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The King of Comedy is a feature film made in 1981. It was released in Iceland on December 19, 1982 and subsequently, on February 18, 1983 in the United States by 20th Century Fox. Image File history File links KingOfComedyPoster. ...
Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ...
Arnon Milchan (1945-) is movie producer and businessman. ...
Joseph P. Grace was born in Pitsfield Mass. ...
Robert De Niro in 1988 Robert De Niro (born August 17, 1943) is a two-time Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning American film actor, director, and producer. ...
For other persons named Jerry Lewis, see Jerry Lewis (disambiguation). ...
Sandra Bernhard (born June 6, 1955 in Flint, Michigan) is an American actress, comedian, author and singer. ...
Diahnne Abbott,( sometimes credited as Diahnne Eugenia Abbott / Diahnne Déa) born January 1, 1945 in New York City, NY African-American actress and singer Diahnne played supporting roles in films of the 1970s and 80s, including Taxi Driver. ...
Thelma Schoonmaker (born January 3, 1940) is an American Academy Award-winning film editor who has worked with director Martin Scorsese for over thirty-five years. ...
Twentieth (20th) Century Fox Film Corporation (known from 1935 to 1985 as Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation) is one of the six major American film studios. ...
Image File history File links Flag_of_Iceland. ...
is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ...
Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ...
is the 49th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ...
The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...
is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
// This is the year of film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which will become the highest grossing movie for almost 15 years (until Titanic), earning double or triple against any major film of the 1980s. ...
is the 49th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
// February 11 - The Rolling Stones concert film Lets Spend the Night Together opens in New York North Americas Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi Tootsie Trading Places, starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy WarGames, starring Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy Superman III Flashdance Staying Alive Octopussy Mr. ...
Twentieth (20th) Century Fox Film Corporation (known from 1935 to 1985 as Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation) is one of the six major American film studios. ...
Synopsis Rupert Pupkin (Robert De Niro), a stage-door autograph hound, is an aspiring stand-up comic with obsessive ambition far in excess of any actual talent. A chance meeting with Jerry Langford (Jerry Lewis), a famous comedian and talk show host, leads Rupert to believe that his "big break" has finally come. His attempts to get a place on the show are continually rebuffed by Langford's staff and, finally, by Langford himself. Along the way, Rupert indulges in elaborate and obsessive fantasies where he and Langford are colleagues and friends. Robert De Niro in 1988 Robert De Niro (born August 17, 1943) is a two-time Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning American film actor, director, and producer. ...
For other persons named Jerry Lewis, see Jerry Lewis (disambiguation). ...
When the straight approach does not work, Rupert hatches a kidnapping plot with the help of Masha (Sandra Bernhard), a stalker familiar with Langford's movements. As ransom, Rupert demands that the kidnapping be kept secret, that he be given the opening spot on that evening's Jerry Langford Show (guest hosted by Tony Randall), and that the show be broadcast in normal fashion. The network brass, lawyers, and the FBI agree, with the understanding that Langford will be released once the show airs nationally. Between the taping of the show and the national broadcast, Masha has her "dream date" with Langford, who is duct-taped to a chair in her parents' Manhattan townhouse. Sandra Bernhard (born June 6, 1955 in Flint, Michigan) is an American actress, comedian, author and singer. ...
Tony Randall (February 26, 1920 – May 17, 2004) was an American comic actor. ...
Rupert's stand-up routine is mediocre, but not terrible. He closes by confessing to the audience that he kidnapped Jerry Langford in order to break into show business. The studio audience laughs, thinking that it's a part of his act. Rupert responds by saying, "Tomorrow you'll know I wasn't kidding and you'll all think I'm crazy. But I figure it this way: better to be king for a night, than schmuck for a lifetime."
The movie closes with a news report of Rupert's release from prison, set to a montage of storefronts stocking his "long awaited" autobiography, King For A Night. The report informs that Rupert still considers Jerry Langford his mentor and friend, and that he and his agent are currently weighing several "attractive offers."
Debate about ending Film scholar David Bordwell, writing in Film Viewer's Guide, has mentioned the (un)reality of the ending as a topic for debate. At least one other scene in the film -- Rupert and Jerry in the restaurant -- exists solely in Rupert's deluded imagination, and Bordwell suggests that viewers may want to contemplate if the end sequence is just another fantasy.
Cameos - Director Martin Scorsese has a cameo as "Man in Van." He later appears as the Jerry Langford show director, assuring Tony Randall that his cue cards are funny.
- Scorsese's mother plays Pupkin's (unseen) mother.[1]
- Real life film and television producers Edgar Scherick and Frederick de Cordova have cameo roles as a network president and producer of the Langford show, respectively.
- A gang of punks is seen on a street corner in the film. Billed in the credits as "Street Scum", they are played by Mick Jones, Joe Strummer, and Paul Simonon of The Clash, actor-singer Ellen Foley ("Paradise by the Dashboard Light", Night Court), Don Letts and Pearl Harbour. At the time, Foley was Mick Jones' girlfriend - she even sang "Hitsville UK" on the Clash album Sandinista!. Letts and Mick Jones were original members of the rock group Big Audio Dynamite. New wave singer Pearl Harbour was married to Simonon at the time. Her group, The Explosions, were a popular local San Francisco band in the early 1980s.
- Tony Randall as emergency guest host of the Jerry Langford Show
- Victor Borge and Dr. Joyce Brothers as guests on the Jerry Langford Show
- Lou Brown and Ed Herlihy as band leader and announcer, respectively, of the Jerry Langford Show
- Liza Minnelli as a cardboard cutout of herself in Rupert's fantasy guest appearance on the Jerry Langford Show
Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ...
Tony Randall (February 26, 1920 – May 17, 2004) was an American comic actor. ...
Edgar J. Scherick (October 24, 1924 – December 2, 2002) was a prolific televison and film producer. ...
Frederick Fred Timmins de Cordova (October 27, 1910 - September 15, 2001) was a motion picture and television director and producer. ...
Mick Jones on stage with The Clash Michael Geoffrey Jones (born June 26, 1955) is an English guitarist and singer best known for his work as lead guitarist with The Clash. ...
For other persons named John Mellor, see John Mellor (disambiguation). ...
Paul Simonon (born December 15, 1955 in Brixton, London, England) is best known as the bass guitarist and vocalist for punk rock band The Clash. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
Ellen Foley (born 1951, St. ...
Paradise By the Dashboard Light is the second hit single by the American musician Meat Loaf, after Two Out of Three Aint Bad. It is a track off his 1977 album Bat Out of Hell, which was entirely written and composed by Jim Steinman. ...
Night Court was an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from January 1984 until May 1992. ...
Don Letts is a British film director and musician. ...
The 13th single released by The Clash. ...
Sandinista! is the fourth album by the punk rock band The Clash. ...
Big Audio Dynamite (later known as Big Audio Dynamite II and Big Audio, and often abbreviated BAD) was a British musical group formed in 1984 by the ex-guitarist and singer of The Clash, Mick Jones. ...
Pearl Harbour and the Explosions was a musical act out of San Francisco, California. ...
This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ...
Tony Randall (February 26, 1920 – May 17, 2004) was an American comic actor. ...
Musician/Comedian Victor Borge For the Cape Verdean politician, see VÃctor Borges. ...
Doctor Joyce Brothers was born in 1928, and is one of the leading family psychologists and advice columnists, publishing a daily syndicated newspaper column since 1960. ...
Ed Herlihy (August 14, 1909-January 30, 1999), born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, was a newsreel narrator for Universal-International. ...
Liza Minnelli (born March 12, 1946 in Los Angeles, California) is an American actress and singer. ...
Production Scorsese's first choice as the talk show host was Johnny Carson. He also considered Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin before selecting Lewis.[2] For other persons named John Carson, see John Carson (disambiguation). ...
“Sinatra†redirects here. ...
Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti, June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an Italian American singer, film actor, and comedian. ...
In the biography/overview of his work, Scorsese on Scorsese, Scorsese had high praise for Jerry Lewis, stating that during their first conversation before shooting, Lewis was extremely professional and had assured him prior to shooting that there would be no ego clashes or difficulties on Lewis' end. Scorsese also stated that he felt Lewis' performance in the film was vastly underrated and deserved more acclaim. For other persons named Jerry Lewis, see Jerry Lewis (disambiguation). ...
According to an interview with Lewis in the February 7, 1983 edition of People Magazine, he claimed that Scorsese and DeNiro employed method acting tricks, including making a slew of anti-Semitic epithets against Lewis, during the filming in order to "pump up Lewis' anger"[3] This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
Theatrical Release The first release of the film was in Iceland, to celebrate a new cinema there being the best in the Nordic countries.[1] It was released in the United States two months later. Political map of the Nordic countries and associated territories. ...
Reviews All Movie Guide is a commercial database of information about movie stars, movies and television shows. ...
Image File history File links 4_stars. ...
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Emap Consumer Media since July 1989. ...
Image File history File links 3_stars. ...
Image File history File links 4_stars. ...
Critic's Lists - Halliwells Top 1000 #180
- 1001 Movies You Must See Before you Die
- Jonathan Rosenbaum : 1000 Essential Films
- The New York Times Guide to the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made link
DVD release Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Notes - ^ Noted by Scorsese in The King of Comedy DVD "making of" feature
- ^ Schoell, William. Martini Man: The Life of Dean Martin. Dallas, Texas: Taylor Publishing 1999. ISBN 0-87833-231-6
- ^ People Magazine, February 7, 1983, page 44
External links Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: The King of Comedy at the Internet Movie Database Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ...
Wikiquote is a sister project of Wikipedia, using the same MediaWiki software. ...
The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ...
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