The Bells of St. Mary's is a 1945 American comedy-drama film produced and directed by Leo McCarey and starring Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman. Written by Dudley Nichols and based on a story by McCarey, the film is about a priest and a nun who, despite their good-natured rivalry, try to save their parochial school from being shut down. The character Father O'Malley had been previously portrayed by Crosby in the 1944 film Going My Way, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. The film was produced by Leo McCarey's production company, Rainbow Productions.

Plot

The unconventional Father Charles "Chuck" O'Malley takes over the supervision of St. Mary's parish and its inner-city elementary school run by nuns, led by the strict but kind-hearted Mother superior, Sister Mary Benedict. She explains to Father O'Malley that St. Mary's had to sell the school playground to the grumpy Horace P. Bogardus, a local businessman and the chairman of the city council, to repair the dilapidated school building. The site of their former playground is now a modern building under construction next door to the school, with Sister Benedict hoping that Bogardus will donate the new building to the church.

Awards