Sunrise at Campobello

This article is about the 1960 film. For the 1958 play, see Sunrise at Campobello (play).

Sunrise at Campobello
File:Sunrise-at-Campobello.jpg Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Vincent J. Donehue
Produced by	Dore Schary
Screenplay by	Dore Schary
Based on	Sunrise at Campobello 1958 play by Dore Schary
Starring	Ralph Bellamy Greer Garson Hume Cronyn
Music by	Franz Waxman
Cinematography	Russell Harlan
Edited by	George Boemler
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release dates	September 28, 1960 (1960-09-28)
Running time	144 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Sunrise at Campobello is a 1960 Warner Bros. biographical film telling the story of the struggles of future President of the United States Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his family when Roosevelt was stricken with paralysis at the age of 39 in August 1921. Based on Dore Schary's Tony Award-winning Broadway play of the same name, the film was directed by Vincent J. Donehue and starred Ralph Bellamy, Greer Garson, Hume Cronyn and Jean Hagen.

The film was produced with the cooperation of the Roosevelt family. Eleanor Roosevelt was present on the set during location shooting at the Roosevelt estate in Hyde Park, New York.

Plot

The Roosevelt family at Campobello (1920)

The film begins at the Roosevelt family's summer home on Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada (on the border with Maine), in the summer of 1921. Franklin D. Roosevelt is depicted in early scenes as vigorously athletic, enjoying games with his children and sailing his boat.

He is suddenly stricken with fever and then paralysis. Subsequent scenes focus on the ensuing conflict in the following weeks between the bedridden FDR, his wife Eleanor, his mother Sara, and his close political adviser Louis Howe over FDR's future. A later scene portrays FDR literally dragging himself up the stairs as, through grit and determination, he painfully strives to overcome his physical limitations and not remain an invalid. In the final triumphant scene, FDR is shown re-entering public life as he walks to the speaker's rostrum at a party convention, aided by heavy leg braces and crutches after his eldest son James pushed his father's wheelchair near to the podium.

Cast

• Ralph Bellamy – Franklin Delano Roosevelt
• Greer Garson – Eleanor Roosevelt
• Hume Cronyn – Louis Howe
• Jean Hagen – Marguerite "Missy" LeHand
• Ann Shoemaker – Sara Roosevelt
• Alan Bunce – Governor Alfred E. Smith
• Tim Considine – James Roosevelt
• Zina Bethune – Anna Roosevelt

• Frank Ferguson – Dr. Bennett
• Pat Close – Elliott Roosevelt
• Robin Warga – Franklin Roosevelt, Jr.
• Tom Carty – Johnny Roosevelt
• Lyle Talbot – Mr. Brimmer
• David White – Mr. Lassiter
• Walter Sande – Captain Skinner

Historical context

(l-r) Ralph Bellamy, Eleanor Roosevelt and Greer Garson at Hyde Park, NY, filming Sunrise at Campobello (1960)

Sunrise at Campobello presents events that took place over four years, from August 1921 to July 1924, culminating in FDR's speech at the 1924 Democratic National Convention.

Before and during Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency, the extent of his disability was minimized. Sunrise at Campobello depicts the debilitating effects of FDR's paralytic illness to a greater extent than had been previously disclosed by the media.

FDR's attending physician, Dr. William Keen, believed it was polio and commended Eleanor's devotion to the stricken Franklin during that time of travail. "You have been a rare wife and have borne your heavy burden most bravely," he said, proclaiming her "one of my heroines".

Awards

Greer Garson won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama.

The film was also entered into the 2nd Moscow International Film Festival.

Academy Awards

Nominations

• Best Actress: Greer Garson
• Best Art Direction (Color): Art Direction: Edward Carrere; Set Decoration: George James Hopkins
• Best Costume Design (Color): Marjorie Best
• Best Sound: Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, George Groves, Sound Director

See also

• List of American films of 1960
• Franklin D. Roosevelt's paralytic illness

External links

• Sunrise at Campobello at IMDb
• Sunrise at Campobello at AllMovie
• Sunrise at Campobello at the TCM Movie Database
• Sunrise at Campobello at the American Film Institute Catalog