''The Farmer Takes a Wife'' is a 1935 American

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Victor Fleming Victor Lonzo Fleming (February 23, 1889 – January 6, 1949) was an American film director, cinematographer, and producer. His most popular films were '' Gone with the Wind'', for which he won an Academy Award for Best Director, and '' The Wiza ...

, written by

Edwin J. Burke Edwin J. Burke (August 30, 1889 – September 26, 1944) was an American screenwriter who was most known for writing some of Shirley Temple's earlier films. He won an Academy Award at the 5th Academy Awards in the category of Best Adapted Scre ...

, and starring

Janet Gaynor Janet Gaynor (born Laura Augusta Gainor; October 6, 1906 – September 14, 1984) was an American film, stage, and television actress. Gaynor began her career as an extra in shorts and silent films. After signing with Fox Film Corporation (late ...

Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor. He had a career that spanned five decades on Broadway and in Hollywood. He cultivated an everyman screen image in several films considered to be classics. Born and ra ...

(in his screen debut) and

Charles Bickford Charles Ambrose Bickford (January 1, 1891 – November 9, 1967) was an American actor known for supporting roles. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, for '' The Song of Bernadette'' (1943), '' The F ...

. It is based on the 1934 Broadway play ''

The Farmer Takes a Wife ''The Farmer Takes a Wife'' is a 1934 play by Frank B. Elser and Marc Connelly based on the 1929 novel '' Rome Haul'' by Walter D. Edmonds. It was well-received upon its opening night on Broadway on October 30, 1934, at the 46th Street Theatre ...

'' by

Marc Connelly Marcus Cook Connelly (December 13, 1890 – December 21, 1980) was an American playwright, director, producer, performer, and lyricist. He was a key member of the Algonquin Round Table, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930. Biogra ...

and Frank B. Elser, with Fonda reprising his stage role as the farmer. The film was released on August 2, 1935, by

20th Century-Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

Plot

Dan Harrow goes to work as a driver for Samson Weaver on the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing ...

, but his heart is set on buying a farm and settling down, even though his father was a canal man. This ambition and his distaste for fighting puzzle Molly Larkins, the girlfriend and cook of Jotham Klore, but she develops a liking for him anyway. When Samson wins $5000 in a lottery, he gives Dan a half share of his boat. This prompts Dan to propose to Molly, but she wants to stay on the Erie Canal, not live on a farm, so she will only go work for him, much to Jotham's displeasure. Jotham arrives at a big fair at the same time as Molly and Dan. Samson warns Dan, so he asks Molly to leave for Utica. Molly is ashamed of him, thinking he is a coward, but he confesses that he is going to Utica to finalize the purchase of a farm. Molly is so disgusted by this news that she quarrels with him. He departs for his new farm, leaving his share of the boat to Molly and warning her that the Erie Canal's days of prosperity are numbered, as the railroads move in. Molly is miserable, but refuses to admit it. She tells her friend Fortune Friendly that she might have gotten used to the idea of being a farmer's wife, but she could never marry a coward. Fortune decides to take matters into his own hands. He goes to see Dan. He lies and tells Dan that Molly is being shunned and insulted for having worked for a coward. Dan decides to have it out with Jotham. Molly then tries to prevent the fight, but without success. When Dan manages to beat Jotham, Molly tells him he is the new champion of the Canal and that he should stay, but he finally gives up on her. He tells that he no longer wants her and heads home. However, she follows him to his place, and he embraces her.

Cast

as Molly Larkins *

as Dan Harrow *

as Jotham Klore * Slim Summerville as Fortune Friendly *

Andy Devine Andrew Vabre Devine (October 7, 1905 – February 18, 1977) was an American character actor known for his distinctive raspy, crackly voice and roles in Western films, including his role as Cookie, the sidekick of Roy Rogers in 10 feature fil ...

as Elmer Otway *

Roger Imhof Frederick Roger Imhof (August 15, 1875 – April 15, 1958) was an American film actor, vaudeville, burlesque and circus performer, sketch writer, and songwriter. Early years Imhof was born in Rock Island, Illinois on April 15, 1875 to Nicholas ...

as Samson 'Sam' Weaver * Jane Withers as Della * Margaret Hamilton as Lucy Gurget *

Sig Ruman Siegfried Carl Alban Rumann (October 11, 1884 – February 14, 1967), billed as Sig Ruman and Sig Rumann, was a German-American character actor known for his portrayals of pompous and often stereotypically Teutonic officials or villains i ...

as Blacksmith *

John Qualen John Qualen (born Johan Mandt Kvalen, December 8, 1899 – September 12, 1987) was an American character actor of Norwegian heritage who specialized in Scandinavian roles. Early years Qualen was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, the son ...

as Sol Tinker *

Kitty Kelly Kitty Kelly (born Sue O'Neil; April 27, 1902 – June 29, 1968), was an American stage and film character actress. Biography Born in New York City in 1902, Kelly was best known as a member of the Ziegfeld Follies and her radio hosting with C ...

as Ivy *

Robert Gleckler Robert Gleckler (January 11, 1887 – February 25, 1939) was an American film and stage actor who appeared in nearly 60 movies between 1927 until his death in 1939. He was cast for the role of Jonas Wilkerson, overseer of the slaves at Tara in ...

as Fisher *

Erville Alderson Erville Alderson (September 11, 1882 – August 4, 1957) was an American character actor, usually portraying strong-willed or wise men. He appeared in nearly 200 films between 1918 and 1957. Life Alderson was born in Kansas City, Missouri. He ...

as Wagon Father (uncredited) *Philip Cooper as

John Wilkes Booth John Wilkes Booth (May 10, 1838 – April 26, 1865) was an American stage actor who assassinated United States President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. A member of the prominent 19th-century Booth ...

(uncredited) * George 'Gabby' Hayes as Lucas (uncredited) * J.M. Kerrigan as Angus (uncredited) * Mitchell Lewis as Boatman in Office (uncredited) *

Robert Warwick Robert Warwick (born Robert Taylor Bien, October 9, 1878 – June 6, 1964) was an American stage, film and television actor with over 200 film appearances. A matinee idol during the silent film era, he also prospered after the introduction ...

Junius Brutus Booth Junius Brutus Booth (1 May 1796 – 30 November 1852) was an English stage actor. He was the father of actor John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. His other children included Edwin Booth, the foremost tragedian of ...

(uncredited)

Reception

Andre Sennwald Andre David Sennwald (August 4, 1907 — Jan 12, 1936) was a motion picture critic for ''The New York Times''. Life After graduating from Columbia University School of Journalism, Sennwald was hired as a reporter for ''The New York Times'' in 193 ...

, critic for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', called ''The Farmer Takes a Wife'' "a rich and leisurely comedy of American manners" and singled out the performances of Fonda and Bickford for praise. However, while he wrote that Summerville and Gaynor gave "pleasant performances", he felt that "Miss Gaynor is really too nice a person to be playing bad girls like Molly Larkins."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Farmer Takes a Wife 1935 films 1935 romantic comedy films American black-and-white films American romantic comedy films 1930s English-language films American films based on plays Films directed by Victor Fleming Films set in New York (state) Films shot in Allentown, Pennsylvania 20th Century Fox films Fox Film films 1930s American films Silent romantic comedy films