Driving Miss Daisy is a 1989 American comedy drama film directed by Bruce Beresford and written by Alfred Uhry, based on Uhry's 1987 play. The film stars Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Aykroyd. Freeman reprised his role from the original Off-Broadway production.

Plot

In 1948, Miss Daisy Werthan, a 72-year-old wealthy, Jewish, widowed, retired schoolteacher, lives alone in Atlanta, Georgia, except for a black housekeeper, Idella, who comes in daily. When Daisy accidentally drives her 1946 Chrysler Windsor into her neighbor's yard, her 40-year-old son, Boolie, buys her a Hudson Commodore and hires 60-year-old Hoke Colburn, a black chauffeur, as Daisy can no longer drive due to her being a high insurance risk. Boolie tells Hoke that Daisy may not appreciate his efforts, but she cannot fire him, because Boolie is his employer. At first, Daisy refuses to let anyone drive her, but Hoke's patience pays off, and she reluctantly accepts the first two trips; one to the Piggly Wiggly supermarket, the other to her synagogue. Then she tries to get Boolie to fire Hoke after she had discovered a can of salmon missing from her pantry which she believes Hoke had stolen the previous day. However, the following morning when arriving for work, and without knowing that Miss Daisy had even noticed the missing can, Hoke tells her that he has brought a replacement can because he had eaten the salmon himself the previous evening because the leftovers she had provided for his dinner were inedible.

Awards