Stella (film) Fiercely independent Stella, a wisecracking bartender, refuses to marry the doctor, Stephen Dallas, who gets her pregnant. Instead she decides to raise their daughter Jenny single-handedly. Through the years, Stella and Jenny share a special bond of friendship, but as Jenny blooms into a precocious young woman, Stella is confronted with the reality of their lower-class existence. Realizing that Jenny’s wealthy father could offer Jenny a much better life, Stella decides to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to give her daughter the life she never had. Released on February 2, 1990. Directed by John Erman. A Touchstone film, in association with the Samuel Goldwyn Company. 106 min. Stars Bette Midler (Stella Claire), John Goodman (Ed Munn), Trini Alvarado (Jenny Claire), Stephen Collins (Stephen Dallas). Based on the novel Stella Dallas, by Olive Higgins Prouty. A remake of two previous Samuel Goldwyn films (in 1925 and 1937, the latter the classic starring Barbara Stanwyck and Anne Shirley). Filmed on location in Toronto; Boca Raton, Florida; and New York City. Released on video in 1990.
