. . . when her gun went off through Johnny's lover's door, in MGM's paean to Responsible Gun Ownership, ADAM'S RIB. Lesson One: Don't be a dumb cluck like Doris here, leaving your three kids home alone to go gunning for Daddy WITHOUT EVER HAVING FIRED A TARGET PRACTICE SHOT! Katherine Hepburn plays the NRA's poster girl in ADAM'S RIB, urging American wives to come to their marriage beds not only armed to the teeth, but as proficient Annie Oakley Sure Shots, too. That way when a husband such as ADAM'S RIB'S "Warren Attinger" busts wife's Doris' molar, she can simply shoot off his acorns and avoid Planned Parenthood altogether. Spencer Tracy, on the other hand, plays title character Adam, a typical Republican Bleeding Heart Liberal, aiming to keep America's Great Equalizers out of the hands of the "Little Ladies." Tracy does not wish to risk losing a future U.S. Commander-in-Chief just because the dude gets drunk one night and rapes one of his aging baby-mom spouses, as documented in Official Court Papers for American President #45. However, IF MGM had done a better job of promoting ADAM'S RIB to America's Womenfolk, Putin's Puppet would not be around to Lord it over us in the White House right now! Therefore, after watching ADAM'S RIB, why not send some dough to your local chapter of BANGS (Broke Americans Need Gun Stamps!)?

The age old battle of the sexes is the setting here,and who better to play it out than cinema's all time favorite couple,Tracy and Hepburn? A woman goes on trial for shooting her husband,whom she has caught with another woman.The argument is simply this: Should men and women be treated on an equal level.A woman shoots her husband,there must have been a good reason for her to do it.He must be a total dog.Put the shoe on the other foot.A man shoots or harms his wife when she's caught cheating,he's still a dog because there must have been a good reason for her to cheat.The argument may never be settled,but you will enjoy the argument as it is played out in this very funny film.

"Adam's Rib" tickled many funny bones in its time. But it may not be as funny to people today. The 21st century is well beyond the rudimentary aspects of the battle of the sexes that was starting on a roll after WW II. Still, seeing this movie will give a modern audience an idea of what the big differences were way back when. It's still very amusing and entertaining. If some of the humor isn't as funny today, it has a wonderful theme of romance that is sure to please. Here's an example of some of the funny lines in this film: "Lawyers should never marry lawyers. It's called inbreeding. They just have idiots and more lawyers." This MGM film was a good vehicle for mega-stars Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. It was the third of six pairings the couple had on screen. Off-screen they had a 25-year romance, although Tracy remained married to his wife until his death in 1967. Tracy won two best actor Oscars -- 1938 for "Captains Courageous," and 1939 for "Boys Town." He had seven more Academy Award nominations. He also won a best actor Golden Globe in 1954 for "The Actress," and received three more nominations. In 1969, he won the best actor award from BAFTA, the British version of the Academy Awards, for "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner." And, he had four other BAFTA nominations in his career.Katherine Hepburn holds the record of most Oscars ever won – 4. All of hers were for Best Actress. She won for "Morning Glory" in 1934, "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" in 1968, "The Lion in Winter" in 1969, and "On Golden Pond" in 1982. She earned 8 more Academy Award nominations in her career. She also had 8 Golden Globe nominations but didn't take one home. She won two BAFTA awards, and had 3 more nominations. And, she won one Emmy and had four other nominations. This film also has a very good supporting cast. Judy Holliday is another Oscar winner – for Best Actress in 1950 for "Born Yesterday." Some of the well-known character actors of the period fill other roles. For film buffs, this is a good movie to keep for the big stars alone.

Adam's Rib 1949 / George Cukor 101 minutes Vault Rating: 8Here's a great little film, perhaps the best of the Spencer Tracy / Katherine Hepburn vehicles of the time that sparkles even today in the first half with brilliant dialogue and clever framing of scenes that make the most of its two stars.If only the film didn't have to go anywhere or prove any point. In its day, the film's message about gender equality must have been quite something, but today it is a little preachy, but still class all the way. This is a film not to be missed.The story finds Adam (Tracy) and A"man"da (Hepburn) as a so-in-love couple of lawyers who wind up on either side of a case where a jilted housewife (Judy Holliday, in the quintessential ditzy blonde role, often copied but never equaled - well except that same year as she won the Oscar for "best actress" for her ditzy blonde in "Born Yesterday.") has finally had enough of her two-timing husband and busts a cap in his ass.Let the court-room hi jinx and pre-1950's battle of the sexes begin! Too bad women today are still battling for equal pay for equal work. Politics aside, this is a charmer with so many facets to recommend it that they're hard to enumerate.To name a few, co-writers Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin were nominated for the Oscar in 1951 for "best writing, story and screenplay" but somehow lost to the heavyweights behind "Sunset Boulevard." And the film was lovingly and rightly placed on the National Film Registry in 1992. A joyful movie overall, but what really recommends it is the effortless quality of the interplay between Tracy and Hepburn who, frankly, aren't acting. We know in retrospect that the two had a long love affair off screen and it shines through on screen to the utter benefit of the audience.