Spencer Tracy Kramer's "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (1967), Tracy's ninth and final film with Hepburn. "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" explored the topic of interracial marriage, with Tracy playing a liberal-minded newspaper publisher whose values are challenged when his daughter wishes to marry a black man, played by Sidney Poitier. Tracy was happy to be working again, but he told the press the movie would be his last. To commence filming, Tracy had to be insured for the high premium of $71,000; Hepburn and Kramer both put their salaries in escrow until Tracy completed his scenes. In poor health, Tracy could
Spencer Tracy only work for two or three hours each day. He completed his last scene on May 24, 1967. Tracy died 17 days later from a heart attack on June 10. The film was released in December, and although reviews were mixed, Curtis notes that "Tracy's performance was singled out for praise in nearly every instance." Brendan Gill of "The New Yorker" wrote that Tracy gave "a faultless and, under the circumstances, heartbreaking performance." The movie became Tracy's highest grossing picture. He received a posthumous nomination for Best Actor—his ninth—at the 40th Academy Awards, along with a Golden Globe Award nomination