Magnificent Obsession

Magnificent Obsession is a novel by Lloyd C. Douglas which tells the story of Robert Merrick, who is resuscitated by a rescue crew after a boating accident. The crew is therefore unable to save the life of a doctor, who was renowned for his ability to help people. Merrick decides to devote his life to making up for the doctor's life, but in the process, he not only alienates the doctor's widow, with whom he has fallen in love, but also causes another tragedy. This causes him to totally reevaluate his life, and so he decides to become a physician.

The book has been made into three movies:

• 1933 - adapted by Sarah Y. Mason, Victor Heerman and George O'Neil, and directed by John M. Stahl. It stars Irene Dunne, Robert Taylor, Charles Butterworth and Betty Furness.
• 1954 - adapted by Robert Blees, Finley Peter Dunne (uncredited) and Wells Root, and directed by Douglas Sirk. It stars Jane Wyman, Rock Hudson, Agnes Moorehead, Otto Kruger and Barbara Rush. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress (Jane Wyman).
• Sublime Obsessão, a 1958 television series, was produced in Brazil in 1958.