When Daisy Werthan, a widowed 72-year-old Jewish woman living in midcentury Atlanta, is deemed too old to drive, her son hires Hoke Coleburn, an African American man, to serve as her chauffeur. What begins as a troubled and hostile pairing soon blossoms into a profound, life-altering friendship that transcends all the societal boundaries placed between them.
What Is the Story of Driving Miss Daisy?
Driving Miss Daisy is the simple yet moving story of the 25-year relationship between Daisy Werthan, a well-to-do Jewish widow in postwar Atlanta, and her African-American chauffeur, Hoke Coleburn. At the beginning of the play, Miss Daisy is strenuously opposed to her son Boolie’s notion of hiring a driver, but a car accident has left her uninsurable, so she reluctantly agrees. As the play progresses from 1948 to 1973, we see how these two very different people become each other’s closest companion and confidantes.
