January: Joan tells columnist Hedda Hopper that she plans to sell the early American antique furniture in her Brentwood house, and replace it with something more appropriate for children.
January 4: Joan's children return to school from their Christmas break.
Early February: Joan signs her contract to appear in the film "Lisbon" for Paramount Pictures. Joan's compensation is to be $75,000 for twelves weeks of service and pro rata share after twelve weeks at the rate of $6,250 per week. Joan is to also receive 33 1/3% of the film's profits. The film is slated to begin filming between May 18th and June 29th. The film is later scheduled to begin filming on June 1, 1953, but is later postponed when the filming schedule for "Torch Song" is pushed up to earlier in the year. Joan is given a dressing room on the Paramount lot for pre production. The dress room was previously occupied by Betty Hutton.
February 9: Joan attends the Photoplay Gold Medal Awards dinner, held in the Crystal Room at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Joan is honored as the "Most Popular Female Star" for her role in "Sudden Fear."
February 26: Joan attends the 10th annual Golden Globes Awards dinner, held at the Ambassador Hotel in Hollywood. Joan is nominated for "Best Actress" for her performance in "Sudden Fear." Joan is escorted to the dinner by Paul Gregory.
March: Joan films a public service short for Cerebral Palsy at MGM.
March 2: Syndicated Hollywood journalist Bob Thomas publishes an article repeating disparaging statements Joan had recently made to Thomas regarding Marilyn Monroe. Joan admits to the statements, but claims it was her understanding that her personal comments to Thomas were off-the-record, and were private between she and Thomas. According to Joan's secretary, Betty Barker, Joan felt bad that the statements were published and sent Marilyn Monroe a letter of apology for her comments.
March 4: Joan attends the premiere of "Call Me Madam" at the Fox Ritz Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Joan is escorted to the premiere by Cesar Romero. After attending the premiere, Joan and Romero dine at Romanoff's.
March 19: Joan attends the 25th annual Academy Awards ceremony, held at the RKO Pantages Theatre in Hollywood, California. Joan is nominated for "Best Actress" for her performance in "Sudden Fear."
March 23: Joan begins singing and dancing rehearsals for "Torch Song." Joan reports that she is dancing 5 to 6 hours per day.
April 28: Joan begins filming "Torch Song" on the MGM lot.
Mid-May: Director Nicholas Ray is scheduled to travel to Lisbon, Portugal to film exterior scenes for Joan's planned film "Lisbon."
June: Joan's daughter returns home for the summer from the Chadwick School. Shortly thereafter, Joan and Christina have an argument, the result of which Joan sends Christina back to Chadwick School for the summer. Joan's secretary, Billie Greene, who witnessed the argument, later stated the argument involved Christina lying to Joan. Christina would later write her version of the argument in 1978, which contradicts Billie Greene's memory of the events.
June 5: Joan signs her contract with Republic Pictures to appear in "Johnny Guitar."
July: Joan's film "Lisbon" is postponed due to scheduling conflicts with Joan's forthcoming filming schedule for "Johnny Guitar."
July 3: Joan's contract to appear in the film "Lisbon" is canceled by mutual agreement. The cancelation comes after several scheduling conflicts with Joan's filming schedules for "Torch Song" and "Johnny Guitar," as well as disagreements regarding the script. Paramount Pictures begins seeking a replacement for Joan in the film, with the hope that Susan Hayward will accept the role. Maureen O'Hara is eventually hired.
July 22: Variety reports Joan will receive $200,000 for "Johnny Guitar," with the film scheduled to begin production in September.
September: Columnist speculate if Joan will marry Universal and Decca Records executive Milton Rackmil following Joan being seen frequently with Rackmil.
September 19: Joan appears in "The Revlon Mirror Theater" episode "Because I Love Him." This episode marks Joan's first acting appearance on television. The episode is so well received by audiences, it airs again in November.
Early October: MGM screens "Torch Song" to test audiences in Syracuse, New York, Columbus, Ohio, and Richmond, Virginia. In each instance, MGM tests the promotional approaches for the film. In Syracuse, MGM's promotions emphasizes the film's musical aspects, and leans towards Joan's singing and dancing. In Columbus, promotions are aimed towards the film's love story. In Richmond, the promotional materials blend the film's musical qualities and the love story in the film between Joan's and Michael Welding's characters.
Early October: Joan has dinner at Romanoff's in Los Angeles, California with Milton Rackmil.
October 13: Joan travels from Los Angeles, California to Sedona, Arizona and Oak Creek Canyon area to begin location filming for "Johnny Guitar."
October 15: Filming begins on "Johnny Guitar" in Sedona, Arizona.
October 23: "Torch Song" premieres in selected theaters across America.
November 12: Joan becomes ill during filming "Johnny Guitar" with a temperature of 102. Joan is advised to rest in your quarters at Republic Studios, where she is residing during filming. Joan's illness eventually develops into pleurisy.
November 15: Joan attends the Press Photographer's Ball at the Macombo nightclub in Los Angeles, California. For the ball, Joan wears her outfit and makeup from the "Two Faced Woman" scene in "Torch Song." Joan is escorted to the Ball by Mel Dinelli and Scott Brady. Joan is named the All-Time Favorite among the photographers.
November 18: Joan hosts a mid-night supper party at Romanoff's restaurant in Los Angeles, California in celebration of the premiere of "Torch Song." Joan invites her "Johnny Guitar" co-star Mercedes McCambridge. The two women are photographed embracing and happy, declaring the alleged "feud" between during location filming of "Johnny Guitar" is over. Joan states it was over a "silly personality clash."
November 19: Joan attends the west coast premiere of "Torch Song" at the Stanley Warner Theater in Beverly Hills, California. Joan is escorted to the premiere by Louis B. Mayer and Nicholas Ray. Joan wears a long satin blue gown and a dark blue velvet cape.
December 10: Joan attends the premiere of "The Glenn Miller Story" at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood, California.
Mid-December: Filming ends on "Johnny Guitar." The final scenes involve filming in a cave on the Republic Studios lot.
Late December: Joan has a tooth extracted.