PENNY SERENADE  is a time-honored soap opera, popular in its day, and it holds up very well, thanks to the superb performances of Irene Dunne and Cary Grant, as a childless couple weathering setbacks and tragedy. Recovering from a miscarriage, they adopt a baby, but this does not prevent the hand of fate from dealing them another test.

In less capable hands, this 1941 drama might have been just another dated excursion into synthetic bathos, but under the astute eye of director George Stevens emerges a story that, if a bit lengthy at 119 minutes, stands the test of time.

Fine support from Beulah Bondi and Edgar Buchanan, moments of humor and sentiment that still have sparkle and impact (script by Morrie Ryskind) and the sum total is a human drama that ranks with the best of its day, from its type, for its audience.

Grant was nominated  for the Oscar as Best Actor; many regard this as his best dramatic performance.  With Ann Doran and Eva Lee Kuney. Film was rewarded at the tills with $3,300,000.