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A Letter to Three Wives ()

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A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands - but she does not say which one.
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Writers:
Stars:
Awards:
  • Won 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 1 nomination.
  • See more »
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Photos and Videos

78 photos | 1 video

Cast verified as complete

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Deborah Bishop
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Lora Mae Hollingsway
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Rita Phipps
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George Phipps
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Porter Hollingsway
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Babe Finney
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Brad Bishop
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Ruby Finney
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Mrs. Manleigh
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Mr. Manleigh
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
James Adamson ...
Porter's Butler (uncredited)
Joe Bautista ...
Thomasino (uncredited)
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Kathleen (uncredited)
Ralph Brooks ...
Bookie Dancer at Country Club (uncredited)
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John (uncredited)
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Country Club Member (uncredited)
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Country Club Member (uncredited)
Sam Finn ...
Second Waiter (uncredited)
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Addie Ross (uncredited) (voice)
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Old Man at Table (uncredited)
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Country Club Member (uncredited)
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Miss Jenkins (uncredited)
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Nick Butler (uncredited)
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Sadie Dugan (uncredited)
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Headwaiter at Country Club (uncredited)
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Leo (uncredited)
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Radio Announcer for 'Confessions of Brenda' (uncredited) (voice)
John Venn ...
First Messenger (uncredited)
Ruth Vivian ...
Miss Hawkins (uncredited)

Directed by

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Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Written by

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Vera Caspary ... (adaptation)
 
John Klempner ... (Cosmopolitan Magazine novel)
 
Joseph L. Mankiewicz ... (screenplay)

Produced by

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Sol C. Siegel ... producer

Music by

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Alfred Newman

Cinematography by

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Arthur C. Miller ... director of photography (as Arthur Miller)

Editing by

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J. Watson Webb Jr.

Editorial Department

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Lyman Hallowell ... apprentice editor (uncredited)

Art Direction by

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J. Russell Spencer
Lyle R. Wheeler ... (as Lyle Wheeler)

Set Decoration by

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Thomas Little
Walter M. Scott

Costume Design by

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Kay Nelson

Makeup Department

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Ben Nye ... makeup artist
Thomas Tuttle ... makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management

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F.E. 'Johnny' Johnston ... production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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Gaston Glass ... assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Roger Heman Sr. ... sound (as Roger Heman)
Arthur von Kirbach ... sound (as Arthur L. Kirbach)

Visual Effects by

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Fred Sersen ... special photographic effects

Camera and Electrical Department

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Logan Brown ... grip (uncredited)
Paul Lockwood ... camera operator (uncredited)
Jerry Milligan ... still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Charles Le Maire ... wardrobe director
Sam Benson ... wardrobe supervisor (uncredited)
Joan Joseff ... costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department

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Edward B. Powell ... orchestral arranger (as Edward Powell)

Script and Continuity Department

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Weslie Jones ... script supervisor (uncredited)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

Lora May Hollingsway, who grew up next to the wrong side of the tracks, married her boss who thinks she is just a gold digger. Rita Phipps makes as much money writing radio scripts at night as her school teacher husband does. Deborah Bishop looked great in a Navy uniform in WWII but fears she'll never be dressed just right for the Country Club set. These three wives are boarding a boat filled with children going on a picnic when a messenger on a bicycle hands them a letter addressed to all three from Addie who has just left town with one of their husbands. They won't know which one until that night. Written by Dale O'Connor

Plot Keywords
Taglines All of them wondered while one of them wandered! See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • A Letter to Four Wives (United States)
  • Three Wives (United States)
  • A Letter to Five Wives (United States)
  • Chaînes conjugales (France)
  • Ein Brief an drei Frauen (Germany)
  • See more »
Runtime
  • 103 min
Country
Language
Color
Aspect Ratio
Sound Mix
Filming Locations

Did You Know?

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Trivia (at around 1h 16 mins) To get the proper look of derision from Linda Darnell in the scene where she stares at a photo of Addie, director Joseph L. Mankiewicz used a picture of Otto Preminger, the director who had given Darnell such a hard time on the set of Forever Amber (1947). See more »
Goofs In one scene, a P-trap under a sink is shown leaking a huge amount of water. Being a drain, a P-trap would not leak unless the water was left on. See more »
Movie Connections Featured in The Screen Writer (1950). See more »
Soundtracks Wein, weib und Gesang Op. 333 (Wine, Women and Song) See more »
Quotes Mrs. Finney: Can't we have peace in this house even on New Year's Eve?
Sadie: You got it mixed up with Christmas. New Year's Eve is when people go back to killing each other.
See more »
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