Kings Row (1942) on Netflix
NR19422h 7mDramaMysteryRomance
Parris Mitchell grows up in Kings Row in the 1890s with four other children. He studies medicine under Dr. Alexander Tower and begins a secret romance with the doctor's daughter, Cassandra.
- Netflix4.4/5
- IMDb7.5/105,509 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes100%
Trailer
Plot summary
Kings Row, a small midwestern town in the 1890s, is home to five children who grow up together. Parris Mitchell, who lives with his grandmother, plays with Cassandra Tower, the daughter of Dr. Alexander Tower. The other children keep away from her family. Drake McHugh, a wealthy orphan, is Parris's closest friend, and Randy Monaghan, whose father works for the railroad, joins them. Louise Gordon is the daughter of the town physician. Dr. Tower withdraws Cassandra from school and keeps her in the house. Years later, Parris begins medical studies under the doctor and meets her again.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Kings Row (1942)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
SPOILER
Ronald Reagan's key scene as Drake McHugh, waking to find his legs amputated, was shot by director Sam Wood without rehearsal; Wood called out for Randy, which was not in the script, and Ann Sheridan was on hand and responded, so no second take was needed.- Hays Code administrator Joseph Breen would approve the film only if every reference to incest, nymphomania, euthanasia and homosexuality suggested by the novel was removed, along with nude bathing and any hint of a sex affair between Randy and Drake.
- Tyrone Power was the first choice to play Parris Mitchell, but he was under contract to Fox; Darryl Zanuck wanted two commitments from Warner Bros. star Errol Flynn in exchange for lending him out, and Warners refused the trade, so Robert Cummings was cast instead.
- Bette Davis wanted the role of Cassandra Tower, but the studio was against casting her because it believed she would dominate the movie, and Davis later suggested Betty Field for the part.
- Erich Wolfgang Korngold's score became one of his most popular works: the White House requested the original orchestral score for Ronald Reagan's presidential inauguration, and John Williams drew inspiration from the film's soundtrack for his Star Wars opening theme.
- Composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold sent a sarcastic letter to Warner Bros.' head of studio publicity after the Los Angeles Daily News wrongly reported that novelist Henry Bellamann was heading west to help him score the film, joking that he would wait for Bellamann's arrival.
- Henry Bellamann's controversial novel behind the film was modeled on his home town of Fulton, Missouri, and turning it into a movie created significant problems with the industry censors who enforced the Hays Code.
- Ronald Reagan took a line from the film as the title of his 1965 autobiography, and he and most film critics considered Kings Row the best film of his career.
