Still image from the 1967 film Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

Directed by Stanley Kramer

An aging couple's liberal principles are tested when their daughter announces her engagement to a black doctor.

1967 1h 48m Comedy TV-PG

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CAST
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0

Stanley Kramer, Director
105309|141975
Stanley Kramer
Director

1

Spencer Tracy, Matt Drayton
193601|141617
Spencer Tracy
Matt Drayton

2

Sidney Poitier, John Prentice
153567|140664
Sidney Poitier
John Prentice

3

Katharine Hepburn, Christina Drayton
85052|92357
Katharine Hepburn
Christina Drayton

4

Katharine Houghton, Joey Drayton
89381|92359
Katharine Houghto..
Joey Drayton

5

Cecil Kellaway, Monsignor Ryan
100067|28615
Cecil Kellaway
Monsignor Ryan

FULL SYNOPSIS

Among the socially prominent citizens of San Francisco are Matt Drayton, the publisher of a liberal newspaper, and his wife, Christina, the owner of a fashionable art gallery. One day their daughter, Joey, returns from a vacation in Hawaii with John Prentice, a black physician whom she has known for only 10 days but intends to marry. Because John must leave the next day for Switzerland on behalf of the World Health Organization, Joey is determined that their wedding take place immediately, and she asks for her parents' permission. Furthermore, John secretly confides to the Draytons that he will not marry Joey without their consent. Suddenly confronted with a test of their longtime liberal beliefs, Matt and Christina find themselves unable to reach a decision. Less involved observers, however, quickly voice their opinions: Christina's business associate, Hilary St. George, is quick to reveal her bigotry; an old family friend, Monsignor Ryan, is confident that the couple will be able to overcome their obstacles; and the Draytons' shocked black maid, Tillie, berates John for his impertinence. Though Christina yields to her daughter's wishes, Matt remains undecided. The dilemma is compounded when Joey persuades John's parents to fly up from Los Angeles. Upon their arrival, Mrs. Prentice sides with Christina; but her husband is dubious about the situation and argues with his son. Mrs. Prentice appeals to Matt recalling the days when they stood on the threshold of a youthful marriage. Realizing that the decision rests with the children, he finally offers Joey and John his blessing; moved by the wisdom of Matt's words, Mr. Prentice also relents.


VIDEOS
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Alicia Malone Intro
NaNmHosted Intro
Ben Mankiewicz Intro...
NaNmHosted Intro
What Black Power Really Means...
NaNmMovie Clip
Some Way To Break This Gently...
NaNmMovie Clip
Has Something Happened?...
NaNmMovie Clip
Do I Know Him?
NaNmMovie Clip

ARTICLES
Sidney Poitier's career began to peak in the mid-sixties. Thanks to director Stanley Kramer, he had already garnered his first Academy Award nomination for his performance in The Defiant Ones (1958) and in 1963, he won the Best Actor Oscar for Lilies of the Field. Then, in 1966, Poitier was approached by Kramer to star in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, a film that would explore the issue of interracial marriage. Kramer stated in an interview at the time that he felt the question of race relations could be explored in a motion picture in very personal terms and in such a way that any moviegoer could relate to the characters. In the biography Stanley Kramer: Filmmaker by Donald Spoto, the director recalled that "the idea for it came about while I was walking with William Rose one evening in Beverly Hills. Now, Bill Rose is a good comedy writer. Remember, he did It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) with me. Anyway, as we walked, he told me a story, mostly a comedy, about a white South African man, a liberal, whose daughter falls in love with a black guy. I said, 'Geez, we ought to set the story here, in this country, in this background....I thought to myself, 'What a sorry sight to see a front-line liberal come face to face with all his principles right in his own house.' I also thought, 'What a perfect situation for a picture for [Spencer] Tracy." Kramer also knew it would be a perfect vehicle for Poitier but first he secured Tracy and Katharine Hepburn's invol...

ARCHIVES
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 Movie Poster from the movie 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner'
Guess Who's Coming...
Movie Poster

NOTES

On 28 May 1975, ABC broadcast a pilot for a proposed television series based on Guess Who's Coming to Dinner; produced and directed by Stanley Kramer. The pilot, starring Leslie Charleson and Bill Overton, centered on a racially mixed couple who confront the prospect of meeting each other's parents. In March 2005, Columbia Pictures released Guess Who, a comedy directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan loosely based on the film; however, black actor Bernie Mack took over Spencer Tracy's role of a disgruntled father dealing with his daughter's white finacé played by Ashton Kutcher.

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