26 Feb The Hasty Heart
The Hasty Heart, WWII Movie starring Richard Todd, Patricia Neal, and Ronald Reagan
(1950) Just as World War II has ended a wounded Scottish soldier is angry that he cannot go home but must stay in a Burma Red Cross hospital. The five patients who are already there know that the Scot is dying but he has no idea.
The movie is based on a 1945 play The Hasty Heart written by John Patrick, based on his own experiences during World War II. Patrick later went on to win a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award for the play The Teahouse of the August Moon, based on the novel by Vern Sneider.
So when the movie came out in 1950, it was already a familiar story. A beautiful and young Patricia Neal (it was her 4th film) was the nurse. Because she was addressed as “Sister Margaret Parker” at first I thought she might be a Nun, but she was not.
The lead role was played by Irish-born British actor Richard Todd who, according to the TCM article, worked with a Scottish voice coach for a few days and got the part. It earned him an Academy Award nomination.
Incidentally, Todd was one of the first five British officers to land in Normandy on D-Day. He went on to star in one of my favorite WWII movies, The Dam Busters and appeared at many Dambuster anniversaries.
This was one of those movies that I began to watch simply because it starred Patricia Neal (a favorite) and Ronnie Reagan (a curiosity.) I thoroughly enjoyed it and can understand why it was so popular. It has since been adapted for television three times.
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