Holiday Affair is a 1949 American Christmas romantic comedy film produced and directed by Don Hartman and starring Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, and Wendell Corey, with Gordon Gebert. The screenplay by Isobel Lennart is based on John D. Weaver's story Christmas Gift, which was also the film's working title. The film allowed Mitchum to briefly depart from his typical roles in film noir, Western films and war films, and his casting was intended to help rehabilitate his image following a notorious marijuana bust.
A made-for-television remake, also titled Holiday Affair, was released in 1996.
Contents
Plot
Steve Mason, a veteran seeking to go to Southern California to build sailboats, is employed as a salesman during the Christmas season at Crowley's, a New York department store. Connie Ennis is a comparative shopper for a rival store, and hurriedly buys an expensive toy train set from him without asking any questions about it. That night, her six-year-old son Timmy becomes excited when he peeks at what he thinks is his present, only to be disappointed when his mother tells him otherwise. Later, Connie's longtime steady suitor, lawyer Carl Davis, proposes to her, but she does not give him an immediate answer.
The next day, when Connie seeks a refund on the train set, Steve reveals he had suspected her all along and threatens to report her to the store detective. She explains that she is a war widow with a son to support. Sympathetic, Steve refunds her money, which gets him fired. Steve then takes Connie for lunch in Central Park and helps her complete her shopping. After they become separated in a crowd, Steve tracks down Connie and goes to her apartment with the rest of her packages, where he is introduced to Timmy and Carl. Steve and Carl share an awkward conversation, while Timmy takes an immediate liking to Steve.
