Stanley Kowalski
 | This article possibly contains original research. (June 2014) |
| Stanley Kowalski | |
|---|---|
| In-universe information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Spouse | Stella Kowalski |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives | Blanche DuBois (sister-in-law) |
| Nationality | Polish-American |
Stanley Kowalski is a fictional character in
In the play
Stanley lives in the
Stanley's life becomes more complicated when Stella's sister
". She flirts with him but attempts behind his back to get Stella to leave the marriage, intensifying his resentment. She poses a threat; in his mind to both his regimented, hedonistic lifestyle and his marriage and concomitant control of his wife. He determines to eliminate this perceived threat and take his revenge.Stanley starts asking questions from a seedy street merchant, Shaw, who knew Blanche in her old life. Stanley already knows Blanche is staying with the Kowalskis because she is
That night, Stella goes to the hospital to give birth. Stanley goes out and gets drunk in celebration, and returns home. He finds a similarly drunk Blanche, lost in fantasies of soon-to-be happy times, benefit of Shep Huntleigh.
Mitch, possibly emboldened himself with some liquor, had earlier visited after Stanley and Stella left, and told Blanche that she was not good enough to meet his mother but demanded some sexual attention as that is all she is apparently good for. She told him to get out or she'd scream fire, and he left.
Stanley drunkenly fondles Blanche, who rejects him and affects a high dudgeon. He traps her in the bedroom and easily disarms her after she breaks a bottle to use as a weapon. She collapses and the scene ends with her impending rape. This final assault on what she had left of her dignity sends Blanche over the edge into a
In the original play, Stella refuses to allow herself to believe Blanche (with the support of Eunice Hubbell) and stays with Stanley, although she seems to need to convince herself. In the 1951 film adaptation, however, due to the demands of the censors, Stella leaves him and takes their child. Most later film and television versions restore the original ending.
Development
When developing the character, Williams frequently changed what Stanley's ethnicity would be. Originally the story was set in
No copies of the play drafts mention what Kowalski's line of work is. According to author Joseph W. Zurawski, Stanley appeared to be an office worker instead of a blue collar worker.[1]
In other media
He was most famously portrayed by Marlon Brando opposite Jessica Tandy's Blanche in the play's initial Broadway production and, several years later, opposite Vivien Leigh in the 1951 film adaptation.
Since then the role has been played to varying degrees of acclaim, by, among many others, Anthony Quinn (who succeeded Brando on Broadway and played opposite Tandy's successor, Uta Hagen), James Farentino (opposite Rosemary Harris) on Broadway in 1973, Treat Williams (in the 1984 TV movie, opposite Ann-Margret),[3] and Alec Baldwin (opposite Jessica Lange, both on Broadway in 1992 and in the 1995 TV movie).[4]
In 1976, Rip Torn played Stanley opposite his wife Geraldine Page as Blanche in a Chicago production that was described as raw, dangerous and threateningly realistic, pushing the Streetcar script to the farthest reaches of urban violence and unabated naturalism.[5]
Aidan Quinn and Christopher Walken both played the role opposite Blythe Danner's Blanche in two different stage productions. The three actors and both productions, however, received mixed to middling reviews.[6]
In 1990, Bruce Payne played a Kowalski-esque character in the music video for Neil Young's song Over and Over, which was directed by Julien Temple.[citation needed]
The real Stanley Kowalski
An actual Stanley Kowalski lived in St. Louis. He was born in 1893 or 1895, served in the U.S. Army in World War I, and died in 1933. He was a shoe-worker. For several years Tennessee Williams worked as a clerk at Continental Shoe in St. Louis. The article “In Search of Stanley Kowalski,” by Stephen Werner goes into detail about what can be known about the real Stanley Kowalski.[7]
Several biographies on Williams describe a close relationship between Williams and Kowalski. However, the known details about Kowalski make this seem unlikely. While working at Continental Shoe, Williams did develop a close friendship with Eddie Zawadzki. Eddie at the time was dating his future wife. It must be pointed out that there is not the remotest indication that the "real" Kowalski bore any brutish similarity to the character that made Marlon Brando a star. Indeed, Stanley is closer to Williams' own father, "a traveling salesman ... a loud, outgoing, hard-drinking, boisterous man who bordered on the vulgar, at least as far as the young, sensitive Tennessee Williams".[8][9]
References
- Zurawski, Joseph W. (Spring 2013). "Out of Focus: The Polish American Image in Film". .
- Werner, Stephen A., “In Search of Stanley Kowalski” St. Louis Cultural History Project (Summer 2022).
Notes
- ^ a b c Zurawski, p. 8.
- ^ Zurawski, pg. 10.
- ^ Review of 1984 Streetcar starring Ann-Margret and Treat Williams, upi.com. Accessed October 27, 2022.
- ^ Rich, Frank (April 13, 1992). "Review/Theater: A Streetcar Named Desire; Alec Baldwin Does Battle With the Ghosts". The New York Times. New York City. Retrieved April 30, 2014.(subscription required)
- ^ Kolin, Philip C. (2000). Williams:A Streetcar Named Desire. Cambridge University Press.
- ^ Gussow, Mel (March 14, 1988). "Critic's Notebook; Has Stanley Kowalski Become an Unactable Role?". The New York Times. New York City. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
- ^ Werner, Stephen A. “In Search of Stanley Kowalski,” St. Louis Cultural History Project (Summer 2022).
- ^ Biography: Tennessee Williams, books.google.com. Accessed October 27, 2022.
- ^ Biodata, dos.myflorida.com. Accessed October 27, 2022.