The Cheap Detective | |
---|---|
Directed by | Robert Moore |
Written by | Neil Simon |
Produced by | Ray Stark Margaret Booth |
Starring | |
Cinematography | John A. Alonzo |
Edited by | Sidney Levin Michael A. Stevenson |
Music by | Patrick Williams |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 92 minutes |
Countries | United States United Kingdom Germany |
Languages | English German |
Budget | $5-6 million [1] |
Box office | $28,221,552 [2] |
The Cheap Detective is a 1978 American mystery comedy film written by Neil Simon and directed by Robert Moore. [3]
It stars Peter Falk as Lou Peckinpaugh, a parody of Humphrey Bogart. [3] The film is a parody of Bogart films such as Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon . [3]
The ensemble cast includes Madeline Kahn, Louise Fletcher, Ann-Margret, Eileen Brennan, Stockard Channing, Marsha Mason, Sid Caesar, John Houseman, Dom DeLuise, Abe Vigoda, James Coco, Phil Silvers, Fernando Lamas, Nicol Williamson, Scatman Crothers, Vic Tayback and Paul Williams. [4]
Lou Peckinpaugh (Peter Falk), a bumbling San Francisco private detective, tries to prove himself innocent of his partner's murder while helping a bizarre array of characters recover a lost treasure. A large number of people are murdered in crazy death poses before he finds out from Pepe Damascus that they were all after twelve large egg-shaped diamonds. Vladimir Tserijemiwtz, who had the diamonds, is shot by his partner Marcel, who had been bleeding for 10 years. Peckinpaugh confronts those searching for the diamonds in his home, finding that the eggs concealed real baby chicks. A final confrontation between the protagonists and Col. Schlissel ensues at the waterfront.
The film grossed $5,113,743 in its opening weekend from 648 theaters, finishing third for the weekend behind Grease and Jaws 2 in their second weekends. [5] Film critic Roger Ebert stated that "If you loved The Maltese Falcon and can recite all the best lines from Casablanca by heart, you'll hate 'The Cheap Detective', which is basically just the year's classiest and most expensive rip-off." [6]
A number of critics gave the film very positive reviews: The Fresno Bee noted that "Neil Simon has done it again. Written a film that is funny, entertaining, and a treat for old movie buffs." [7]
Ed Mintz founded CinemaScore in 1979 after disliking The Cheap Detective despite being a fan of Neil Simon and hearing another disappointed attendee wanting to hear the opinions of ordinary people instead of critics. [8]
Humphrey DeForest Bogart, nicknamed Bogie, was an American actor. His performances in classic Hollywood cinema made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Bogart as the greatest male star of classic American cinema.
Benjamin Sherman "Scatman" Crothers was an American actor and musician. He is known for playing Louie the Garbage Man on the TV show Chico and the Man, and Dick Hallorann in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining (1980). He was also a prolific voice-over actor who provided the voices of Meadowlark Lemon in the Harlem Globetrotters animated TV series, Jazz the Autobot in The Transformers and The Transformers: The Movie (1986), the title character in Hong Kong Phooey, and Scat Cat in the Disney animated film The Aristocats (1970).
The following is an overview of events in 1980 in film, including the highest-grossing films, award ceremonies and festivals, a list of films released and notable deaths.
Betty or Bettie is a name, a common diminutive for the names Bethany and Elizabeth. In Latin America, it is also a common diminutive for the given name Beatriz, the Spanish and Portuguese form of the Latin name Beatrix and the English name Beatrice. In the 17th and 18th centuries, it was more often a diminutive of Bethia.
Ann-Margret Olsson, credited as Ann-Margret, is a Swedish-American actress and singer with a career spanning seven decades. Initially gaining notoriety in 1961 as a singer with a sultry, vibrant contralto voice, she quickly rose to Hollywood stardom.
Carol Elaine Channing was an American actress, comedian, singer and dancer who starred in Broadway and film musicals. Each of her characters typically possessed a fervent expressiveness and an easily identifiable voice.
John Houseman was a British-American actor and producer of theatre, film, and television. He became known for his highly publicized collaboration with director Orson Welles from their days in the Federal Theatre Project through to the production of Citizen Kane and his collaboration, as producer of The Blue Dahlia, with writer Raymond Chandler on the screenplay. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Professor Charles W. Kingsfield in the 1973 film The Paper Chase. He reprised the role of Kingsfield in the 1978 television series adaptation.
Grease is a 1978 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Randal Kleiser from a screenplay by Bronté Woodard and an adaptation by co-producer Allan Carr, based on the 1972 stage musical of the same name by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The film depicts the lives of greaser Danny Zuko and Australian transfer student Sandy Olsson, who develop an attraction for each other during a summer romance.
Sam Spade is a fictional character and the protagonist of Dashiell Hammett's 1930 novel The Maltese Falcon. Spade also appeared in four lesser-known short stories by Hammett.
Stockard Channing is an American actress. She played Betty Rizzo in the film Grease (1978) and First Lady Abbey Bartlet in the NBC television series The West Wing (1999–2006). She also originated the role of Ouisa Kittredge in the stage and film versions of Six Degrees of Separation; the 1993 film version earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
Murder by Death is a 1976 American comedy mystery film directed by Robert Moore and written by Neil Simon. The film stars Eileen Brennan, Truman Capote, James Coco, Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Elsa Lanchester, David Niven, Peter Sellers, Maggie Smith, Nancy Walker, and Estelle Winwood.
Victor Tayback was an American actor. He was best known for his role as diner owner Mel Sharples on the television sitcom Alice (1976–1985), as well as his multiple guest appearances on The Love Boat (1977–1987). The former earned him two consecutive Golden Globe Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.
Vegas is an American crime drama television series starring Robert Urich that aired on ABC from September 20, 1978, to June 3, 1981, with the pilot episode airing April 25, 1978. Vegas was produced by Aaron Spelling and was created by Michael Mann. The series was filmed in its entirety on location in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Murder, Inc. is a 1960 American gangster film starring Stuart Whitman, May Britt, Henry Morgan and Peter Falk. Filmed in Cinemascope and directed by Burt Balaban and Stuart Rosenberg, the film was based on the true story of Murder, Inc., a Brooklyn gang that operated in the 1930s.
The Fortune is a 1975 American black comedy film starring Jack Nicholson and Warren Beatty, and directed by Mike Nichols. The screenplay by Adrien Joyce focuses on two bumbling con men who plot to steal the fortune of a wealthy young heiress, played by Stockard Channing in her first film starring role.
Florence Stanley was an American actress of stage, film, and television. She is best known for her roles in Barney Miller (1975–1977) and its spinoff Fish (1977-1978), My Two Dads (1987–1990), and Nurses (1991–1994), and the voice of Wilhelmina Bertha Packard in the franchise of Atlantis: The Lost Empire.
Patrick Moody Williams was an American composer, arranger, and conductor who worked in many genres of music, and in film and television.
The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast is an American series of television specials hosted by entertainer Dean Martin and airing from 1974 to 1984. For a series of 54 specials and shows, Martin and his friends would "roast" a celebrity. The roasts were patterned after the roasts held at the New York Friars' Club.
Giampiero Albertini was an Italian actor and voice actor.
John Capodice was an American character actor.