In 1939, author and playwright Rose Franken wrote her novel Claudia about a young wife who is charmingly naïve, particularly when it comes to intimacy between her and her older and more mature husband, David. The character of Claudia was originally introduced in a series of essays in various magazines, including Good Housekeeping. The popularity of Franken's character and her 1939 novel inspired a wildly successful book series, with Franken eventually adapting her first Claudia story for the stage in 1941. Claudia the stage play premiered on February 12, 1941 at the Booth Theatre on Broadway and starred Dorothy McGuire in the title role. McGuire was relatively new to the stage, impressing audiences with her performance as Emily Webb in the original Broadway production of Thornton Wilder's Our Town in 1938, serving as understudy for Martha Scott. As for Claudia, the play was a massive hit, running for over 700 hundred performances over the course of two years.

A month after the Claudia premiere on Broadway, producer David O. Selznick purchased the rights for a potential film adaptation following the play's initial Broadway run. Thoroughly impressed by her performance, Selznick set his sights on bringing Dorothy McGuire to Hollywood and making her a star, branding her as "natural"; a girl-next-door type, rather than the glamorous sirens that were ubiquitous with Hollywood stardom. Selznick offered McGuire a contract and sold the film rights for Claudia to 20th Century-Fox. As part of their negotiated deal, Selznick and Fox would have equal share of McGuire to cast in their various film projects. In 1943, under the direction of Edmund Goulding and with an adapted screenplay by Morrie Ryskind, Dorothy McGuire made her film debut in Claudia, alongside Robert Young, who was cast as her husband, David. Also reprising their stage roles for the film adaptation were Olga Baclanova and Frank Tweddell.

When David O. Selznick initially acquired the rights to Rose Franken's story, he consulted with the Production Code Administration that he could make a film out of a story that places quite a bit of focus on the sexual relationship between Claudia and David, as well as pregnancy and childbirth. With the implementation of the Production Code in 1934, any actual or implied depictions of sex were strictly prohibited. And outside of a small handful of exceptions, a married couple in film couldn't even share the same bed. There were filmmakers who cleverly worked their way around the stifling restrictions of the time, of course, but this was the general way of Hollywood for over three decades. Selznick was pleased to learn that the general premise of Claudia passed the PCA's strict standards, despite the story's emphasis and preoccupation with Claudia's naiveté on matters of the bedroom.

At its heart, Claudia is a touching story of a young woman coming into her own through the often complicated, but ultimately loving and rewarding, relationship with her husband. It also explores the close relationship between Claudia and her mother (played by Ina Claire) and how their relationship evolves during a time of crisis; a crisis which forces Claudia to fully grow into womanhood--perhaps more so than her relationship with David.

Claudia was the first of three on-screen collaborations between Dorothy McGuire and Robert Young. Following the success of their pairing in this film, McGuire and Young were reunited in John Cromwell's The Enchanted Cottage in 1945. The following year in 1946, they reteamed once more for the sequel to Claudia, Claudia and David, which wasn't as well received as the first installment.

By 1947, McGuire had earned her first Academy Award nomination for her performance in Elia Kazan's Gentleman's Agreement, starring alongside Gregory Peck. That same year, McGuire returned to her stage roots by forming the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California, with Gregory Peck and Mel Ferrer. McGuire transitioned into more maternal roles on the screen, starring in William Wyler's Friendly Persuasion (1956); two melodramas directed by Delmer Daves, including A Summer Place (1959) and Susan Slade (1961); as well as several films for Walt Disney, including Old Yeller (1957) and Swiss Family Robinson (1960).

Director: Edmund Goulding
Producer: William Perlberg
Screenplay: Morrie Ryskind
Cinematography: Leon Shamroy
Editing: Robert L. Simpson
Cast: Dorothy McGuire (Claudia Naughton), Robert Young (David Naughton), Ina Claire (Mrs. Brown), Reginald Gardiner (Jerry Seymour), Olga Baclanova (Madame Daruschka) and Jean Howard (Julia).
BW-91m

Resources:
https://www.filmaffinity.com/en/film655373.html
https://anotheroldmovieblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/claudia-1943.html

By Jill Blake