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Director Michael Curtiz's 1945 classic "Mildred Pierce" tells the story of a woman whose love for her eldest daughter results in tragedy. Mildred first separates with her financially unsupportive husband and begins secular work leaving behind her former housewife routine. Mildred's younger daughter, the better one, dies from pneumonia. To add to this misery, Veda, spoiled rotten, hurts Mildred's feelings, despite Mildred's undying love, and ends up having an affair with Mildred's second love just before …

…says a great deal. "Mildred's", as it was called, emphasizes her autonomy as it excludes her husband's name. It really is her own creation. At the time of "Mildred Pierce's" release it was exceptionally rare for woman to achieve the kind of success as the main character but despite what people expected from women, Mildred proved she had the power to change and become an important business woman without the support from any good men.