S1E4 - Saroyan & MGM - The Human Comedy

## The Human Comedy (1943) – Show Notes \& Research Links **Directed by:** Clarence Brown**Screenplay:** Howard Estabrook**Story by:** William Saroyan**Starring:** Mickey Rooney, Frank Morgan, James Craig, Marsha Hunt, Fay Bainter**Studio:** Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)**Release Year:** 1943 *** ## 🔗 Primary Film References IMDb[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036000/](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036000/) TCM (Turner Classic Movies)https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/78965/the-human-comedy AFI Catalog Entryhttps://catalog.afi.com/Film/613-THE-HUMAN-COMEDY Rotten Tomatoeshttps://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/human\_comedy\_1943 AllMoviehttps://www.allmovie.com/movie/the-human-comedy-v23823 *** ## 📚 Literary Source – William Saroyan **Original Novel:** _The Human Comedy_ (1943)Author: William Saroyan Library of Congress Recordhttps://lccn.loc.gov/43011845 Open Libraryhttps://openlibrary.org/works/OL45809W/The\_Human\_Comedy Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/143284.The\_Human\_Comedy William Saroyan Biography – Poetry Foundationhttps://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/william-saroyan William Saroyan – Encyclopaedia Britannica[https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Saroyan](https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Saroyan) Forever Saroyan - http://www.foreversaroyan.com *** ## 🎭 Cast \& Key Figures **Mickey Rooney**IMDb: [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001683/](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001683/) **Frank Morgan**IMDb: [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0604607/](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0604607/) **Spencer Tracy** (Uncredited cameo)IMDb: [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001805/](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001805/) **Clarence Brown (Director)**IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0113673/ *** ## 📰 Contemporary \& Historical Context World War II Homefront Overview – National WWII Museumhttps://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/home-front-during-world-war-ii MGM Studio History – Encyclopaedia Britannicahttps://www.britannica.com/topic/Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer-Inc Academy Awards (1943–44 Ceremony)[https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1944](https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1944) *** ## 🏆 Awards \& Recognition Academy Award for Best Story (William Saroyan)Oscar Database Entry[https://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/](https://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/) National Board of Review – 1943 Winners[https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1943/](https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1943/) *** ## 📖 Themes for Discussion - Small-town America during WWII - The emotional toll of wartime telegrams - The American postal system as narrative device - Idealism vs. realism in Saroyan’s writing - MGM wartime sentimentality - Spencer Tracy’s surprise appearance - Saroyan’s complicated relationship with Hollywood *** ## 🎧 Suggested Companion Viewing / Reading _The Time of Your Life_ (Saroyan play)https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Time-of-Your-Life The Saroyan Prize – Stanford Universityhttps://english.stanford.edu/creative-writing/william-saroyan-international-prize-writing Fresno County Historical Societyhttps://valleyhistory.org/