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Executive Suite Overview:

Executive Suite (1954) was a Drama - Film Adaptation Film directed by Robert Wise and produced by John Houseman and Jud Kinberg.

Academy Awards 1954 --- Ceremony Number 27 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best Supporting ActressNina FochNominated
Best Art DirectionArt Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Edward Carfagno; Set Decoration: Edwin B. Willis, Emile KuriNominated
Best CinematographyGeorge FolseyNominated
Best Costume DesignHelen RoseNominated
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Executive Suite BlogHub Articles:

Executive Suite (1954)

By 4 Star Film Fan on May 29, 2019 From 4 Star Films

Executive Suite is a story of the high rise corporate jungle where on a daily basis it’s a Darwinian experiment not only pitting company against company but, on a microscale, man against man. After all, in the most cynical sense, that’s what free market capitalism is. Top to bottom, th... Read full article

Executive Suite (1954)

By Beatrice on Nov 20, 2015 From Flickers in Time

Executive Suite Directed by Robert Wise Written by Ernest Lehman based on the novel by Cameron Hawley 1954/USA Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer First viewing/Amazon Instant The fantastic cast could not quite overcome the didactic story line. Avery Bullard is the Chief Executive Officer of Tredway Corporatio... Read full article

"Executive Suite," or Separate Tables

By David on Jan 12, 2014 From The Man on the Flying Trapeze

The 1954 film "Executive Suite" begins with an ending: The man lying dead on the Wall Street sidewalk, shot from a POV perspective by director Robert Wise, is Avery Bullard, CEO of the Tredway Corporation of Millburgh, Pennsylvania. Tredway makes furniture, and until about two minutes ago Bulla... Read full article

"Executive Suite," or Separate Tables

By David on Jan 12, 2014 From The Man on the Flying Trapeze

The 1954 film "Executive Suite" begins with an ending: The man lying dead on the Wall Street sidewalk, shot from a POV perspective by director Robert Wise, is Avery Bullard, CEO of the Tredway Corporation of Millburgh, Pennsylvania. Tredway makes furniture, and until about two minutes ago Bulla... Read full article

Executive Suite from Warner Archive

By Jill Blake on Jul 20, 2013 From Sittin' on a Backyard Fence

William Holden was the king of the 1950s. In 1939, he made his debut in Golden Boy alongside his dear friend Barbara Stanwyck. Throughout the 1940s, Holden was absent from Hollywood while he served in WWII. He then made a huge return with Sunset Blvd. (1950), Born Yesterday (1950), and Stalag 17 (19... Read full article

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Executive Suite Quotes:

George Nyle Caswell: Do me a favor, will you? Read the funnies.
Mrs. George Nyle Caswell: There aren't any in The Times. Don't you know that?
George Nyle Caswell: Then read 'Situations Wanted.' You may need one.
McDonald Walling: We'll have a line of low-priced furniture, a new and different line - as different from anything we're making today as a modern automobile is different from a covered wagon. That's what you want Walt, isn't it - what you've always wanted? Merchandise that will sell because it had beauty and function and value - not because the buyers like your scotch or think that you're a good egg. The kind of stuff that you, Jesse, will feel in your guts when you know it's coming off your production line. A kind of product that you will be able to budget to the nearest hundredth of a cent, Shaw, because it will be scientifically and efficiently designed. And something you will be proud to have your name on, Miss Tredway.
McDonald Walling: The force behind a great company has to be more than the pride of one man; it has to be the pride of thousands. You can't make men work for money alone - you starve their souls when you try it, and you can starve a company to death the same way.
McDonald Walling: [picking up a small, flimsy table] And that's when we started doing things like this: the KF line. Walt, are your boys proud when they go out and sell this stuff? When they know the finish is going to crack, the veneer split off and the legs come loose?
Loren Phineas Shaw: Wait a minute, wait a minute. That's priced merchandise - it serves a definite purpose in the profit structure of this company. We're not cheating anyone.
McDonald Walling: Ourselves!
Loren Phineas Shaw: At that price, the customer knows exactly what he is going to get.
McDonald Walling: This!
[flips the table over, and easily tears off one of its legs]
McDonald Walling: This is what Tredway has come to mean!
[violently throws the leg against the wall]
McDonald Walling: And what do you suppose the people think of us when they buy it? How do you suppose the men in the factories feel when they make it? What must they think of a management that is willing to stoop to selling this kind of junk in order to add a dime a year to the dividend?
[last lines]
[Mr. and Mrs. Walling enter an elevator]
McDonald Walling: Hey, by the way, who won today?
Mary Blemond Walling: We did.
Josiah Walter Dudley: You don't know me as well as you think you do. A guy can change, you know.
Eva Bardeman: You wanna bet?
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Executive Suite Facts
Producer John Houseman wanted Henry Fonda for the role of McDonald Walling. Fonda turned him down to star in a Broadway musical that never reached the stage.
According to Oliver Stone, who did the commentary on the DVD for this film, the beginning was narrated by Edward R. Murrow.
The entire story takes place during the 24 hour period from Friday afternoon, June 19 1953 to Saturday afternoon, June 20 1953.
The Tredway Corporation headquarters building seen in exterior shots is actually the Pennsylvania Power & Light (PPL) building in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
For years it was believed that NBC news anchor Chet Huntley, who narrates the opening of the film, also played Avery Bullard, when in fact he did not. The role was played by Raoul Freeman. Neither Huntley nor Freeman received screen credit.
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