Storytelling Output Report

for

"All About Eve"

ANALYSIS INFORMATION:

 

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General Storytelling:	Complete
Act Order Storytelling:	Complete
Character List:	Partial
Build Characters:	Partial

 

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Author:		Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Analysis sources:		Source Material: Based on a short story by Mary Orr, "The Wisdom of Eve." Film. 20th Century-Fox, 1950. Mankiewicz, Joseph L. All About Eve. Random House. New York, NY. 1951. Nash, Jay Robert and Ross, Stanley Ralph. The Motion Picture Guide. CineBooks, Inc. Evanston, Illinois. 1985. Videohound's Golden Retriever 1995. Visible Ink Press. Detroit, MI. Ringgold, Gene. The Films of Bette Davis. Citadel Press. Secaucus, New Jersey. 1979. Thomas, Tony and Solomon, Aubrey. The Films of 20th Century-Fox. Citadel Press. Secausus, NJ. 1979.
Genre:		Drama
Setting:		New York City
Period:		1950
Analysis by:		Carol Compton

Comments:

This is an interesting example of a story that, despite the sharply defined main character, the objective characters zero in on "all about Eve"--the obstacle character.

Brief Synopsis:

"The girl of the title is an aspiring actress who dotes on veteran Broadway star Margo Channing and insinuates her way into her employment and eventually into a successful career. Along the way she cajoles, charms, seduces, and sometimes tramples on a variety of writers, directors, producers, and sundry wives. One critic sees through her and her machinations but loves her nonetheless. He is the one who knows "all about Eve."

(Thomas, p. 207)

Objective Character Mini-Synopsis:

MARGO, an aging stage star, is worried that she'll lose Bill to a younger woman, and end up alone with only her career to look back on.

EVE, an ambitious, aspiring actress, who'll do anything to hear the audience's applause coming over the footlights just for her.

BILL, a top theater director, who's in love with Margo and doesn't care that she's eight years his senior.

LLOYD, a successful playwright, whose plays Margo has made into smash hits, yearns to have a younger actress play his stage heroines.

KAREN, Lloyd's wife and Margo's best friend, who brings Eve into their lives and soon regrets her blind kindness.

BIRDIE, an ex-vaudevillian and Margo's maid, who has the smarts to see through Eve's disguise of innocence.

MAX, theater producer, who loves Margo and Lloyd because they create hit plays that make lots of money.

ADDISON, merciless theater critic, who's seen it all and uncovers Eve's killer game plan.

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THE OBJECTIVE CHARACTERS:

Name: Margo Channing

Gender: Female

Description:

Margo Channing, a five-foot-two package of energy, is an acclaimed actress with the talent and timeless beauty that allows her to play twenty-year-olds at age forty.

"An attractive, strong face. She is childish, adult, reasonable, unreasonable -- usually one when she should be the other, but always positive. She pours a stiff drink."

(Mankiewicz, p. 9)

Role: Leading stage actress

Characteristics:

Motivation: Oppose; Reconsider; Avoidance; Uncontrolled; Feeling;

Methodology: Certainty; Reaction; Reevaluation;

Evaluation: Proven; Result; Test;

Purpose: Equity; Self Aware; Ability; Projection;

Name: Eve Harrington

Gender: Female

Description:

"She wears a cheap trench coat, low-heeled shoes, a rain hat stuck on the back of her head. . . her large, luminous eyes seem to glow up at Karen in the strange half-light."

(Mankiewicz, p. 18)

Role: Conniving Aspiring Actress

Characteristics:

Motivation: Consider; Pursuit; Control; Temptation; Logic;

Methodology: Potentiality; Proaction; Evaluation;

Evaluation: Process; Unproven; Unending;

Purpose: Thought; Perception; Aware; Inequity; Speculation; Desire;

Name: Addison De Witt

Gender: Male

Description:

A tall, handsome man with an air of sophistication about him. His cultured appearance hides a cold heart and a cutting wit that would be out of place anywhere but the larger-than-life world of the theater.

Role: Powerful theater critic

Characteristics:

Motivation: Hinder;

Evaluation: Ending;

Purpose: Knowledge; Actuality;

Name: Bill Sampson

Gender: Male

Description:

"He's youngish, vital, undisciplined."

(Mankiewicz, p. 39)

Tall with boyish good looks, he's passionate about his work and Margo Channing.

Role: Director, Margo's boyfriend

Characteristics:

Motivation: Conscience;

Evaluation: Trust;

Name: Birdie Coonan

Gender: Female

Description:

A saucy, ex-vaudevillian with a quick wit who's loyal to Margo. She looks like a kindly grandmother until she opens her mouth to set someone straight about the facts of life.

Role: Margo's maid

Characteristics:

Motivation: Disbelief;

Name: Karen Richards

Gender: Female

Description:

A lovely woman in her early thirties, always stylishly dressed in pearls and furs.

Role: Margo's best friend

Characteristics:

Motivation: Support; Faith; Help;

Methodology: Protection;

Name: Lloyd Richards

Gender: Male

Description:

"He's in his late thirties, sensitive, literate."

(Mankiewicz, p. 23)

Good looking, but not enough to be a leading man. His talent with words has made him a leading playwright.

Role: Playwright, Karen's husband

Characteristics:

Methodology: Inaction;

Name: Max Fabian

Gender: Male

Description:

A grumpy teddy bear of a man in his early sixties. Although he's the nervous type, he risks his money on theater productions and would be miserable doing anything else.

Role: Theater Producer

Characteristics:

Name: Miss Caswell

Gender: Female

Description:

"Miss Caswell is a blonde young lady, Addison's protégé-of-the-moment."

(Mankiewicz, p. 90)

Role: Chorus girl, aspiring actress

Characteristics:

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AUDIENCE AND STORY DYNAMICS APPRECIATIONS:

Nature as it relates to Actual Dilemma:

Margo Channing faces an actual dilemma once she realizes that her obsessive behavior toward Eve and the dedication to her career might cost what she wants most, the love of Bill Sampson.

Essence as it relates to Positive Feel:

The characters put their efforts into finding solutions and achieving their goals: Margo loves Bill, wants him to share her life with him, and they set a date to be married; Bill, who has proposed to Margo several times, finally gets her to say yes; Max Fabian's theater productions are hits, especially because of his leading ladies, Margo and Eve; Karen is happy that Margo and Bill are going to be married, and that her trick on Margo won't be exposed; Eve's dream of becoming a successful actress is realized.

Tendency as it relates to Unwilling:

For the better part of the story, Margo is an unwilling participant in the effort to achieve the goal. She is unwilling to listen to anything nice anyone has to say about Eve; she's unwilling to have Eve continue as her secretary and asks Max to find work for her in his office; she's unwilling to do anything or support any action that benefits Eve's acting career, and throws a tantrum when she discovers that Eve is her understudy; she doesn't want to accept Bill's declaration of love, still suspicious that Bill really wants a younger woman like Eve. Finally after being forced to miss a performance, Margo changes her attitude about Eve, Bill, and her career.

Reach as it relates to Female:

Women will empathize with Margo because she's a career woman reaching the age where it's almost too late to have it all. Every woman who's ever had to make hard choices will understand Margo's fears and insecurities, hopes and dreams.

Resolve as it relates to Change:

Margo changes from a jealous, age-obsessed actress to a woman who has accepted herself at age forty, and is getting married to the younger man she's refused until now. She wanted to play a woman of twenty in Lloyd's new play, but changes her mind:

MARGO

But not for me any more -- not a four-square,

upright, downright, forthright married lady. . .

It means I've finally got a life to live! I don't have

to play parts I'm too old for -- Just because I've

got nothing to do with my nights!

Approach as it relates to Do-er:

Margo is a woman of action: Initially she's protective of Eve, and takes her into her home the first night they meet; she becomes jealous of Bill's attention to Eve, chews Bill out about it, and gets drunk at his birthday party; suspicious of Eve's true motives, Margo asks Max to employ her in his office; upon learning that Eve has secretly become her understudy, Margo immediately accuses Lloyd, Bill, and Max of a conspiracy against her.

Direction as it relates to Start:

Margo has to start believing in herself. She must begin to be comfortable with her age, and accept that Bill loves her for who she is, on the stage and off.

Mental Sex as it relates to Female:

Margo uses holistic problem solving: When she first becomes suspicious of Eve's motives, Margo smokes a cigarette and thinks about all that's been happening; she asks Birdie's opinion of Eve; her intuition kicks in before Bill's party, and Margo predicts "a disaster in the air." After her blowup at the audition, Bill asks her what is wrong:

MARGO

I -- I don't know, Bill. Just a feeling, I don't know. . .

Outcome as it relates to Success:

Eve becomes a successful actress, awarded a prestigious theater prize and is about to make a Hollywood film; Margo is to become a married woman who will no longer be alone with only a career; Bill is to become a groom, having finally won the woman he loves; Lloyd becomes an even more popular playwright with the success of his new play; Karen becomes secure in her marriage to Lloyd and in her friendship with Margo.

Judgment as it relates to Good:

Margo resolves her personal problems: She comes to terms with her fear of aging, especially her fear of being too old for Bill; she's vindicated for attacking Eve after Eve's comments are published; she remains secure in her status as one of theater's most important actresses.

Work as it relates to Decision:

Karen decides to introduce Eve to Margo, and Eve's story gains Margo's sympathy; Margo decides to take Eve into her home as her secretary, and this allows Eve to begin her manipulations; Max Fabian's decision to make Eve Margo's new understudy, without clearing it first with Margo, causes Margo to blow-up at everyone--leading to Bill's decision to break up with her.

Limit as it relates to Optionlock:

Margo tries convince to Bill, Lloyd, and Karen that Eve isn't as innocent as she appears. Failing to do that she must bide her time until Eve's maliciousness is revealed to everyone. One by one, Eve's manipulations alienate everyone who has befriended her. She's finally caught in a web of her own deceptions by Addison DeWitt. Eve has no choice but to comply to his demands or be exposed as a liar and lose the acting career she desires above all.

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THE OBJECTIVE STORY THROUGHLINE:

Throughline Synopsis:

""All About Eve". . . follows an aspiring young actress as she ingratiates herself with a prominent group of theater people so she can become a Broadway star without the usual years of work. The not-so-innocent babe becomes secretary to aging star [Margo Channing] and ruthlessly uses everyone in her climb to the top, much to Margo's initial disbelief and eventual displeasure."

(VideoHound's, p. 136)

Backstory:

Margo Channing is the queen of the Broadway stage, surrounded by her friends: playwright Lloyd Richards and his wife Karen, trusted maid Birdie, producer Max Fabian, and her theater director fiancé, Bill Sampson. They have formed a strong support group for her--they even forgive Margo when she behaves like a diva. But Margo's also an aging star who's just turned forty, and she's worried that Bill will eventually leave her for a younger woman. Then one night Karen decides to introduce Eve Harrington to Margo. Eve is an attractive, adoring young actress with the face of an angel and the heart of a cobra. The moment Eve enters Margo's dressing room everyone's attention shifts from Margo to Eve.

Domain as it relates to Psychology:

The objective characters have different ways of thinking: Margo, Karen, Lloyd, and Bill are snowed by their first impressions of Eve. They can't believe that she's anything but an innocent, stage-struck kid. Birdie knows a good storyteller when she hears one, and experience tells her that Eve's worship of Margo is nothing but a first rate act. Margo, influenced by maternal instincts, takes the stray Eve into her home. Later, feelings of unease cause Margo to become wary of Eve's perfect attentions. Eve thinks she can manipulate everyone with her innocent manner, especially with her subtle picking at weak spots: Margo's age obsession, Karen's fear of losing her husband and Margo's trust and friendship; Lloyd's desire to have a young actress play his stage heroines. LLoyd's manipulated by Eve's tearful apology for her remarks about Margo. He suggests to Karen that Eve plays the lead in his new play:

LLOYD

Eve did mention the play, you know. But just

in passing -- she'd never ask to play a part like

"Cora." She'd never have the nerve. . .

 

KAREN

Eve would ask Abbott to give her Costello.

 

LLOYD

No, I got the idea myself -- while she was

talking to me. . .

Concern as it relates to Becoming:

Everyone in the story is concerned with becoming something: Margo fears becoming old and ending up alone with only her press clippings to look back on; Bill wants to become Margo's husband; Lloyd wants to become a more successful playwright by having young actresses play his stage heroines; Karen fears becoming an ex-friend of Margo's, and thinks she might also become the ex-Mrs. Lloyd Richards when Lloyd pays too much attention to Eve; Max Fabian wants to become the richest Broadway producer ever; Miss Caswell wants to become an actress and uses her looks to get an audition; Eve wants to become a successful actress by simply sliding into Margo's life on stage and off; Addison wants to become Eve's lover and mentor for life; Phoebe wants to become the next Eve Harrington.

Range as it relates to Rationalization:

When Margo refuses to see Eve backstage, Karen tells Margo she can't turn her away because Eve worships her. Margo justifies Eve's working in Max's office when she really wants to get rid of her:

MARGO

You said yourself my inventory is in good shape. . .

To keep her here with nothing to do -- I'd be

standing in her way . . . and you need her, Max.

[. . .] She'd be a great help -- read scripts, interview

people you have to see, get rid of the ones you

don't. . . Think of your health, Max -- more time

for the fresh air of the race track.

Lloyd wants to put Eve in his new play right away. He justifies his idea to Karen by using their financial situation as an excuse:

LLOYD

You know, I've been going over our financial

condition. . . What with taxes coming up -- and

since I'm a playwright and not an oil-well

operator -- well, I've been thinking. . .

Counterpoint as it relates to Obligation:

Playwright Lloyd Richards has an obligation to cast Margo in his plays. Her acting abilities have made his past plays big hits, making him a leading Broadway playwright. His next play is also written for Margo, but impressed by Eve's acting abilities and her youth, Lloyd begins to yearn for a younger woman for its star. He feels that his plays as vehicles for the fortyish Miss Channing are being compromised. Karen reminds him of his obligation to Margo:

LLOYD

For once, to write something and have it realized

completely. For once, not to be compromised --

 

KAREN

Margo Channing has not been exactly a

compromise all these years. Half the playwrights

in the world would give their shirts for that

particular compromise!

Thematic Conflict as it relates to Rationalization vs. Obligation:

Rationalization is presented, yet it's obligation that carries the story to its conclusion. Margo is obligated to honor her contract to producer Max Fabian in spite of her anger at him for hiring Eve as her understudy; after Karen causes Margo to miss a performance, she feels obligated to make it up to Margo for the dirty trick and for misjudging Margo's motives.

Problem as it relates to Support:

The characters use of support causes problems: Karen's endorsement of Eve causes Margo to take her in as her secretary where Eve starts to pick at Margo's insecurities; Addison's praise of Eve's acting abilities leads Margo to believe she's been conspired against and she throws a tantrum directed at Bill, Lloyd, and Max; Bill's support of Eve after the audition launches Margo into a jealous rage; Bill thinks Margo's behavior is unwarranted and when she refuses listen to "reason," he breaks off their engagement.

Solution as it relates to Oppose:

The characters' use of oppose solves some of the story's problems: Once Bill has proof of Eve's malice, he shows his disapproval of Eve efforts to hurt Margo by running to Margo's side; Karen objects to Lloyd's plan to star Eve in his new play, thus blocking Eve efforts to push Margo aside; Addison disputes Eve's plan to run off with Lloyd, and stops her from destroying Karen's marriage and Lloyd's professional relationship with Margo.

Focus as it relates to Reconsider:

The objective characters focus on reconsider: Margo reconsiders her first impression of Eve after the midnight phone call to Bill in Hollywood; When Eve tries to seduce Bill, he has second thoughts about her; Karen has to reconsider her opinion of Eve when she's blackmailed by Eve; Eve has to reconsider running off with Lloyd when Addison tells her he knows everything about her.

Direction as it relates to Consider:

The objective character's efforts are directed toward considering: Birdie considers the fact that Eve is obsessed with Margo as a star, not as a woman, and warns Margo to beware of Eve; Margo ponders the apparent attraction between Bill and Eve, becomes outrageously jealous, and stops supporting Eve's efforts to become an actress; Karen rejects all notions that Eve is anything but an star-struck girl, and increases her support of Eve by teaching Margo a lesson in humility; Bill weighs Margo's arguments that Eve is a manipulator, and rejects the idea, continuing to support Eve; After witnessing Eve's acting talent, Lloyd considers casting her in the lead of his new play.

Stipulation as it relates to Conceiving:

As the story progresses, the characters come up with ideas of how to make things work for themselves: Eve comes up with the idea to approach Karen in the back stage alley which gives her an introduction to Margo; Birdie quickly conceives the notion that Eve is obsessively studying Margo which leads Margo to suspect Eve's motives; Margo comes up with the idea that Eve is trying to steal Bill away from her and she hatches the plan to palm her off onto Max Fabian; Eve promotes the idea that she'd be the perfect understudy for Margo; Addison comes up with the idea that he should write about Eve, and his hate-filled column results in stronger friendship between Margo, Bill, Karen, and Lloyd.

Catalyst as it relates to Obligation:

The characters use of obligation moves the story forward: After Margo takes her in, Eve, acting as Margo's secretary, works to make Margo's life easier; Karen feels obligated to support Margo, especially after she failed to believe Margo about Eve's true character; Margo frees Lloyd from his obligation to cast her as young Cora in his new play. Thus, Eve gets the part and tries to steal Lloyd from Karen, which leads to her being blackmailed by Addison.

Inhibitor as it relates to Approach:

As an example of how "approach" slows the story down, Margo's method of dealing with problems is to get drunk and rage at her friends, causing them to think Margo is merely paranoid, and to support Eve even more than before.

Goal as it relates to Becoming:

Everyone is concerned with transforming Eve from a pitiful, lonely waif into a young woman with purpose. First, it's Eve becoming Margo's secretary; next, it's becoming Margo's understudy; lastly it's Eve becoming a stage actress.

Consequence as it relates to Obtaining:

If Eve fails to become an actress there's only a dismal life as a nobody for her; if Eve doesn't get the part of "Cora" in Lloyd's new play, Karen could lose her best friend and possibly her husband.

Cost as it relates to The Subconscious:

On the way to the story goal, Margo's obsession with aging costs her major anxiety when she thinks that Bill is falling for the younger Eve; Bill's loves Margo deeply, but his disappointment at her rejection of him costs him their relationship, if just temporarily; Karen's fear of losing her oldest, dearest friend forces her to agree to blackmail; Eve's lies and manipulations almost costs her her deepest desire, becoming a great stage actress.

Dividend as it relates to The Future:

Margo gains a husband and a more fulfilling future of dining with Bill and waking up beside him in the mornings. Eve gains the life of an adored and successful stage actress. Bill gets the woman he loves and admires. It is assured that Max Fabian will produce hit plays with Eve as the star. The lead roles in Lloyd's future plays will be played by a talented, young actress.

Requirements as it relates to Conceiving:

In order to achieve the story goal the objective characters come up with ideas: Karen comes up with the idea to introduce Eve to Margo; Upon boarding the plane to Los Angeles, Bill suggests that Eve look after Margo and not let her get lonely; Margo conceives of the idea to take Eve into her home and make her her secretary. Eve invents reasons why she would make the perfect understudy for Margo.

EVE

[. . .] I know the part so well, and every bit of the

staging, there'd be no need to break in a new girl. . .

Prerequisites as it relates to Learning:

Eve has to learn which people will be most beneficial to her career; Addison must learn about the real Eve in order to blackmail her and get what he wants, the scheming young actress.

Preconditions as it relates to The Conscious:

Although with her calculating and ruthless ambition, Eve would have certainly become a star, Addison De Witt is a powerful man who makes sure it happens, especially on his own terms. He is the only one who knows all about Eve Harrington: He consciously sets a trap to catch Eve in a lie about her past; he befriends her and then watches her play out one scheme after another, all the time considering how he is going to get what he wants from her later.

ADDISON

Do you know, Eve -- sometimes I think you

keep things from me.

 

EVE

. . . I confide in you and rely on you more than

anyone I've ever known! To say a thing like that

now -- without any reason -- when I need you

more than ever . . .

 

ADDISON

I hope you mean what you say, Eve. I intend to

hold you to it. We have a great deal in common,

it seems to me.

Forewarnings as it relates to The Present:

Margo worries that Bill will leave her for a younger woman; her rages over Eve does causes him to leave her, although not for the reasons she thinks. Eve worms her way into Margo's life for the sole purpose of stealing Margo's career; on awards night she meets a deceitful young actress who will surely use her like she used Margo.

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THE SUBJECTIVE STORY THROUGHLINE:

Throughline Synopsis:

Eve's a young actress taken in as personal secretary to Margo Channing, a middle-aged stage star. Eve insinuates herself in with Margo's theater friends, particularly Margo's fiancé, Bill. Once Margo realizes what Eve is doing, she ends her sponsorship of the young woman. But Eve has already charmed her way to a job as Margo's understudy. After discovering that Eve has been her understudy for a week, and no one has told her of this, Margo accuses Bill of lusting after Eve. This sets off a big fight between Bill and Margo which results in him breaking up with her. Margo is left feeling old, lonely, and unloved while Eve continues to use Margo's friends to jump-start her acting career. Eve finally goes too far, exposing her malice to everyone, most importantly to Bill, who runs back to Margo's side.

Backstory:

Margo started acting at age four. Now she's at the peak of her career; she's respected, wealthy, and surrounded by friendly supporters. But Margo feels past her prime at the age of forty. She's afraid that her lover, Bill Sampson, will be tempted by a younger woman. His reassurances can't stop her worries. Eve Harrington, a pretty young actress, leaves Milwaukee where she had an affair with her boss, and was given $500 by his wife to leave town. Eve has come to New York determined to become a great actress by way of deception. She has carefully constructed a sob-story to soften her intended victim, Margo Channing. Margo falls for the bait and takes Eve into her life. Eve does everything in her power to undermine Margo's personal life and stage career.

Domain as it relates to Physics:

Margo goes on a rampage against her friends and Eve during a party, increasing conflict between the young woman and herself. Eve wages a campaign to use Margo to advance her career as an actress: She goes behind Margo's back to get the understudy job; So that she'll have a theater director for a boyfriend, Eve tries to seduce Bill away from Margo; In Addison's column, Eve infers that Margo is too old for the parts she plays, potentially damaging Margo's career and her hurting her deeply.

Concern as it relates to Obtaining:

Margo Channing fights to keep what she's got: Her status as Broadway's leading actress, her professional relationship with the playwright who's supplied her with one hit play after another, her man, Bill Sampson.

MARGO

I don't want to be childish, I'd settle for just a

few years --

 

BILL

And cut that out right now.

 

MARGO

Am I going to lose you, Bill? Am I?

Eve wants an acting role in a Broadway play. During Bill's birthday party he muses about theater life and articulates the things Eve wants for herself:

BILL

[. . .] I'll agree to this -- that to be a good actor,

actress, or anything else in the theater, means

wanting to be that more than anything else in

the world. . .

 

EVE

Yes. Yes, it does. . .

Range as it relates to Approach:

Eve's method of problem solving is to be deceitful and underhanded. Margo uses the direct and honest approach to problem solving.

Counterpoint as it relates to Attitude:

Eve's attitude is to present herself in ways that will get her what she wants: she's shy and flattering when she first meets Karen Richards because Karen can introduce her to Margo--and does; Eve's gracious and polite when she meets Margo, earning Margo's sympathy and protection; Eve acts the seductress when she goes after Margo's lover, Bill, but this results in a temporary setback. Margo Channing's attitude is to be direct: she asks her maid point blank why she doesn't like Eve, and begins to draw her own conclusions; she bluntly chides Bill when she believes he's falling for young Eve; she loudly attacks Bill, Max, and Lloyd for not telling her that Eve has been her understudy for a week, pouncing for a moment on Lloyd:

LLOYD

You have a genius for making a barroom brawl

out of a perfectly innocent misunderstanding at

most!

 

MARGO

Perfectly innocent! Men have been hanged for less!

I'm lied to, attacked behind my back, accused of

reading your silly dialogue inaccurately -- as if it

were Holy Gospel!

Thematic Conflict as it relates to Approach vs. Attitude:

Margo and Eve have very different approaches; they are completely diverse. Eve's rapacious method of getting what she wants leads to personal heartbreak. It's Margo's up front attitude while fighting to keep what she has that ultimately leads to her happiness. She's getting married, has loyal friends, and achieves self-acceptance.

Problem as it relates to Logic:

It seems logical that Eve should place the midnight call to Bill for his birthday, acting in Margo's behalf. It even seems logical to Margo that Eve would emulate her in every way, because she's Eve's idol after all. It seems logical that Eve would make the perfect understudy for Margo. But even though all of the above seems logical, everything Eve does causes serious problems for Margo.

Solution as it relates to Feeling:

Once Margo can trust her feelings about Eve, she's on her way to deal with the situation. When Margo is feeling happy and content as a woman, she forgives Eve for making her life hell, because she was forced to realize what she needed most emotionally in her life. Margo's able to cope with Eve in her usual direct way as in after the awards ceremony:

MARGO

. . . You can always put that award where your

heart ought to be.

Focus as it relates to Reconsider:

Margo questions her conclusion that Eve is just a wholesome, stage-struck kid and begins to review Eve's actions of the past few weeks. She asks her maid's opinion of Eve:

MARGO

You don't like Eve, do you?

 

BIRDIE

[. . .] Let's say she thinks only about you, anyway. . .

 

MARGO

How do you mean that?

 

BIRDIE

. . . like she was studyin' you, like you were a play

or a book or a set of blueprints. How you walk, talk,

think, eat, sleep --

Although Margo doesn't agree with Birdie at first, she reviews Eve's demeanor and actions, and adjusts her conclusions about her young secretary.

Direction as it relates to Consider:

Margo weighs the pros and cons of keeping Eve around:

MARGO

She works hard.

 

BIRDIE

Night an' day.

 

MARGO

She's loyal and efficient --

 

BIRDIE

Like an agent with one client.

 

MARGO

She thinks only of me . . . doesn't she?

Margo's contemplation of Eve leads her to conclude:

MARGO

And I'll have you know I'm fed up with both the

young lady and her qualities! Studying me as --

as if I were a play or a set of blueprints! How I

walk, talk, think, eat, sleep!

Stipulation as it relates to Learning:

As time goes by Margo learns more and more about Eve's strategy to advance her career: From a phone call Margo learns that Eve is slyly ingratiating herself in with Bill in the guise of being helpful; charmed her way into the understudy's job without Margo knowing; achieved an amazingly impressive cold reading at Miss Caswell's audition; publicly trashed Margo in Addison's column.

Catalyst as it relates to Attitude:

Margo's and Eve's attitude moves the subjective story along: Eve lies to everyone who wants to help her, tries to steal Margo's boyfriend, and goes behind Margo's back to get the understudy job, all of which causes Margo to retaliate. Margo's injured diva way of behaving toward Eve, including publicly insulting Eve during the party, causes many repercussions that moves the story forward.

Inhibitor as it relates to Rationalization:

Just when conflict is about to escalate Eve uses rationalization to diffuse the situation. She justifies everything she does as being helpful, as when she "forgets" to tell Margo that she placed the coast-to-coast birthday call to Bill Sampson:

EVE

Oh, golly. And I forgot to tell you --

 

MARGO

Yes, dear. You forgot all about it.

 

EVE

Well, I was sure you'd want to, of course, being

his birthday, and you've been so busy these past

few days, and last night I meant to tell you before

you went out with the Richards -- and I guess I

was asleep when you got home . . .

 

MARGO

Yes, I guess you were. It -- it was very thoughtful

of you, Eve.

 

EVE

Mr. Sampson's birthday. I certainly wouldn't

forget that. You'd never forgive me. As a

matter of fact, I sent him a telegram myself. . .

Eve's smoke screen of rationalization makes it hard for Margo to discover Eve's true nature until it's almost too late for Margo to recover her professional status and her personal life.

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Margo Channing's THROUGHLINE:

Role:

Leading stage actress

Description:

Margo Channing, a five-foot-two package of energy, is an acclaimed actress with the talent and timeless beauty that allows her to play twenty-year-olds at age forty.

"An attractive, strong face. She is childish, adult, reasonable, unreasonable -- usually one when she should be the other, but always positive. She pours a stiff drink."

(Mankiewicz, p. 9)

Throughline Synopsis:

Margo Channing is a successful actress who's spent decades building her career. She has everything she wants except a man of her own, meaning marriage. She loves Bill Sampson, but he's eight years younger than her, and she's worried he really wants a young woman. Kind-hearted, Margo takes in her avid fan, Eve. After a month Margo suspects Eve isn't as innocent as she appears. Margo has to fight her friends when she drops her support of Eve. Margo loses Bill because of her jealous rages over Eve. Margo tries to put her situation in perspective, admitting that she regrets dropping her personal life for a career. Margo gets Bill back; decides to marry him right away and spend more time being a wife than being an actress.

Backstory:

ADDISON (VO)

Margo Channing is a Star of the Theatre. She

made her first stage appearance, at the age of four,

in Midsummer Night's Dream. She played a fairy

and entered -- quite unexpectedly -- stark naked.

She has been a Star ever since.

 

In spite of her less than auspicious debut, Margo achieved stardom but is still self-conscious about her humble beginnings:

MARGO

Please don't play governess, Karen. I haven't

your unyielding good taste; I wish I'd gone to

Radcliffe too but Father wouldn't hear of it -- he

needed help at the notions counter. . .

Domain as it relates to Universe:

Margo lives in a warm cocoon created by a successful acting career, supportive friends like Lloyd and Karen Richards, producer Max Fabian, faithful maid Birdie, and her adoring younger lover, Bill. Margo finds herself getting older, yet the women she plays on stage are as young as ever. As an aging star, Margo knows her days as Broadway's reigning star are numbered. She's scared to death that when she retires from the theater she'll be alone, without a career and without a man to love her.

Concern as it relates to The Future:

Margo is concern about her future: Will she have a man to call her own, namely Bill, or will she have only an album of clippings to share the rest of her life with?

MARGO

Bill's in love with Margo Channing. [. . .] but ten

years from now -- Margo Channing will have

ceased to exist. And what's left will be . . . what?

Range as it relates to Delay:

Margo represents delay. She puts off giving Bill an answer to his proposals of marriage. She is constantly late causing delays in everyone's schedules. She keeps waiting to be sure if it's Margo the woman, not Margo the star that Bill wants. Margo's a hour and a half late getting to Miss Caswell's audition which allows Eve to read in Margo's place. Even after Bill tells Margo he loves her and again offers marriage she puts him off:

BILL

Then what would be enough? If we got married?

 

MARGO

I wouldn't want you to marry me just to prove

something.

 

BILL

You've had so many reasons for not wanting to

marry. . . Margo, tell me what's behind all this.

Counterpoint as it relates to Choice:

Margo finally makes firm choices about her life: She decides to marry Bill right away; finally accepts the age difference between her and Bill; decides that she doesn't have to play girls twenty years younger than she is any more:

MARGO

[. . . ] I mean it, now. Grown-up women only,

I might even play a mother -- only one child,

of course, and not over eight. . .

Thematic Conflict as it relates to Delay vs. Choice:

At first Margo delays making a judgment about Eve's character until she's sure Eve is on the make for Bill; she delays marrying Bill until she's positive he truly loves her. However, once Margo makes a decision about something she sticks with her choice. Nothing or no one will convince her that Eve is anything but a conniving actress on the make. Once Margo chooses to marry Bill, she glows with bride-like enthusiasm, calling her fiancé "Groom" during their announcement dinner with Karen and Lloyd. Margo's use of choice solves her problems: the age difference between her and Bill doesn't matter anymore; she doesn't have to play young girls now that she's secure as an older woman; Bill's choice to marry her in three days destroys her concerns that Eve will steal him away.

Problem as it relates to Support:

Margo's efforts to support to Eve, then to get support from her friends causes problems: At first Margo's maternal instincts drive her to take Eve into her home, thus giving Eve opportunities to upset Margo's life. Later, when Margo suspects that Eve is just using her, she asks for Karen, Lloyd, and Bill to back her up. But they believe Margo is over-reacting:

BILL

[. . .] So when you start judging an idealistic

dreamy-eyed kid by the barroom, Benzedrine

standards of this megalomaniac society -- I won't

have it! [. . .] And to intimate anything else doesn't

spell jealousy to me -- it spells a paranoiac insecurity

that you should be ashamed of!

 

MARGO

Cut! Print it! What happens in the next reel?

Do I get dragged off screaming to the snake pit?

Solution as it relates to Oppose:

Ultimately, Margo's problems are resolved when she ceases her opposition to Bill's marriage proposals and stops fighting the aging process. In hindsight, Margo's opposition to Eve was right on the mark. When Karen, Lloyd, and Bill quit opposing Margo and acknowledge that she was right all along, her life becomes happier.

Focus as it relates to Avoidance:

Margo's use of avoidance creates problems: She dodges the age issue and refuses to commit to a permanent relationship with Bill. She gets drunk at Bill's welcome home party because she's terrified that he'll run off with young Eve. A drunk Margo admits to Lloyd that she's forty:

MARGO

That slipped out, I hadn't quite made up my mind

to admit it. Now I feel as if I'd suddenly taken

all my clothes off . . . And I'm not interested in

whether thousands of people think I'm six or six

hundred --

 

LLOYD

Just one person. Isn't that so? You know what

this is all about, don't you? It has very little to do

with whether you should play "Cora" -- it has

everything to do with the fact you've had another

fight with Bill.

 

MARGO

Bill's thirty-two. He looks thirty-two. He looked

it five years ago, he'll look it twenty years from

now. I hate men.

Margo's primary evasive tactic is to throw tantrums. But she throws one too many and Bill finally breaks up with her.

Direction as it relates to Pursuit:

Margo attempts to solve her problems by using pursuit: Although Margo's reluctant to commit to Bill, she warns him not to fall for a glamour girl while he's in Hollywood:

MARGO

You're a setup for some gorgeous wide-eyed

young babe.

After Margo is convinced that Eve is too dangerous to have under her roof, Margo goes after her producer, Max Fabian, to hire Eve to work in his office.

Stipulation as it relates to The Present:

Margo judges how things are going in her life by her relationship with Bill. At first she's obviously love-struck, if yet a little uncertain about him, teasing him about falling for starlets during his trip to Hollywood; she's lonely and uneasy when he's been gone a month; she predicts disaster and goes into a panic when she sees Bill in intimate conversation with Eve. After Bill walks out on her, and she's stuck in the car on a country road with Karen, Margo assesses her situation:

MARGO

I haven't been very pleasant this week-end.

 

KAREN

[. . . ] You're Margo. Just -- Margo.

 

MARGO

And what is that? [. . .] Besides something called

a temperament. . . infants behave the way I do,

you know . . . When they feel unwanted or insecure

-- or unloved . . .

 

KAREN

What about Bill?

 

MARGO

More than anything in this world, I love Bill.

And I want Bill. I want him to want me. But me.

Not Margo Channing. And if I can't tell them

apart -- how can he?

Unique Ability as it relates to Preconception:

Margo's friends perceive her tantrums over Eve as just jealous rages, but Margo's instincts are right on target; she sticks with her gut feeling that something is wrong. Margo's unwillingness to re-evaluate Eve's motives saves her from more of Eve's sly comments and efforts to undermine her personal life and career. Margo ultimately achieves personal happiness, and it's that happiness that keeps Margo from being bitter and vindictive towards Eve. Margo could have remained intolerant of her rival, but she allows Eve to achieve her goal which leads to the story outcome of success.

Critical Flaw as it relates to Closure:

Margo's inability to bring closure to the age issue between her and Bill almost causes her to lose him. In fact, he does break up with her. Margo's unwilling to come to a resolution with Bill concerning his intentions toward Eve:

BILL

Margo, let's make peace.

 

MARGO

The terms are too high. Unconditional surrender.

 

BILL

Just being happy? Just stopping all this nonsense about

Eve -- and Eve and me?

 

MARGO

It's not nonsense.

 

BILL

But if I tell you it is -- as I just did. Were you

listening to me? Isn't that enough?

 

MARGO

I wish it were.

---

Eve Harrington's THROUGHLINE:

Role:

Conniving Aspiring Actress

Description:

"She wears a cheap trench coat, low-heeled shoes, a rain hat stuck on the back of her head. . . her large, luminous eyes seem to glow up at Karen in the strange half-light."

(Mankiewicz, p. 18)

Throughline Synopsis:

Eve Harrington is a poor girl who'll do anything to achieve success as a stage actress. She ingratiates herself to Margo Channing, a famous actress. Margo takes Eve in as her secretary. Once on the "inside" of Margo's life, Eve sets out to fuel Margo's insecurities and fears. When Margo realizes what Eve is up to, she very openly and loudly questions Eve's character and motives. But Eve has all of Margo's friends and her fiancé totally fooled. They side with Eve against Margo, who's feeling more alone and fragile than ever. Eve goes too far when she smears Margo in a newspaper column, exposing her true nature to everyone. Margo's friends, ashamed for not believing her, run to her support and unite against Eve.

Backstory:

Raised in Wisconsin as an only child, Eve developed an interest in acting and make-believe. She became a secretary in a brewery and joined a Milwaukee theater group where she met her husband, Eddie. During WWII Eddie was shipped to the South Pacific. Eve planned to meet him on leave in San Francisco, but upon arriving there she learned that Eddie was killed in action. She decided to stay in San Francisco where she saw Margo Channing in a play and became star-struck. When the play closed and Margo returned to New York, Eve went to New York, too. But this is all a fabrication; Eve has never been married and has never lived in San Francisco. In reality she's just poor and ruthlessly ambitious.

Domain as it relates to Mind:

Eve's total being is focused on becoming an stage actress, particularly playing a lead role in one of Lloyd Richard's plays, replacing Margo Channing as Broadway's reigning actress. Eve never wavers from her goal: She travels alone to New York to meet her idol; learns the names of Margo's friends; learns the background on Margo's favorite playwright; attends every performance and waits at the stage door night after night to catch a glimpse of Margo; charms Margo's best friend to get an introduction; becomes Margo's personal secretary; asks Karen Richards to sponsor her as a replacement for Margo's pregnant understudy. Everything that Eve does is aimed toward one end only, to become in actress in a Broadway play.

Concern as it relates to The Subconscious:

Eve strives to fulfill her desire to be a stage actress. She equates the basic need for love with audience applause for a performance.

EVE

[. . .] Why if there's nothing else -- there's

applause. I've listened, from backstage, to people

applaud. It's like -- like waves of love coming

over the footlights and wrapping you up.

Range as it relates to Hope:

Eve hopes to meet Margo by standing night after night at the stage door, until one night Karen Richards speaks to her and brings her into the theater; once inside Margo's household, Eve hopes to get on stage as an actress by ingratiating herself to Margo's theater friends; once in the position of Margo's understudy, she hopes to have an opportunity to show everyone her acting ability.

Counterpoint as it relates to Dream:

Although Eve is an amateur actress who works as a personal secretary, she dreams of one day standing on a theater stage accepting audience applause:

EVE

[. . .] Imagine. . . to know, every night, that

different hundreds of people love you. . . they smile,

their eyes shine -- you've pleased them, they

want you, you belong. Just that alone is worth

anything . . .

Thematic Conflict as it relates to Hope vs. Dream:

Eve's hopes that through her manipulation of Margo and Margo's friends she'll get a part in a Broadway play. Her dream of one day accepting applause is illustrated when she takes Margo's costume, holds the gown up to herself, and practices bowing in front of a backstage mirror. It's Eve's dream to become a stage star that is realized in record time.

Problem as it relates to Pursuit:

Eve's relentless use of pursuit causes problems for Margo Channing. She attempts to seduce anyone who can advance her acting career, and goes after director Bill Sampson, who is Margo's lover:

EVE

Don't run away, Bill.

 

BILL

From what would I be running?

 

EVE

You're always after truth -- on the stage.

What about off?

 

BILL

I'm for it.

 

EVE

Then face it. I have. Since that first night -- here

-- in this dressing room. [. . .] When you told me

that whatever I became, it would because of

you. . . and for you.

BILL

You're quite a girl.

 

EVE

You think?

 

BILL

I'm in love with Margo. Hadn't you heard?

. . . I'm only human, rumors to the contrary.

And I'm as curious as the next man. . .

 

EVE

Find out.

Solution as it relates to Avoidance:

Eve lies about her background to escape her sordid past. Then when it's obvious that Margo is angry at Eve for reading in her place at Miss Caswell's audition, Eve tries to prevent Lloyd from telling Margo how good she was, knowing that it would make Margo even more furious:

MARGO

How was Miss Caswell?

 

LLOYD

Back to the Copacabana. But Eve. Margo,

let me tell you about Eve --

 

EVE

(breaking in) I was dreadful, Miss Channing,

believe me -- I have no right to be anyone's

understudy, much less yours. . .

 

Focus as it relates to Reconsider:

Eve's use of reconsider causes problems for Margo: Once Eve realizes that Margo is suspicious of her, she rethinks her options and gets Karen to sponsor her for the understudy position, which leads Margo to make a scene when she finds out, and eventually causes Bill to break up with her; Eve reconsiders her "subtle" approach to getting what she wants, and openly smears Margo in Addison De Witt's column. That column hurts Margo deeply and reduces her to tears.

Direction as it relates to Consider:

Eve doesn't take into consideration that Margo will notice her manipulations, thinking she will be so pleased with her as a secretary:

BILL

I get a party, don't I?

 

MARGO

Of course, birthday and welcome home . . .

Who'll I ask?

 

BILL

It's no secret, I know all about the party --

Eve wrote me . . .

 

MARGO

She did. . . ?

 

BILL

She hasn't missed a week since I left -- but you

know all that, you probably tell her what to write

. . . anyway, I sent her a list of people to ask --

check with her.

 

MARGO

Yeah. . . I will.

Stipulation as it relates to The Conscious:

As the story progresses Eve knows how her actions will hurt Margo, but she doesn't hesitate doing what ever leads to a great role in a Broadway play: When it becomes obvious that Margo has turned against her, Eve approaches Karen to ask the producer of "Aged in Wood" to consider her as Margo's understudy; Reassured by the fact that Lloyd, Bill, and Max were impressed by her reading during the audition, Eve invites theater critics to her "surprise" performance which leads to favorable reviews on her acting; To Eve it's a sensible move to seduce director Bill Sampson because he can help promote her career; Rejected by Bill, Eve contemplates marriage to playwright Lloyd Richards. With every scheme Eve implements, she moves steadily towards getting on stage as an actress.

Unique Ability as it relates to Denial:

Eve's use of denial causes Margo problems. She'll never give up on her goal of becoming a stage actress. She relentlessly uses her position with Margo to meet and cultivate anyone who can help her. Eve denies being anything but a sweet young thing who adores and idolizes Margo. This puts Margo in a dilemma; is she truly obsessing over the age difference between her and Bill, or is there really an evil twin hiding under Eve's innocent, smiling mask? Margo has to battle her friends over her negative opinion of Eve while the young woman denies doing anything wrong:

MARGO

Don't get up. And please stop acting as if I were the

queen mother.

 

EVE

(hurt)

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--

 

BILL

(sharply)

Outside of a beehive, Margo, your behavior would

hardly be considered either queenly or motherly!

 

MARGO

You're in a beehive, pal, didn't you know? We're

all busy little bees, full of stings, making honey

dayand night--

(to Eve)

-- aren't we honey?

 

KAREN

Margo, really. . .

Critical Flaw as it relates to Openness:

Eve's use of openness threatens her chance of becoming a stage actress. Eve's willing to use any underhanded act that will advance her career: She lies about her background to make Margo, Lloyd, and Karen befriend her, but the cunning Addison De Witt uncovers a mistake in her story; tips her hand when she boldly invites New York's theater critics to see an understudy's performance when no one should know in advance that Eve would even go on:

ADDISON'S VOICE

[. . .] All of us -- invited that afternoon to attend

an understudy's performance. . . about which

the management knew nothing until they were

forced to ring up the curtain at nine o'clock.

Coincidence. Also every indication of intrigue,

skullduggery and fraud. . .

Eve has no qualms about trashing Margo in Addison's column, and she finally sets everyone who had supported her against her.

---

ACT PROGRESSIONS:

The Objective Throughline Act Order:

Objective Story Signpost #1 as it relates to Becoming:

Eve becomes Margo's secretary; Margo becomes a mentor; Karen becomes Eve's friend and sponsor; Bill Sampson is transformed from a stage director to a movie director during his stay in Hollywood.

Objective Story Journey #1 from Becoming to Conceptualizing:

On the way to his Hollywood-bound plane Bill envisions how he can protect the woman he loves by asking Eve to watch over Margo while he's gone:

BILL

Hey -- junior . . .

Margo turns to look at him with Eve.

BILL

Keep your eye on her. Don't let her get lonely. She's a

loose lamb in a jungle. . .

Objective Story Signpost #2 as it relates to Conceptualizing:

Miss Caswell envisions that by flirting with producer Max Fabian she can get an audition; Max envisions he can get out of a "situation" with Miss Caswell by giving her an audition for a part he's replacing in his current production; Margo envisions getting rid of Eve, and agrees to read with Miss Caswell at an audition as a favor if Max will give Eve a job in his office; Karen imagines that if she helps Eve become Margo's understudy, Margo will cheer the appointment, so she plans to talk Lloyd and Max into the idea:

EVE

Do you think Miss Channing would approve?

 

KAREN

I think she'd cheer.

 

EVE

But Mr. Richards and Mr. Sampson--

 

KAREN

They'll do as they're told.

Objective Story Journey #2 from Conceptualizing to Being:

Karen's plan to make Eve Margo's understudy backfires and Margo throws a major tantrum. Karen finally has enough of Margo's behavior. She envisions yet another idea of how to fix things, and at the same time moves into the role of teacher. During their weekend in the country, Karen drains the car of gas, causing Margo to miss her train and a performance. But Karen regrets her prank after Margo shares her darkest fears with her.

There are tears in Karen's eyes.

KAREN

Margo.

(she hesitates)

Margo, I want you to know how sorry I am

about this. . .

(Mankiewicz, p.157)

Objective Story Signpost #3 as it relates to Being:

Bill adopts the role of the groom when he asks Karen and Lloyd to stand up with him and Margo at their wedding; Eve adopts the lifestyle of an actress by rehearsing the lead of Lloyd's new play; Lloyd adopts the role of Eve's mentor, running out in the middle of the night to soothe her nerves before the try-outs in New Haven.

Objective Story Journey #3 from Being to Conceiving:

When Karen drops her role as Eve's guardian angel, Lloyd adopts the role of Eve's mentor and advocate during the rehearsal of his new play.

KAREN'S VOICE

[. . .] I've never known Lloyd to meddle as much

with Bill's directing -- as far as it affected Eve,

that is. . .

Karen realizes the shift in roles and the idea comes to her that she may be losing her husband to Eve.

KAREN'S VOICE

It seemed to me I had known always that it would

happen -- and here it was. I felt helpless, that

helplessness you feel when you have no talent

to offer -- outside of loving your husband. How

could I compete?. . .

Objective Story Signpost #4 as it relates to Conceiving:

Eve comes up with the idea that Lloyd should leave his wife and marry her, so he can write plays for Eve to star in; Addison invents his own scenario in which Eve will be his mistress, or he'll reveal her real name and sordid past; the young, obsessive fan, Phoebe, invents the idea to sneak into Eve's apartment to meet her and worm her way into Eve's life just like Eve invaded Margo's life.

The Subjective Throughline Act Order:

Subjective Story Signpost #1 as it relates to Understanding:

Eve understands the importance of Karen's introducing her to Margo:

EVE

Mrs. Richards . . . I'll never forget this night as

long as I live. And I'll never forget you for

making it possible . . .

Eve understands how much Margo needs to be alone with Bill at the airport. She arranges for them to have a few minutes together; Eve's thoughtfulness instantly endears her to Margo.

MARGO

. . . isn't it silly, suddenly I've developed

a big, protective feeling for her [Eve]. . .

Subjective Story Journey #1 from Understanding to Doing:

Margo begins to understand the meaning of Eve's model behavior, suspecting that Eve is trying to wreck her lovelife. Margo goes on the warpath, and fights back:

MARGO

Stop calling her a kid! It so happens there are

particular aspects of my life to which I would

like to maintain sole and exclusive rights and

privileges!

 

BILL

For instance what?

 

MARGO

For instance -- you!

Subjective Story Signpost #2 as it relates to Doing:

Eve begins to execute her plan to become an actress as she performs duties as Margo's personal secretary; screens Margo's phone calls; decorates Margo's dressing room; carries scripts to the Actor's Guild for Margo; asks Karen to sponsor her for the understudy job. Margo insults Eve during Bill's birthday party; gets rid of Eve by making a deal with Max Fabian to hire Eve to work in his office.

Subjective Story Journey #2 from Doing to Obtaining:

Margo arrives at the audition an hour and a half late, allowing Eve to give an impressive reading and earn praise for her acting. This leads to Margo throwing an impressive temper tantrum that loses her Bill.

Subjective Story Signpost #3 as it relates to Obtaining:

Eve gets the job of Margo's understudy; gets a chance to perform Margo's part in "Aged in Wood;" achieves praise from theater critics on her acting. Margo loses Bill because of her latest jealous rage over Eve; loses the chance to perform in her play when she's stuck in the country with Lloyd and Karen.

Subjective Story Journey #3 from Obtaining to Learning:

Margo has gone through a painful learning experience because of Eve. She learns to forgive Eve for her malice.

MARGO

Do you know why I forgive Eve? Because she

left good behind -- the four of us, together like this.

It's Eve's fault -- I forgive her. . .

Subjective Story Signpost #4 as it relates to Learning:

Margo learns there's no limit to what Eve will do to make it as an actress; learns that Eve called theater critics to view her understudy performance; learns that Eve slandered her in Addison's column.

The Main Character Throughline Act Order:

Main Character Signpost #1 as it relates to The Past:

It's established that Margo has had a long, successful relationship with the stage and her friends in the theater:

KAREN

. . . You're talented, famous, wealthy -- people

waiting around night after night just to see you, even

in the wind and rain . . .

Main Character Journey #1 from The Past to Progress:

Margo has had an open, adult relationship with Bill:

MARGO

I had no idea you were even here.

 

BILL

I ran into Eve on my way upstairs; she told me you were dressing.

 

MARGO

That never stop you before.

 

But now things seems to have changed when Bill praises Eve to Margo too often:

 

MARGO

She's a girl of so many interests.

 

BILL

She's a girl of so many rare qualities.

 

BILL

So she seems.

 

MARGO

So you've pointed out, so often. So many qualities,

so often. Her loyalty, efficiency, devotion. . . So

young and so fair. . .

Main Character Signpost #2 as it relates to Progress:

At first Margo feels things are going great with Eve acting as her secretary and giving her a life of leisure; slowly the situation slides downhill when Margo suspects Eve is stealing Bill away from her and she goes on a drunken rampage during the party:

KAREN

We know you, we've seen you before like this.

Is it over -- or just beginning?

 

MARGO

Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy

night.

Main Character Journey #2 from Progress to The Future:

Margo's life deteriorates when she discovers that Eve has been her understudy for a week, and no one has told her. She accuses Bill of being part of the conspiracy against her. She's so unhappy and insecure, not even a marriage proposal convinces Margo that he wants her, not Eve. Having had enough Bill breaks off with her and walks away.

MARGO

Bill. . .

(he stops)

. . . where are you going? To find Eve?

 

BILL

(smiles grimly)

That suddenly makes the whole thing believable.

(Mankiewicz, p. 144)

Margo, left alone on the empty theater stage, begins to cry.

Main Character Signpost #3 as it relates to The Future:

Margo, stuck on a country road in a car with Karen, is certain to miss a performance for the first time ever. Her golden record is broken, a bad omen for the future. For the first time she's quits avoiding what's truly troubling her and talks honestly to Karen:

MARGO

Bill's in love with Margo Channing. . . but ten

years from now -- Margo Channing will have

ceased to exist. And what's left will be . . . what?

 

KAREN

Bill is all of eight years younger than you.

 

MARGO

Those years stretch as the years go on. I've seen it

happen too often.

Main Character Journey #3 from The Future to The Present:

Having lost Bill after another fight over Eve, Margo fears she will never have a man of her own, and she regrets trading marriage for a career.

MARGO

. . . funny business, a woman's career. The things

you drop on your way up the ladder, so you can

move faster. You forget you'll need them again

when you go back to being a woman. [. . .] in the

last analysis, nothing is any good unless you can

look up just before dinner or turn around in

bed -- and there he is. Without that, you're not a

woman. . . Slow curtain. The end.

Main Character Signpost #4 as it relates to The Present:

Margo is happily getting married to Bill and plans to scale down her acting career to accommodate her marriage.

The Obstacle Character Throughline Act Order:

Obstacle Character Signpost #1 as it relates to Memory:

Eve recalls her personal history to Margo, Lloyd, and Karen:

EVE

I guess it started back home. Wisconsin, that

is. . . I was the only child, and I made believe

a lot when I was a kid -- I acted out all sorts of

things . . .

Obstacle Character Journey #1 from Memory to The Preconscious:

Eve wants so much to live Margo's life as an adored actress, she impulsively rushes out of Margo's dressing room with her stage costume. Instead of returning it to wardrobe as she promised, Eve goes to a backstage mirror, holds the gown up to herself, and bows as if she were accepting the audience's applause, instead of Margo.

Obstacle Character Signpost #2 as it relates to The Preconscious:

When asked if she's happy Eve responds immediately:

EVE

There should be a new word for happiness. Being

here with Miss Channing has been -- I just can't

say, she's been so wonderful, done so much for

me--

Obstacle Character Journey #2 from The Preconscious to The Subconscious:

During Bill's party Eve expresses her deepest desire:

EVE

Why, if there's nothing else -- there's applause.

I've listened, from backstage. . . It's like -- like

waves of love coming over the footlights and

wrapping you up. Imagine. . . to know, every night,

that different hundreds of people love you. . .

you've pleased them, they want you, you belong.

Just that alone is worth anything. . .

Obstacle Character Signpost #3 as it relates to The Subconscious:

Eve wants to play the lead in Lloyd's new play to fulfill her deep desire to be a great actress. She's driven by her desire to the point of blackmailing Karen Richards:

EVE

"Cora" is my part. You've got to tell Lloyd it's for me.

 

KAREN

I don't think anything in the world could make me say

that.

 

EVE

. . . Addison knows how Margo happened to miss

that performance . . . If I play "Cora," Addison

will never tell what happened -- in or out of print. . .

Your friendship with Margo. . . what would

happen to it, do you think, if she knew the cheap

trick you'd played on her -- for my benefit?

Obstacle Character Journey #3 from The Subconscious to The Conscious:

Eve is forced to consider her options when she's blackmailed by Addison. Having no choice Eve relents to his terms, but she's heartbroken at the bitter turn of events. She considers giving up what she worked so hard to for, playing "Cora" in Lloyd's new play:

ADDISON

And you realize -- you agree how completely you

belong to me?

 

EVE

Yes, Addison.

 

ADDISON

Take your nap, now. And good luck for

tonight.

 

EVE

I won't play tonight. I couldn't. Not possibly.

I couldn't go on. . .

Obstacle Character Signpost #4 as it relates to The Conscious:

Eve, knowing everything she's done for success and the price she's paying for it, considers not going to the awards party Max is giving just for her.

EVE

No, it's not.

(she holds up the award)

It's for this.

 

ADDISON

It's the same thing, isn't it?

 

EVE

Exactly. Here. Take it to the party instead of me.

---

Miscellaneous Other Storytelling Items:

All Concerns:

Eve is concerned with fulfilling her dream of becoming an actress. Margo wants to maintain her status as a star, keep her lover from falling for a younger woman, and prevent herself from ending up alone in her old age. Karen wants to help Eve become an actress, and keep Margo as a friend. Lloyd supports Eve becoming an actress because he hopes that her youthfulness will enhance his plays. Bill wants to marry Margo and prove that their age difference doesn't matter to him.

Master Plot Synopsis:

Eve Harrington is a sweet young thing aspiring to a theatrical part. At least she appears sweet and naive when she approaches star [Margo Channing] like an awe-struck fan, flattering the older actress and ingratiating herself to her in a passionate response to Eve's hard luck story. Margo makes Eve her secretary.

(Motion Picture Guide. p. 42)

Playwright Lloyd Richards and Karen, his wife, who have befriended the seemingly guileless Eve, give their approval to this arrangement. Only Birdie Coonan, Margo's outspoken maid, seems to doubt Eve's sincerity. At Margo's homecoming party for Bill Sampson, the young director she hopes to marry, Eve is so superficially indispensable and so attentive to Bill that Margo, unable to contain herself, tells her off in front of her other guests: Max Fabian her producer; drama critic Addison De Witt; and his protégé, Miss Casswell. Hoping to get Eve out of her life, Margo arranges for Max to give her a job at his office. She also promises Max she will read with Miss Casswell during an audition for a part in the play. . . Arriving too late for Miss Caswell's audition, Margo learns from Addison that Eve read in her place and has been awarded the job as her understudy. Furious, Margo berates Lloyd Richards and Bill for scheming behind her back. Bill, assuming Margo is jealous of Eve, walks out on her. Karen, hearing of Margo's rudeness, decides to teach her a lesson in humility by conspiring to have her miss a performance and for Eve to take her place. The following day Addison praises Eve's performance in his newspaper column that carries an interview with Eve in which she makes some unflattering remarks about aging actresses who continue to play young girls. Bill, who rebuffed Eve's advances the previous night, rushes to Margo with his apologies for having mistrusted her judgment of Eve. At an intimate party celebrating Margo's engagement to Bill, Karen is approached by Eve who disclaims the statements in Addison's column. She tries blackmailing Karen into pressuring Lloyd to cast her in the leading role of his new play. Before imploring Karen to tell her about what Eve had to say, Margo tells Lloyd she intends retiring and asks him to find another actress to star in his new play. Eve, awarded the lead in Lloyd's play, tells Addison, just before the opening in New Haven, that Lloyd intends to divorce Karen and marrying her. Enlightening Eve to the fact that he is on to her schemes and knows about her sordid past, Addison tells her she belongs to him, not Lloyd. After winning acclaim as the year's best actress, Eve returns to her hotel and finds a young girl asleep in a chair. The girl, professing to be a great admirer of Eve's, mentions her stage aspirations. Eve, absorbed with her own triumphs, does not realize she is being taken in by a creature just like herself.

(Ringgold. p. 148-149)

Master Theme Synopsis:

Be careful what you wish for, you might get it. Margo wants young Bill, but having him keeps her worried about losing him. She's dedicated herself to her career, has wealth and acclaim, but now at age forty regrets trading a husband and family for her life in the theater. Eve wants to be a great stage actress, getting a prestigious role without "paying her dues" first. She gets a great leading role, but learns that she can't escape paying a high price for success.

Subjective Character Synopsis:

Margo Channing is an aging Broadway star who has respect, wealth, and adoring friends. She has everything she wants, but is bothered that she's eight years older than Bill Sampson, her lover. While she's a strong woman in every aspect of her life, when it comes to Bill, Margo is vulnerable and insecure. Eve Harrington, a poor, aspiring actress with a shady past, is hungry for adoration and success. Eve is hard-hearted and ruthless; she'll do anything and use anyone to get what she wants. She is very good at deception; she acts off stage as well as on. At first Margo feels sorry for Eve and takes her in. Eve immediately starts to use the theater's golden circle to get a stage role, preferably a starring one. Margo's instincts tell her Eve is not what she seems, but Margo's friends won't listen to her. Margo persists until her fiancé leaves her, and her best friend tricks Margo into missing a performance to "teach her a lesson." Finally Eve's blatant back-stabbing proves to everyone that Margo was right about her. Margo and Bill are reunited and become officially engaged, sealing Margo's happiness. Now Margo's so happy in her personal life she gives up a starring stage role that eventually goes to Eve. Eve becomes an acclaimed actress, but success is bittersweet. She's forced to pay for her sordid past and her evil deeds by a man who is more hard-hearted than she could ever be.

Master Character Synopsis:

Eve Harrington, the young actress, represents unbridled ambition as she's dedicated to becoming a successful actress quickly through deceit and manipulation. Margo Channing, a stage star at the peak of her career, is haunted by the specter of age, and becomes jealous of every young woman who crosses her fiancé's path. Bill Sampson, a premiere stage director, loves his work and Margo unconditionally, but can't stand her obsession with the difference in their ages. Karen Richards, a kind-hearted playwright's wife, is caught between obligation to Margo and her guilt at bringing Eve into the lives of her friends. Lloyd Richards is an ambitious playwright, whose plays Margo has made into hits, but he yearns to have a young actress play his twenty-something stage heroines. Addison De Witt, the cynical theater critic, is the only one who understands what Eve will do to reach her goal, and he uses his knowledge to blackmail her to get what he wants, which is her. Max Fabian is a producer who worries about making money, but loves the theater and Margo.