June 4, 1942: “Mrs. Miniver” Premieres

June 4, 1942: Mrs. Miniver premieres, directed by William Wyler, based on the 1940 novel by Jan Struther. Winston Churchill said that the book (and later the film) was worth "six divisions of war effort."

Greer Garson plays Kay Miniver, and Walter Pidgeon her husband, Clem, an architect. They live in Belham, a fictional village outside London. Christopher Severn plays son Toby, and Clare Sandars plays daughter Judy, who live with them. Richard Ney plays son Vin, who attends Oxford University. Teresa Wright plays Carol Beldon, who whom Vin falls in love. May Whitty plays Lady Beldon, Carol's mother, who initially objects to the romance.

World War II arrives, and Vin enlists in the Royal Air Force, proposing to Carol. Clem becomes one of the many English civilians who assists with the evacuation of the British Army from Dunkirk in France. Carol and Vin marry, but a Nazi bombing raid damages the house while they are away on their honeymoon. Some time later, a British plane and a Germany one fight over their house, and it is Carol, not her RAF husband Vin, who dies from Nazi gunfire, just 2 weeks after her wedding.

Henry Wilcoxon played the Vicar, who delivered one of the most speeches of Hollywood's interpretation of The War: "We have buried our dead, but we shall not forget them. Instead, they will inspire us with an unbreakable determination to free ourselves, and those who come after us, from the tyranny and terror that threaten to strike us down. This is the People's War. It is our war. We are the fighters. Fight it, then! Fight it with all that is in us! And may God defend the right."

The film ends with the congregation singing "Onward, Christian Soldiers," while, through a bomb-hole in the church's roof, RAF fighters fly in a "V for Victory" formation.

Garson and Ney, who played mother and son in the film, but were only 12 years apart in age, married each other in 1943, but divorced in 1947.

Teresa Wright also played Eleanor Gehrig in The Pride of the Yankees. Henry Travers, who played neighbor Mr. Ballard, went on to play Clarence the Angel in It's a Wonderful Life.

Garson and Walter Pidgeon made a sequel in 1950, The Miniver Story. In 1960, CBS filmed a TV version of the original film, starring Maureen O'Hara.

Whitty died in 1948, Struther in 1953, Travers in 1965, Wyler in 1981, Wilcoxon and Pidgeon in 1984, Garson in 1996, Ney in 2004, Wright in 2005, Sandars in 2007. As of June 4, 2022, Severn is the last remaining major castmember.

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June 4, 1942 was a Thursday. My grandmother, then named Grace Darton, turned 18, but could hardly celebrate. She had been orphaned, and had to drop out of John Adams High School in Queens, New York City, and go to work. She was one of millions of women, on both sides of the Atlantic, inspired by the wartime courage of both Mrs. Minivers, Kay and Carol. For the duration of The War -- always Capital T, Capital W to her -- she supported herself and the Allies, before marrying my grandfather, George Goldberg, who fought in North Africa and Italy under General George S. Patton. He changed his name to George Golden: He had dealt with enough anti-Semitism, and wanted to spare her that.

These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees (Grandpa's team) beat the Chicago White Sox, 8-2 at Yankee Stadium. Hank Borowy went the distance for the win. Joe DiMaggio went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI.

* The New York Giants beat the Chicago Cubs, 4-3 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Willard Marshall hit a home run in the top of the 11th inning. Cliff Melton went the distance for the win. Mel Ott, by now also the Giants' manager, went 0-for-4 with 2 walks, but had an RBI on a sacrifice fly. For the Cubs, Jimmie Foxx, nearing the end of his career, flew out as a pinch-hitter.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-2 at Fenway Park in Boston. Buster Mills hit a home run for the Indians. For the Red Sox, Ted Williams went 0-for-4, but Bobby Doerr went 3-for-4 with an RBI, and Dom DiMaggio hit a home run.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 8-7 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia.

* The St. Louis Browns beat the Washington Senators, 7-2 at Griffith Stadium in Washington.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Boston Braves 6-2 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Stan Musial, in his 1st full season, did not play.

* And the Brooklyn Dodgers (Grandma's team), the Cincinnati Reds, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates were not scheduled.