The Sunshine Boys (film)
Encyclopedia
The Sunshine Boys is a 1975 comedy film
directed by Herbert Ross
and produced by Ray Stark
, based on the play of the same name
by Neil Simon
. The cast included real-life experienced vaudevillian actor George Burns
as Lewis, Walter Matthau
as Clark, and Richard Benjamin
as Ben, with Lee Meredith
, F. Murray Abraham
, Rosetta LeNoire
, Howard Hesseman
, and Ron Rifkin
in supporting roles. This would be Matthau's last Neil Simon movie until 1982's I Ought to Be in Pictures
with Ann-Margret
and Dinah Manoff
.
Woody Allen
originally was asked to direct, but he was more interested in playing the role of Lewis and declined the offer. Twenty years later, he would be cast as Lewis in a television adaptation
.
Initially, Bob Hope
and Bing Crosby
were proposed for the leads, but Simon was opposed to the idea, as he felt the roles required Jewish comedian
s. Several actors, including Phil Silvers
auditioned, and the roles eventually were given to real-life vaudevillian veterans Red Skelton
and Jack Benny
.
Benny was forced to withdraw after being diagnosed with the pancreatic cancer
that would soon kill him and recommended his friend and fellow real-life vaudevillian veteran Burns, who had not been in a film since 1939, for the role. Burns' Academy Award-winning role revived his career and redefined his popular image as a remarkably active old comedy star. When Skelton eventually dropped out as well, possibly because he considered the material too "blue", he was replaced by the younger Matthau.
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by Herbert Ross
Herbert Ross
Herbert Ross was an American film director, producer, choreographer and actor.-Early life and career:Born Herbert David Ross in Brooklyn, New York, he made his stage debut as Third Witch with a touring company of Macbeth in 1942...
and produced by Ray Stark
Ray Stark
Ray Stark was an American film producer and powerbroker known for his Machiavellian ways.While putting together the Broadway musical Funny Girl - the highly fictionalized account of the life of his mother-in-law, Fanny Brice - its producer David Merrick took Stark and his wife to see an unknown...
, based on the play of the same name
The Sunshine Boys
The Sunshine Boys is a play by Neil Simon that was produced on Broadway in 1972 and later adapted for film and television.-Plot:The play focuses on aging Al Lewis and Willy Clark, a one-time vaudevillian team known as "Lewis and Clark" who, over the course of forty-odd years, not only grew to hate...
by Neil Simon
Neil Simon
Neil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
. The cast included real-life experienced vaudevillian actor George Burns
George Burns
George Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
as Lewis, Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau was an American actor best known for his role as Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple and his frequent collaborations with Odd Couple star Jack Lemmon, as well as his role as Coach Buttermaker in the 1976 comedy The Bad News Bears...
as Clark, and 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:...
as Ben, with Lee Meredith
Lee Meredith
Lee Meredith is an American actress. She was born Judith Lee Sauls and grew up in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. She is married to Burt Stratford....
, F. Murray Abraham
F. Murray Abraham
Fahrid Murray Abraham is an American actor. He became known during the 1980s after winning the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus. He has appeared in many roles, both leading and supporting, in films such as All the President's Men and Scarface...
, Rosetta LeNoire
Rosetta LeNoire
Rosetta LeNoire was an American stage, screen, and television actress, as well as a Broadway producer and casting agent....
, Howard Hesseman
Howard Hesseman
Howard Hesseman is an American actor best known for playing disc jockey Johnny Fever on WKRP in Cincinnati and schoolteacher Charlie Moore on Head of the Class.-Early life:...
, and Ron Rifkin
Ron Rifkin
Ron Rifkin is an American actor. He is best-known for his roles as Arvin Sloane on the spy drama Alias and as Saul Holden on the American family drama Brothers & Sisters.-Personal life:...
in supporting roles. This would be Matthau's last Neil Simon movie until 1982's I Ought to Be in Pictures
I Ought to Be in Pictures (film)
Neil Simon's I Ought to Be in Pictures is a 1982 American comedy film directed by Herbert Ross and based on Neil Simon's play of the same name. The film stars Walter Matthau, Ann-Margret, and Dinah Manoff...
with Ann-Margret
Ann-Margret
Ann-Margret Olsson is a Swedish-American actress, singer and dancer whose professional name is Ann-Margret. She became famous for her starring roles in Bye Bye Birdie, Viva Las Vegas, The Cincinnati Kid, Carnal Knowledge, and Tommy...
and Dinah Manoff
Dinah Manoff
Dinah Beth Manoff is an American stage, film and television actress and television director best known for her roles as Elaine Lefkowitz on Soap, Marty Maraschino in the film Grease, Libby Tucker in both the stage and film adaptations of I Ought to Be in Pictures, for which she won a Tony award,...
.
Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
originally was asked to direct, but he was more interested in playing the role of Lewis and declined the offer. Twenty years later, he would be cast as Lewis in a television adaptation
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
.
Initially, Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
and Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
were proposed for the leads, but Simon was opposed to the idea, as he felt the roles required Jewish comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
s. Several actors, including Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers was an American entertainer and comedy actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah." He is best known for starring in The Phil Silvers Show, a 1950s sitcom set on a U.S...
auditioned, and the roles eventually were given to real-life vaudevillian veterans Red Skelton
Red Skelton
Richard Bernard "Red" Skelton was an American comedian who is best known as a top radio and television star from 1937 to 1971. Skelton's show business career began in his teens as a circus clown and went on to vaudeville, Broadway, films, radio, TV, night clubs and casinos, all while pursuing...
and Jack Benny
Jack Benny
Jack Benny was an American comedian, vaudevillian, and actor for radio, television, and film...
.
Benny was forced to withdraw after being diagnosed with the pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
that would soon kill him and recommended his friend and fellow real-life vaudevillian veteran Burns, who had not been in a film since 1939, for the role. Burns' Academy Award-winning role revived his career and redefined his popular image as a remarkably active old comedy star. When Skelton eventually dropped out as well, possibly because he considered the material too "blue", he was replaced by the younger Matthau.
Cast
- Walter MatthauWalter MatthauWalter Matthau was an American actor best known for his role as Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple and his frequent collaborations with Odd Couple star Jack Lemmon, as well as his role as Coach Buttermaker in the 1976 comedy The Bad News Bears...
- Willy Clark - George BurnsGeorge BurnsGeorge Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
- Al Lewis - 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:...
- Ben Clark - Lee MeredithLee MeredithLee Meredith is an American actress. She was born Judith Lee Sauls and grew up in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. She is married to Burt Stratford....
- Nurse in Sketch (Miss McIntosh) - Carol ArthurCarol ArthurCarol Arthur is an American producer and film/television actress, mainly recognizable as playing supporting roles in films produced by Mel Brooks. She is probably best remembered as the outspoken town suffragette Harriett Johnson, in Brooks' Blazing Saddles...
- Doris Green - Rosetta Le NoireRosetta LeNoireRosetta LeNoire was an American stage, screen, and television actress, as well as a Broadway producer and casting agent....
- Odessa - F. Murray AbrahamF. Murray AbrahamFahrid Murray Abraham is an American actor. He became known during the 1980s after winning the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus. He has appeared in many roles, both leading and supporting, in films such as All the President's Men and Scarface...
- Mechanic - Howard HessemanHoward HessemanHoward Hesseman is an American actor best known for playing disc jockey Johnny Fever on WKRP in Cincinnati and schoolteacher Charlie Moore on Head of the Class.-Early life:...
- Mr. Walsh - James Cranna - Mr. Schaeffer
- Ron RifkinRon RifkinRon Rifkin is an American actor. He is best-known for his roles as Arvin Sloane on the spy drama Alias and as Saul Holden on the American family drama Brothers & Sisters.-Personal life:...
- TV floor manager - Jennifer Lee - Helen Clark
- Fritz FeldFritz FeldFritz Feld was a film character actor actor who appeared in over 140 films, both silent and sound. His trademark was to slap his mouth with the palm of his hand to create a pop sound.-Biography:...
- Mr. Gilbert - Jack Bernardi - Man at audition
- Garn Stephens - Eddie the stage manager
- Santos Morales - Desk clerk
- Steve AllenSteve AllenSteve Allen may refer to:*Steve Allen , American musician, comedian, and writer*Steve Allen , presenter on the London-based talk radio station LBC 97.3...
(uncredited) - Himself - Phyllis DillerPhyllis DillerPhyllis Diller is an American actress and comedian. She created a stage persona of a wild-haired, eccentrically dressed housewife who makes jokes about a husband named "Fang" while pretending to smoke from a long cigarette holder...
(uncredited) - Herself
Awards and nominations
The film won an Academy Award and was nominated for three others:- Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor (Burns, winner)
- Academy Award for Best Actor (Matthau, nominee)
- Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay (nominee)
- Academy Award for Best Art Direction (Albert BrennerAlbert BrennerAlbert Brenner is an American production designer and art director. He has been nominated for five Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction.-Selected filmography:...
, Marvin MarchMarvin MarchMarvin March is an American set decorator. He has been nominated for five Academy Awards in the category Best Art Direction.-Selected filmography:March has been nominated for five Academy Awards for Best Art Direction:* Addams Family Values...
, nominees) - Golden Globe AwardGolden Globe AwardThe Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy (winner) - Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Matthau, winner)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor (Benjamin, winner)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Burns, nominee)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay, Motion Picture (nominee)
- BAFTA AwardBritish Academy of Film and Television ArtsThe British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
for Best Actor (Matthau, nominee) - BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay (nominee)
- Writers Guild of America AwardWriters Guild of America AwardThe Writers Guild of America Award for outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949...
for Best Comedy Adapted from Another Medium (winner)