint life there. One day while Ann is visiting Judith's end arrives in the form of blindness and she must keep it a secret from her husband not wanting to destroy his feelings. She chooses to stay at home instead of going to New York City
to partake in a horse racing competition and it is there that she dies peacefully in her glow of youth.
in 1934 at the Plymouth Theatre; Miss Bankhead played the part in approximately 51 productions.
Originally Dark Victory was to be made in 1935 with Greta Garbo
for MGM Studios but that plan never materialized. Instead Warner Bros.
bought the screen rights and in 1939 Bette Davis
brought the character to screen life. Her endeavors won her a Best Actress Academy Award nomination and in her later years Miss Davis said that Dark Victory was her personal favorite of all the movies she made during her rich career.
On April 4, 1938 Dark Victory was adapted into a radio play for the Lux Radio Theatre starring Barbara Stanwyck
as Judith and Melvyn Douglas
as Frederick Steele.
In 1952 Dark Victory was made into a TV movie for Broadway Television Theatre starring Sylvia Sidney
, Ian Keith
, and Christopher Plummer
.
In 1963, the film was remade as Stolen Hours
with Susan Hayward
and in 1976 it was remade into a NBC
television movie
under its original title starring Elizabeth Montgomery
.
Edmund Goulding
Edmund Goulding was a British film writer and director. As an actor early in his career he was one of the 'Ghosts' in the 1922 British made Paramount silent Three Live Ghosts alongside Norman Kerry and Cyril Chadwick. Also in the early 20s he wrote several screenplays for star Mae Murray and...
's Dark Victory
Dark Victory
Dark Victory is a 1939 American drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Bette Davis, George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, and Ronald Reagan...
.
Plot
Judith Traherne is a hedonistic socialite who races horse, throws parties, and paints the town red. One day while riding the horses, she crashes into a fence and nearly dies. Later on when her personal secretary and best friend Ann (Geraldine FitzgeraldGeraldine Fitzgerald
Geraldine Fitzgerald, Lady Lindsay-Hogg was an Irish-American actress and a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame.-Early life:...
) asks her what happened, Judith proclaims that she saw double and was uncertain. She later seeks the medical advice of Dr. Frederick Steele (George Brent
George Brent
George Brent was an Irish film and television actor in American cinema.-Early life:He was born George Brendan Nolan in Raharabeg, County Roscommon on the opposite bank of the River Shannon from the town of Shannonbridge, County Offaly, Ireland, the son of a British Army officer.During the Irish...
) and receives a harmful diagnosis. She has a brain tumor
Brain tumor
A brain tumor is an intracranial solid neoplasm, a tumor within the brain or the central spinal canal.Brain tumors include all tumors inside the cranium or in the central spinal canal...
and must be operated on immediately.
After this she finds that the effort was worthless and that she only has months to live. She literally begins living life like every day is her last, and becomes romantically involved with Dr. Steele and marries him. They buy a little house in the country and begin a quaint life there. One day while Ann is visiting Judith's end arrives in the form of blindness and she must keep it a secret from her husband not wanting to destroy his feelings. She chooses to stay at home instead of going to 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...
to partake in a horse racing competition and it is there that she dies peacefully in her glow of youth.
Actresses
Judith Traherne was first portrayed on the New York stage by Tallulah BankheadTallulah Bankhead
Tallulah Brockman Bankhead was an award-winning American actress of the stage and screen, talk-show host, and bonne vivante...
in 1934 at the Plymouth Theatre; Miss Bankhead played the part in approximately 51 productions.
Originally Dark Victory was to be made in 1935 with Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo
Greta Garbo , born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson, was a Swedish film actress. Garbo was an international star and icon during Hollywood's silent and classic periods. Many of Garbo's films were sensational hits, and all but three were profitable...
for MGM Studios but that plan never materialized. Instead Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
bought the screen rights and in 1939 Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
brought the character to screen life. Her endeavors won her a Best Actress Academy Award nomination and in her later years Miss Davis said that Dark Victory was her personal favorite of all the movies she made during her rich career.
On April 4, 1938 Dark Victory was adapted into a radio play for the Lux Radio Theatre starring Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress. She was a film and television star, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
as Judith and Melvyn Douglas
Melvyn Douglas
Melvyn Edouard Hesselberg , better known as Melvyn Douglas, was an American actor.Coming to prominence in the 1930s as a suave leading man , Douglas later transitioned into more mature and fatherly roles as in his Academy Award-winning performances in Hud...
as Frederick Steele.
In 1952 Dark Victory was made into a TV movie for Broadway Television Theatre starring Sylvia Sidney
Sylvia Sidney
Sylvia Sidney was an American actress who rose to prominence in the 1930s appearing in numerous crime dramas.-Early life:...
, Ian Keith
Ian Keith
-Life and career:Born Keith Ross in Boston, Massachusetts, Ian Keith was a veteran character actor of the legitimate theater, and appeared in a variety of colorful roles in silent features of the 1920s. His stage training made him a natural choice for the new "talking pictures"; he played John...
, and Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
.
In 1963, the film was remade as Stolen Hours
Stolen Hours
Stolen Hours is a 1963 remake by United Artists of the Bette Davis film, Dark Victory, which was released by Warner Bros. in 1939, and was owned by UA at the time. The remake was directed by Daniel Petrie and starred Susan Hayward in the Davis role of a bitchy socialite who is operated on for a...
with Susan Hayward
Susan Hayward
Susan Hayward was an American actress.After working as a fashion model in New York, Hayward travelled to Hollywood in 1937 when open auditions were held for the leading role in Gone with the Wind . Although she was not selected, she secured a film contract, and played several small supporting...
and in 1976 it was remade into a NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
under its original title starring Elizabeth Montgomery
Elizabeth Montgomery
Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery was an American film and television actress whose career spanned five decades. She is perhaps best remembered for her roles as Samantha Stephens in Bewitched, as Ellen Harrod in A Case of Rape and as Lizzie Borden in The Legend of Lizzie Borden.-Early life:Born in Los...
.