Casting Garland had asked MGM to star in a straight dramatic role, wanting a break from the strenuous schedules of musical films. Although the studio was hesitant, the producer,
Arthur Freed, eventually approached Garland with the script for
The Clock after buying the rights to the short unpublished story by Pauline and
Paul Gallico. Garland did not sing in the movie; it would be 16 years before she would make another non-musical dramatic film, with
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961).
Filming Fred Zinnemann was initially hired to direct the film. After about a month, he was removed at the request of Garland as there was a lack of chemistry between the two and early footage was disappointing. When Freed asked who Garland wanted to direct the film, she requested Vincente Minnelli who had just directed Garland the previous year in
Meet Me in St. Louis, which was a tremendous success. Moreover, she and Minnelli had become romantically involved during the principal photography of
Meet Me In St. Louis. During production of
The Clock, they rekindled their romance, and were engaged by the end of shooting. Minnelli discarded most of the footage shot by Zinnemann and reshaped the film. He revised some scenes, tightened up the script, and incorporated New York City into the film's setting as a third character. As with
Meet Me in St. Louis, he supervised adjustments to Garland's costumes, make-up, and hair. Both producer Arthur Freed and
Roger Edens have a cameo in this film. Near the beginning, Freed lights Walker's cigarette and then gives him the lighter. Edens, a music arranger and close friend of Garland, plays piano in a restaurant. Screenwriter
Robert Nathan appears uncredited smoking a pipe. Both stars of
The Clock were plagued by personal problems that continued throughout their lives. During filming, Garland became increasingly
addicted to prescription drugs given by the studio to control her weight and pep her up. Just prior to filming
The Clock, Walker learned his wife,
Jennifer Jones, was having an affair with film producer
David O. Selznick and wanted a divorce. Walker began to spiral downward. During filming, Garland would often find him drunk in a Los Angeles bar and then sober him up throughout the night so he could appear before cameras the next day.
Locations According to
Robert Osborne in his introduction of this film on
Turner Classic Movies, because
World War II had not yet ended, filming on location was not considered cost effective or easy. Though the film was shot entirely on the
MGM lot in
Culver City, Minnelli's attempt to make New York City believable was extensive. In Studio 27, Minnelli had a reconstructed set of the Waiting Room at Penn Station built at a reported cost of $66,450. Reportedly, the only difficult aspect of the set was the working escalator in the center, using a moving belt rather than steps.
The clocks In the film, the titular timepiece is located at the
Hotel Astor, Times Square, which was once located at 1515 Broadway. Built in the
Beaux Arts style in 1904, the Astor was demolished in 1967 and replaced by
One Astor Plaza, a tall office-tower structure. When Joe and Alice are accidentally separated, they find each other again at Pennsylvania Station near the information desk. Another clock is depicted hanging there, closely resembling the one prominently displayed in
Grand Central Terminal. ==Reception==