Do you enjoy a good comedy? Do you like actor Jimmy Stewart? Then the 1950 comedy “Harvey,” starring Stewart, is a must-see. Odell Public Library will present this hilarious film on Tuesday, October 9, 2018, beginning at 2:00 p.m., in the Program Room, 307 S. Madison Street, Morrison, IL. Popcorn and pop accompany the film.
Elwood P. Dowd, played by Stewart, is middle-aged, friendly, and a bit eccentric. His best friend happens to be a 6′ 3.5″ tall rabbit named Harvey, who is invisible. (Harvey is a pooka, a kind but mischievous creature who seems to like social outcasts.) Elwood lives with his sister, Vita Louise, and niece, Myrtle Mae. Elwood has driven them to distraction by introducing everyone he meets to his friend, Harvey.
Dowd likes to spend time in the local bar, and throughout the film, he invites new acquaintances to join him for a drink. The bartender and all the regulars accept the existence of Harvey. The bartender always asks how they both are and always makes two martinis, one for Elwood and one for Harvey.
Because Vita Louise and Myrtle Mae so want normality and a place in society, they try to have Elwood committed to a sanatorium. However, while speaking with the attending psychiatrist, Vita Louise, in exasperation, admits that after all these years of living with Elwood and his invisible rabbit, she sees Harvey every once in a while.
Dr. Sanderson, the psychiatrist, is alarmed after hearing Vita Louise confess to sometime seeing Harvey and locks her up. After sorting out the mistake, the head of the sanatorium decides he must save the sanatorium’s reputation. He must find Elwood and bring him in.
Much hilarity, plans, and ordeals ensue. As a side note, Elwood looks up at Harvey. Because Stewart was 6’4″, it was decided that Harvey would be 6’8″. However, the script lines never changed from Mary Chase’s play, stating that Harvey was “6′ 3-and-a-half inches.”
There is no charge for this delightful film. Donations are greatly appreciated and benefit the programs of the library.