The Barefoot Contessa begins at the funeral of
Ava Gardner, a former Spanish peasant, cabaret dancer and movie star, who at the time of her death was a full-fledged contessa. Her life story unfolds in flashback recollections from her mourners. Film director
Humphrey Bogart recalls how his career was saved when he discovered
Gardner on behalf of
Howard R. Hughes-like mogul
Warren Stevens. Press agent
Edmond O'Brien remembers how
Ava was wooed and then abandoned by mercurial millionaire
Marius Goring, and Italian count
Rosanno Brazzi reflects on how he was able to wed the tempestuous
Gardner, only to watch his world crumble after revealing on their wedding night that he was "only half a man."
O'Brien received Best Supporting Actor awards at both the Academy Awards and Golden Globes in 1954.