Three Coins in the Fountain is a 1954 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Jean Negulesco from a screenplay by John Patrick, based on the 1952 novel Coins in the Fountain by John H. Secondari. It stars Clifton Webb, Dorothy McGuire, Jean Peters, Louis Jourdan, and Maggie McNamara, with Rossano Brazzi, Howard St. John, Kathryn Givney, and Cathleen Nesbitt. The film follows three American women working in Rome who dream of finding romance in the Eternal City. It was originally titled We Believe in Love.

Plot

Young American secretary Maria Williams arrives in Rome and is greeted by Anita Hutchins, the woman whom she is replacing at the United States Distribution Agency. They drive to the Villa Eden, which Anita shares with Miss Frances, the longtime secretary of the American author John Frederick Shadwell, an expatriate living in Rome. On their way into town, the three women stop at the famous Trevi Fountain. Frances and Anita tell Maria that according to legend, if she throws a coin in the fountain and makes a wish to return to Rome, she will. Maria and Frances throw in their coins, but Anita, who is planning to return to the United States to marry, declines.

Awards