Blossoms in the Dust

Blossoms in the Dust is a 1941 American biographical film directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon, Felix Bressart, Marsha Hunt, Fay Holden and Samuel S. Hinds. It tells the story of Edna Gladney, who helped orphaned children find homes and began a campaign to remove the word "illegitimate" from Texas birth certificates, despite the opposition of "good" citizens. The screenplay was by Anita Loos, with a story by Ralph Wheelwright. Some of the important aspects of her life fictionalized in the film are the fact that it was Edna herself who was born out of wedlock; she and Sam eloped on the eve of her marriage to someone else, and they had much more time together before his death (26 years) than given them in the film. (See the Wikipedia article.)

The film is a fictionalized telling of the story of Edna Gladney, an early advocate for the rights of "illegitimate" children in Texas and was one of the biggest hits of 1941 for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and began the rise of Greer Garson as one of the largest stars of the decade. Blossoms in the Dust won an Oscar for Best Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Color, and was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Garson), Best Cinematography, Color, and Best Picture.