The Rainmaker (1956 film)

The Rainmaker
File:The rainmaker film poster.jpg Film poster
Directed by	Joseph Anthony
Produced by	Hal B. Wallis
Written by	N. Richard Nash
Starring	Burt Lancaster Katharine Hepburn
Music by	Alex North
Cinematography	Charles Lang
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release dates	December 13, 1956 (1956-12-13)
Running time	121 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$2.1 million (US)

The Rainmaker is an American 1956 film directed by Joseph Anthony and adapted by N. Richard Nash from his play The Rainmaker. The film tells the story of a middle-aged woman, suffering from unrequited love for the local town sheriff; however, she falls for a con man who comes to town with the promise that he can make it rain. It stars Burt Lancaster, Katharine Hepburn, Wendell Corey, Lloyd Bridges and Earl Holliman. The movie was later remade in Hindi, Thodasa Roomani Ho Jaayen.

Plot

During the Depression era in the Midwest, con man Bill Starbuck acts as a rainmaker, but is chased out of town after town. One day, he arrives in a drought-ridden rural town in Kansas and showed up at the door of spinsterish Lizzie Curry and the rest of the Curry clan. Lizzie keeps house for her father, H.C., and two brothers on the family cattle ranch. As their farm languishes under the devastating drought, Lizzie's family worries about her marriage prospects more than about their dying cattle. Prior to Starbuck's arrival, Lizzie was expecting Sheriff File, for whom she harbors a secret yen, though he declined the family's invitation to dinner. Starbuck promises to bring rain in exchange for money. Against Lizzie's protests, H.C. goes for the deal out of desperation for rain even though he thinks Starbuck is a con. Starbuck is exposed, but the Curry clan stands up for him, leading to both Starbuck and File finally declaring for Lizzie. In the end, Lizzie gets her man, and of course, it rains.

Cast

• Burt Lancaster – Bill Starbuck
• Katharine Hepburn – Lizzie Curry
• Wendell Corey – Deputy Sheriff J.S. File
• Lloyd Bridges – Noah Curry
• Earl Holliman – Jim Curry
• Cameron Prud'Homme – H.C. Curry
• Wallace Ford – Sheriff Howard Thomas
• Yvonne Fedderson – Snookie Maguire

Academy Awards

Nominations

• Best Actress: Katharine Hepburn
• Best Music (Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture): Alex North

Adaptations

The Rainmaker play was remade as for American television in 1982, directed by John Frankenheimer and starring James Cromwell, Tommy Lee Jones, William Katt and Tuesday Weld.

See also

• List of American films of 1956
• The Rainmaker

External links

• The Rainmaker at IMDb
• The Rainmaker at the TCM Movie Database
• The Rainmaker at AllMovie
• The Rainmaker at the American Film Institute Catalog