All My Sons is a three-act play written in 1946 by Arthur Miller.Miller, Arthur. Collected Plays, 1944–1961. New York: Library of America, 2006, p. 756 It opened on Broadway at the Coronet Theatre in New York City on January 29, 1947, closed on November 8, 1947, and ran for 328 performances. It was directed by Elia Kazan (to whom it is dedicated), produced by Kazan and Harold Clurman, and won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award. It starred Ed Begley, Beth Merrill, Arthur Kennedy, and Karl Malden and won both the Tony Award for Best Author and the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play. The play was adapted for films in 1948 and 1987.
Background Miller wrote All My Sons after his first play The Man Who Had All the Luck failed on Broadway, lasting only four performances. Miller wrote All My Sons as a final attempt at writing a commercially successful play; he vowed to "find some other line of work" if the play did not find an audience.
All My Sons is based upon a true story, which Miller's then-mother-in-law pointed out in an Ohio newspaper.Meyers, Jeffrey, The Genius and the Goddess: Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe, University of Illinois Press, (2009), pp. 92–93 The news story described how in 1941–43 the Wright Aeronautical Corporation based in Ohio had conspired with army inspection officers to approve defective aircraft engines destined for military use.Clausen, Henry C., and Lee, Bruce, Pearl Harbor: Final Judgment, Da Capo Press, (2001), pp. 56–58 The story of defective engines had reached investigators working for Sen. Harry Truman's congressional investigative board after several Wright aircraft assembly workers informed on the company; they later testified under oath before Congress. In 1944, three Army Air Force officers, Lt. Col. Frank C. Greulich, Major Walter A. Ryan, and Major William Bruckmann were relieved of duty and later convicted of neglect of duty.Hinton, Harold B., Air Victory: the men and the machines, New York: Harper & Bros. (1948), pp. 249–251Corning, New York Leader (April 5, 1944), p. 9Three Air Officers 'Guilty of Neglect', Ordered Dismissed, The Milwaukee Journal, April 26, 1944, p. 33
Henrik Ibsen's influence on Miller is evident from the Ibsen play The Wild Duck, from where Miller took the idea of two partners in a business where one is forced to take moral and legal responsibility for the other. This is mirrored in All My Sons. He also borrowed the idea of a character's idealism being the source of a problem.
The criticism of the American Dream, which lies at the heart of All My Sons, was one reason why Miller was called to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee during the 1950s, when America was gripped by anti-communist sentiment. Miller sent a copy of the play to Elia Kazan who directed the original stage version of All My Sons. Kazan was a former member of the Communist Party who shared Miller's left-wing views. However, their relationship was destroyed when Kazan gave names of suspected Communists to the House Un-American Activities Committee during the Red Scare.
Characters Joe Keller — Joe, 60, was exonerated after being charged with knowingly shipping defective aircraft engine cylinder heads (for Curtiss P-40 fighters) from his factory during World War II, becoming (in his own words) "the guy who made 21 P-40s crash in Australia". For over three years he has placed the blame on his partner and former neighbor, Steve Deever, although he himself committed the crime. When the truth comes out, Joe justifies his actions by claiming that he did it for his family. Kate Keller (Mother) — Joe's wife, Kate, 50, knows that Joe is guilty but lives in denial while mourning for her elder son Larry, who has been "missing in action" for three years. She refuses to believe that Larry is dead and maintains that Ann Deever — who returns for a visit at the request of Larry's brother Chris — is still "Larry's girl" and also believes that he is coming back. Chris Keller — Joe's son, Chris, 32, returned home from World War II two years before the play begins, disturbed by the realization that the world was continuing as if nothing had happened. He has summoned Ann Deever to the Keller house in order to ask her hand for marriage, but they're faced with the obstacle of Kate's unreasonable conviction that Larry will someday return. Chris idolizes his father, not knowing what he has done. Ann Deever — daughter of the convicted Steve Deever, Ann, 26, arrives at the Keller home having shunned her "guilty" father since his imprisonment. Throughout the play, Ann is often referred to as pretty, beautiful, and intelligent-looking and as "Annie". She had a relationship with Larry Keller before his disappearance and has since moved on because she knows the truth of his fate. She hopes that the Kellers will consent to her marriage to Larry's brother, Chris, with whom she has corresponded by mail for two years. Ann is the truth-bearer in the play. George Deever — George, 31, is Ann's older brother: a successful New York lawyer, World War II veteran, and a childhood friend of Chris. He initially believed in his father's guilt, but upon visiting Steve in jail, realizes his innocence and becomes enraged at the Kellers for deceiving him. He returns to stop his sister from marrying Chris, creating the catalyzing final events. Dr. Jim Bayliss — Jim, 40, is a successful doctor, but is frustrated with the stifling domesticity of his life. He wants to become a medical researcher, but continues in his job as it pays the bills. He is a close friend to the Keller family and spends a lot of time in their backyard. Sue Bayliss — Jim's wife, Sue, 40: needling and dangerous but affectionate. She too is a friend of the Keller family, but is secretly resentful of what she sees as Chris's bad idealistic influence on Jim. Sue confronts Ann with her resentment of Chris in a particularly volatile scene. Frank Lubey — Frank, 33, was always one year ahead of the draft, so he did not serve in World War II. Instead, he married George's former sweetheart, Lydia. He draws up Larry's horoscope and tells Kate that Larry must still be alive, because the day he went missing was meant to be his "favorable day." This strengthens Kate's faith and makes it much harder for Ann to move on. Lydia Lubey — Lydia, 27, was George's love interest before the war; after he went away, she married Frank and they soon had three children. She is a model of peaceful domesticity and lends a much-needed cheerful air to several moments of the play. Bert — Bert, 8, is a little boy who lives in the neighborhood; he is friends with the Bayliss' son Tommy and frequently visits the Kellers' yard to play "jail" with Joe. He appears only twice in the play: the first time, his part seems relatively unimportant, but the second time his character is more important as he sparks a verbal attack from mother when mentioning "jail," which highlights Joe's secret.
Unseen characters Larry Keller — the Kellers' younger son, Larry has been missing in action for some years at the start of the play. However, his presence haunts the play, due to his mother's insistence that he is still alive and because his brother Chris wishes to marry Larry's childhood sweetheart, Ann. Comparisons are also made in the story between Larry and Chris; in particular, their father describes Larry as the more sensible one with a "head for business." Steve Deever — George and Ann's father and Joe Keller's former business partner. Steve is serving a prison sentence for the crime of knowingly shipping defective engines to the Air Force, while Joe has escaped punishment by lying and saying the fault was Steve's alone.
Cast Character Broadway West End Revival Broadway Revival Broadway Revival West End Revival London Revival Broadway Revival West End Revival1947198119872008201020192025Joe Keller Ed Begley Colin Blakely Richard Kiley John Lithgow David Suchet Bill Pullman Tracy Letts Bryan CranstonKate Keller Beth Merrill Rosemary Harris Joyce Ebert Dianne Wiest Zoë Wanamaker Sally Field Annette Bening Marianne Jean-BaptisteChris Keller Arthur Kennedy Garrick Hagon Jamey Sheridan Patrick Wilson Stephen Campbell Moore Colin Morgan Benjamin Walker Paapa EssieduAnn Deever Lois Wheeler Jill Baker Jayne Atkinson Katie Holmes Jemima Rooper Jenna Coleman Francesca Carpanini Hayley SquiresDr. Jim Bayliss John McGovern David Baron Dan Desmond Damian Young Steven Elder Sule Rimi Michael Hayden Richard HansellFrank Lubey Dudley Sadler Ken Drury Stephen Root Jordan Gelber Tom Vaughan-Lawlor Gunnar Cauthery Nehal Joshi Zach WyattLydia Lubey Hope Cameron Pamela Merrick Dawn Didawick Danielle Ferland Olivia Darnley Bessie Carter Jenni Barber Aliyah OdoffinGeorge Deever Karl Malden Richard Durden Christopher Curry Christian Camargo Daniel Lapaine Oliver Johnstone Hampton Fluker Tom Glynn-CarneySue Bayliss Peggy Meredith Pat Starr Kit Flanagan Becky Ann Baker Claire Hackett Kayla Meikle Chinasa Ogbuagu Cath WhitefieldBert Eugene Steiner Miles ParseyBryan RoganJoseph de MarceDaniel Holender Michael Maronna Michael D'Addario Ted Allpress Archie Barnes Alexander BelloMonte Greene Charles DarkSammy JonesZayne Tayabali
Synopsis
Act I In August 1947, Joe Keller, a self-made businessman, and his wife Kate are visited by a neighbor, Frank. At Kate's request, Frank is trying to figure out the horoscope of the Kellers' missing son Larry, who disappeared in 1943 while serving in the military during World War II. There has been a storm and the tree planted in Larry's honor has blown down during the month of his birth, strengthening Kate's belief that Larry is coming back, while Joe and Chris, the Kellers' other son, believe differently. Furthermore, Chris wishes to propose to Ann Deever, who was Larry's girlfriend at the time he went missing and who has been corresponding with Chris for two years. Joe and Kate react to this news with shock.
When Ann arrives, it is revealed that her father, Steve Deever, is in prison for selling cracked cylinder heads to the Air Force, causing the deaths of twenty-one pilots in 1943. Joe was his partner but was exonerated of the crime. Ann admits that neither she nor her brother are in touch with their father anymore. After a heated argument, Chris proposes alone to Ann, who accepts. Chris also reveals that he has survivor's guilt from losing all his men in a company he led. Meanwhile, Joe receives a phone call from George, Ann's brother, who is coming there to settle something.
Act II Chris avoids telling his mother about his engagement with Ann. Their next-door neighbor Sue emerges and reveals to Ann that everyone on the block thinks Joe is equally guilty of the crime of supplying faulty aircraft engines. Shortly afterwards, George Deever arrives and reveals that he has just visited the prison to see his father, Steve. The latter claimed that Joe told him by phone to "weld up and paint over" the cracked cylinder heads, and send them out, then later gave a false promise that Joe would take the blame.
George insists his sister Ann cannot marry Chris Keller, the son of the man who destroyed the Deevers. Frank reveals his horoscope, which implies that Larry is alive, to Kate's pleasure. Joe maintains that he was bedridden with the flu on the fateful day of dispatch. They manage to settle George, but Kate lets slip that Joe has not been sick in fifteen years. Despite George's protests, Chris and Ann send him away.