Day 12 - Jimmy Stewart

Last year I took on the challenge to watch and review 100 films.  I succeeded by only a few hours, but made it (you can see my full list of films on the right column of this blog).  The last one was It's a Wonderful Life, which I know is a staple for most families around the holidays.  I think the major appeal of the film is that everyone can empathize with George Bailey, so wonderfully played by Jimmy Stewart. 

Jimmy Stewart was a very talented actor despite his distinctive, not always so charming, voice.  He couldn't pull off the high society or incredibly debonair roles like Cary Grant, nor could he always play the rough and hard-bitten cowboy loners like John Wayne.  Jimmy was too likable and too much like the guy you know next door.  He embodied the everyman unlike any other actor, with Tom Hanks being his only true successor.  What I love about Jimmy Stewart is this exact quality - when he gets beaten down, we feel it because we've been there.  When he comes back up on top, we cheer because we can see ourselves rising to the occasion with him.

Jimmy Stewart's enormous talent allowed him to explore many different types of roles with one major exception - he never played a bad guy.  Well, except for once in a very early film (After the Thin Man, 1936), but we won't discuss that.  Stewart teamed up with Frank Capra in 1938 and started on his big-time success with You Can't Take it with You.  From then on, Stewart became one of the biggest stars of all time.  And I bet you didn't know this, but when America entered into WWII, Jimmy Stewart was one of the first actors to join the Armed Services.  Well, he would have been one of the first, but his lanky frame put him into the "underweight" category a few times.  He kept trying and eventually joined the Army Air Corps.  He remained active within the Corps even after the war, putting in enough flying time to keep his certification and eventually rising to the rank of Brigadier General.  I think Stewart's dedication to the Armed Forces helped bolster his image as the American Everyman Hero.  During the war, your sons and daughters could have been flying right alongside of him.  Now that's someone to admire.

A drunken Connor (Stewart) carries an even drunker Tracy (Hepburn) back from a late-night swim in The Philadelphia Story (MGM 1940)

 Stewart brought a sense of honesty and wholesomeness to all of his characters, even to the tough and onery ones he played in later Westerns.  I could probably list all of his best roles, but this post would be too long, so here are a few highlights (I've already reviewed The Shop Around the Corner and It's a Wonderful Life - please check those out too!)

1. The Philadelphia Story (1940)  Jimmy Stewart plays cynical reporter Macaulay Connor, who is sent to spy on society gal Tracy Lord's (Katharine Hepburn) wedding.  As much as he hates the high and mighty, he winds up falling in love with her and causing all sorts of inebriated trouble.  I love how he can get that jaded side down pat while still finding hope in the end.
2. Harvey (1950) What can you say about a man who co-stars with a giant white rabbit that only he can see?  Darned good acting, that's what.
3. Rear Window (1954) Arguably one of Hitchcock's best films, I think this may be my favorite Jimmy Stewart/Hitchcock film.  The entire film rests on how Stewart creates his character - as Jeff, we only see what he sees and witness what he witnesses.  It's an amazing film and extra wonderful because Grace Kelly is at the height of her career.
4. Vertigo (1958)  Just love it.  Jimmy manages to go from a pretty normal guy to one completely obsessed with a woman.  Kind of like how he plays Harvey - that slip into madness isn't hard to believe.
5. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) is a fantastic tribute to the dying art of the classic Western.  It's full of the old mythic types and the underlying sadness that the true heroes are often those who remain nameless and unknown to history.  Interesting fact - John Wayne is arguably in one of his most perfect roles, but director John Ford did not want to cast an unknown or any actor of lesser legendary status to be Wayne's character's adversary (in the role of bright and hopeful young tenderfoot lawyer, Ransom Stoddard).  So the role went to the only other actor at the time that was just as well loved and well known as Wayne - Jimmy Stewart.  Yes, he looks a bit too old for the part, but as a fan of both actors, it's difficult for me to pick a side, so I can't imagine how it was received back in 1962.         

Sadly there are some films of Jimmy's I have yet to see, most embarrasingly, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), which I've seen most of, just not in its entirety.  Not only can he play the idealistic young congressman, but he can pull off all the classic roles too.  I mean, who else could have played Charles Lindbergh (The Spirit of St. Louis, 1957) and Glenn Miller (The Glenn Miller Story, 1954)?  Who else could be as great in a Western as in a comedy or a Hitchcock thriller?  Jimmy Stewart strikes me as an easygoing boy next door who turned into the all-American hero.  He had a natural talent and simple charm, not to mention a great sense of humor (no, really, you should look up some of his appearances on the Dean Martin Variety Show - his impression of Bette Davis still kills me!).  But no matter what, he will always be our beloved George Bailey.