Bringing Up Baby

David Huxley, a dedicated museum curator, is focused on securing a crucial bone to complete a display when a chance encounter upends his orderly world. While waiting for a shipment of specimens, he meets Susan Vance, a spirited heiress who treats life as a series of bright, impulsive bets. What follows is a rapid-fire collision of manners and mayhem as their attraction turns into a whirlwind of schemes, miscommunications, and mistaken priorities. A runaway leopard nicknamed Baby hops into the fray, turning a simple social visit into a comic chase across country roads, a cluttered town, and a sprawling estate. The result is a film that thrives on wit, energy, and embarrassment.

Directed by Howard Hawks, Bringing Up Baby was released in 1938 by RKO Pictures. It draws on a story by Dudley Nichols and Hagar Wilde, pairing Katharine Hepburn as the fearless Susan Vance and Cary Grant as the stiffly sensible David Huxley in a zesty screwball duo.

Over the years the film's brisk wit and Hepburn Grant banter have become shorthand for the screwball era. The leopard sequence with Baby remains a memorable comic image, used in retrospectives and parodies, while the dialogue helped shape later rom coms. The film also captures 1930s social anxieties about wealth, propriety, and independence.

Initial reviews praised the pairing and quick tempo, though some found the plot improbable. The film circles themes of social rules versus impulse, showing how class boundaries blur when two stubborn bright personalities collide and romance blooms amid comic chaos. Its influence shows up in later exchanges and chase gags, making it a touchstone for directors and comedians.

Awards: The film did not win major awards, but its enduring reputation as a smart buoyant comedy helped cement Hepburn and Grant as screen icons. It is frequently listed among top screwball comedies and studied for timing, rhythm, and the precision of its snappy dialogue. Scholars also note Hawks's deft handling of physical comedy and pace.