Beyond Tomorrow (film)
1940 American film by A. Edward Sutherland

Beyond Tomorrow (also known as And So Goodbye and Beyond Christmas) is a 1940 American fantasy film directed by A. Edward Sutherland and produced by noted cinematographer Lee Garmes; Garmes was one of a handful of cinematographers who became film producers.
Structured as a B film, the production did not engage any stars who would receive billing above the title, relying instead on a quartet of veteran character actors, Charles Winninger, Maria Ouspenskaya, C. Aubrey Smith and Harry Carey, second-tier young leads Richard Carlson and Jean Parker as well as "other woman" Helen Vinson, a minor lead/second lead actress during the early- and mid-1930s, here approaching the end of her career. All seven actors received a "Featuring" billing after the title. The remaining supporting cast included Rod La Rocque, a top leading man of the silent era, now reduced to playing minor supporting roles.
Because the events of the plot take place during the Christmas season, it is a contemporary, but little-remembered example of the Christmas film. The original print has been digitally remastered and preserved by the National Film Museum, Incorporated.
Plot
Engineers George Melton and Allan Chadwick work furiously to complete a design on time, even though it is Christmas Eve. Michael O'Brien, the third partner in their Manhattan firm, arrives with presents for all and kindly lets their employees leave. The three old men then go home to the mansion they share with Madame Tanya, an elderly countess dispossessed by the Russian Revolution, for a dinner with prestigious guests.
When the guests cancel at the last minute, George is convinced it is because of his dark past.
The public source identifies “Beyond Tomorrow (film)” as 1940 American film by A. Edward Sutherland. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Beyond, Tomorrow and film.
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Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3607574. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1940.
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This entry incorporates text from “Beyond Tomorrow (film)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.