The Talk of the Town (1942) is a screwball comedy film, with very serious overtones, released by Columbia Pictures, starring Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, Ronald Colman, Edgar Buchanan, and Glenda Farrell.
The movie was adapted by Dale Van Every, Irwin Shaw and Sidney Buchman from the story by Sidney Harmon. It was directed by George Stevens. There was also a 1905 musical called The Talk of the Town that played at the Lyric Theatre in London and on Broadway in 1907, with Victor Moore.
It was nominated for a number of Academy Awards:
Don't be a Stranger
This film is considered lost.
When the Holmes Woolen Mill burns down, political activist Leopold Dilg is jailed for arson (and murder; one man was lost). Escaping, Leopold hides out in the home of his childhood sweetheart Nora Shelley ...which she has just rented to unsuspecting law professor Michael Lightcap. As Lightcap's unwelcome guests, Nora and Leopold drag the professor, willy-nilly, from pure legal theory to impure legal practice. Blends comedy, thriller, philosophy, mystery and romance. Written by Rod Crawford
When accused arsonist Leopold Dilg escapes jail, he hides out in the home of old friend (and sweetheart) Nora. Nora happens to be renting a farmhouse to Supreme Court candidate Michael Lightcap, but she lets Dilg hide in the attic while Lightcap gets settled. The next day, she introduces Dilg as the gardener. In conversation, though, Lightcap realizes that the gardener has a lot to say about the law! Nora and Dilg team up to convince him that Dilg was framed. The three dodge the cops, try to capture the real crooks, and discover that both men have fallen for Nora. Two different endings were filmed, one in which Nora gives her heart to Dilg, the other in which she leaves with Lightcap. Guess which one remains the classic comic conclusion. Written by Fiona Kelleghan
