When I was a kid back in the late 1960s-early 1970s,
I loved to watch old black-and-white movies on Sunday afternoons. One of those
films that stuck with me was Miracle in
the Rain, a rather sappy WWII romance. I hadn’t seen it again until
recently when it aired on TCM.
The 1956 movie starred Van Johnson and Jane Wyman.
Really I only remembered the final scene; it had stuck with me for all those years.
Watching the credits, I saw that the movie was based on a “novel” by Ben Hecht,
who also wrote the screenplay. I was excited to learn that the St. Louis Public
Library had a copy.
The “book” turned out to be a short story---or as
one is defined in 2015---of only 52 pages. The genre was current fiction when
it was written in 1943, but now I would consider it historical fiction.
The film was true to the story. A lonely woman
living in New York, caring for her mother, meets a lonely solider about to be
sent overseas when she stops to wait out a rainstorm. He, Art Hugenon, inserts
himself into her, Ruth Wood, into her life. And lickety-split, they are in
love.
The movie had to add scenes to stretch it out but
that didn’t take away from the storyline. It’s still a sappy WWII romance, but
the plot is strong, the character well-developed, and the perfect amount of
details.
I have to admit, I loved watching the old movie
again, and reading Hecht’s story. It’s a great way to kill a couple of hours.
Sentimentally, I give Miracle in the
Rain, five out of five stars.
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