Diary of a Mad Housewife
Encyclopedia
Diary of a Mad Housewife is a 1967 novel that was adapted into 1970 drama film about a frustrated wife, portrayed by Carrie Snodgress
, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress
and won a Golden Globe award in the same category. The film was adapted by Eleanor Perry
from the 1967 novel by Sue Kaufman
and directed by Perry's then-husband, Frank Perry
. The film co-starred Richard Benjamin
and Frank Langella
.
. He treats her like a trophy, refuses to back her in disputes over the raising of their children and belittles her in public. Searching for relief, she has an affair with writer George Prager, but this only drives her deeper into despair. She then tries group therapy
, but this also proves fruitless when she finds her male psychiatrist
, Dr. Linstrom, is no more understanding than the other men in her life.
. Roger Ebert
gave the movie three out of four stars, saying, "What makes the movie work... is that it's played entirely from the housewife's point of view, and that the housewife is played brilliantly by Carrie Snodgress."
Neil Young
wrote the song "A Man Needs a Maid" inspired by Snodgress in Diary of a Mad Housewife: "I was watching a movie with a friend/I fell in love with the actress/she was playing a part I could understand." The song was included on his 1972 album Harvest. Soon after, Young and Snodgress became romantically involved for several years.
Groucho Marx
spoke out against this movie in an episode of the Dick Cavett show on May 25, 1971. He stated that it was an example of dirty entertainment, and didn't like it because they were in the sack for 80 minutes. He made a joke of this, and stated, "Well I'm not interested in that. I don't care what they are doing in the sack, if I am not doing it, why should I sit in the theater and watch it?" The interview can be seen on Youtube
.
; VHS
copies of Housewife have become rare, with sealed copies routinely fetching over $100 on websites like Amazon.com
and eBay
.
Carrie Snodgress
Caroline "Carrie" Snodgress was an American actress.-Biography:Snodgress was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. She attended Maine Township High School East in Park Ridge then Northern Illinois University before leaving to pursue acting. Snodgress trained for the stage at the Goodman Theatre, in Chicago...
, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
and won a Golden Globe award in the same category. The film was adapted by Eleanor Perry
Eleanor Perry
Eleanor Perry was an American writer known primarily for her screenplays.Born Eleanor Irene Rosenfeld in Cleveland, Ohio, she attended Western Reserve University, where she wrote for the college's literary magazine. Together with her first husband, attorney Leo G...
from the 1967 novel by Sue Kaufman
Sue Kaufman
Sue Kaufman is an American author best known for the novel Diary of a Mad Housewife.- Biography :Kaufman was born in Long Island, New York. She received her degree from Vassar College in 1947. In 1953 she married a doctor named Jeremiah Abraham Barondess with whom she had a son. At Vasser she did...
and directed by Perry's then-husband, Frank Perry
Frank Perry
Frank J. Perry, Jr. was an American stage and film director, producer and screenwriter. His directorial debut, the 1962 film David and Lisa, earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director....
. The film co-starred Richard Benjamin
Richard Benjamin
Richard Benjamin is an American actor and film director. He has starred in a number of productions, including Goodbye, Columbus , based on the novella by Philip Roth, and Westworld .-Life and career:...
and Frank Langella
Frank Langella
-Early life:Langella, an Italian American, was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, the son of Angelina and Frank A. Langella Sr., a business executive who was the president of the Bayonne Barrel and Drum Company. Langella attended Washington Elementary School and Bayonne High School in Bayonne...
.
Plot
Tina Balser is in a loveless marriage with Jonathan, an insufferable, social-climbing lawyer in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He treats her like a trophy, refuses to back her in disputes over the raising of their children and belittles her in public. Searching for relief, she has an affair with writer George Prager, but this only drives her deeper into despair. She then tries group therapy
Group therapy
Group psychotherapy or group therapy is a form of psychotherapy in which one or more therapists treat a small group of clients together as a group...
, but this also proves fruitless when she finds her male psychiatrist
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
, Dr. Linstrom, is no more understanding than the other men in her life.
Cast
- Richard BenjaminRichard BenjaminRichard Benjamin is an American actor and film director. He has starred in a number of productions, including Goodbye, Columbus , based on the novella by Philip Roth, and Westworld .-Life and career:...
as Jonathan Balser - Frank LangellaFrank Langella-Early life:Langella, an Italian American, was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, the son of Angelina and Frank A. Langella Sr., a business executive who was the president of the Bayonne Barrel and Drum Company. Langella attended Washington Elementary School and Bayonne High School in Bayonne...
as George Prager - Carrie SnodgressCarrie SnodgressCaroline "Carrie" Snodgress was an American actress.-Biography:Snodgress was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. She attended Maine Township High School East in Park Ridge then Northern Illinois University before leaving to pursue acting. Snodgress trained for the stage at the Goodman Theatre, in Chicago...
as Tina Balser - Lorraine Cullen as Sylvie Balser
- Frannie Michel as Liz Balser
- Lester RawlinsLester RawlinsLester Rawlins was an American stage, screen, and television actor.Born in Sharon, Pennsylvania, Rawlins appeared in off-Broadway productions of Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Richard III, Winterset, In the Bar of a Tokyo Hotel, and Nightride, for which he won the Drama Desk Award for...
as Dr. Linstrom - Alice CooperAlice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
as Himself - Peter BoylePeter BoylePeter Lawrence Boyle, Jr. was an American actor, best known for his role as Frank Barone on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, and as a comical monster in Mel Brooks' film spoof Young Frankenstein ....
as Man in group therapy
Response
The film maintains a 77% at Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
. Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
gave the movie three out of four stars, saying, "What makes the movie work... is that it's played entirely from the housewife's point of view, and that the housewife is played brilliantly by Carrie Snodgress."
Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
wrote the song "A Man Needs a Maid" inspired by Snodgress in Diary of a Mad Housewife: "I was watching a movie with a friend/I fell in love with the actress/she was playing a part I could understand." The song was included on his 1972 album Harvest. Soon after, Young and Snodgress became romantically involved for several years.
Groucho Marx
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...
spoke out against this movie in an episode of the Dick Cavett show on May 25, 1971. He stated that it was an example of dirty entertainment, and didn't like it because they were in the sack for 80 minutes. He made a joke of this, and stated, "Well I'm not interested in that. I don't care what they are doing in the sack, if I am not doing it, why should I sit in the theater and watch it?" The interview can be seen on Youtube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
Availability
The film has never been released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
; VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
copies of Housewife have become rare, with sealed copies routinely fetching over $100 on websites like Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
and eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
.
Awards and nominations
- Best Picture - Musical or Comedy (nominee) - 1970 Golden Globe
- Best Actor - Musical or Comedy (nominee) - Richard Benjamin - 1970 Golden Globe
- Best Actress - Musical or Comedy (winner) - Carrie Snodgress - 1970 Golden Globe
- New Star of the Year - Male (nominee) - Frank Langella - 1970 Golden Globe
- New Star of the Year - Female (winner) - Carrie Snodgress - 1970 Golden Globe
- Best Actress (nominee) - Carrie Snodgress - 1970 Academy Award
- Best Picture (nominee) - 1970 National Board of Review
- Best Supporting Actor (winner) - Frank Langella - 1970 National Board of Review