Blossoms in the Dust

Blossoms in the Dust

The stirring saga of a childless beauty...who was determined to be a mother!

NR 1941 · 99 min · ★ 6.7 · Drama, Romance

Edna marries Texan Sam Gladney, operator of a wheat mill. They have a son, who is killed when very young. Edna discovers by chance how the law treats children who are without parents and decides to do something about it. She opens a home for foundlings and orphans and begins to place children in good homes, despite the opposition of "conservative" citizens, who would condemn illegitimate children for being born out of wedlock. Eventually Edna leads a fight in the Texas legislature to remove the stigma of illegitimacy from birth records in that state, while continuing to be an advocate for homeless children.

Directed by Mervyn LeRoy · Written by Ralph Wheelwright

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Rent or Buy

Cast

Greer Garson Edna Gladney
Walter Pidgeon Sam Gladney
Felix Bressart Dr. Max Breslar
Marsha Hunt Charlotte
Fay Holden Mrs. Catherine Kahly
Samuel S. Hinds Mr. George Kahley
Kathleen Howard Mrs. Sarah Keats
George Lessey Mr. Keats
William Henry Allan Keats
Henry O'Neill Judge
John Eldredge Damon McPherson
Clinton Rosemond Zeke

More from Mervyn LeRoySee all →

My American Wife

My American Wife · 1922

My American Wife

Manuel La Tessa, son of a wealthy South American family, meets Natalie Chester, a young Kentucky woman whose horse has won a race at a South American track. Manuel gives a party in her honor, where she is insulted by one of the guests. Manuel knocks down the offender. The offender, whose father is a powerful figure in the country's politics, challenges Manuel to a duel, but also hires a man to hide in ambush and kill his opponent. Manuel is only wounded and Natalie nurses him back to health. Natalie loves Manuel and seeks to uncover the mystery of the bullet fired at him during the duel. A lost film.

Little Johnny Jones

Little Johnny Jones · 1923

Little Johnny Jones

MovieComedyDrama

Jockey Johnny Jones is hired to ride The Earl of Bloomsburg's horse at the English Derby. Crooked gambler Robert Anstead frames Johnny as a thief and kidnaps his sweetheart in order to make Johnny throw the race. Will he succeed?

Unholy Partners

Unholy Partners · 1941

Unholy Partners

MovieCrimeDrama

A crusading newsman starts up a tabloid with a gangster as his 50-50 partner.

The Wizard of Oz

The Wizard of Oz · 1939

The Wizard of Oz

MovieAdventureFantasy

Young Dorothy finds herself in a magical world where she makes friends with a lion, a scarecrow and a tin man as they make their way along the yellow brick road to talk with the Wizard and ask for the things they miss most in their lives. The Wicked Witch of the West is the only thing that could stop them.

Waterloo Bridge

Waterloo Bridge · 1940

Waterloo Bridge

MovieDramaRomance

On the eve of World War II, a British officer revisits Waterloo Bridge and recalls the young man he was at the beginning of World War I and the young ballerina he met just before he left for the front.

Little Women

Little Women · 1949

MovieRomanceDrama

Four sisters come of age in America in the aftermath of the Civil War.

I Found Stella Parish

I Found Stella Parish · 1935

I Found Stella Parish

MovieDramaRomance

A blackmailer preys on an actress who is trying to protect her daughter from her past.

Gold Diggers of 1933

Gold Diggers of 1933 · 1933

Gold Diggers of 1933

MovieComedyDrama

When all Broadway shows are shut down during the Depression, a trio of desperate showgirls scheme to bilk a repugnant high society man of his money to keep their show going.

Quo Vadis

Quo Vadis · 1951

MovieDramaHistory

After fierce Roman commander Marcus Vinicius becomes infatuated with beautiful Christian hostage Lygia, he begins to question the tyrannical leadership of the despotic emperor Nero.

East Side, West Side

East Side, West Side · 1949

East Side, West Side

MovieDramaRomance

A vain businessman puts strains on his happy marriage to a rich, beautiful socialite by allowing himself to be seduced by a former girlfriend.

The Bad Seed

The Bad Seed · 1956

MovieThrillerDrama

Air Force Colonel Kenneth Penmark and his wife, Christine, adore their daughter Rhoda, despite her secret tendency for selfishness. Christine keeps her knowledge of her daughter's darker side to herself, but when a schoolmate of Rhoda's dies mysteriously, her self-deception unravels.

Mister Roberts

Mister Roberts · 1955

MovieComedyDrama

Mr. Roberts is a Navy officer who's yearning for battle but is stuck in the backwaters of World War II on a non-commissioned ship run by the bullying Captain Morton.

Any Number Can Play

Any Number Can Play · 1949

Any Number Can Play

When illegal casino owner Charley Kyng develops heart disease, he is advised by a doctor to spend more time with his family. However, he finds it difficult to keep his work separate from his life at home. His son, Paul, feels ashamed of Charley's career and gets into a fight at his prom because of it. Meanwhile, Charley's brother-in-law, Robbin, who works at the casino, begins fixing games due to his extreme gambling debts.

Little Caesar

Little Caesar · 1931

MovieDramaCrime

A small-time hood shoots his way to the top, but how long can he stay there?

The Great Sinner

The Great Sinner · 1949

The Great Sinner

MovieDramaRomance

A young man succumbs to gambling fever.

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo · 1944

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo

In the wake of Pearl Harbor, a young lieutenant leaves his expectant wife to volunteer for a secret bombing mission which will take the war to the Japanese homeland.

More Like This

The Believer

The Believer · 2001

A hardcore US racist skinhead who, because of his intelligence, leads a gang dedicated to fighting the enemy: the supposed American-Jewish conspiracy for domination. However, he's hiding a secret: he's Jewish-born, a brilliant scholar whose questioning of the tenets of his faith has left him angry and confused, turning against those who he thinks have a tragic history of their own making.

Danton

MovieDramaHistory

Danton and Robespierre were close friends and fought together in the French Revolution, but by 1793 Robespierre was France's ruler, determined to wipe out opposition with a series of mass executions that became known as the Reign of Terror. Danton, well known as a spokesman of the people, had been living in relative solitude in the French countryside, but he returned to Paris to challenge Robespierre's violent rule and call for the people to demand their rights. Robespierre, however, could not accept such a challenge, even from a friend and colleague, and he blocked out a plan for the capture and execution of Danton and his allies.

December Boys

December Boys · 2007

MovieDramaRomance

For many years, four teenage orphans at an Australian outback convent have watched their younger comrades find new parents, and realize that they may never be adopted. The Reverend Mother sends the four boys away on a seaside vacation, where they meet Teresa and Fearless, a couple who would make perfect parents. The youths compete with one another to be the one Teresa and Fearless decide to adopt.

Best Seller

Best Seller · 1987

MovieActionCrime

Hit man Cleve approaches writer/cop Dennis about a story for his next book: How Cleve made a living, working for one of the most powerful politicians in the country. To get the story right, they travel around the country to gather statements and evidence, while strong forces use any means they can to keep the story untold.

The Assassination of Trotsky

The Assassination of Trotsky · 1972

The Assassination of Trotsky

MovieDramaHistory

A Stalinist assassin tracks exiled revolutionary Leon Trotsky to Mexico in 1940.

Van Gogh

Van Gogh · 1991

MovieDramaHistory

After leaving the asylum, Vincent van Gogh settles in the home of Doctor Gachet, where he keeps painting amidst the torments of his failing mental health. He begins an affair with his host’s daughter, however, she soon realizes that he doesn’t love her and that his heart beats only for art.

Nightwatching

Nightwatching · 2007

MovieDramaHistory

An extravagant, exotic and moving look at Rembrandt's romantic and professional life, and the controversy he created by the identification of a murderer in the painting The Night Watch.

I'm Not There

I'm Not There · 2007

MovieDramaMusic

Six actors portray six personas of music legend Bob Dylan in scenes depicting various stages of his life, chronicling his rise from unknown folksinger to international icon and revealing how Dylan constantly reinvented himself.

Blow

MovieCrimeDrama

The story of how George Jung, together with the Medellín Cartel led by Pablo Escobar, established the billion-dollar cocaine empire in the United States in the 1970s.

Back to Black

Back to Black · 2024

MovieMusicHistory

The extraordinary story of Amy Winehouse’s early rise to fame from her early days in Camden through the making of her groundbreaking album, Back to Black that catapulted Winehouse to global fame. Told through Amy’s eyes and inspired by her deeply personal lyrics, the film explores and embraces the many layers of the iconic artist and the tumultuous love story at the center of one of the most legendary albums of all time.

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind · 2002

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

MovieComedyCrime

Television made him famous, but his biggest hits happened off screen. Television producer by day, CIA assassin by night, Chuck Barris was recruited by the CIA at the height of his TV career and trained to become a covert operative. Or so Barris said.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter