1942 – Teresa Wright
Pride of the Yankees
I love Teresa Wright. She was gorgeous, had a thousand-watt smile, and was a phenomenal actress. In Pride of the Yankees, she played Eleanor Twitchell Gehrig, the wife of the famous baseball player, Lou Gehrig. Wright created a likeable character that was a good match for Gary Cooper’s lead. She was bright and cheery, and I think the actress did a very good job, earning her nomination. And she had some pretty emotional scenes that allowed her to show off her skill in front of the camera.
Her main function in the film was to be Cooper’s love interest, and both the actress and the script did it right, because you have to have your romance in a biopic film. Eleanor’s obvious interest in Lou upon first meeting him was nice and refreshing because she kept her emotions on low without being mean. The love story took a little time to get going, and I liked the way Wright played it. She understood what was needed, and she did a fine job. And it didn’t hurt that she had a pretty good chemistry with Gary Cooper on the big screen.
But then later on in the film, as her husband’s tragic disease began to affect him, the tears started to flow, and she owned them. Of course, as was the fashion in films of the 1940s, if you get sick, don’t tell your loved ones to spare them the pain. So Lou didn’t want Eleanor to know, even though she actually did. And to save face for Lou, Eleanor did what she had to, in order to avoid letting him know she knew. So she had to remain happy, even as she watched him physically decline. Wright was so good in these scenes. I especially applauded the absolute desolation on her face when she first learns of his terminal illness.
So this is one of those rare cases where a single actress was nominated for two different films in the same year. This nomination was for Best Actress, but she was also nominated for her role in Mrs. Miniver in the Best Supporting Actress category, for which she took home an Oscar. 1942 was clearly a good year for Teresa Wright. And this was just one year after another nomination the previous year for The Little Foxes. Clearly, the movie-going public loved her, and so do I.