The Story: The lead character of Harvey, Elwood P. Dowd, follows his bliss—and to his satisfaction that bliss can usually be found in a bar. There's a great temptation to psycho-analyze, diagnose, or explain, Dowd, but that takes a little bit of the charm out of it. It's meant to be a comedy, after all, but a cursory look at it shows that it's a comedy about grief. Dowd's parents have died, after years of care-taking for them, and he's at loose ends, trying to fill his days with activity—to keep life interesting, to make it full of event, because (although he doesn't say it) life is short and you shouldn't waste your time.
But, something snapped in him, and although he's not completely out of touch with reality, he has (he says) "wrestled with (it) for thirty five years...and I'm happy to state that I won out over it."
Sure, there's a lot of self-medication involved, but Elwood is content—I wouldn't go so far as to say happy—in his little bliss-bubble. He has no regrets, no paralyzing self-doubt, no existential crisis, and a certain veneer of acceptance, which is the last stage of grief.
Across the street from our house was an apartment house. As I was
leaving every morning at 8:15 with my boys, a woman would emerge from
the door of the apartment house and go in the opposite direction, to the
bus to go downtown to work. I didn’t know the woman, but I heard she
was a widow with one son in the Naval Air arm who was a bombardier in
the Pacific. One day, I heard that her son was lost. Things like that
were happening to so many people then, it wasn’t what jolted me so much
as the fact that in a week or ten days I saw this woman leaving the
apartment house, going a little more slowly to catch the bus to go back
to work. She began to haunt me. Could I ever think of anything to make
that woman laugh again? I knew she wouldn’t laugh at a comedy about sex
or money or politics. I kept looking for ideas and rejecting them. Then,
one morning, I awoke at five o’clock and saw a psychiatrist walking
across our bedroom floor followed by an enormous white rabbit and I knew
I had it.
Well, she had something. But, the nugget of the interview was she wanted to write something that would make that grieving mother laugh again, despite the grief, despite the loss. And Harvey was the tonic...with or without mixed with anything else.
Here's one of the funniest of the sections of Harvey to me (it makes me laugh out loud every time I see it).
The Set-up: "Dowd's the name. Elwood P." (James Stewart). Mr. Dowd would appear to be a perfectly normal gentleman of a certain age. However, his sister (Josephine Hull) and niece (Victoria Horne)
are trying to have him committed. Dowd ("Elwood P."), you see, is
causing a hitch with sister Veta's social plans and attracting any
"gentleman callers" to her daughter Myrtle May. Elwood, it seems, scares
them off. It's not that he's a monster or anything like that. It's just
that he's a bit of a tippler—he drinks, and quite well—and seems to
think he's attracted the attention of a Celtic pooka-spirit in the form
of a 6' 3½" white rabbit...named "Harvey."
Well,
as sanitarium visits go, this one went a little crazy. The seemingly
benign and guileless Elwood got off scot-free, while his peripatetic
sister got put in the rubber room, leading to the sacking of sanitarium
Dr. Raymond Sanderson (Charles Drake), and to make things right, he and nurse Kelly (Peggy Dow) have tracked Dowd to a local drinking establishment only to find that he's drinking alone; his guest Dr. Chumley (Cecil Kellaway), who runs the sanitarium, has left for another taproom...in the company of...Harvey.
Action! ("When?")
Action.
MED CLOSE SHOT AT BAR INT.
CHARLIE'S PLACE
Sanderson, Wilson & Kelly
rush in thru doors b.g. &
come forward -
Sanderson
looks about - Mr. Cracker
steps to him - talk - camera
dollies in closer - Wilson leans
on Mr. Meegles' shoulder - Meegles
shoves him away - Kelly steps
forward - speaks to Cracker -
Cracker points o.s. -
CRACKER - Well what'll it be, folks?
SANDERSON - We're looking for someone.
Two men--
WILSON - Yeah - a tall short one - and a
thin fat one.
WILSON - Wh - I'm so nervous I don't
know what I'm saying.
SANDERSON - One man is short and middle-
aged -
SANDERSON - the other is much taller and
younger -
SANDERSON - they might have been here about
four hours ago.
CRACKER - Nope - can't say that I have.
We been runnin' to medium sizes all
evening.
KELLY - The tall man was soft-spoken and
sorta polite. His name is Dowd.
CRACKER - Oh, Dowd? Why didn't you say
so? He's here now - over in the
back booth.
18
MED HIGH SHOT INT. BAR (CRANE SHOT)
Sanderson, Wilson & Kelly make way
forward thru dancing couples to
Elwood who stands by booth - Wilson
grabs his lapels - Sanderson & Kelly
push him away from Elwood - camera
cranes down closer as they talk -
Wilson goes to b.g. thru crowd -
Elwood reaches o.s. for bouquet of
flowers which he hands to Kelly - she
is pleased & surprised - they talk -
Elwood invites them to join him -
Kelly starts to move forward into booth -
WILSON - Is he alone?
CRACKER - Well, there's two schools of
thought, sir.
WILSON - If that crackpot did anything to
Dr. Chumley, I'll knock his teeth down his
throat.
SANDERSON - No rough stuff, Wilson.
Psychology - I'll do the talking.
ELWOOD - Well I've been expecting you.
WILSON - All right where's the doctor?
WILSON - What'd you do with him?
SANDERSON - Wilson!
SANDERSON - Wilson, why don't you
take a careful look around the place?
ELWOOD - Uh, why don't you do that, Mr.
Wilson, although I don't believe it's for
sale.
ELWOOD - Miss - Miss Kelly -
ELWOOD - these are for
you.
KELLY - Why thank you, Mr. Dowd.
ELWOOD - It's a pleasure my dear.
ELWOOD - You know,
doctor, after what happened this afternoon
- these flowers really should be from you,
shouldn't they?
SANDERSON - Yes, but...
ELWOOD - Well - uh - now - won't you join
me?
SANDERSON - Oh, Mr. Dowd, I'm afraid we
can't do that. The situation has changed
since this afternoon, but I urge you to
have no resentment.
SANDERSON - Dr. Chumley is your
friend and he only wants to help you.
ELWOOD - Well isn't that nice of him.
I'll be very glad to help him, too.
SANDERSON - You know we all must face
reality, Dowd, sooner or later.
ELWOOD - Uh huh -
ELWOOD - Well, I wrestled with
reality for thirty-five years, doctor,
ELWOOD - and
I'm happy to state I finally won out over
it.
KELLY - Mr. Dowd, where is Dr. Chumley?
ELWOOD - Well not knowing, I cannot say.
Wish I could.
ELWOOD - M-Miss Kelly, I don't like
to see you standing -
SANDERSON - Sit down, Kelly.
19
CLOSE UP IN BOOTH AT CHARLIE'S
(NIGHT)
Kelly sits f.g. - Sanderson sits
by her -
Elwood sits facing them &
camera - talk - couples dancing
b.g. - Bartender comes on - stops
by Elwood - talk - Sanderson
concerned -
ELWOOD - There we are!
ELWOOD - Now! Let's all have
a drink.
SANDERSON - All right. Dr. Chumley did
come in here to get you earlier this
evening?
ELWOOD - Yes. Yes, he did. And I was
delighted to see him. Well --
CRACKER - What'll it be, Mr. Dowd?
ELWOOD - Uh - uh -
ELWOOD - martinis?
SANDERSON - Uh - but that was four hours
ago.
3
CLOSE UP ELWOOD
Serious - turns & holds up three
fingers to bartender, partly in
scene - bartender exits - Elwood
smiles off -
ELWOOD - Where has the evening gone to?
Four--
ELWOOD - Three martinis, Mr. Cracker.
WILSON O.S. - Hey, I looked all --
4
INT. BOOTH
Sanderson & Kelly f.g. - Elwood
seated facing them & camera -
Wilson coming on at side - talk -
Wilson annoyed -
WILSON -- over this joint! There's no sign
of the doctor! What'd'ja do to him?
SANDERSON - That's what we're trying to
find out. What happened then, Mr. Dowd?
ELWOOD - Well, I -- then introduced Harvey
to the Doctor and he sat down in the booth
with us.
ELWOOD - Let's see - Harvey was sitting
here --
ELWOOD - and the Doctor sat opposite Harvey
so he could look at him.
WILSON - Who's Harvey?
KELLY - A white rabbit - six feet tall.
WILSON - Six feet?!
5
CLOSE UP ELWOOD
Speaks pleasantly -
ELWOOD - Six feet three and a half inches.
ELWOOD - Now let's stick to the facts.
6
FULL SHOT BOOTH
Wilson standing by Sanderson -
Kelly f.g. - Elwood sitting
opposite - talk - couples
dancing b.g.
SANDERSON - Now what happened after you
introduced Dr. Chumley to Harvey?
ELWOOD - Well, uh - Harvey suggested that
I buy him a drink, and knowing that he
doesn't like to drink alone, I suggested
to Dr. Chumley that we join him.
SANDERSON - Yes?
ELWOOD - We joined him.
7
CLOSE UP IN BOOTH
Kelly & Sanderson seated f.g. -
Wilson standing by Sanderson -
serious - talk -
SANDERSON - Go on.
ELWOOD O.S. - We joined him again.
WILSON - Yeah - then what?
8
FULL SHOT BOOTH
Sanderson, Kelly & Elwood seated
- Wilson standing - talk - Elwood
moves over in booth - Sanderson
speaks sharply to Wilson -
Wilson sits by Elwood, not
liking it - couples stop dancing in
b.g. -
ELWOOD - Then the other matter came up.
WILSON - Yeah. Now we're gettin'
somewhere! What other matter?
ELWOOD - Eh -
ELWOOD - Mr. Wilson - I - I don't
like to see you standing. Wouldn't you -
wouldn't you join us here?
WILSON - Yeh - who, me?
ELWOOD - Yes.
SANDERSON - Sit down, will you, Wilson?
ELWOOD - Sit right down here.
KELLY - You say this other matter came up,
Mr. Dowd?
9
CLOSE UP IN BOOTH
Wilson & Elwood seated at far side
of table facing Sanderson & Kelly
- three turn to look as Elwood
points off as he talks - three
turn to him - listen as he talks
- Elwood amused - Wilson shouts
angrily - Elwood retreats -
bartender serves drinks - exits -
ELWOOD - Yes. There was a beautiful blonde
woman - name of Mrs. Smethills and her
escort
ELWOOD - seated in the booth directly across
from us.
ELWOOD - Well, Dr. Chumley went over to
sit next to her, explaining to her that
they had once met --
ELWOOD - in Chicago.
ELWOOD - Then her
escort escorted Dr. Chumley back here to
Harvey and me -
ELWOOD - and tried to point out
that it would he better for Dr. Chumley to
mind his own affairs.
ELWOOD - Does he have any?
WILSON - Does he have any what?
ELWOOD - Does he have any affairs?
WILSON - How -
WILSON - would I know?!
SANDERSON - Shut up, Wilson. Go on, Mr.
Dowd.
ELWOOD - Well, uh -- Thank you, Mr.
Cracker. Uh -
ELWOOD - Mrs. Smethills' escort
seemed to get more and more depressed as
he kept looking at Dr. Chumley.
ELWOOD - So Harvey
and I felt that we should take the Doctor
somewhere else
ELWOOD - and Harvey suggested
Blondie's Chicken Inn, but uh -
ELWOOD - the doctor
wanted to go to Eddie's. And while they
were arguing about it,
ELWOOD - I went up to the
bar to order another --
10
CLOSE UP KELLY & SANDERSON (SIDE)
Listening intently -
ELWOOD O.S. -- drink, and when I came back
here they were gone.
11
CLOSE UP IN BOOTH
Elwood & Wilson seated at far side
of table facing Kelly, Sanderson &
camera - Wilson protests loudly -
Elwood turns to Wilson as he
speaks -
WILSON - You don't believe that story
about the Doctor sittin' here talkin' to a
big white rabbit, do you?!
ELWOOD - Well, why not? Harvey was here.
ELWOOD - A-at first, Doctor Chumley seemed a little
frightened of Harvey - but that gave way
to admiration as the evening wore on.
ELWOOD - "The
evening wore on."
ELWOOD - That's - that's a very
nice expression, isn't it?
ELWOOD - With your
permission, I'll say it again.
ELWOOD - "The
evening wore on."
12
CLOSE UP WILSON & ELWOOD (HIGH)
Favoring Wilson as he speaks
angrily - grabs Elwood's coat lapel
- camera tilts up as he rises,
pulling blackjack out of pocket -
Sanderson rises into scene & grabs
Wilson's arm - couples dancing
b.g. -
WILSON - And with your permission, I'm
gonna knock your brains out!
WILSON - Now look,
you did somethin' to Dr. Chumley,
Sanderson
looks about - Mr. Cracker
steps to him - talk - camera
dollies in closer - Wilson leans
on Mr. Meegles' shoulder - Meegles
shoves him away - Kelly steps
forward - speaks to Cracker -
Cracker points o.s. - 
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