Trailer
Plot summary
Mame Dennis lives in Manhattan, flamboyant and exuberant, and fills her home with parties and free-spirited friends, among them the actress Vera Charles, Acacius Page, who runs a progressive school, and the book publisher Lindsay Woolsey. In 1928 her nephew Patrick is orphaned when his father Edwin dies, and he is placed in her care. She grows maternal toward him and wants him to see life broadly. Edwin's will puts Patrick's inheritance under Dwight Babcock, a trustee of the conservative Knickerbocker Bank, appointed to hold Mame's liberal influence in check.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Auntie Mame (1958)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Star Rosalind Russell broke her ankle on the very first take of a scene requiring her to run down a staircase, forcing filming to shut down until she recovered.
- Rosalind Russell originated the role of Mame on Broadway and was nominated for the 1957 Tony award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play, playing her through a 639-performance run until January 20, 1958, when Greer Garson took over the part.
- Auntie Mame arrived at a moment when Warner Bros. was in financial trouble after a run of flops, and its success was credited with restoring the struggling studio's fortunes.
- The film used the changing decor of Mame's apartment to mark the passage of time, redecorating it in six distinct styles across the story, including Chinese, 1920s Modern, a French look named for Somerset Maugham's wife, English, Danish Modern and East Indian.
- The film was a considerable commercial success, becoming the second highest-grossing release of 1958 and earning a net profit of $8,800,000.
