Although Jimmy Stewart, born James Maitland Stewart in 1908 in Indiana, Pennsylvania, reached the pinnacle of Hollywood fame and leading man status, he never left his Midwestern roots. As the oldest and only son of three siblings, Stewart’s father expected that one day Jimmy would take over the family hardware store. In fact, for years, Jimmy’s only competitive Oscar sat in the window of the family store. When Stewart’s father insisted Jimmy attend Princeton instead of Jim’s choice of the Naval Academy, his future was altered forever. While attending Princeton, he found and developed his life long interest in acting. About this time, Stewart also discovered the University Players and made the acquaintance of Henry Fonda and Margaret Sullavan, also members. As a result, Fonda and Stewart became lifelong friends. When Stewart finally came to Hollywood, Margaret took Jimmy under her wing, rehearsing with him and encouraging him to embrace his unique charm. He would later star with Sullavan in The Shop Around The Corner. However, although Stewart received critical acclaim and box office success in “You Can’t Take It With You and Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, his family still insisted he return home and leave Hollywood’s sinful ways. Shortly before his eightieth birthday, he was asked how he would like to be remembered. He said, “As someone who believed in hard work, and love of country, love of family, and love of community. (www.wikipedia.org)
With the advent of World War II, and his family’s military heritage, Stewart enlisted. He was the first major star to don a uniform. Being an accomplished private pilot, he soon found his way into the Army Air Corps. When he was sent overseas, he flew numerous missions into the heart of Nazi occupied Europe. Although at his request, only twenty missions were officially recorded. Stewart however played an integral part in the war and was awarded many medals and citations. He continued his service in the United States Air Force Reserve, and after 27 years, he retired and was promoted to Major General by President Reagan.
After returning from World War II, Stewart was no longer under contract to MGM and signed with an MCA talent agency, which allowed Stewart to be one of the first independently contracted actors. (www.wikipedia.org).
When many other actors such as Katherine Hepburn and Bette Davis chaffed at the studio system, Stewart was quoted as saying, “You hear so much about the old movie moguls. The moguls you know weren’t anywhere near as bad as they’ve been painted. They knew film, they learned about making movies. In those days, you learned a lot about movies, not by reading, not by going to lectures, but by doing the job.” (Pickard, p. 178) Even though his acting career contained critical and commercial disappointments, Stewart was successful in all of the film genres making nearly 80 films and is now associated with such classics as Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, You Can’t Take It With You, It’s A Wonderful Life, Harvey, The Man Who Knew To Much, and Rear Window just to name a few. As of 2007, ten of his films have been inducted into the United States National Film Registry. Although he won many acting awards and is considered one of the finest actors of the Golden Age of Hollywood and was also named the third greatest star of all time by the American Film Institute, he won only one competitive Oscar in 1941 for Best Actor in The Philadelphia Story. (www.wikipedia.org) Stewart thought his performance was “entertaining, slick, and smooth” but lacking the “guts” of Mr. Smith. He went on to receive an Oscar for his lifetime achievements in 1985 presented by his friend, Cary Grant. (www.wikipedia.org) There are so many memorable moments in Stewart’s films: praying and near tears as he sits at a bar and contemplates suicide in “It’s A Wonderful Life; waltzing, intoxicated around a swimming pool with Katherine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story; Stewart grabbing nervously for the flashbulbs to photograph and temporarily blind the lumbering killer, Raymond Burr in Rear Window. Always, he (Stewart) has been an American, but always he has been vulnerable. Idealistic but stubborn. Awkward but graceful. (Pickard p. 182) As Kim Novak, his co-star in Vertigo so graciously stated, “Heading my list of leading men is most definitely James Stewart. For me, he encompassed all the things I appreciated in a man: He always has been and always will be my ideal. Setting him apart is his endearing shyness, or innocence that I found irresistible. He was the sexiest man who played opposite me in thirty years.” (Eliot, p. 298)
While Jimmy Stewart dated many Hollywood legends such as Norma Shearer, Marlene Dietrich, and Ginger Rogers and acted opposite many great actresses such as Grace Kelly, his favorite co-star, Jean Arthur, June Allison and Katherine Hepburn, he was happily married to Gloria Hatrich McLean from 1949 till her death in 1994. Jimmy told friends, “For me, it had been love at first sight. She was the kind of girl I had always dreamed of. The kind you associate with open country, cooking stew and not fainting because it was made of cut-up squirrels.” (Eliot, p. 233) While Stewart adopted Gloria’s two sons, Ronald and Michael, he and Gloria had twin daughters, Judy and Kelly. Although a fulfilling and lasting marriage in Hollywood is quite a feat, the Stewarts’ managed to have a productive and stable partnership for 45 years. Concentrating on the core values, they never let fame or fortune destroy their relationship.
In looking at Jimmy Stewart’s life, it is clear his strong Scottish, Presbyterian upbringing, his conservative values, his sense of patriotism and love of country defined the man. It never occurred to him to be ungrateful or self absorbed. He told an interviewer, “It’s been a wonderful life.” (Pickard, p. 180) He instinctively knew this “star” business could be fickle, and he never allowed it to turn him into a “has been” or a one-dimensional idol. He was a fully formed man who not only left behind a body of film classics but a private life to be admired. His obituary from The New York Times stated, “His early screen image, like his personal life, epitomized a middle American ideal in a confusing sophisticated world.” (Eliot, p. 411) He never was too important to sign an autograph or too famous to answer his country’s call or champion an important cause. Stewart summed up his movie career with the quote, “And that’s the thing, that’s the great thing
about movies. If you’re good, and God helps you and your lucky enough to have a personality that comes across, you’re giving people little, little tiny bits of time—pieces of time they never forget.” And there are so many of these moments in all of Stewart’s films (Perkins, p. 180)
Works Cited
“James Stewart.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 15 May 2011.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JamesStewart
Lemire, Christy, “Wedding Films Offer Wit, Heart.” Associated Press, the Journal Gazette 16 May, 2011, Fort Wayne, IN
Elliot, Marc. Jimmy Stewart: A Biography. Harmony Books, Crown Publishing Group, Random House, New York, 2006.
Pickard, Roy. Jimmy Stewart: A Life In Film, St Martin’s Press, New York, 1992
The Philadelphia Story, MGM, 1940
With the advent of World War II, and his family’s military heritage, Stewart enlisted. He was the first major star to don a uniform. Being an accomplished private pilot, he soon found his way into the Army Air Corps. When he was sent overseas, he flew numerous missions into the heart of Nazi occupied Europe. Although at his request, only twenty missions were officially recorded. Stewart however played an integral part in the war and was awarded many medals and citations. He continued his service in the United States Air Force Reserve, and after 27 years, he retired and was promoted to Major General by President Reagan.
After returning from World War II, Stewart was no longer under contract to MGM and signed with an MCA talent agency, which allowed Stewart to be one of the first independently contracted actors. (www.wikipedia.org).
When many other actors such as Katherine Hepburn and Bette Davis chaffed at the studio system, Stewart was quoted as saying, “You hear so much about the old movie moguls. The moguls you know weren’t anywhere near as bad as they’ve been painted. They knew film, they learned about making movies. In those days, you learned a lot about movies, not by reading, not by going to lectures, but by doing the job.” (Pickard, p. 178) Even though his acting career contained critical and commercial disappointments, Stewart was successful in all of the film genres making nearly 80 films and is now associated with such classics as Mr. Smith Goes To Washington, You Can’t Take It With You, It’s A Wonderful Life, Harvey, The Man Who Knew To Much, and Rear Window just to name a few. As of 2007, ten of his films have been inducted into the United States National Film Registry. Although he won many acting awards and is considered one of the finest actors of the Golden Age of Hollywood and was also named the third greatest star of all time by the American Film Institute, he won only one competitive Oscar in 1941 for Best Actor in The Philadelphia Story. (www.wikipedia.org) Stewart thought his performance was “entertaining, slick, and smooth” but lacking the “guts” of Mr. Smith. He went on to receive an Oscar for his lifetime achievements in 1985 presented by his friend, Cary Grant. (www.wikipedia.org) There are so many memorable moments in Stewart’s films: praying and near tears as he sits at a bar and contemplates suicide in “It’s A Wonderful Life; waltzing, intoxicated around a swimming pool with Katherine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story; Stewart grabbing nervously for the flashbulbs to photograph and temporarily blind the lumbering killer, Raymond Burr in Rear Window. Always, he (Stewart) has been an American, but always he has been vulnerable. Idealistic but stubborn. Awkward but graceful. (Pickard p. 182) As Kim Novak, his co-star in Vertigo so graciously stated, “Heading my list of leading men is most definitely James Stewart. For me, he encompassed all the things I appreciated in a man: He always has been and always will be my ideal. Setting him apart is his endearing shyness, or innocence that I found irresistible. He was the sexiest man who played opposite me in thirty years.” (Eliot, p. 298)
While Jimmy Stewart dated many Hollywood legends such as Norma Shearer, Marlene Dietrich, and Ginger Rogers and acted opposite many great actresses such as Grace Kelly, his favorite co-star, Jean Arthur, June Allison and Katherine Hepburn, he was happily married to Gloria Hatrich McLean from 1949 till her death in 1994. Jimmy told friends, “For me, it had been love at first sight. She was the kind of girl I had always dreamed of. The kind you associate with open country, cooking stew and not fainting because it was made of cut-up squirrels.” (Eliot, p. 233) While Stewart adopted Gloria’s two sons, Ronald and Michael, he and Gloria had twin daughters, Judy and Kelly. Although a fulfilling and lasting marriage in Hollywood is quite a feat, the Stewarts’ managed to have a productive and stable partnership for 45 years. Concentrating on the core values, they never let fame or fortune destroy their relationship.
In looking at Jimmy Stewart’s life, it is clear his strong Scottish, Presbyterian upbringing, his conservative values, his sense of patriotism and love of country defined the man. It never occurred to him to be ungrateful or self absorbed. He told an interviewer, “It’s been a wonderful life.” (Pickard, p. 180) He instinctively knew this “star” business could be fickle, and he never allowed it to turn him into a “has been” or a one-dimensional idol. He was a fully formed man who not only left behind a body of film classics but a private life to be admired. His obituary from The New York Times stated, “His early screen image, like his personal life, epitomized a middle American ideal in a confusing sophisticated world.” (Eliot, p. 411) He never was too important to sign an autograph or too famous to answer his country’s call or champion an important cause. Stewart summed up his movie career with the quote, “And that’s the thing, that’s the great thing
about movies. If you’re good, and God helps you and your lucky enough to have a personality that comes across, you’re giving people little, little tiny bits of time—pieces of time they never forget.” And there are so many of these moments in all of Stewart’s films (Perkins, p. 180)
Works Cited
“James Stewart.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 15 May 2011.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JamesStewart
Lemire, Christy, “Wedding Films Offer Wit, Heart.” Associated Press, the Journal Gazette 16 May, 2011, Fort Wayne, IN
Elliot, Marc. Jimmy Stewart: A Biography. Harmony Books, Crown Publishing Group, Random House, New York, 2006.
Pickard, Roy. Jimmy Stewart: A Life In Film, St Martin’s Press, New York, 1992
The Philadelphia Story, MGM, 1940
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