24th March: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

On this date in 1955 the Tennessee Williams three act play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof opened on Broadway. Some facts about the play, and the movie.

1. The play was based on Williams's 1952 short story Three Players of a Summer Game.
2. The themes of the play are lies, death, sexual orientation and difficulty in maintaining intimate relationships.
3. The play was directed by Elia Kazan, who insisted on some revisions to the third act. Williams wasn't keen, but wanted the play to be a success. When the play was published in a book, it contained both the original and revised versions of the third act.
4. The spelling in the book version of the play isn't always standard – this is meant to reflect the characters speaking in southern US accents.
5. So what's the story? The Pollit family have gathered to celebrate the 65th birthday of its patriarch, Big Daddy. He has just returned from the clinic, having been told he's perfectly healthy apart from a "spastic colon", another cause for celebration. He has been lied to, however—he is actually dying of cancer but the family have chosen to keep this from him and his wife, Big Mama, so as not to ruin his birthday. Both his sons want to inherit his fortune and property. Brick is the one who should inherit, but he's an alcoholic. His ambitious wife Maggie wants to ensure that Brick gets everything in spite of that. Brick and Maggie haven't slept together in some time, and there are hints that Brick is gay and his alcoholism stems from the suicide of his friend, possibly his gay lover. Big Daddy suggests he would leave everything to Brick's child, if he had one, so Maggie claims to be pregnant. No-one believes her. The play ends as she takes Brick's booze away and locks it up, and says she will "make the lie true".
6. Tennessee Williams wrote the role of Big Daddy with Burl Ives in mind. Ives, up to that point, was primarily a singer, but the play launched his acting career. He was one of the original Broadway cast to reprise their role in the film version. The other main roles in the Broadway production were played by Barbara Bel Geddes (Maggie), Ben Gazzara (Brick) and Mildred Dunnock as Big Mama.
7. The 1958 film starred Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Judith Anderson, and Jack Carson. Taylor went ahead with the role even though her husband had died in a plane crash just before production started. The tragedy left her with a stutter; but when she was acting, it abated. Her fellow cast members were concerned for her health, as she wasn't eating. A scene where the family were eating a meal was especially difficult.
8. The film was originally going to be filmed in black and white, as was the norm for films of this type at the time; but producers knew audiences were particularly fond of the colours of Newman and Taylor's eyes, and for that reason, decided to go with colour.
9. The cast of the film could have been quite different. George Cukor was offered the director's job, but turned it down because references to Brick's homosexuality had been removed. Marilyn Monroe, Lana Turner and Grace Kelly were considered for the part of Maggie; James Dean was considered for the part of Brick, but died before production began. Robert Mitchum and Elvis Presley both turned the role down.
10. Tennessee Williams hated the film. He hated it so much that he went to the cinema and told the people waiting to go in, "This movie will set the industry back 50 years. Go home!"

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