Simmons was named Best Actress by the National Board of Review, and Gordon's screenplay was nominated Best Written American Comedy by the Writers Guild of America despite being far more dramatic than comedic.

[3] In Wollaston, Massachusetts in 1913, teenage student Ruth Gordon Jones dreams of a theatrical career after becoming mesmerized by a performance of The Pink Lady in a Boston theater.

As a young man, Clinton's bad experiences at home forced him to leave school and run away to sea, so he is dismayed that his daughter rejects the educational opportunities he would have liked for himself.

In addition to overcoming her father's objections, Ruth must deal with her feelings for Fred Whitmarsh, a handsome student at Harvard University who falls in love with her and eventually proposes marriage.

Director George Cukor wanted Debbie Reynolds for the lead; she was greatly disappointed when MGM executive Dore Schary decided not to cast her in the role.