Ann Harding: Cinema's Gallant Lady

Laurence Oliver referred to her as an "angel." Director Henry Hathaway claimed she was a "bitch." Critics hailed Ann Harding as the finest actress to venture from Broadway to Hollywood. Her unique, natural screen presence in Holiday (1930) earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. From 1929-1936, Harding reigned as cinema's "Gallant Lady." Ann's ethereal quality belied a passionate nature. Her affairs with three remarkably talented and very married men associated with the film industry could have easily outraged fans and quashed her career. Theater visionary-director Jasper Deeter, Ann's life-long mentor, remarked that Ann was a master at hiding her childish, stubborn temperament. Friends of Ann's daughter, Jane Otto, claim that despite Ann's highly publicized custody battles. as a mother, Ann was "detached." Ann Harding - Cinema's Gallant Lady pays tribute to her career, and unveils a complex portrait of one of stage and cinemas most remarkable talents.