The Pursuit of Happiness
Theatrical poster for The Pursuit of Happiness
Directed by	Gabriele Muccino
Produced by	Will Smith Steve Tisch Teddy Zee Todd Black Jason Blumenthal
Written by	Steven Conrad
Starring	Will Smith Jaden Christopher Syre Smith Thandie Newton Brian Howe James Karen Dan Castellaneta Kurt Fuller Scott Klace
Music by	Andrea Guerra
Cinematography	Phedon Papamichael
Editing by	Hughes Winborne
Release date(s)	December 15, 2006
Running time	117 minutes
Country	USA
Language	English
Official website
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

The Pursuit of Happyness is an Academy Award-nominated 2006 drama film produced by Overbrook Entertainment, Escape Artist, and Relativity Media, in association with and released by Columbia Pictures on December 15, 2006. Based on the true story of Chris Gardner, who secured an internship with a stock brokerage firm while homeless, the film stars Will Smith as Gardner and Smith's real-life son Jaden Smith as Gardner's son Christopher. Although the film differs from Gardner's real-life experiences in various respects, it recounts many of the challenging events faced by Gardner while pursuing the internship and caring for Christopher. The film was directed by Gabriele Muccino, an Italian director making his English-language directorial debut. For the 2006 film, see The Pursuit of Happyness. ... The Pursuit of Happiness are a Canadian rock group, who were one of Canadas most successful independent bands in the 1980s. ... Image File history File links Poster-pursuithappyness. ... Gabriele Muccino (born May 20, 1967 in Rome, Italy) is a successful Italian director. ... “W. S.” redirects here. ... Steven Steve Tisch is the chairman, executive vice president, and co-owner of the New York Giants, as well as a movie director. ... Teddy Zee is a Hollywood film producer, entertainment executive and former studio executive with strong ties to Asian American and Asian content. ... This article should appear in one or more categories. ... “W. S.” redirects here. ... Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998 in Los Angeles, California) is the son of actress/singer Jada Pinkett Smith and actor/rapper Will Smith. ... Thandiwe Adjewa Thandie Newton (born 6 November 1972, is a BAFTA Award-winning English actress[1]. // Newton was born in Zambia, to a white English lab technician and artist, Nick Newton, and a Zimbabwean health-care worker, Nyasha. ... Brian Howe is an American actor, most famous for his portrayal of stock broker Jay Twistle in the film The Pursuit of Happyness. ... James Karen, (born on November 28, 1923, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania), is an American character actor of Broadway, film and television. ... Daniel Louis Castellaneta (born October 29, 1957) is an Emmy award winning American voice actor, actor and comedian best known for providing the voice of Homer Simpson and other characters on the long-running FOX animated series The Simpsons. ... Kurt Fuller (born September 16, 1953, in San Francisco, California) is a prolific character actor. ... Scott Klace is perhaps one of the most well-unknown actors of the late 20th century. ... Phedon Papamichael is a cinematographer and a director. ... Hughes Winborne is a Hollywood Film editor. ... is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... // Please note that following the tradition of the English language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the United States and Canada in 2006; because they may have made most of their income in a later year, they may not be the top-grossing... A drama film is a film that depends mostly on in-depth character development, interaction, and highly emotional themes. ... The Columbia Pictures logo from 1993 to the present Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. ... is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Christopher Paul Gardner (born February 9, 1954 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is a self-made millionaire, entrepreneur, motivational speaker and philanthropist who, during the early 1980s, struggled with homelessness while raising his toddler son, Christopher. ... A Stock broker sells or buys stock on behalf of a customer. ... A homeless person in Paris. ... “W. S.” redirects here. ... Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998 in Los Angeles, California) is the son of actress/singer Jada Pinkett Smith and actor/rapper Will Smith. ... Gabriele Muccino (born May 20, 1967 in Rome, Italy) is a successful Italian director. ...

Production

Smith insisted that Italian Gabriele Muccino direct this movie because of Muccino's style in movies such as L'ultimo bacio and Remember Me, My Love.^{[citation needed]} Speedcubing champion Tyson Mao was hired as a consultant to teach Will Smith how to solve a Rubik's Cube in two minutes.^{[citation needed]}Dan Castellaneta, who voices the donut-loving Homer Simpson on The Simpsons, co-stars in the film as one of Gardner's superiors and requests a donut from Gardner. Gabriele Muccino (born May 20, 1967 in Rome, Italy) is a successful Italian director. ... Lultimo bacio (international English title: The Last Kiss; USA title: One Last Kiss) is a 2000 Italian movie directed by Gabriele Muccino. ... Remember Me, My Love (Ricordati di me) is a 2003 Italian movie directed by Gabriele Muccino. ... Rubiks Cube being speedsolved. ... Tyson Francis Mao (Born on May 8, 1984 in San Francisco, California), is one of the worlds top competitive Rubiks Cube solvers. ... Variations of Rubiks Cubes (from left to right: Rubiks Revenge, Rubiks Cube, Professors Cube, & Pocket Cube) Rubiks Cube (commonly misspelled rubix, rubicks or rubics cube) is a mechanical puzzle invented in 1974[1] by the Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik. ... Daniel Louis Castellaneta (born October 29, 1957) is an Emmy award winning American voice actor, actor and comedian best known for providing the voice of Homer Simpson and other characters on the long-running FOX animated series The Simpsons. ... Homer Simpson is also a character in the book and film The Day of the Locust. ... Simpsons redirects here. ...

At the end of the film, the real Chris Gardner walks by Will Smith and Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, Will Smith doing a double-take over his shoulder at him. Tyler MacNiven makes an uncredited guest appearance as the male hippie who stole one of the bone density scanners. Christopher Paul Gardner (born February 9, 1954 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is a self-made millionaire, entrepreneur, motivational speaker and philanthropist who, during the early 1980s, struggled with homelessness while raising his toddler son, Christopher. ... “W. S.” redirects here. ... Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998 in Los Angeles, California) is the son of actress/singer Jada Pinkett Smith and actor/rapper Will Smith. ... Tyler MacNiven is an American filmmaker and reality television contestant. ... Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA, previously DEXA) is a means of measuring bone mineral density (BMD). ...

The filming was done in the San Francisco Bay Area, with shots of San Francisco, BART, and Piedmont. USGS satellite photo of the San Francisco Bay Area. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... A westbound BART train with aerodynamic design A car in downtown San Francisco. ... The city of Piedmont highlighted within Alameda County Piedmont is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. ...

The film uses real "street people" and real Glide church members and attenders as extras in some of the scenes featuring the church.^[1] Cecil Williams plays himself in the movie. The church choir and band, The Glide Ensemble and the John Turk Change Band, are also in the film. The Glide Ensemble soloists and band are professional performers. A homeless person in Paris. ... A. Cecil Williams (born 1929, San Angelo, Texas) is an American minister of the United Methodist Church. ...

Cast

• Will Smith as Chris Gardner
  
• Jaden Smith as Christopher Gardner
  
• Thandie Newton as Linda
  
• Brian Howe as Jay Twistle
  
• James Karen as Martin Frohm
  
• Dan Castellaneta as Alan Frakesh
  
• Kurt Fuller as Walter Ribbon
  
• Scott Klace as Tim Brophy
  
• Geoff Callan as Ferrari Owner
  

“W. S.” redirects here. ... Christopher Paul Gardner (born February 9, 1954 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) is a self-made millionaire, entrepreneur, motivational speaker and philanthropist who, during the early 1980s, struggled with homelessness while raising his toddler son, Christopher. ... Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998 in Los Angeles, California) is the son of actress/singer Jada Pinkett Smith and actor/rapper Will Smith. ... Thandiwe Adjewa Thandie Newton (born 6 November 1972, is a BAFTA Award-winning English actress[1]. // Newton was born in Zambia, to a white English lab technician and artist, Nick Newton, and a Zimbabwean health-care worker, Nyasha. ... Brian Howe is an American actor, most famous for his portrayal of stock broker Jay Twistle in the film The Pursuit of Happyness. ... James Karen, (born on November 28, 1923, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania), is an American character actor of Broadway, film and television. ... Daniel Louis Castellaneta (born October 29, 1957) is an Emmy award winning American voice actor, actor and comedian best known for providing the voice of Homer Simpson and other characters on the long-running FOX animated series The Simpsons. ... Kurt Fuller (born September 16, 1953, in San Francisco, California) is a prolific character actor. ... Scott Klace is perhaps one of the most well-unknown actors of the late 20th century. ... Geoffrey E. Callan (born October 26, 1967) is an American actor. ...

Reception

The Pursuit of Happyness garnered positive reviews from critics with a 66 percent approval rating on the site Rotten Tomatoes. Michael Medved gave Pursuit of Happyness four stars (out of four) saying "..not even the most jaded movie goers will be able to resist this film's emotional pull with an ultimately inspiring message about the implacable power of love and determination." ^[2] Jaden Smith in particular has been praised, due in part to "his natural, low-key quality" that is "both astounding and moving."^[3] This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

The film debuted at number-one at the box-office, making $27 million during its opening weekend and beating out such heavily-hyped films as Eragon and Charlotte's Web. It was Will Smith's sixth number-one opening in a row. It has made $162,587,000 as of 3/29/07. Eragon is a 2006 fantasy-adventure film based on the novel of the same name by author Christopher Paolini. ... Charlottes Web is a live-action/computer-animated feature film, based on the popular book of the same name by E.B. White. ...

Mistakes

• Throughout the film, Will Smith's character is often shown on the BART system, but even though the train network opened on September 11, 1972, it was not yet fully built out in its present form in the year the movie was set, 1981 (although at that time, all of the main BART subway lines within the cities of San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley were in daily revenue service).
• In 1981, most of the buildings shown in the San Francisco Skyline shots were not completed yet.
• Although in the film Chris is selling Bone-density scanners the equipment for this technology was not invented until 1987, while the film is set in 1981.
• When Chris is running in the city you can see a guy on a cell phone
• Another scene involving Chris running through the city, sees him pass a billboard for Zack Snyder's 300. This movie was released in 2007.

Bart can refer to: A diminutive of Bartholomew Barts is the frequently used abbreviation for St Bartholomews Hospital in the City of London. ... is the 254th day of the year (255th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... “Oakland” redirects here. ... Berkeley is a city on the east shore of San Francisco Bay in northern California, in the United States. ... Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA, previously DEXA) is a means of measuring bone mineral density (BMD). ... Motorola T2288 mobile phone A mobile phone is a portable electronic device which behaves as a normal telephone whilst being able to move over a wide area (compare cordless phone which acts as a telephone only within a limited range). ... 300 is a 2007 film adaptation of the graphic novel 300 by Frank Miller, and is a fictionalized retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae. ...

Differences between the film and actual events

• Most significantly, Gardner's internship was a $1000 monthly stipend, but the film claims "there was no salary."
• Linda never existed. The mother of his child was "Jackie", his mistress who he left his wife for when she became pregnant. Also, she initially took Chris Jr. away for many months before bringing him to Chris to raise. They were never married but eventually had another child together.
• While the film shows Chris Jr. at the age of five, he was only two years old at the time of the events of this film.
• Because of the age of Chris Jr., the interactions in the film did not occur. However, the scene where Chris tells him, "you're a good poppa" did, in fact, occur.
• The Rubik's Cube incident never happened. Smith came up with that idea, because he has always been fascinated with Rubik's cubes.
• He actually spent ten days in jail for not paying his parking tickets.
• He eventually started at Bear Stearns.
• The actual events and his homelessness happened over the course of a few years rather than a short time as shown in this movie.
• He sometimes spent the night underneath his desk when the shelters were full.
• Gardner quit his job as salesman before entering the stock broker training program.
• Gardner's medical equipment was never stolen from him.
• In the movie Gardner states that he is from Louisiana, but Gardner is actually from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. However, Gardner's book indicates that his father resided in Louisiana at that time.
• Gardner was not hit by a car.
• The IRS going into his account to take his money did not happen.
• He met with the "red Ferrari" man after the initial meeting to learn more about what the job involved. It was not simply a 1-minute conversation.

A stipend is a form of payment or salary, such as for an internship or apprenticeship. ... Variations of Rubiks Cubes (from left to right: Rubiks Revenge, Rubiks Cube, Professors Cube, & Pocket Cube) Rubiks Cube (commonly misspelled rubix, rubicks or rubics cube) is a mechanical puzzle invented in 1974[1] by the Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture ErnÅ‘ Rubik. ... The Bear Stearns Companies, Inc. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... Nickname: Location of Milwaukee in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin Coordinates: , County Milwaukee Government  - Mayor Tom Barrett (D) Area  - City  97 sq mi (251. ... The 308 GTB (and similar 208 and later 328) were mid-engined sports cars manufactured by the Italian company Ferrari in the 1970s-1980s. ...

Awards

• Academy Awards
  • Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Will Smith) - Nomination
• Black Reel Awards
  • Best Film- Nomination
  • Best Actor (Will Smith) - Nomination
  • Best Breakthrough Performer (Jaden Smith) - Nomination
• Broadcast Film Critics Association
  • Best Actor (Will Smith) - Nomination
  • Best Younger Actor (Jaden Smith) - Nomination
• Golden Globe Awards
  • Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama (Will Smith) - Nomination
  • Best Original Song ("A Father's Way") - Nomination
• Image Awards
  • Outstanding Motion Picture- Winner
  • Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture (Will Smith) - Nomination
  • Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture (Jaden Smith) - Nomination
  • Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture (Thandie Newton) -Nomination
• Screen Actors Guild Awards
  • Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role (Will Smith) - Nomination
• MTV Movie Awards 2007
  • Best Performance (Will Smith) - Nomination
  • Best Breakthrough Performance (Jaden Smith) - Winner
• BET Awards
  • Best Actor (Will Smith) - Nomination

Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ... The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of African-Americans in feature, independent and television films. ... The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) is the largest film critics organization in the U.S. and Canada, representing 199 television, radio and online critics. ... The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ... The Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture - Drama was first awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as a separate category in 1951. ... For the main article see Golden Globe Awards. ... The NAACP Image Award is an award presented annually by the NAACP to honor the top African-Americans in film, television, music and literature. ... The Actor: The Screen Actors Guild Award Statue The Screen Actors Guild Awards are an annual award given by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to recognize outstanding performances by members. ... The 2007 MTV Movie Awards will broadcast the 16th annual movie awards show on Sunday, June 3, at the Gibson Ampitheater in Universal City, California and will be the first time the event will be broadcast live. ... The BET Awards were established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate African Americans and other minorities in music, acting, shooting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. ...

References

Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. ... December 22 is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

The Pursuit of Happyness

• Official site
• History vs. Hollywood - The Pursuit of Happyness at Chasing the Frog
• The Pursuit of Happyness At Box Office Mojo
• The Pursuit of Happyness at the Internet Movie Database
• The Pursuit of Happyness at Rotten Tomatoes
• Pursuit of Happyness review at Premiere Magazine's site
• The Pursuit of Happyness at The-Numbers
• The Pursuit of Happyness Reviews at Metacritic
• The Pursuit of Happyness premiere in San Francisco on Sidewalks Entertainment
• Chris Gardner has pursued happyness, from the Glide soup kit, San Francisco Chronicle
• Film Review from Ignore Magazine
• A Look at the Film by Film Perspective
• Synopsis and review by PopOpinions.com