When Hollywood First Dreamed Up a Woman President

The election of the first female U.S. president was played for laughs when Kisses for My President hit theaters six decades ago.

Directed by Curtis Bernhardt, the Warner Bros. film stars Polly Bergen as President Leslie McCloud, who navigates relations with Soviets and a dictator in Central America. Meanwhile, her husband, Thad (Fred MacMurray), struggles to accept his role. The movie’s 60th anniversary — it was released Aug. 21, 1964 — arrives during the Democratic National Convention as Vice President Kamala Harris aims to become the first female commander in chief.

THR‘s review called Kisses for My President a “topical, romantic farce”: “It considers the problems of having a female president, not only for the lady, but for her husband, who must fill the functions normally assumed by the ‘first lady.'”

At the end of the movie, Leslie learns she’s pregnant after fainting in the White House and resigns. This signifies the “superiority of man,” according to a smug Thad. He quips, “Do you realize it took 40 million women to get you into the White House and —” Leslie interjects, “Just one man to get me out.”

Authors Eleanor Clift and Tom Brazaitis’ 2000 book Madam President: Shattering the Last Glass Ceiling includes analysis of the film and says of its ending, “Moviegoers in 1964 no doubt were relieved that the traditional social order had been restored.”

When Kisses for My President aired on Turner Classic Movies in 2014 for its 50th anniversary, host Ben Mankiewicz addressed the dated story. “As you might expect from that title, this is not a serious look at anyone’s perception of equality of the sexes,” he said. “The idea was more along the lines of, ‘Hey, wouldn’t it be hilarious if there were a girl president, and how on earth would it feel to be her husband?'”

But the topic was no joke to Bergen, who later played the mother of Geena Davis’ U.S. president on ABC’s Commander in Chief and campaigned for Hillary Clinton in real life. Said Bergen’s manager Jan McCormack at the time of the actress’ death in 2014, “She always thought a woman president in real life was long overdue.”

This story first appeared in the Aug. 7 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.