The year 1941 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Citizen Kane.
Events January 17 – A film based on the best-selling novel Gone with the Wind goes into general release in the United States after touring in a roadshow version during 1940. Becoming a cultural phenomenon, it sells an estimated 60 million tickets this year alone. Adjusted for inflation with numerous rereleases, it remains the highest grossing domestic film of all time with $1.6 billion. March 24 – Glenn Miller begins work on his orchestra's first movie Sun Valley Serenade for Twentieth Century Fox. May 1 – Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the films considered the all-time best, is premiered at the Palace Theatre (New York City). June – An Airman's Letter to His Mother, a British propaganda film based on true events, is released in cinemas, directed by Michael Powell and narrated by John Gielgud. July 2 – Sergeant York, the film biopic of World War I hero Alvin C. York, starring Gary Cooper in the title role, premieres in New York City. It is the highest-grossing picture of the year and earns Cooper the first of two Academy Awards for Best Actor. July 28 - The assets of Hollywood studios in Japan are frozen by Japan's Ministry of Finance. September – Senate Investigation into Motion Picture War Propaganda in the United States. October 3 – The Maltese Falcon, considered one of the greatest films noir, is released.
Academy Awards
Best Picture: How Green Was My Valley – 20th Century-Fox Best Actor: Gary Cooper – Sergeant York Best Actress: Joan Fontaine – Suspicion Best Supporting Actor: Donald Crisp – How Green Was My Valley Best Supporting Actress: Mary Astor – The Great Lie Best Director: John Ford – How Green Was My Valley
Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1941 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
+ Highest-grossing films of 1941 Rank Title Distributor Domestic rentals 1 Sergeant York Warner Bros. $6,075,000Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 28 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551 2 Honky Tonk MGM $2,893,000. 3 Louisiana Purchase Paramount $2,750,000"101 Pix Gross in Millions" Variety 6 Jan 1943 p 58 4 How Green Was My Valley 20th Century Fox $2,447,000 5 The Philadelphia Story MGM $2,374,000 6 Caught in the Draft Paramount $2,200,000 7 A Yank in the R.A.F. 20th Century Fox $2,063,000 8 Men of Boys TownMGM $2,009,000 9 Ziegfeld Girl $1,891,000 10 They Died with Their Boots On Warner Bros. $1,871,000
Films by country/region
Notable films Films produced in the United States unless stated otherwise
# The 47 Ronin (Genroku Chūshingura), directed by Kenji Mizoguchi – (Japan) 49th Parallel, directed by Michael Powell, starring Leslie Howard, Laurence Olivier and Raymond Massey – (GB)
A Adam Had Four Sons, directed by Gregory Ratoff, starring Ingrid Bergman and Warner Baxter Among the Living, directed by Stuart Heisler, starring Albert Dekker, Susan Hayward and Harry Carey Andy Hardy's Private Secretary, directed by George B. Seitz, starring Lewis Stone, Mickey Rooney and Fay Holden
B Babes on Broadway, directed by Busby Berkeley, starring Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland Back Street, directed by Robert Stevenson, starring Charles Boyer and Margaret Sullavan Ball of Fire, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck The Big Store, directed by Charles Reisner, starring the Marx Brothers and Tony Martin The Black Cat, directed by Albert S. Rogell, starring Basil Rathbone and Bela Lugosi Blood and Sand, directed by Rouben Mamoulian, starring Tyrone Power, Linda Darnell and Rita Hayworth Blossoms in the Dust, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon Blues in the Night, directed by Anatole Litvak, starring Priscilla Lane The Bride Came C.O.D., directed by William Keighley, starring James Cagney and Bette Davis Brothers and Sisters of the Toda Family (Toda-ke no kyōdai), directed by Yasujirō Ozu – (Japan) Buck Privates, directed by Arthur Lubin, starring Abbott and Costello and the Andrews Sisters
C Caught in the Draft, directed by David Butler, starring Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour Charlie Chan in Rio, directed by Harry Lachman, starring Sidney Toler Charley's Aunt, directed by Archie Mayo, starring Jack Benny and Kay Francis The Chocolate Soldier, directed by Roy Del Ruth, starring Nelson Eddy and Risë Stevens Citizen Kane, directed by and starring Orson Welles, with Joseph Cotten and Agnes Moorehead The Corsican Brothers, directed by Gregory Ratoff, starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr. Cottage to Let, directed by Anthony Asquith, starring Leslie Banks, Alastair Sim and John Mills – (GB)
D The Devil and Daniel Webster, directed by William Dieterle, starring Edward Arnold and Walter Huston The Devil and Miss Jones, directed by Sam Wood, starring Jean Arthur, Robert Cummings and Charles Coburn Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, directed by Victor Fleming, starring Spencer Tracy, Ingrid Bergman and Lana Turner Dumbo, Disney Classic directed by Ben Sharpsteen
F The Face Behind the Mask, directed by Robert Florey, starring Peter Lorre Footsteps in the Dark, directed by Lloyd Bacon, starring Errol Flynn The Flame of New Orleans, directed by René Clair, starring Marlene Dietrich
G The Ghost of St. Michael's, directed by Marcel Varnel, starring Will Hay and Charles Hawtrey – (GB) The Great Lie, directed by Edmund Goulding, starring Mary Astor, George Brent and Bette Davis
H H.M. Pulham, Esq., directed by King Vidor, starring Hedy Lamarr and Robert Young Hellzapoppin', directed by H. C. Potter, starring Ole Olsen, Chic Johnson and Martha Raye Here Comes Mr. Jordan, directed by Alexander Hall, starring Robert Montgomery and Claude Rains High Sierra, directed by Raoul Walsh, starring Ida Lupino and Humphrey Bogart Hold Back the Dawn, directed by Mitchell Leisen, starring Charles Boyer, Olivia de Havilland and Paulette Goddard Hold That Ghost, directed by Arthur Lubin, starring Abbott and Costello, the Andrews Sisters and Ted Lewis Honky Tonk, directed by Jack Conway, starring Clark Gable and Lana Turner How Green Was My Valley, directed by John Ford, starring Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O'Hara and Roddy McDowall
I I Wake Up Screaming, directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, starring Betty Grable, Victor Mature and Carole Landis In the Navy, directed by Arthur Lubin, starring Abbott and Costello, Dick Powell and the Andrews Sisters It Started with Eve, directed by Henry Koster, starring Deanna Durbin, Charles Laughton and Robert Cummings
K Kathleen, directed by Harold S. Bucquet, starring Shirley Temple and Herbert Marshall Keep 'Em Flying, directed by Arthur Lubin, starring Abbott and Costello and Martha Raye Khazanchi (Cashier), directed by Moti B. Gidwani – (India) Kipps, directed by Carol Reed, starring Michael Redgrave – (GB)
L Ladies in Retirement, directed by Charles Vidor, starring Ida Lupino and Louis Hayward Lady Be Good, directed by Norman Z. McLeod, starring Eleanor Powell, Ann Sothern, Robert Young, Lionel Barrymore and Red Skelton The Lady Eve, directed by Preston Sturges, starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda Life Begins for Andy Hardy, directed by George B. Seitz, starring Lewis Stone, Mickey Rooney, Fay Holden and Judy Garland The Little Foxes, directed by William Wyler, starring Bette Davis and Herbert Marshall Louisiana Purchase, directed by Irving Cummings, starring Bob Hope Love on the Dole, directed by John Baxter, starring Deborah Kerr – (GB)
M Major Barbara, directed by Gabriel Pascal, starring Wendy Hiller and Rex Harrison – (GB) The Maltese Falcon, directed by John Huston, starring Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor and Peter Lorre Man Hunt, directed by Fritz Lang, starring Walter Pidgeon, Joan Bennett and George Sanders Man-Made Monster, directed by George Waggner, starring Lon Chaney Jr. and Lionel Atwill Manpower, directed by Raoul Walsh, starring Edward G. Robinson, Marlene Dietrich and George Raft Meet John Doe, directed by Frank Capra, starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck Men of Boys Town, directed by Norman Taurog, starring Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney Moon Over Miami, directed by Walter Lang, starring Don Ameche, Betty Grable and Robert Cummings Mr. & Mrs. Smith, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Carole Lombard, Robert Montgomery and Gene Raymond Mr. Bug Goes to Town, animated film directed by Dave Fleischer
N Never Give a Sucker an Even Break, directed by Edward F. Cline, starring W. C. Fields Nice Girl?, directed by William A. Seiter, starring Deanna Durbin, Franchot Tone, Walter Brennan and Robert Stack
O Ohm Krüger (Uncle Kruger), propaganda film directed by Hans Steinhoff, starring Emil Jannings – (Germany) One Foot in Heaven, directed by Irving Rapper, starring Fredric March and Martha Scott
P Penny Serenade, directed by George Stevens, starring Irene Dunne and Cary Grant Piccolo mondo antico (Old-Fashioned World), directed by Mario Soldati, starring Alida Valli – (Italy) Pimpernel Smith, propaganda film directed by and starring Leslie Howard – (GB) Princess Iron Fan (Tiě shàn gōngzhǔ), directed by Wan Guchan and Wan Laiming – (China)
R Rage in Heaven, directed by W. S. Van Dyke, starring Robert Montgomery, Ingrid Bergman and George Sanders The Reluctant Dragon, directed by Alfred L. Werker, starring Robert Benchley Road to Zanzibar, directed by Victor Schertzinger, starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour
S The Sea Wolf, directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Edward G. Robinson, Ida Lupino and John Garfield Sergeant York, directed by Howard Hawks, starring Gary Cooper and Walter Brennan Shadow of the Thin Man, directed by W. S. Van Dyke, starring William Powell and Myrna Loy The Shanghai Gesture, directed by Josef von Sternberg, starring Gene Tierney, Walter Huston and Victor Mature The Shepherd of the Hills, directed by Henry Hathaway, starring John Wayne and Harry Carey Skylark, directed by Mark Sandrich, starring Claudette Colbert and Ray Milland Spooks Run Wild, directed by Phil Rosen, starring Bela Lugosi and the East Side Kids Stormy Waters (Remorques), directed by Jean Grémillon, starring Jean Gabin and Michèle Morgan – (France) The Strawberry Blonde, directed by Raoul Walsh, starring James Cagney, Olivia de Havilland and Rita Hayworth Sullivan's Travels, directed by Preston Sturges, starring Joel McCrea and Veronica Lake Sun Valley Serenade, directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, starring Sonja Henie, John Payne and Glenn Miller Suspicion, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine Swamp Water, directed by Jean Renoir, starring Walter Brennan, Walter Huston, Anne Baxter and Dana Andrews
T Target for Tonight, a propaganda documentary directed by Harry Watt – (GB) Tarzan's Secret Treasure, directed by Richard Thorpe, starring Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O'Sullivan That Hamilton Woman, directed by Alexander Korda, starring Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier – (GB) That Night in Rio, directed by Irving Cummings, starring Alice Faye, Don Ameche and Carmen Miranda They Died with Their Boots On, directed by Raoul Walsh, starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland Tobacco Road, directed by John Ford, starring Charley Grapewin, Marjorie Rambeau and Gene Tierney
W Week-End in Havana, directed by Walter Lang, starring Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda, John Payne and Cesar Romero Western Union, directed by Fritz Lang, starring Robert Young and Randolph Scott When Ladies Meet, directed by Robert Z. Leonard, starring Joan Crawford, Robert Taylor, Greer Garson and Herbert Marshall The Wolf Man, directed by George Waggner, starring Lon Chaney Jr., Claude Rains, Warren William and Ralph Bellamy A Woman's Face, directed by George Cukor, starring Joan Crawford, Melvyn Douglas and Conrad Veidt
Y