''Summer and Smoke'' is a 1961 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

directed by

Peter Glenville Peter Glenville (born Peter Patrick Brabazon Browne; 28 October 19133 June 1996) was an English film and stage actor and director. Biography Born in Hampstead, London, into a theatrical family, Glenville was the son of Shaun Glenville (born J ...

, and starring

Laurence Harvey Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to South Africa at an early age, before later settling in th ...

and

Geraldine Page Geraldine Sue Page (November 22, 1924June 13, 1987) was an American actress. With a career which spanned four decades across film, stage, and television, Page was the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Acad ...

, with

Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is a Puerto Rican actress, dancer, and singer. Noted for her work across different areas of the entertainment industry, she has appeared in numerous film, television, and thea ...

Una Merkel Una Merkel (December 10, 1903 – January 2, 1986) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress. Merkel was born in Kentucky and acted on stage in New York in the 1920s. She went to Hollywood in 1930 and became a popular film ...

John McIntire John Herrick McIntire (June 27, 1907 – January 30, 1991) was an American character actor who appeared in 65 theatrical films and many television series. McIntire is well known for having replaced Ward Bond, upon Bond's sudden death in Novem ...

, Thomas Gomez, Pamela Tiffin, Malcolm Atterbury, Lee Patrick, and Earl Holliman. Based on the

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

play of the same name, it was adapted by

James Poe James Wilber Poe (October 4, 1921 – January 24, 1980) was an American film and television screenwriter. He is best known for his work on such films as ''Around the World in 80 Days'' (for which he jointly won an Academy Award for Best Ada ...

and Meade Roberts.

Plot

Alma Winemiller is the fragile, lonely, and oversensitive daughter of a minister in a small Mississippi town shortly before the first World War. From childhood she has harbored an almost spiritual love for John Buchanan, who, though a physician like his father, resents being forced to follow in his father's footsteps. But the unruly John prefers livelier company than the timid Alma; in particular, he is attracted by Rosa Zacharias, the tigerish daughter of the owner of Moon Lake Casino. One night, John becomes intrigued by Alma's shy, inhibited gropings toward love, and he takes her to the casino. When he tries to seduce her, the horrified girl hysterically denounces him and runs away. A short time later, the elder Dr. Buchanan is called out of town, and John uses the occasion to throw a wild party celebrating his betrothal to Rosa. Alma frantically telephones Dr. Buchanan, who quickly returns, quarrels with Zacharias, and is accidentally shot and killed. Shattered by the tragedy caused by his carousing, John reforms and takes over his father's practice. As the months pass, Alma's brooding love erupts into passion; and she goes to John and offers herself to him. But it is too late; it is John who now regards their relationship as a spiritual one. After learning that John plans to marry Nellie Ewell, a young girl, the heartbroken and frustrated Alma wanders down to the park. There she strikes up an acquaintance with a lonely traveling salesman, Archie Kramer. When he asks what excitement can be found in the town, Alma smiles at him and suggests they take a taxi to Moon Lake Casino. As they drive off, Alma watches the dying leaves of summer blowing across the pavement (synopsis from

AFI Catalog of Feature Films The ''AFI Catalog of Feature Films'', also known as the ''AFI Catalog'', is an ongoing project by the American Film Institute (AFI) to catalog all commercially-made and theatrically exhibited American motion pictures from the birth of cinema in ...

Cast

as John Buchanan, Jr. *

as Alma Winemiller *

as Rosa Zacharias *

as Mrs. Winemiller *

as Dr. Buchanan * Thomas Gomez as Papa Zacharias * Pamela Tiffin as Nellie Ewell * Malcolm Atterbury as Rev. Winemiller * Lee Patrick as Mrs. Ewell *

Max Showalter Max Gordon Showalter (June 2, 1917 – July 30, 2000), sometimes credited as Casey Adams, was an American film, television, and stage actor, as well as a composer, pianist, and singer. He appeared on more than 1,000 television programs. One ...

as Roger Doremus (as Casey Adams) * Earl Holliman as Archie Kramer *

Pepe Hern José Hernández Bethencourt (June 6, 1927 – February 28, 2009), better known as Pepe Hern, was an American supporting actor, who usually played Spanish and Latino (primarily Mexican) roles throughout his career.American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

in these lists: * 2005: AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores – Nominated

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Summer And Smoke (Film) 1961 films 1961 drama films American drama films American films based on plays Films based on works by Tennessee Williams Films directed by Peter Glenville Films featuring a Best Drama Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films produced by Hal B. Wallis Films scored by Elmer Bernstein Films set in Mississippi Films set in the 1910s Films with screenplays by James Poe Paramount Pictures films Southern Gothic films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films