A Child Is Born (film)

A Child Is Born is a 1939 American drama film directed by Lloyd Bacon and written by Robert Rossen. The film stars Geraldine Fitzgerald, Jeffrey Lynn, Gladys George, Gale Page, Spring Byington, and Johnnie Davis. The film was released by Warner Bros. on December 17, 1939.^[1][2] It was a remake of the 1932 film Life Begins starring Loretta Young. A further remake Love Story was made in Italy in 1942.

A Child Is Born
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Lloyd Bacon
Screenplay by	Robert Rossen
Based on	Life Begins 1932 play by Mary McDougal Axelson
Produced by	Samuel Bischoff
Starring	Geraldine Fitzgerald Jeffrey Lynn Gladys George Gale Page Spring Byington Johnnie Davis
Cinematography	Charles Rosher
Edited by	Jack Killifer
Music by	Heinz Roemheld
Production company	Warner Bros.
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	December 7, 1939 (1939-12-07)
Running time	79 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Plot

Film about several mothers at hospital maternity ward. The nurses care for the mothers and their new born babies. The relationship that are formed with the mothers to be and the expectant fathers.

Cast

• Geraldine Fitzgerald as Grace Sutton
• Jeffrey Lynn as Jed Sutton
• Gladys George as Florette
• Gale Page as Miss Bowers
• Spring Byington as Mrs. West
• Johnnie Davis as Ringer Banks
• Henry O'Neill as Dr. Lee
• John Litel as Dr. Brett
• Gloria Holden as Mrs. Kempner
• Johnny Downs as Johnny Norton
• Eve Arden as Miss Pinty
• Fay Helm as The Woman
• Louis Jean Heydt as Mr. Kempner
• Nanette Fabray as Gladys Norton
• Jean Sharon as Mrs. Banks
• Hobart Cavanaugh as Mr. West
• George Irving as Dr. Cramm
• Nella Walker as Mrs. Twitchell
• Winifred Harris as Mrs. Holt

Censorship

Numerous regional censor boards heavily edited or banned the film because they believed its discussions of childbirth would frighten women from pursuing motherhood. British Columbia rejected the film because "The showing of this picture would have the effect of creating a fear in the minds of expectant mothers."^[3]

References

1. "A Child Is Born (1940) - Overview". TCM.com. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
2. Nugent, Frank S. (1940-01-11). "Movie Review - A Child Is Born - THE SCREEN; The Maternity Ward Drama, 'Life Begins,' Is Revived by the Warners as 'A Child Is Born' at the Criterion". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2015-07-24.
3. Kirby, David A. (September 2017). "Regulating cinematic stories about reproduction: pregnancy, childbirth, abortion and movie censorship in the US, 1930–1958". The British Journal for the History of Science. 50 (3): 451–472. doi:10.1017/S0007087417000814. ISSN 0007-0874. PMID 28923130.

External links

• A Child Is Born at IMDb
• A Child Is Born at the TCM Movie Database
• A Child Is Born at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films