The Affairs of Susan

1945 film by William A. Seiter

For the 1935 film, see The Affair of Susan.

The Affairs of Susan

Joan Fontaine in The Affairs of Susan

Directed by| William A. Seiter
Screenplay by| Thomas Monroe
László Görög
Richard Flournoy
Story by| Thomas Monroe
László Görög
Produced by| Hal Wallis
Starring| Joan Fontaine
George Brent
Cinematography| David Abel
Edited by| Eda Warren
Music by| Friedrich Hollaender
Color process| Black and white

Production
company

Hal Wallis Productions

Distributed by| Paramount Pictures

Release date

* July 8, 1945 (1945-07-08)

Running time

| 110 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English

The Affairs of Susan is a 1945 American romantic comedy drama film directed by William A. Seiter and starring Joan Fontaine, Walter Abel, George Brent, Dennis O'Keefe and Don DeFore. It was distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is also known by the alternative title of Chameleon.

## Plot

[edit]

Susan Darell, a successful dramatic actress, returns to New York City from a tour entertaining the troops overseas. She is about to marry Richard Aiken, even though they have only known each other for a few weeks. Then Richard discovers that Susan has an ex-husband (and her current Broadway producer) named Roger Berton and two other former boyfriends when he sees their pictures in her living room.

At a cocktail party, he meets all three, each of whom describes her as an entirely different person. Worried, he invites them all to dinner, where he asks them to tell him all they know about her. Roger is willing, but the other two start to walk out. However, when Roger starts reminiscing about Susan, they sit back down.

Roger meets Susan while on vacation in Rhode Island. When actress Mona Kent shows up, hoping to be cast as Joan of Arc in his next production, he flees by rowboat to an island. He talks a man into letting him board at his house for a while. He meets Susan, the man's niece, who lives there. Initially suspicious of her, he discovers that she is straightforward and honest and completely uninterested in acting. However, he thinks she is perfect to play Joan and makes her an actress, against her strong resistance. Then they fall in love and get married. Just before the premiere of Joan of Arc, Mona shows up and tries to sabotage it by getting a naive Susan drunk. Roger finds out in time and sobers her up. Susan draws rave reviews, but hardly anyone comes to see the play. Roger becomes repeatedly annoyed when Susan's complete honesty and forthrightness cause trouble for him. They divorce as a result.

Next up is Mike Ward, a wealthy lumberman from Montana. He meets Roger in a bar. When Roger sees how rich he is, he invites Mike to his office to discuss Mike investing in Roger's next show. A more sophisticated and less honest Susan barges in during the meeting, and taking a lesson from Mona, flatters Mike and takes him to lunch. Mike falls in love and begins proposing to her in a nightclub. Susan starts to let him down gently when Roger barges in and, assuming the worst (and wanting to reconcile with her), infuriates Susan into accepting Mike. However, Mike finds out about Susan's (fairly innocent) lying and breaks up with her.

Then novelist named Bill Anthony meets Susan in a park. Under Bill's influence, Susan turns into an intellectual. When Roger tells her that Bill does not believe in marriage, she does not trust him. She gets Bill drunk, knowing that when he is intoxicated he will agree to anything, and sets out to find a justice of the peace to marry them, but at the last moment, changes her mind. Back in the present, Bill regrets that she did not go through with it.

Reassured, Richard decides to go ahead with the marriage. However, Mike and Bill both propose to Susan again. She gently turns them down. Roger tells her that when they were first married, she was too young. Now she has grown up. She ultimately chooses him over Richard.

## Cast

[edit]

* Joan Fontaine as Susan Darell
* George Brent as Roger Berton
* Dennis O'Keefe as Bill Anthony
* Walter Abel as Richard Aiken
* Don DeFore as Mike Ward
* Rita Johnson as Mona Kent
* Mary Field as Nancy
* Byron Barr as Chick
* Francis Pierlot as Uncle Jemmy
* Lewis L. Russell as Mr. Cusp
* Gordon Richards as Mr. Giddon

## Reception

[edit]

The film was nominated for Academy Award for Best Story in the 18th Academy Awards, but lost to The House on 92nd Street.[1]

Critic Bosley Crowther wrote in The New York Times, "Producer Hal Wallis should have condensed the whole romp into an hour or so and not the two hours which the picture takes to run its course."[2] He thought all four male leads gave capable performances, but found Fontaine's to be "very uneven".[2]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ The Affairs of Susan (1945), retrieved 2017-07-24
2. ^ a b Bosley Crowther (March 29, 1945). "The Screen; 'Practically Yours' Opens at the Paramount; 'The Affairs of Susan' and 'Between Two Women' Are Other Arrivals". The New York Times.

## External links

[edit]

* The Affairs of Susan at IMDb
* The Affairs of Susan at the TCM Movie Database
* Review of The Affairs of Susan at TV Guide

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Films directed by William A. Seiter

* The Kentucky Colonel (1920)
* Eden and Return (1921)
* Hearts and Masks (1921)
* The Foolish Age (1921)
* Passing Through (1921)
* Boy Crazy (1922)
* Gay and Devilish (1922)
* Up and at 'Em (1922)
* When Love Comes (1922)
* The Understudy (1922)
* The Beautiful and Damned (1922)
* Little Church Around the Corner (1923)
* Daddies (1924)
* His Forgotten Wife (1924)
* The White Sin (1924)
* Listen Lester (1924)
* The Family Secret (1924)
* Helen's Babies (1924)
* The Fast Worker (1924)
* The Mad Whirl (1925)
* Dangerous Innocence (1925)
* The Teaser (1925)
* Where Was I? (1925)
* What Happened to Jones (1926)
* Skinner's Dress Suit (1926)
* Rolling Home (1926)
* Take It from Me (1926)
* The Cheerful Fraud (1927)
* The Small Bachelor (1927)
* Thanks for the Buggy Ride (1928)
* Good Morning, Judge (1928)
* Waterfront (1928)
* Outcast (1928)
* Synthetic Sin (1929)
* Why Be Good? (1929)
* Smiling Irish Eyes (1929)
* Footlights and Fools (1929)
* The Love Racket (1929)
* Strictly Modern (1930)
* Back Pay (1930)
* The Truth About Youth (1930)
* Sunny (1930)
* Going Wild (1930)
* Kiss Me Again (1931)
* Big Business Girl (1931)
* Too Many Cooks (1931)
* Caught Plastered (1931)
* Way Back Home (1931)
* Girl Crazy (1932)
* Young Bride (1932)
* Is My Face Red? (1932)
* Hot Saturday (1932)
* If I Had a Million (segment "The Three Marines", 1932)
* Hello, Everybody! (1933)
* Diplomaniacs (1933)
* Rafter Romance (1933)
* Chance at Heaven (1933)
* Sons of the Desert (1933)
* Love Birds (1934)
* We're Rich Again (1934)
* The Richest Girl in the World (1934)
* Roberta (1935)
* The Daring Young Man (1935)
* If You Could Only Cook (1935)
* The Case Against Mrs. Ames (1936)
* The Moon's Our Home (1936)
* Dimples (1936)
* Stowaway (1936)
* Life Begins in College (1937)
* This Is My Affair (1937)
* Sally, Irene and Mary (1938)
* Room Service (1938)
* Thanks for Everything (1938)
* Susannah of the Mounties (1939)
* Allegheny Uprising (1939)
* It's a Date (1940)
* Hired Wife (1940)
* Nice Girl? (1941)
* Appointment for Love (1941)
* Broadway (1942)
* You Were Never Lovelier (1942)
* Destroyer (1943)
* A Lady Takes a Chance (1943)
* Four Jills in a Jeep (1944)
* Belle of the Yukon (1944)
* The Affairs of Susan (1945)
* That Night with You (1945)
* Little Giant (1946)
* I'll Be Yours (1947)
* Up in Central Park (1948)
* One Touch of Venus (1948)
* Borderline (1950)
* Dear Brat (1951)
* The Lady Wants Mink (1953)
* Champ for a Day (1953)
* Make Haste to Live (1954)

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