The Children's Hour

Cinephile deep dive

The take

William Wyler directs. Franz Planer behind the camera. Alex North scores. Robert Swink cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Shot for just $3.6M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
• 2Earned back only 83% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
• 365 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
• 4Directed by William Wyler, shot by Franz Planer. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 5Original score by Alex North. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 6Editor Robert Swink shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 7Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine and James Garner carry the top of the cast.
• 8Marketing tagline: "Can an ugly rumor destroy what's beautiful?".
• 9IMDB entry: tt0054743 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 10Classified under 15 themes, including "suicide", "falsely accused", "female friendship", "girls' boarding school".

The technical file

Cinematography

Franz Planer

Original score

Alex North

Editing

Robert Swink

Costume design

Dorothy Jeakins

Makeup / hair

Emile LaVigne

Sound

Buddy Myers

Runtime

108 min · 1h 48m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Budget

$3,600,000

Box office

$3,000,000

Return

83% of budget

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

NR

IMDB

The Children's Hour (1961) ↗

Also by

William Wyler

• 
  Her First Mate

  1933 · ★ 10.0
• 
  Ridin' for Love

  1926 · ★ 10.0
• 
  The Crook Buster

  1925 · ★ 10.0
• 
  Blazing Days

  1927 · ★ 10.0
• 
  Lazy Lightning

  1926 · ★ 10.0
• 
  Hard Fists

  1927 · ★ 10.0

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper Wallpaper Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  LGBTQ Themes in Psycho and The Children's Hour [*Contains Movie Spoilers]

  Featurette · Official
• 

  ▶
  Trailer

  Trailer · Official

Production companies

Who made it

• TH

  The Mirisch Company

  US

• 

  United Artists

  US

Key crew

• EditorRobert Swink
• Associate ProducerRobert Wyler
• Art DirectionFernando Carrere
• Assistant DirectorRobert E. Relyea
• Wardrobe AssistantBert Henrikson
• Wardrobe AssistantIrene Caine
• Wardrobe AssistantRuth Stella
• SoundFred Lau
• Set DecorationEdward G. Boyle
• Property MasterFrank Agnone
• Script SupervisorJohn Franco
• Production ManagerAllen K. Wood
• Second Assistant DirectorJerome M. Siegel
• Makeup ArtistEmile LaVigne
• Makeup ArtistFrank McCoy
• HairstylistJoan St. Oegger
• Producer's AssistantClarence Marks
• ProducerWilliam Wyler
• Executive ProducerWalter Mirisch
• Theatre PlayLillian Hellman
• ConductorAlex North
• Dialogue CoachLeon Charles
• Assistant EditorHal Ashby
• Music EditorRichard C. Harris

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• suicide
• falsely accused
• female friendship
• girls' boarding school
• based on play or musical
• teacher
• lesbian relationship
• black and white
• lgbt
• rumor
• libel suit
• depressed woman
• queer
• girls' school
• devastating

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical1961-12-19NR

Also known as

International titles

• Infamous!US
• The InfamousUS