A letter is addressed to three wives from their "best friend" Addie Ross, announcing that she is running away with one of their husbands: but she does not say which one.Wow. You got me. We have a series of wives who are all jealous of Addie Ross, for reasons both good and bad. She has run off with one of their husbands, or so she claims... but which one? Each man seems to have a reason to be attracted to her. What follows is a great series of twists and turns... and a great younger performance from Kirk Douglas.In 1985, the film was remade into a television movie of the same name starring Loni Anderson as Lora Mae, Michele Lee as Rita, Stephanie Zimbalist as Debra, Charles Frank as Brad, Michael Gross as George and Ben Gazzara as Porter. Ann Sothern also appeared as Ma Finney. While I have not seen this one, and I admire Gazzara, surely this can't be as good.

This movie continues to show how well women characters were written for and portrayed. The women portrayed here are independent characters that hold well-rounded lives. They are able to handle home and business which is what life was like after WWII. They show their fears and worries but with strength. The women stand beside the man not a few feet behind and vice versa. Compare the man to woman relationship of these three main couples to the portrayals of the radio sponsor couple-the Manleys. It seems that women characters were stronger when "we did not have equal rights" than now. Fully clothed, little violence, no foul language. The movie "The Women" also had very strong female characters and again look when the movie was made. Addie was a great person and friend - better than these 3 women realized - she fixed it so the women would see that they've been taking their husbands for granted. Wonder if we could ever see a movie entitled " A Letter to three Husbands" that was as sophisticated and mature? The women all looked to the phone booth upon reading the letter. Could we ever have this kind of worry today that resulted in this great story with cell phones, wi-fi, texting, facebook, twitter, gps phone tracking, etc. Nope to each query.

And I thought this was a piece of fluff!!! the writing is smarter than in any movie I've seen all year. How predictive of our present undereducated public. The schoolteacher in the group is an educated man, not like many of the sad things in the classrooms today. And the script beautifully points out why: follow the money. we get what we pay for and our country is failing because of our failing schools, and our gullible masses, the result of an educational system that is 42nd in the world. Spoiler: I saw this as a teenager. And I remembered that one of the husbands HAD run away with Addie, but thought better of it and returned. Yet the line, "She'll know tomorrow morning" and Jeanne crain's kiss on the cheek to Paul Douglas for 'admitting' it, now makes me think that yes, her husband really did run away with this husband-stealer. The times have really changed: We wouldn't be dating our bosses in today's world. On the other hand, corporate wives and husbands still lick the behinds of anyone in the corporation who can give them a hand up the ladder. Our level of corruption is much higher. One mystery: the script has the mom lecturing Linda Darnell on not being a tramp, yet when the boss comes to pick her up, she tries to shoo her daughter out to the car. It's Darnell who insists that she gets picked up properly. Paradox or contradiction?Really want to know now how it actually ended. Was Paul telling the truth or we he just trying to soften the blow? Great writing. Boy, do I miss it. Kinda sad when I have to turn to foreign movies, old movies or the occasional indie to find any movies of substance that have BOTH excellent writing and acting. Just another symptom.

Joseph L. Mankiewicz's impeccable film is more than just a satirical look at marriage and the relationship between men and women. It also gives insight to life in suburbia, which was just getting started in America at the time of its release. The plot follows out that there are three women who consider themselves to be each other's best of friends. They all go on a day-long picnic for the local children's orphanage but just before leaving receive a letter from a woman known to them all that says she has run away with one of their husbands.As the three wives ponder their own relationships with their husbands and with each other, they each begin to realize that each of their husbands has his own reason to run off with the accomplished, beautiful, but hidden to us Addie Ross. Deborah Bishop, played wonderfully by Jeanne Crain, is a former Navy girl who is as tough as they come, but worries severely about not being able to impress her new husband's friends. Rita Phipps has been happily married to a wonderful schoolteacher, but she has been pushing him around for some time in order to accomplish a career of her own. And the third wife, Lora Mae played by Linda Darnell, really only got married it seems in order to get out of the working class and become a sophisticated lady of society.The biggest problem most audiences will have is the ending of this terrific story. Everything leading up to is just about perfect. The acting is solid all around with Ann Sothern giving the best performance, in my opinion, as a beautiful and accomplished mother who nevertheless feels she has to do more in order to feel successful. Kirk Douglas is very good as her husband as are all the supporting characters. Of course, the script is very witty and biting as it was written by the same man who gave us All About Eve. And while this isn't as original or cleverly written as that masterpiece, this still holds up very well as an excellent depiction of American life during a time where everything was thought to prim and proper.