The Man Who Came to Dinner

During his cross-country lecture tour, the abrasive New York radio personality slips on the icy steps of the Stanleys' house and injures his hip. He chooses to recuperate there during the Christmas holidays as a publicity stunt to avoid a possible $150,000 lawsuit with Thomas E. Dewey as his attorney. The accident kickstarts his extended stay and sets the dynamic of the household.

Whiteside commandeers the most prominent rooms and confines the host and hostess to the upper story. His celebrity aura dominates daily life, reshaping family routines and social interactions. The family begins to live under his restless, intrusive presence.

To prolong his stay, Whiteside persuades the local doctor to exaggerate his recovery time and promises to read the doctor's unpublished magnum opus. He dutifully ignores the implicit bargain, continuing to enjoy the comforts of the house. The ploy keeps him central to the household’s affairs.

He runs up long-distance bills by dialing important personages like Winston Churchill and Haile Selassie. The calls feed his inflated self-image and keep the household connected to a glamorous, international circle. The family endures the disruption as his prestige hobby continues.

Prominent naturalists send live penguins and an octopus as gifts for Whiteside. The menagerie adds chaos and comic discomfort to the household, complicating daily routines and interactions. Whiteside uses the odd gifts to further impose his will on everyone around him.

Whiteside hosts a luncheon that includes convicts from his fan club at the state penitentiary. He basks in the absurdity and uses the event to flaunt his influence. The gathering highlights the gap between his celebrity status and the ordinary lives in the house.

Whiteside's bullying pushes his nurse to resign, as she declares she has shifted her mission from relieving suffering to working at a munitions factory. Her departure underscores the toll his arrogance takes on those around him. The household quickly realizes there are consequences to his antics.

Despite his egocentricity, he encourages Richard and June Stanley to pursue their dreams, challenging their conventional father's expectations. He becomes a disruptive mentor who unsettles the family’s status quo. His intervention complicates but also accelerates their plans.

Whiteside notes Harriet, Ernest Stanley’s odd sister, as 'right out of the Hound of the Baskervilles,' hinting at a shadowed past. His remark foreshadows the secrets the family keeps and foreshadows the later leverage he will use. The moment hints at the mystery surrounding Harriet.

Whiteside’s assistant Maggie Cutler grows attracted to local newspaperman Bert Jefferson. When Bert presents his play to her, she asks Whiteside to pass it along to his contacts. Their budding romance begins amid the chaos of Whiteside’s stay.

Seeking to sabotage the romance, Whiteside engineers Lorraine Sheldon’s presence and entices her to pursue a leading role in a pretend production. He inflates Lorraine’s importance to steer Bert toward her and away from Maggie. The plan showcases his talent for manipulation.

Whiteside and companions impersonate Lorraine’s wealthy suitor, Lord Cedric Bottomley, to lure Lorraine back to Palm Beach with a fake proposal. The deception further unsettles the household and heightens Lorraine’s entanglements. The ruse demonstrates Whiteside’s penchant for theatrical plots.

When Lorraine resists, Whiteside and Banjo stage a bizarre ploy by placing Lorraine into an Egyptian sarcophagus and shipping her off to Nova Scotia. The plan marks the depth of his schemes and the extremes he will go to maintain control. The family is left to grapple with the fallout of his manipulation.

Furious, Mr. Stanley swears out a warrant to eject Whiteside within 15 minutes. Whiteside counters by threatening to reveal Harriet’s axe-murder past, pressuring Stanley to drop the warrant. The late-game manipulation buys time and prolongs the chaos, allowing his hold on the family to continue.

As Whiteside prepares to depart, a call from First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt interrupts the moment. He becomes distracted and slips on the icy steps again, being carried back inside as the family watches. The Roosevelt call is ultimately forgotten in the commotion, underscoring the absurdity of the evening.