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A Gentleman’s Agreement: an arrangement or understanding which is based upon the trust of both or all parties, rather than being legally binding. 1 Groucho Marx, the witty and magnificent comedian of the 20th Century, told a story about his experience when invited to join a country club many, many years ago. “Groucho Marx, offered membership in a restricted country club on the condition that his family not use the swimming pool, reportedly quipped in response, ‘My daughter’s only half-Jewish --can she wade in up to her knees?’” 2 Now, Groucho and his rambunctious brothers (Harpo, Chico, Zeppo, and Gummo –Gummo did not make movies) had a rather crazy reputation. Once when under contract at MGM, the Marx Brothers felt that high ranking studio executive, Irving Thalberg, was disrespecting them by keeping them waiting in his palatial office for way too long. The Marxes were stars for goodness sake. What did the Marx family do? They stripped naked, sat in front of Thalberg’s office fireplace and roasted wienies, or so the story goes. (Did they bring the wienies with them?) Groucho and his experience at the country club, though, was not related to his family’s past antics. Groucho Marx was Jewish and his daughter was half Jewish and therefore subjected to a vile, almost silent system of discrimination which was the norm at that time. There was a “gentleman’s agreement” which enforced separation of peoples. It was silently agreed that some people were welcome and some people were not welcome. Groucho may have been celebrity enough to be invited to join the club but he was a Jewish man. His socializing when at the club would be limited. The gentleman’s agreement was not limited to Jewish people, of course. African Americans received a blunter warning to go elsewhere.

Social clubs, hotels, private schools, some businesses, and other institutions had a gentleman’s agreement about membership and guests. It was politely called a gentleman’s agreement but was a harsh form of segregation. Another name for such policies was “restricted.” In the South segregation was bold and in a person’s face. Rest rooms, water fountains, park benches, etc. were marked with signs declaring that the convenience was “colored”3 with separate accommodations for whites. In the South, segregation was absolute and often enforced with an iron fist. Under a gentleman’s agreement the rules had shades of gray. A celebrity, for example, could violate the agreement with management’s special conditions

such as in Groucho’s case. Usually, the gentleman’s agreement was enforced with a polite refusal of

Gregory Peck as reporter Philip Green is refused service at a hotel in the film Gentleman's Agreement

Not all northern businesses were discrete about being segregated. This window front was in Ohio.

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service, advice about another hotel where a person would feel more comfortable, and maybe followed by a call to the house detective4 if there was resistance. A policeman may have been summoned if stronger authority was needed to throw the person, now branded a trespasser, out. Most travelers knew beforehand where they would be welcomed and where they would be rejected before leaving home so confrontations were rare. There were hotels that did not engage in discrimination against the Jewish population so alternative accommodations were possible. African Americans had fewer options. For an expanded description of the gentleman’s agreement or restrictions as applied to discrimination in housing, business dealings, and in social institutions see “Privilege, Power, and Place: The Geography of the American Upper Class,” By Stephen Richard Higley (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 1995). Chapter 2: “Social Class in America and the Definitional Institutions of the American Upper Class,” p. 13+. 5 Jews, African Americans, and other minorities who traveled for business, vacations, or just to live their everyday lives dealt with this disgusting condition as best they could. There were travel guides to help. From 1936 to 1966 African Americans consulted The Negro Motorist Green Book. Author Victor Hugo Green compiled the Green Book "to give the Negro traveler information that will keep him from running into difficulties, embarrassments and to make his trip more enjoyable."6 Jewish travelers had similar guides published by the Jewish press. 7 How long did this anti-American, immoral gentleman’s agreement last? Finding statistics of the prevalence of discrimination in the hotel industry in North American prior to 1940 is difficult. In 1928 New York columnist Heywood Broun called for a survey in the U.S. of racial and religious prejudices. He was met with resistance from the Jewish community: ‘” The survey which I have in mind should concern itself with other things than politics,’ Mr. Broun writes, commenting further on the recent elections [1928]. ‘Prejudice is not restricted to religion. There is, for instance, an anti-Negro feeling which rests on race alone. In the case of prejudice against Jews I suppose the bigotry is partly racial and partly religious. There is also the somewhat recent drive against the citizen of foreign birth and sometimes against his children’…’Many said it was a pity that the religious issue should have been dragged into the campaign. I can’t see that. Since it exists there is no reason why we should not know of it. Indeed, we want more light upon the matter rather than less. For the most part the people who complained against the religious issue being brought to the fore were those who wished to knife a Catholic and have their action construed as patriotism or a defense of prohibition. But there are many exceptions to this rule. For a long time, I have been urging that some American newspaper take up the question of concrete discriminations in this country against the Jew. In conversation with several Jewish friends I have found much opposition to any such inquiry. They say that it would stir up prejudice.’8

A necessary reference for travel back in the good old days.

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Gentleman’s Agreement: The Book

Gentleman’s Agreement by Laura Z. Hobson was first published in Cosmopolitan Magazine in serial format in 1946. In 1947, Simon and Schuster published Hobson’s work as a book. The book was greeted positively by critics and the public. It was a best seller and remained at the number 1 position on the New York Times Best Seller List for five straight months in 1947, selling over 1.6 million copies. 9 The novel voiced out loud what most American travelers had known for years. Jewish and minority travelers were too often not welcome at major hotels

throughout North America. African Americans were simply not welcome at all with the approval of most white travelers. The book, however, was the story of prejudice against the Jewish community. Gentleman’ Agreement tells the story of a fictional journalist, Philip Green, who “has just moved to New York City from California when the Third Reich falls. To mark this moment in history, his editor at Smith’s Weekly Magazine assigns Phil a series of articles on anti-Semitism in America. In order to experience anti-Semitism firsthand, Phil, a Christian, decides to pose as a Jew. What he discovers about the rampant bigotry in America will change him forever.” (Synopsis is from Goodreads.) 10 Laura Z. Hobson’s recalled why she was moved to write Gentleman’s Agreement even though she doubted the book had any chance for success. “It was an era of subtle and open bigotry: hotels and other places were ‘restricted’ against Jews; jobs and housing were denied Jews; public discourse was so rife with anti-Semitism that Representative John E. Rankin of Mississippi drew applause in Congress by describing the columnist Walter Winchell as a ‘little kike,'’ and vocabularies of ordinary people were sprinkled with ‘sheeny'’ and ‘Hebe.’ Hobson said - 'I have to do It'…I've got an idea for a book that the magazines will never look at, the movies won't touch and the public won't buy - but I have to do it,’ Mrs. Hobson told the publisher, Simon & Schuster. As it turned out, Mrs. Hobson was wrong.” 11 The success of the book immediately drew Darryl Zanuck, head of 20th Century-Fox Studio, to scramble for the screen rights. In 1947, screen writer Moss Hart commented that he “read Gentleman’s Agreement in galley proof12 at the behest of Darryl Zanuck, who plans to make it his own personal production in 1947. Its intrepid hero is Philip Schuyler Green, a top reporter who, in order to experience anti-Semitism firsthand, lives eight weeks as a Jew in America, it struck me as a challenging assignment,” Hart said – “and if we do it right, an exciting and adult one, as well. The book is not as perceptive as I would like to make it; I want, for instance, to use unpleasant words that have never been used on the screen before; but the material is there. And the love story is completely interwoven with the theme.”13 The love story was between Green and his fiancée, who is a social climbing suburbanite and divorcee.14 The fiancée, Kathy, is disturbed that Green is embarking on this socially unacceptable assignment. Darryl Zanuck made the observation that Kathy “is not anti-Semitic. Not a bit of it. But she makes the mistake that 99 percent of the people make by conforming to the custom and unconsciously observing the gentleman’s agreement. This is not, however, the story of a woman who is really anti-Semitic and

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reforms at the end of the picture, and, therein lies the guide to her reactions.”15 Kathy represents the average American of the day – not a hater but a keeper of the status quo even when the status quo maintains a tradition of hatred. 16

After Darryl Zanuck acquired the film rights for $75,000 and Moss Hart was on board as screen writer, the film version was underway. The film would become “Hollywood’s first major attack on anti-Semitism, involving major talents in all departments.” 17

Gentleman’s Agreement: The Film

The film progressed quickly. Moss Hart read the galleys of the novel in early 1947. The film was released on November 11, 1947. Director Elia Kazan “observed that Zanuck did his job with passionate devotion…the production was perfectly managed by Zanuck, with an energy that never relaxed and a determination that on every shooting day he’d get the best out of everyone working.” 18

The cast was assembled primarily from actors that had contractual obligations to 20th Century-Fox with Gregory Peck as the lead, Phil Green. The part of Kathy was played by Dorothy McGuire, unfairly not well remembered by

contemporary audiences. In 1945, she was wonderful as the mother in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and as the psychologically speechless victim of terror in The Spiral Staircase. Green’s childhood friend Dave Goodman was played by John Garfield. Garfield, a star of the Warner Brothers lot, campaigned for the supporting role because he believed deeply in the film's exposé of anti-Semitism in America. His home studio never presented Garfield, whose real name was Jacob Julius “Julie” Garfinkle, as Jewish. His Warner Brothers image was that of a sexy, tough guy. In that era, movie characters that were sexy plus tough did not equate a Jewish guy. The Warner Brothers (yes, they were real men who were brothers) were Jewish too.

There were fears and concerns among the Hollywood community about appearing in or being associated with the production. “Zanuck decided to make a film version of Hobson's novel after being refused membership in the Los Angeles Country Club, because it was assumed incorrectly that he was Jewish. Before filming commenced, Samuel Goldwyn and other Jewish film executives approached Darryl Zanuck and asked him not to make the film, fearing it would ‘stir up trouble’. They also warned that Hays Code enforcer, Joseph Breen, might not allow the film to pass the censors, as he had been known to make disparaging remarks about Jews. There was also concern that Dorothy McGuire's character being divorced would offend the National Legion of Decency. The role of Phillip Green was first offered to Cary Grant, but he turned it down. Peck decided to accept the role, although his agent

Dorothy McGuire, Gregory Peck, & John Garfield in Gentleman's Agreement. Notice the apron. According to standard movie imagery, all respectable women back then owned one.

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advised him to refuse, believing Peck would be endangering his career. Jewish actor John Garfield agreed to play a lesser role in the film in order to be a part of it.” 19

Elia Kazan was the director. In 1945 Kazan directed the acclaimed and financially successful film A Tree Grows in Brooklyn but his most acclaimed films including A Streetcar Named Desire, On the Waterfront, East of Eden, A Face in the Crowd, etc. were produced in the 1950s. Kazan was attracted to projects of social significance. “I don't move unless I have some empathy with the basic theme.”20 The same year as Gentleman’s Agreement, Kazan founded the Actor’s Studio in New York City which would revolutionize the acting techniques of the 1950s with “the Method,” an acting style that sought to achieve genuine emotion and naturalness. Kazan is one of the most influential film makers and theatrical personalities of his era although his legacy is not always viewed as entirely positive.21

Gentleman’s Agreement opened to fantastic reviews. “Archer Winsten of the New York Post claimed that with this film, ‘American movies gain new honor.’ Walter Winchell raved in his Sunday broadcast that ‘it is not only Darryl Zanuck…but the Hollywood industry at its very best…a battle cry for democracy.’ Writing in P.M., showman Billy Rose went further. Hurling his challenge where it needed to be placed, he said: ‘I think this movie means more to our way of life than [J. Parnell] Thomas and all his Un-American Activities Committee.’ If the Thomas Committee ‘decides to investigate Gentleman’s Agreement,’ said Rose, then ‘it might not be a bad idea to investigate the Thomas Committee.’ Zanuck

was flooded with congratulations from famous American Jews, including Irving Berlin 22 and Bernard Baruch.” 23 24

The Thomas Committee, AKA the House Un-American Activities Committee [HUAC], was at the beginning of a multi-year search for imagined boogie men in the film industry in the form of Soviet-style Communists. Many careers were tainted, even ruined. From Gentleman’s Agreement, character actress Anne Revere, who played Green’s mom, was attacked by HUAC for her political beliefs. Her career never recovered. John Garfield was also attacked. He died of a pre-existing heart condition in 1952, some say, from the stress of his HUAC investigation. Elia Kazan’s personal reputation was damaged because, some accused, he cooperated with HUAC. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_Un-American_Activities_Committee

Hollywood stars protest HUAC in Washington DC., 1947. In front are Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. The celebrity protesters called themselves the Committee for the First Amendment. Some stars later excused their bravery with the claim that they did not know they were being controlled by the Communist Party. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Committee_for_the_First_Amendment

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Gentleman’s Agreement: Thirty Years Later, in 1977, Kirk Douglas Editorializes

Did Gentleman’s Agreement’s scathing attack on anti-Semitism at hotels, clubs, etc. help cure this cancer? No. It would be an exaggeration to suggest that for African Americans there was even a negligible dent in hatred. The status quo persisted for another generation when discrimination laws were enacted to force desegregation. The aid to African American travelers, the Green Book, ceased

publication in 1966 indicating an improvement in conditions by that year, making The Guide less necessary. For the Jewish community, however, the restrictions of the gentleman’s agreement faded.

By 1957 the hotel industry was not perfect but dramatically better: “Almost 60 per cent of the resort hotels in the United States which discriminated against Jews in 1957 no longer do so, the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith reported here today [1964].

Describing ‘this dramatic progress’ toward the elimination of religious bias in resort hotels, the ADL said that a new national survey had found that only 9.8 per cent continued to discriminate against Jews in 1963, compared with 22.9 per cent in 1957.”25

This “dramatic progress” can be attributed as one of the many positive results of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and, possibly, to one book and its screen adaptation in the late 1940s. It is very difficult to make an absolute conclusion. It can be stated, though, that non-Jews who went along with the crowd by peppering their language with anti-Semitic insults and who preferred a separation of peoples in public places grew fewer and fewer throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Outwardly, at least, this style of overt intolerance became less socially acceptable. Inwardly, it is harder to say what was in people’s hearts.

By the 1960s and, certainly, by the 1970s the gentleman’s agreement of religious bias had faded from the national consciousness. It was hard to believe by many Americans that, when applied to Jews, the old attitudes persisted.

On almost the 30th anniversary of the release of Gentleman’s Agreement (January 2, 1977), the Los Angeles Times published an editorial written by actor / writer Kirk Douglas. It appeared in the editorial section of the paper, not in Calendar Magazine, the LA Times weekly entertainment magazine. Did a silent anti-Semitism still linger in America in the late 1970s?

The editorial was not directed at the film industry. Douglas directed his words more towards the hypocrisy of political personalities. The restricted clubs he cites, however,

Kirk Douglas in 1947

Kirk Douglas in 1977.

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were in his backyard In the Los Angeles area and Palm Springs. The clubs were patronized by powerful Hollywood types who made decisions about who would be the “innies” and who would be the “outies” in their industry. In 1977 Kirk Douglas still maintained a youthful, leading man persona. By writing such a blunt editorial, was Douglas concerned that he would be jeopardizing his chance to continue starring as a leading man in major film productions? I would love to ask him. He died February 5, 2020, at age 103 in Beverly Hills, CA.

Douglas’ 1977 editorial follow:26

Where ‘Gentlemen’s Agreements’ Still Reign By Kirk Douglas

The unseemly scramble by key members of the incoming admiration to resign from their “exclusive” private clubs would be amusing if the sneaking thought didn’t occur that members of the outgoing administration are probably eager to get back into theirs.

Although every sort of anti-discrimination law imaginable is now on the books, I have to ask myself how much things really have changed since I was a boy growing up in Amsterdam, N.Y. Then, at least there was no hypocrisy about it; I couldn’t get a job delivering newspapers because I was a Jew, and no Jew was allowed to work at the largest factory in town. No one bothered to hide behind a mask of false piety, however. They were painfully direct.

I was about 11 years old when a bunch of kids pounced on me one day beating me bloody and yelling, “You killed Jesus Christ.” When my mother asked me what happened, I wailed: “They said I killed Jesus Christ and I don’t even know who he is.”

When I went to college at St. Lawrence University, the fraternities had a big rush week at the beginning of the school term. They pursued the freshmen they wanted as members, and their first step was to invite the prospect to dinner at the fraternity house.

I was invited, so I put on my one suit and tie and waited for the upperclassman who was supposed to come and escort me to dinner. I waited and waited. They had made a mistake in my case. Demsky was my name then, and they had thought I was Polish. When they discovered I was Jewish they lost interest. Nobody came to fetch me. They just left me there, waiting.

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Later, by a strange fluke – a change in the system of voting – I was elected president of the student body. (The alumni association was furious.) After that, though, I was offered “house privileges” at a fraternity. This meant I could pay dues, eat meals, live in the house, even attend fraternity dances. But I could not attend their meetings, and I guess they wouldn’t have taught me the secret handshake. I declined the kind invitation.

There weren’t many Jewish students at the university, but a group came to me and suggested we form a Jewish fraternity. I thought not. “In destroying the enemy, you’d better be careful not to become the enemy,” I said.

Of course, no fraternity men on that campus believed in discrimination. “It’s just the rules ‘national’ hands down,” they said.

Today, those fraternity members are grown men. And where do they spend their weekends (those, at any rate, not tapped for cabinet posts)? I’ll tell you where: at clubs that exclude blacks, Jews and Chicanos.

All I have to do is look around. Not far from my home is the Los Angeles Country Club – a beautiful layout with two 18-hole golf courses in the middle of some of the most desirable land you’ve ever seen. They exclude not only Jews and blacks but almost everyone from the world of entertainment. Can you imagine blackballing a whole industry?

Jews certainly are not innocent in this silly game. For years fancy Jewish clubs were dominated by German Jews who looked down on Polish and Russian Jews for having arrived in this country after they did. They excluded them from their clubs and avoided “intermarriage” like the plague.

Years ago, I visited former President Eisenhower at his home in the Palm Springs area. What a charming man! He lived at Eldorado Country Club, which doesn’t have Jewish members – not even German Jews – or blacks, not even rich ones.

A couple of months ago, President Ford vacationed at the Thunderbird Country Club in Palm Springs. It’s just as discriminatory. President Ford liked the pace so much he may decide to settle down in that highly-restricted neighborhood.

And so in many places a “gentleman’s agreement” is still in effect. It’s all so polite. Rich Jewish members of Hillcrest Country Club, have lunch occasionally with rich gentile members of the Los Angeles Country Club. Sometimes they even play golf together.

When will it end? Maybe with the next generation.

Recently my son Peter invited a black friend over to the house to play tennis. They got into a violent argument and Peter kicked him off the court. I don’t know who was right or wrong, but I do know that, in their anger, neither one mentioned black or white. It was just two people who were mad as hell. A week later they had settled their differences and were back playing tennis again.

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It will end when we dare to dislike as well as like, a person for his or her own sake, not because of color or religion.

Kirk Douglas, the actor, lives in Beverly Hills [1977].

LA Times, January 2, 1977 (available online at the LA Times Archive [fee] or at your local library)

The public’s reaction to Douglas’ editorial was positive and confirmed that the content was accurate as evidenced by readers’ feedback in letters to the editor of the LA Times. Discussions were widespread in media outlets in the Los Angeles area and elsewhere. Eventually the news media moved on to other controversies. The subject again faded.

Do gentleman’s agreements exist today? Maybe, maybe not. Imagine, though, walking into the wrong club on the wrong night and being identified as a Muslin or suspected as being a male wearing female clothing. You would be an unexpected, unwanted intruder, as much in danger of being treated as shabbily, or worse, as a Jew or African American was treated back in the sweet, nostalgia of yesterday. What is even sadder, as those who seem to stand out from others know, the unwelcome feeling still exists in too many places unchanged since the 1940s but now the social conventions have forced ugliness a few inches further below the surface.

Gentleman’s Agreement: When Viewed Today

After reading about the film, Gentleman’s Agreement, and the anti-Semitism that led to it’s filming, you will probably want to view the film. The good news is that the film is easy to view and available in good prints. The DVD is readily available for purchase or rental. Many streaming services make the film available as well as cable services that often have the title available for free viewing. If you prefer to read the book, it can be obtained in any library across the nation either online, on the shelves, or via

interlibrary loan. There is no problem seeing or reading Gentleman’s Agreement today.

There is a problem, however. The times have changed. It is impossible for a contemporary viewer to feel the shock and societal embarrassment of a post-WW II American audience when seeing this film. In 1947, Americans had recently viewed the extremes of racism at the neighborhood movie house in newsreels.27 The images of the aftermath of what came to be known as the Holocaust28 were fresh on the collective American psyche. The

Crowds throng to see newsreels of WWII atrocities. They seem to be having a good time like any other night at the movies crowd. They smiled at the camera not realizing what they were about to see or was it that they already were immune to images of massive death? May, 1945.

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violence seen in the newsreels were the doings of foreign people, as many Americans preferred to believe – the evil Germans. This could never happen at home in the United States. We are enlightened. We are better than that. The Holocaust began with humiliating, roughly enforced exclusions, however. Are we like them, those immoral people in Germany? We also exercise exclusions here at home without giving the practice serious consideration. Most Germans did not murder. They stood by as others in uniforms committed the atrocities. By acquiescing to a gentleman’s agreement are we, as Americans, like the Germans who stood by the roadside as their neighbors were carted away? Contemporary audiences are too distanced by time which nullifies the shock felt by many film goers in 1947.

Many elements of the film are also a time capsule of the era -

Medical care or lack of it: The image of a doctor lighting a cigar as he explains to reporter Green the prognosis of his mother’s heart condition seems like a humorous interlude not the drama that was intended. As Green’s mom cries in pain from her chest discomfort, Green reassuringly tells his mom that he will call a friend who may know a doctor. This is silly even in the context of the time. Pre-911 medical emergencies were reported to the phone operator, a real human being, who fetched an ambulance. One did not need to know the direct phone number to the police station or the hospital as some incorrectly believe today.

Formality: People were very formal back then in dress and manners. These were the last days where wealthier people dressed in tuxedos and gowns to attend a party at a friend’s apartment and a little boy, being fitted for shoes at an upscale department store, wore a suit for the occasion. Yet, all women seemed to wear an apron for part of the day or so the imagery in movies asserted.

Location filming: Movie goers in the late 1940s may have noticed that many scenes were shot on location in Manhattan and Connecticut. This was unusual at the time. Location shots were a decision made by 20th Century-Fox to add realism to the production. Few movies are shot exclusively in a studio today. Contemporary audiences probably do not notice location filming at all.

The employment ad: Most disturbing to contemporary viewers may be the scenes where the head of the publishing company that prints Smith’s Weekly, the magazine where Green works and that initiated the articles exposing anti-Semitism, learns that his own company discriminates in hiring Jews. The publisher does the right thing and immediately revises the hiring policy. The publisher orders that the wording of the company’s employment ads include an additional line stating that “the religion of applicants is of no concern to this employer.” Green emphatically explains to his private secretary in the confines of his office that he agrees with the new policy. Using a series of offensive slurs, he argues that the slurs are wrong and so is discrimination. The slurs refer not only to Jews but also to African Americans. Yet Green repeats the ad’s original language without commenting on its limitations. Contemporary viewers may cringe when Green does not expand the wording of the ad to, “the religion AND RACE of applicants is of no concern to this employer.” He does not. That would have opened too many doors in 1947 and would have lost the sympathy of many in the movie audience.

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The limitations drawn by the film and also an illogical aspect of the plot was observed by noted critic Bosley Crowther in his review for the New York Times (November 12, 1947), “…the weaknesses of the original [novel] are also apparent in the film—the most obvious of which is the limited and specialized area observed. Although the hero of the story is apparently assigned to write a definitive article on anti-Semitism in the United States, it is evident that his explorations are narrowly confined to the upper-class social and professional level to which he is immediately exposed. And his discoveries are chiefly in the nature of petty bourgeois rebuffs, with no inquiry into the devious cultural mores from which they spring…Likewise it is amazing that the writer who undertakes this probe should be so astonished to discover that anti-Semitism is cruel. Assuming that he is a journalist of some perception and scope, his imagination should have fathomed most of these sudden shocks long since. And although the role is crisply and agreeably played by Gregory Peck, it is, in a careful analysis, an extraordinarily naive role.” 29

Sitting through the film today reveals an affecting yet tame drama, very well produced, and, in certain scenes, strangely dull. There seems to be an expectation that, in movie parlance of the day, upper-class characters would come to educated conclusions and see the errors of their world and, of course, fix things. The dialogue can be conventional in some scenes while daring in others. Some scenes use sharp, very frank, unexpected dialogue considering the era. The film may disappoint some but it is really a must see if you are interested in the sociology of the USA in the late 1940s. The fact the novel was filmed at all is a kudo to Darryl Zanuck’s career. There was true risk that the careers of the talent involved would be tainted. Nothing cures Hollywood jitters faster that money, however. The film’s financial success allowed future films to be more daring, at least at Twentieth Century-Fox. Gentleman’s Agreement opened doors at Twentieth Century-Fox allowing films with controversial themes to be financed including The Snake Pit, 1948 (Olivia de Havilland as a young woman suffering from mental illness 30), Pinky, 1949 (the problems of a fair skinned African American woman, unfortunately starring Jeanne Crain who was white 31), and No Way Out, 1950 (featuring Sidney Poitier in his first starring role as a doctor with a racist, white patient 32).

And yes, there is a bonus. If you are so inclined to notice, sitting through 2 hours of Gentleman’s Agreement features a young and stunningly handsome Gregory Peck which is entertaining in and of itself.

Gregory Peck in his prime.

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Gentleman’s Agreement: The Acclaim

Gentleman’s Agreement was the 8th highest grossing film in 194733 plus it was a film award bonanza. The courage of being involved with a controversial theme boosted the reputations and careers of all involved. 34 The acclaim was, for some, short lived as HUAC hovered in the wings.

The Academy Awards, 1948

Winners – Best Picture (At right, Elia Kazan, Celeste Holm, & Darryl Zanuck at the Academy Awards, 1948) Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Celeste Holm Best Director, Elia Kazan (BTW, by 1948 standards, Kazan was underdressed at the Oscars. He should be wearing a tuxedo but he won so what did it matter in the end.) Nominated –

Best Actor in a Leading Role, Gregory Peck https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregory_Peck Best Actress in a Leading Role, Dorothy McGuire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_McGuire Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Anne Revere https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Revere

Best Writing, Screenplay, Moss Hart https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moss_Hart Best Film Editing, Harmon Jones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harmon_Jones

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The Golden Globes, 1948

Winners –

Best Picture https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darryl_F._Zanuck (At left, Darryl Zanuck)

Best Director, Elia Kazan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elia_Kazan (At left, Kazan accepts his honorary Oscar in 1999)

Best Supporting Actress, Celeste Holm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celeste_Holm

Best Juvenile Actor, Dean Stockwell https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Stockwell

The Credits 35

Gregory Peck Philip Schuyler Green

Dorothy McGuire Kathy Lacy

John Garfield Dave Goldman

Celeste Holm Anne Dettrey

Anne Revere Mrs. Green

June Havoc Elaine Wales

Albert Dekker John Minify

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Jane Wyatt Jane

Dean Stockwell Tommy Green

Sam Jaffe Professor Fred Lieberman

Directed by Elia Kazan

Screenplay by Moss Hart & Elia Kazan (uncredited)

Produced by Darryl F. Zanuck

Music by Alfred Newman

Cinematography by Arthur C. Miller

Edited by Harmon Jones

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1 Definition from Google Dictionary. 2 Levy, Richard (Editor), et. al. Antisemitism: A Historical Encyclopedia of Prejudice and Persecution, Volume 1; ABC-CLIO: 2005; p.597 3 “Colored” or “negro” were the accepted terms prior to the mid-1960s for African Americans. Of course, African Americans were not asked if “colored” or “negro” were acceptable terms. In the mid-1960s the term became “black” when African-American intellectuals, leaders, and communities had the power to voice an African-American perspective. This, however, is a whole new article. See Brad Edmondson, “What Do You Call a Dark-Skinned Person?” American Demographics, Oct93, Vol. 15 Issue 10, p9. 1p. 1 Chart; and Benjamin H. Alexander, “We Are All in This Together: Are We Black, Negro, Colored, Mulatto, Cush or American of African Heritage? / The Truth About Uncle Tom.” Vital Speeches of the Day, 4/15/82, Vol. 48 Issue 13, p407. 4p. 4 A house detective was an early form of in-house security, AKA as a “house dick” (short for detective), a primary concern was excluding prostitutes and unwed couples from the hotel to keep it “respectable”. 5 Available online at Google Books on 03/31/20017: https://books.google.com/books?id=WCJTNLyee-kC&pg=PA39&lpg=PA39&dq=upper+classes+covenants&source=bl&ots=6dsy7iuvPb&sig=yhS4aQlOYp_I2CyThJDVV_Lm9wE&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjw19GFo4HTAhUFSCYKHdj3AA4Q6AEIGjAA#v=onepage&q=upper%20classes%20covenants&f=false 6 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Negro_Motorist_Green_Book & https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/collections/the-green-book#/?tab=about 7 Ibid. 8 “Heywood Broun Urges Survey in U.S. of Racial and Religious Prejudices”, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, November 19, 1928, http://www.jta.org/1928/11/19/archive/heywood-broun-urges-survey-in-u-s-of-racial-and-religious-prejudices 9 Amazon: Gentleman's Agreement by Laura Z. Hobson (Author) https://www.amazon.com/Gentlemans-Agreement-Laura-Z-Hobson/dp/0877973253 10 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13568094-gentleman-s-agreement 11 McFadden, Robert D., “Laura Z. Hobson, Author, Dies AT 85,” New York Times Obituaries, Published: March 2, 1986, http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/02/obituaries/laura-z-hobson-author-dies-at-85.html 12 A galley is a “is any limited run copy of a book printed before the first standard edition is published.” Google Dictionary. 13 Scheuer, Philip K., “Moss Hart Takes Crack at Hollywood.” Los Angeles Times. March 2, 1941, p.28. 14 Wikipedia: Gentleman's Agreement (novel), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentleman's_Agreement_(novel) 15 Behlmer, Rudy (editor). Memo from Darryl F. Zanuck: The Golden Years at Twentieth Century-Fox, Grove Press (1993) p. 134. 17 Thomas, Tony and Aubrey Solomon. The Films of 20th Century-Fox: A Pictorial History, The Citadel Press (1985) p. 177. 18 Custen, George F. Twentieth Century’s Fox: Darryl F. Zanuck and the Culture of Hollywood, Basic Books (1997) pp. 295–296 19 Wikipedia: Gentleman Agreement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentleman%27s_Agreement 20 Stevens, George Jr. Conversations with the Great Moviemakers of Hollywood's Golden Age, Alfred A. Knopf (2006) pp. 389–408 21 See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elia_Kazan 22 Irving Berlin was a brilliant song writer of the 20th century. Almost impossible to believe today, Berlin and his girlfriend, Ellin Mackay, made headlines in the 1920s because he was Jewish and she was Christian. This was scandalous at the time. Berlin composed beautiful love songs about their ordeal that define the 1920s including Always, Remember, and the haunting What’ll I Do. The couple married and their wedding made the front page of the New York Times. The Berlins were married until old age and only parted by death. Berlin’s other hits included White Christmas, There’s No Business Like Show Business, Easter Parade, Alexander’s Ragtime Band, and God Bless America, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irving_Berlin 23 Custen, p. 298

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24 Archer Winsten, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archer_Winsten; Walter Winchell, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Winchell (Winchell was the lightly veiled, true subject of the scathing film Sweet Smell of Success, 1957, starring Burt Lancaster); Billy Rose, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Rose; Irving Berlin, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irving_Berlin; Bernard Baruch, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Baruch. 25 “Anti-Jewish Discrimination in American Hotels Declines Sharply,” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, January 31, 1964, http://www.jta.org/1964/01/31/archive/anti-jewish-discrimination-in-american-hotels-declines-sharply 26 Douglas, Kirk. Where ‘Gentlemen’s Agreements’ Sill Reign. The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) Sun, Jan 2, 1977. Page 235. Downloaded on Mar 24, 2017 27 In 1947, the average American still saw moving images of the news captured in short films, called newsreels, shown between movie features at a movie theater. In 1948, TV networks began showing short news programs (10 or 15 minutes) on TV. Within 5 years the world changed. Filmed, and eventually, videotaped TV news quickly replaced filmed newsreels. By the end of the 1950s, newsreels were pretty much dead. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newsreel 28 Although earlier references to the term Holocaust exist, “the specific application [of the term] was introduced by historians during the 1950s.” See English Language & Usage, http://English.stackexchange.com/questions/106031/who-coined-term-holocaust-to-refer-to-nazi-final-solution-for-the-je 29 Crowther, Bosley. ‘Movie Review: Gentleman's Agreement,' Study of Anti-Semitism, Is Feature at Mayfair -- Gregory Peck Plays Writer Acting as Jew. April 9, 1947. Downloaded on Mar 24, 2017 30 See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Snake_Pit 31 Fair skinned, African American actresses Lena Horne and Dorothy Dandridge both campaigned for the role of Pinky but the role went to a white actress. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinky_(film) 32 See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Way_Out_(1950_film) 33 1947 in Film, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1947_in_film#Top_Ten_Money_Making_Stars 34 International Movie Database (IMDB), http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039416/awards 35 IMBD, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039416/fullcredits/