'' The Stranger '' was the only film made by Welles to have been a '' bona fide '' box office success upon its release . Its cost was $ 1.034 million ; it earned $ 2.25 million in U.S. rentals in its first six months , and 15 months after its release it had grossed $ 3.216 million . " '' The Stranger '' exists as an answer to the critics who complained that Welles could not make a ' program ' picture , " wrote film noir scholar Carl Macek . " He did , and it has found a niche in the canon of the film noir . " At the 19th Academy Awards , Victor Trivas received an Oscar nomination for Writing ( Original Motion Picture Story ) . The award went to Clemence Dane , for '' Vacation from Marriage ''
19th Academy Awards
19th Academy Awards
The Stranger (1946 film)