Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

Director:

Stanley Kramer

Writer:

William Rose (written by)

Release Date:

12 December 1967 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

a love story of today

Plot:

Matt and Christina Drayton are a couple whose attitudes are challenged when their daughter brings home a fiancé who is black.

Plot Keywords:

Doctor | Shaving | Punctuation In Title | Father Son Relationship | Racial Issues

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 20 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sun. Dec. 6

6:00 PM

TCM

Cast

Spencer Tracy	...	Matt Drayton
Sidney Poitier	...	Dr. John Wade Prentice
Katharine Hepburn	...	Christina Drayton
Katharine Houghton	...	Joey Drayton
Cecil Kellaway	...	Monsignor Ryan
Beah Richards	...	Mrs. Prentice
Roy Glenn	...	Mr. Prentice (as Roy E. Glenn, Sr.)
Isabel Sanford	...	Tillie (as Isabell Sanford)
Virginia Christine	...	Hilary St. George
Alexandra Hay	...	Carhop
Barbara Randolph	...	Dorothy
D'Urville Martin	...	Frankie
Tom Heaton	...	Peter
Grace Gaynor	...	Judith
Skip Martin	...	Delivery Boy

Also Known As:

Devine qui vient dîner? (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
¿Sabes quién viene a cenar? (Argentina) [es]
Adivina quién viene a cenar (Venezuela) [es]
Adivina quién viene a cenar esta noche (Spain) [es]
Adivina quién viene esta noche (Spain) (TV title) [es]
Adivinha Quem Vem Jantar (Portugal) [pt]
Adivinhe Quem Vem Para Jantar (Brazil) [pt]
Arvaa kuka tulee päivälliselle (Finland) [fi]
Beklenmeyen misafir (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Endevina qui ve a sopar (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
Gæt hvem der kommer til middag (Denmark) [da]
Gissa vem som kommer på middag? (Sweden) [sv]
Indovina chi viene a cena? (Italy) [it]
Mantepse poios tharthi to vrady (Greece) [el]
Rat mal, wer zum Essen kommt (Austria) [de]
Rate mal, wer zum Essen kommt (West Germany) [de]
Zgadnij, kto przyjdzie na obiad (Poland) [pl]

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:Approved | South Korea:12 | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | UK:PG | West Germany:6 | Argentina:Atp | Singapore:PG | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Sunset Gower Studios - 1438 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Katharine Hepburn is the only movie star to win four Academy Awards (2009) for her leading roles in Morning Glory (1933), Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), The Lion in Winter (1968), and On Golden Pond (1981).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Just before Drayton crashes his car into Frankie's, the dent on the side of Frankie's car is already present.

Quotes:

[first lines]
John: You know, I just had a thought. Why don't I go check into a hotel and get some rest, and you go find your folks?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Party Monster (2003)

Soundtrack:

Glory of Love

One of the best comedies of my collection

Although made in 1967, I was surprised how much I loved this movie, from the beginning to the end. This is a kind of a comedy I haven't seen maybe for years.

I felt the characters and the situation so alive and close to me, it is incredible. It remembered me when I had to make that first visit at a girlfriends house, meet the parents, be friendly to some completely unknown people, act as an adult, as a man, when there are four parents around... And there are scenes with a flip I will never forget, like Spencer Tracy eating his ice cream and changing his mind over it, Hilary being fired or the two fathers settling about the situation as 'the only reasonable people in the boat'.

The film also started me to think over how I would react as a parent in such a situation. Today, marriage between races is not that shocking, but I can easily imagine for my future daughter someone, who would shock me with his proposal. It easy to see others on screen struggling to break down their own walls and prejudices, but in real life it is so much harder. It is so true, what Mahatma Ghandi said - 'You must be the change you wish to see in the world'.

It's just a funny twist from life, that I've seen 'Kinsey' a few days ago, where Katharine Houghton also appears as Mrs. Spaulding, almost 40 years later (2005).

This movie became one of my favorites - 10/10.