The Hucksters - Production

Production

Frederic Wakeman's 1946 novel The Hucksters spent a year in the top stratum of the bestseller list, aided perhaps by its raunchy, racy controversy. Life magazine called the book "last year's best-selling travesty" and even Clark Gable, who would eventually star in its film adaptation, said "It's filthy and it isn't entertainment." Life's and Gable's literary sensibilities to the contrary, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer paid $200,000 for the motion picture rights before the novel was even published.

Screenwriter Luther Davis and novel adapters Edward Choderov and George Wells had "an extensive laundering job" to do to bring the project into compliance with Louis B. Mayer's tastes and the Hays Office's policies. Obviously they had to eliminate the graphic (for 1946) sexual scenes, and they changed the book's Mrs. Dorrance from a married lady into a war widow—so she and Vic "could live happily ever after." More problematic, though, was the portrayal of talent agent David Lash, a pivotal character in the second half of the film. Lash was based on real-life mega-agent Jules Stein, the founder of powerhouse talent agency MCA, and Lash's Hucksters protégé Freddie Callahan, who bore an undeniable physical resemblance to Lew Wasserman, Stein's protégé in 1946 who would eventually head MCA himself.

Even in 1947, there were "fears about reprisals from MCA" over the portrayals of Stein and Wasserman, and Vic avers on several occasions that "Dave Lash is an honest man" when the dispute arises over the Buddy Hare contract. The other problem was Lash/Stein's ethnicity: in the novel, Vic tells Lash people will call his honesty into question because he is a Jew; Davis removed all references to Lash's ethnicity and made him a kid who had been in trouble but had "gone straight" and succeeded.

Once the toned-down screenplay was finished and Mr. Gable's comfortability with it secured, producer Arthur Hornblow, Jr. made his final casting decisions and "assembled an exceptional supporting cast" including veteran character actors Greenstreet, Menjou and Arnold, up-and-comer Keenan Wynn and "still-unknown Ava Gardner." MGM top brass had selected The Hucksters as the debut Hollywood film for British actress Deborah Kerr, who had drawn attention in ten British films since 1941, and that caused production to be "rushed by Louis B. Mayer, who wanted to release it the following August, trying to revive Gable's name after the flop of Adventure, his last film and launching Deborah's in Hollywood."

Springing the trap over cards: Lash thinks he sold Vic "a lemon", but Vic knows better

As the start day neared, Ava Gardner suddenly got cold feet about co-starring with an actor she had idolized since childhood. Hornblow asked Gable to call her, and he told her: "I'm supposed to talk you into doing this thing. But I'm not going to. I hated it when they did that to me. But I hope you change your mind, kid, I think it would be fun to work together." The two remained friends for life.

Gable also sought to make a nervous Kerr feel relaxed when shooting commenced. He sent her six dozen roses on the first day, and "the two hit it off beautifully from the beginning, on and off the set."

Director Jack Conway, an MGM veteran with credits stretching back to the silent era, brought this, his penultimate film, in on Mayer's August 1947 timetable. His budget was $2.3 million dollars.