Jimmy Stewart and the Giant Rabbit: How Harvey Captured Hollywood's Imagination

James Stewart in Harvey Photo: Alami

Eric, Benedict Cumberbatch's new drama on Netflix, seems at first glance reminiscent of countless other shows about children in danger. Cumberbatch plays a puppeteer named Vincent who struggles with substance and alcohol abuse problems in 1980s New York while he desperately tries to find his missing nine-year-old son Edgar. The show raises issues of social discrimination, homophobia and mental health and could seem like a simple program aimed at adults, if not for one very unusual detail; Accompanying Vincent on his quest through the city is Eric, a seven-foot-tall blue monster originally created by his son that only he can see. 

Early reaction to Eric — cast and character — has been positive, suggesting that it weaves its fantasy themes into a closely observed realistic drama that offers Cumberbatch another outstanding opportunity to showcase his acting chops. It's probably just a coincidence that it came out almost simultaneously with the family comedy-drama IF, which shows the positive influence of imaginary friends on adults. But Eric follows in the footsteps of an entire subgenre of work detailing the relationship between the imaginary and the fantastic, from Where the Wild Things Are to Horrid Fred. 

However, the granddaddy of them all, and the standard to which they should all be compared, is James Stewart's incomparable 1950 film Harvey, which focuses on the relationship between Stewart's charmingly eccentric Elwood P. Dowd and his best friend, a 6-foot tall man. ft. 3 1/2 in. an inch white rabbit named Harvey. It was originally written as a play by Mary Chase, a successful journalist, which was developed into a drama. 

Benedict Cumberbatch in the film «Eric» Photo by: Ludovic Robert/Netflix

Chase began working on it in 1942, shortly after America entered World War I, and its inspiration was twofold. She grew up with Irish uncles who loved to tell their gullible niece about pookas, mischievous goblin shapeshifters who had the ability to alternately help people or confuse them, which led to Chase having a dream about a psychiatrist being chased by a giant white rabbit. And the second inspiration was closer to home. Watching the grief of her neighbor, a widow who had lost her son shortly after he went to war, she wondered: “Will I ever be able to write something that will make this woman laugh again?”

Harvey was the answer. It took her two years and more than 50 drafts to write, but when she finished, Broadway producer Brock Pemberton announced he would direct it immediately. It was a critical and commercial success: she won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and performed in a record 1,755 performances at the 48th Street Theater with leading actors including Stewart, who was then riding high from the success of It's a Wonderful Life last year. 

He returned to the stage only briefly in 1947, replacing original leading man Frank Fay, but the play and role nevertheless made a lasting enough impression that Stewart agreed to take the lead in the 1950 film adaptation, directed by the veteran director. directed by journeyman Henry Coster and co-written by Chase herself. 

The picture introduced Harvey to a whole new audience when it was released in December 1950, and much of its charm and acclaim came from Stewart's highly acclaimed (and Oscar-nominated) performance in the title role. Dowd is not a million miles from Stewart's famous appearance as George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life, being another good-hearted dreamer whose detachment puts him out of touch with the modern world. 

The key difference between the two is that Bailey is a person who is constantly trying to do good for other people, even at the cost of his own success and (perceived) happiness, whereas Dowd is in the happy position of being rewarded. trust fund, which means he can spend his day contentedly drinking away his inheritance in bars, where he meets Harvey, who has been his constant companion for many years. 

The main ambiguity that the film hinges on is whether Dowd is a friendly and harmless figure who nevertheless has clear problems with alcoholism and mental health, or whether Harvey actually exists and that he spreads good humor and wisdom through their invisible presence. It is alleged that Dowd's sister saw Harvey from time to time, leading to her temporary placement in an asylum, and even the head of the sanatorium where Dowd is to be placed becomes convinced of Harvey's existence, even though his first — amusingly selfish — instinct is the rabbit. to help him go on a two-week vacation with a beautiful woman. 

Original Harvey poster. Photo: LMPC

In some ways, though, Harvey's disembodied reality is irrelevant thanks to Stewart's charming and likable performance. His influence is evident in many of the lines Chase wrote for him, including: “In this world, you must be so smart or so nice. Well, for years I was smart. I recommend it pleasant. You can quote me» and Dowd's famous comment: «Well, Doctor, I've been fighting reality for 35 years, and I'm glad to say I've finally conquered it.» 

Both the play and the film celebrate the triumph of imagination and spirit over dreary reality, and if today's portrayal of alcoholism seems rosy and overly generous, there is no denying the film's innate sympathy for its protagonist. When Daoud needs to be injected with a drug called Formula 977 that will stop his visions, the taxi driver successfully argues that it will be a tragedy on the grounds that he will become «a completely normal person, and you know what stinkers are.» they exist.»

The film received huge critical acclaim. Bosley Crowther, the influential New York Times columnist, declared that «so free-flowing is the script that Mrs. Chase and Oscar Brodney have prepared, so lively and funny is the direction Henry Coster has given it, and, in particular, so sweet » Thanks to the performances of James Stewart, Josephine Hull and everyone else, even those who have seen the play are in for an almost entirely new experience.» 

James Stewart with Harvey Photo: Alamy

The ever-cautious Stewart, belying his dreamy screen persona, received a percentage of the profits and earned about $200,000 from the film, or about $2.3 million today. The film was later adapted for television in 1958 with Art Carney as Dowd, but this did little to erase memories of Stewart and the earlier film.

It was therefore not surprising and almost inevitable that, for his first stage role in many years, Stewart, now 61, announced that he would return to Broadway in 1970, reprising his role as Dowd. «I'm nervous,» he explained. “When you haven't been on stage for 20 years, it's quite difficult to get back to it. Especially voice projection. But my wife Gloria and I kind of welcomed the change. We were sitting in Beverly Hills talking to our two dogs.» He also suggested that two decades later he felt uneasy about certain aspects of the film, noting that “I was not satisfied with the film version of Harvey. I think I'm a lot older than Elwood P. Dowd than I was 20 years ago. I played him too dreamily, too sweetly. I'm not going to do it this time.» 

 What Stewart didn't say was that, as one of the few openly Republican and Vietnam supporters in Hollywood at the time, he felt his career was coming to an end; he hasn't had a truly successful film since 1965's Flight of the Phoenix. Therefore, the chance to return to the stage and prove himself was important to him. And when his biographer asked him if the attention from fans and well-wishers bothered him, Stewart's response was suitably succinct: «When they don't come to me, that's when I start to worry.»

The revival was a success and was later filmed for television in 1972. While it's significantly harder to find than the more famous film, it's interesting to compare the differences in Stewart's performance. His 1950 Dowd is simply likable, the friend and advisor you'd like to have, while the older interpretation is (intentionally) a little more questionable and the type of person you'd walk away from in bars. However, while Stewart has always cited George Bailey as his favorite character to play, there can be no doubt that he has become almost as synonymous with Dowd, and his return to the role can only be seen as a confirmation of that association. 

After Stewart's death in 1997, numerous attempts were made to remake the film, but none were successful. The rights were originally acquired in 1999 by Harvey Weinstein for his company Miramax with the intention of making Jim Carrey star, Ace Ventura director Tom Shadyac and updating the film to a modern setting. As Weinstein said at the time, “This is a story with a lot of heart that will appeal to a wide audience, be it men or women, young or old.” 

The film never came to fruition, nor did other proposed versions starring Adam Sandler or John Travolta, but in 2009 Steven Spielberg — a longtime fan of the original — acquired the rights, and in August of that year announced that this will be his next film starring his regular actor Tom Hanks. 

The film would certainly have been intriguing, but it never happened. Hanks, perhaps tired of his title as the «next Jimmy Stewart», pulled out and Spielberg instead entered into negotiations with Robert Downey Jr., who was then thrilled about his first appearance in the Iron Man saga. Downey Jr. was initially interested, but soon found himself at odds with the director over the role. Details are sparse, but given that the star was for many years one of Hollywood's most famous recovering drug addicts, it's unlikely he was as nonchalant about Dowd's drinking as he was in the original play and film. Either way, Downey Jr. eventually got the chance to talk to animals in the disastrous and near-career-ending 2020 remake of Doctor Dolittle. 

The show has been revived since — on Broadway with The Big Bang Show's Jim Parsons and in London with the brilliant James Dreyfuss — but although Netflix announced in 2018 that it was developing a new version of the film from the creators of Shrek 2″ nothing has come of it yet. 

Perhaps this is for the better. Harvey is a wonderful and uplifting film, but it is also very timely. Instead, Eric's darker and more demanding vision may be closer to what we can expect from 2024. However, it is important to remember another quote from Daud: “I always have a great time, no matter where I am, no matter who I am with. “This is a lifelong principle that everyone – filmmakers and audiences alike – should remember.