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The year 1941 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Citizen Kane.

Events

  • January 17 – A film based on the best-selling novel Gone with the Wind goes into general release in the United States after touring in a roadshow version during 1940. Becoming a cultural phenomenon, it sells an estimated 60 million tickets this year alone. Adjusted for inflation with numerous rereleases, it remains the highest grossing domestic film of all time with $1.8 billion.
  • March 24 – Glenn Miller begins work on his orchestra's first movie Sun Valley Serenade for Twentieth Century Fox.
  • May 1 – Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, consistently rated as one of the films considered the all-time best, is premiered at the Palace Theatre (New York City).
  • June – An Airman's Letter to His Mother, a British propaganda film based on true events, is released in cinemas, directed by Michael Powell and narrated by John Gielgud.
  • July 2 – Sergeant York, the film biopic of World War I hero Alvin C. York, starring Gary Cooper in the title role, premieres in New York City. It is the highest-grossing picture of the year and earns Cooper the first of two Academy Awards for Best Actor.
  • July 28 - The assets of Hollywood studios in Japan are frozen by Japan's Ministry of Finance.
  • September – Senate Investigation into Motion Picture War Propaganda in the United States.
  • October 3 – The Maltese Falcon, considered one of the greatest films noir, is released.

Academy Awards

  • Best Picture: How Green Was My Valley – 20th Century-Fox
  • Best Actor: Gary Cooper – Sergeant York
  • Best Actress: Joan Fontaine – Suspicion
  • Best Supporting Actor: Donald Crisp – How Green Was My Valley
  • Best Supporting Actress: Mary Astor – The Great Lie
  • Best Director: John Ford – How Green Was My Valley

Top-grossing films (U.S.)

The top ten 1941 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:

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{| class="wikitable sortable" style="margin:auto; margin:auto;"

|+ Highest-grossing films of 1941

|-

! Rank !! Title !! Distributor !! Domestic rentals

|-

! style="text-align:center;"| 1

| Sergeant York

| Warner Bros.

| $6,075,000

|-

! style="text-align:center;"| 2

| Honky Tonk

| MGM

| $2,893,000

|-

! style="text-align:center;"| 3

| Louisiana Purchase

| Paramount

| $2,750,000

|-

! style="text-align:center;"| 4

| How Green Was My Valley

| 20th Century Fox

| $2,447,000

|-

! style="text-align:center;"| 5

| The Philadelphia Story

| MGM

| $2,374,000

|-

! style="text-align:center;"| 7

| A Yank in the R.A.F.

| 20th Century Fox

| $2,063,000