King Ralph (first released on February 15, 1991) is an American film starring American actor John Goodman in the title role of Ralph Jones. The movie also starred Peter O'Toole as the King's private secretary Sir Cedric Willingham, Camille Coduri as Ralph's girlfriend Miranda Greene, and John Hurt as the British peer Percival Graves, who schemes to get Ralph removed so that Parliament will make Graves the new King. The story is vaguely based on that of the novel Headlong by Emlyn Williams, which is not a comedy but a serious and well-researched story; very little of the story, including the characters, survived the transition to the screen. Promotional poster for King Ralph, deemed This work is copyrighted. ... David S. Ward is an American film director and award winning screen writer. ... Sydney Pollack (born July 1, 1934 in Lafayette, Indiana) is an American actor, producer, and director. ... Emlyn Williams (Agust, 1994 - August 6, 1987) was a Welsh dramatist and actor. ... John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is a Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated American actor. ... Peter Seamus OToole (born Peter James OToole on August 2, 1932) is an eight-time Academy Award-nominated Irish actor. ... John Hurt as Chancellor Adam Sutler in V for Vendetta. ... Universal Pictures is the main motion picture production/distribution arm of Universal Studios, a subsidiary of NBC Universal. ... February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... // April 28 - Bonnie Raitt marries actor Michael Noonan OKeefe in New York Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation is made. ... John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is a Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated American actor. ... Peter Seamus OToole (born Peter James OToole on August 2, 1932) is an eight-time Academy Award-nominated Irish actor. ... Camille Coduri (born 1966 in Wandsworth, London) is a British actress. ... John Hurt as Chancellor Adam Sutler in V for Vendetta. ... The British monarch or Sovereign is the monarch and head of state of the United Kingdom and its overseas territories, and is the source of all executive, judicial and (as the Queen-in-Parliament) legislative power. ... Headlong is a novel by Emlyn Williams. ... Emlyn Williams (Agust, 1994 - August 6, 1987) was a Welsh dramatist and actor. ...

The film was a box office flop, despite a Burger King tie-in. Burger King (often abbreviated to BK) is a large international chain of fast food restaurants, predominantly selling burgers, french fries, soft drinks, desserts, and various sandwiches. ...

Tagline: 'A comedy of majestic proportions'

Synopsis

In the film, the entire Wyndham family (based on the real-world House of Windsor), which in this film is the current ruling family of the United Kingdom is entirely wiped out in a freak accident. The entire family had been together for the first time in six years when they were electrocuted after the metal platforms they were standing on for a family photograph became wet during a storm, and it appeared that there were no surviving members of the Wyndham family left. The House of Windsor, previously called the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, is the Royal House of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the other Commonwealth Realms. ... Members of the Royal Family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony The British Royal Family is a shared royal family. ...

The British government immediately begins a search led by Sir Cedric Willingham to find if there are any surviving Wyndham heirs to whom to pass the title of monarch to them. A researcher finally locates a living heir named Ralph Jones, an American. The United Kingdom is a unitary state and a democratic constitutional monarchy. ... The British monarch or Sovereign is the head of state of the United Kingdom and in the British overseas territories. ...

In Las Vegas, Ralph Jones works as a lounge singer/piano player in one of the main casinos. He is a slob, singing a Don Ho piece, Tiny Bubbles while watching a football game on TV. Phipps and Inspector McGuire (Niall O'Brien) watch the performance and applaud with enthusiasm when he finishes. When Ralph returns to his room, he finds out that he's been fired and replaced by a chimp. Ralph meets Phipps and McGuire, who inform him that he is now the new King of England, and at first Ralph is skeptical over Phipps' claims. Phipps tells Ralph that his grandfather, the 1st Duke of Warren, had had a brief affair with a hotel maid while visiting the States, and this affair produced a child, Ralph's father. But since his father and grandmother have died, Ralph is the only surviving Wyndham heir, and Ralph is finally convinced when seeing the Duke's ring - an exact copy of one the Duke had given to his grandmother. For further information, see Las Vegas metropolitan area and Las Vegas Strip. ... Donald Tai Loy Don Ho (in Chinese characters, 何大來, Hé Dàlái) (August 13, 1930 – April 14, 2007) was a Hawaiian musician and entertainer. ... See TV (disambiguation) for other uses and Television (band) for the rock band European networks National In much of Europe television broadcasting has historically been state dominated, rather than commercially organised, although commercial stations have grown in number recently. ... Niall OBrien (born November 8, 1981) is an Irish cricketer. ... A duke is a nobleman, historically of highest rank and usually controlling a duchy. ...

Ralph is flown to London, where he meets Willingham for the first time and begins the long period of adjustment to make him a proper British monarch. This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

Shortly after his arrival, Ralph heads for a local strip club, meeting the exotic dancer Miranda Greene (Camille Coduri). When she is unable to perform in front of a bunch of men and leaves the stage in embarrassment Ralph decided he wants to meet her. She's also skeptical of his claim to be the King, Ralph proposes that if he can prove he is the King, Miranda will go on at least one date with him. Ralph's appearance on a newscast proves to Miranda that his claim is legitimate. For the book or movie Striptease see Striptease (book) and Striptease (movie) A striptease is a performance, usually a dance, in which the performer gradually removes their clothing for the purposes of sexually arousing the audience, usually performed in nightclubs. ... Camille Coduri (born 1966 in Wandsworth, London) is a British actress. ...

Meanwhile, Lord Percival Graves (John Hurt), Prime Minister Sir Geffory Hale (James Villiers), and Willingham meet at 10 Downing Street to discuss Ralph's selection as King. Graves is opposed to the idea of an American on the throne, and he proposes to declare the Wyndham line at an end, and another line, the House of Stuart, the royal line again. As Graves is a Stuart, he would be next in line for the throne. Hale states that Jones has royal blood and says that unless Jones committed a grievous error the country would have to live with him. John Hurt as Chancellor Adam Sutler in V for Vendetta. ... The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is, in practice, the political leader of the United Kingdom. ... James Michael Lyle Villiers (September 29, 1933 - January 18, 1998) was a British character actor and a familiar face on British television. ... Prime Minister Tony Blair and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney stand in front of the famous main door to Number 10. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Graves also learns about the meeting between Miranda and Ralph, and decides to use her as a way to cause embarrassment to Ralph and provide the excuse that Parliament needs to remove him from the throne. Graves offers Miranda money to maneuver Ralph into a compromising position, and Miranda initially takes the money. Ralph and Miranda continue their relationship, soon beginning to fall in love. Miranda soon returns the money to Graves, telling him she wants no part of his scheme, but she doesn't know Graves already has pictures. In order to protect Ralph, Miranda decides to break off the relationship.

The English arrange for Ralph to marry the Finnish Princess Anna (Joely Richardson); Ralph soon receives Princess Anna, her father King Gustav (Julian Glover), and mother Queen Katherine (Judy Parfitt) on an official state visit. Graves has photos of Miranda and Ralph kissing passed around at a royal ball given in honor of the Finnish royals. These photos, along with Ralph's wild rendition of a rock and roll song, ruins any chance of a marriage between Ralph and Princess Anna, and causes a Finnish company to award a coveted contract to the Japanese. Princess is the feminine form of prince (from Latin princeps, meaning principal citizen). ... Joely Richardson Joely Richardson (born January 9, 1965 in the U.K.) is a British actress, who was born into a theatrical family. ... Julian Wyatt Glover (born March 27, 1935) is an English actor. ... Judy Parfitt (born on 7 November 1935 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England) is a British theatre, film and television actress. ... State visits usually involve a military review. ... The Kiss by Francesco Hayez, 19th century. ... Balls are objects typically used in games. ...

The palace staff begins an investigation and soon realizes that Ralph was set up. It was Graves who arranged to have the pictures taken, and Miranda confesses to Ralph her role in the scandal. Ralph finally learns that there is another heir to the throne, and Willingham admits that he is this second heir.

The next day Ralph addresses Parliament. After apologizing for his recent actions, he informs Parliament that he has helped work out a deal with the King of Zambezi that will create British jobs. Ralph then reveals that Graves has been working to sabotage his succession to the throne and has him arrested for violating the Treason Act of 1702. Finally, he tells the English people that he has decided to abdicate his throne, and reveals that Willingham would be the next King. The Houses of Parliament, as seen over Westminster Bridge The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... The Treason Act 1702 (1 Anne stat. ... Abdication (from the Latin abdicatio disowning, renouncing, from ab, from, and dicare, to declare, to proclaim as not belonging to one), the act whereby a person in office renounces and gives up the same before the expiry of the time for which it is held. ...

Willingham becomes King Cedric I, and Ralph is free to pursue his romantic relationship with Miranda, along with his dreams of being a rock n' roll star. Ralph bids a tearful goodbye to his friends and his newly discovered relative King Cedric. Cedric gives Ralph a lucrative annual salary, a home in the country, and a state-of-the-art recording studio. Later Cedric names Ralph the 3rd Duke of Warren. In the end, a snapshot is shown in the future, where Miranda is shown with Ralph's young son, identified in the credits as Baby Ralph II, insinuating that this child might someday succeed Cedric as monarch.

Quotes

Graves: 'By what right can you order my arrest?!'

Ralph: 'By the Treason Act of 1702, forbidding interference in the proper succession of a Monarch! Enacted by...' (mutters to himself the British Monarchs mnemonic and counting them on his fingers) 'Charlie, Charlie, James again.' (Then looks up and announces:) 'William the Third!' The Treason Act 1702 (1 Anne stat. ... A mnemonic verse listing the monarchs ruling in England since William the Conqueror was traditionally used by English schoolchildren in the era when rote learning formed a major part of the curriculum. ... Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, King of Scots, and King of Ireland from 30 January 1649 (de jure) or 29 May 1660 (de facto) until his death. ... James II of England/VII of Scotland (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) became King of Scots, King of England, and King of Ireland on 6 February 1685, and Duke of Normandy on 31 December 1660. ... William III of England (The Hague, 14 November 1650 – Kensington Palace, 8 March 1702; also known as William II of Scotland and William III of Orange) was a Dutch aristocrat and a Protestant Prince of Orange from his birth, Stadtholder of the main provinces of the Dutch Republic from 28...

Ralph (while singing in Las Vegas): 'And here's one by Mr. Don Ho, the godfather of Hawaiian Soul. Tiny Bubbles, in the wine. Make me happy, how they, make me feel fine. Howey Howey Hoo (tuns, and watching television sees the Bears go for a touchdown) Right he's in there! Tiny bubbles, make me warm all over (sees that the touchdown was no good) Are you shittin me? With the feelin that I'm gonna love you til the end of time.

Trivia

• In reality, the scarcity of royals alluded to in the film is not possible. There are currently (April 14 2007) 1263 legitimate heirs to the British and other Commonwealth thrones. The first of those who do not reside in the UK is 60th in the real line of succession, and belongs to the Royal Family of Norway. Even if the fictional Wyndham dynasty had a different genealogy, there would still be many heirs who do not belong to the extended royal family present in the photographing tragedy.

• Throughout the film Ralph is referred to as being King of England, however, no King of England has existed since the Act of Union in 1707. Instead, Ralph would be King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as well as, by separate but parallel law, King of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, and Saint Kitts and Nevis.

• Ralph would not be able to unilaterally declare his abdication to parliament. As demonstrated by the 1936 abdication crisis, a sovereign cannot abdicate the throne without the approval of each of his parliaments, as an alteration to the succession laws, in particular the Act of Settlement, must first be approved by all of the Commonwealth Realms.

• During his first date with Miranda, Ralph is playing Scrabble with her. When he plays the word 'Yo', she protests by saying that there is no such word. He answers that they are speaking the King's English, and he is the king, so if he says it, it's a word. (In the PC game version of Scrabble by Hasbro Interactive, 'Yo' is in fact a word that can be played during the game. Also, the official Scrabble website links to the Collins Word Exchange, which also verifies that yo is a valid word for Scrabble.)

• The film supposes that there is a Finnish royal family, but Finland only had Frederick Charles of Hesse temporarily. However, this may have been a deliberate move on the part of the film's makers, to avoid possibly offending anyone by portraying a fictionalised version of a real European royal family. The king of "Zambizi" was also fictionalised -- Zambizi is not a real country.

• The crown in the movie has a diamond called the "Star of India" on it. In real life, the actual Imperial State Crown used by British Monarchs has the second largest piece of the "Star of Africa," also called the Cullinan Diamond. The first Star of Africa rests in the British royal sceptre, and is by far the largest cut diamond in the world.

• The movie claims that Edward VIII abdicated because he wished to marry a commoner. This is untrue, and Edward VIII's abdication was due to his wish to marry a twice-divorced woman, which at the time was not permissible for a British monarch as he was also head of the Church of England. There have been marriages between the the British Royal Family and commoners, the most noted of which was the 1923 marriage that joined the future George VI with Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the future Queen Mother Elizabeth.

• The flags used as the British Royal Standard and the monarch's Coat of Arms are not copies of the actual things. As with many other details derived from real life in this movie, the standard used is slightly altered.

• Ralph is seen playing with Pembroke Welsh Corgis; the present British monarch has kept the same dog breed since the 1930s.

• As the end credits roll, Ralph and his new band 'The Dukettes' perform the song "Duke of Earl".

• In John Goodman's seventh appearance as host of Saturday Night Live, he made a joke of King Ralph. While sitting on a throne with a large seven on it, he said it reminded him of this movie which 'seven people went to see'.

• In John Goodman's tenth appearance on Saturday Night Live, he made another joke about King Ralph. This time he was being interviewed, in character as Linda Tripp, in relation to the Monica Lewinsky scandal. One of the questions asked to the Tripp character is, "What do you think of John Goodman's portrayal of you on Saturday Night Live?". Goodman responds with much praise for Goodman as an actor, when the interviewer responds, "But didn't you see King Ralph? It was awful!" The interviewer then asks Tripp, "Did you regret doing it?" Goodman suddenly breaks character and asks, "What, King Ralph?"

HRH The Prince of Wales, the Heir Apparent. ... The Royal Family of Norway is the family of King Harald V of Norway. ... The Acts of Union were twin Acts of Parliament passed in 1707 (taking effect on 26 March) by the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. ... The Instrument of Abdication signed by Edward VIII and his three brothers The Edward VIII abdication crisis refers to events which occurred in 1936, when King-Emperor Edward VIII of the British Empire precipitated a constitutional crisis throughout his realms by his desire to marry his mistress, Mrs. ... The Electress Sophia The Act of Settlement (12 & 13 Wm 3 c. ... The Commonwealth Realms, shown in pink A Commonwealth Realm is any one of the sixteen sovereign states within the Commonwealth of Nations that recognise Elizabeth II as their respective monarch. ... The verb to scrabble also means to scratch, scramble or scrape about: see Wiktionary:scrabble. ... ... Cullinan I Great Star of Africa Weight 530. ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church[1] in England, and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion, as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... The Pembroke Welsh Corgi (IPA: ) is one of two dog breeds known as Welsh Corgis that originated in Pembrokeshire, Wales. ... Duke of Earl is a 1962 hit song, originally written and performed by Gene Chandler. ... Saturday Night Live (SNL) is a weekly late night 90-minute American comedy-variety show based in New York City which has been broadcast live by NBC on Saturday nights since October 11, 1975. ... Linda Tripp at the time of the Lewinsky scandal. ... Monica Lewinsky on her U.S. Government ID Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973 in San Francisco) is an American woman with whom former United States President Bill Clinton admitted to having had an affair [1] while Lewinsky worked at the White House in 1995 and 1996. ...

External link

• King Ralph at the Internet Movie Database