Urban Cowboy | |
---|---|
Directed by | James Bridges |
Screenplay by | James Bridges Aaron Latham |
Story by | Aaron Latham |
Produced by | Irving Azoff Robert Evans C. O. Erickson (executive producer) |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Reynaldo Villalobos |
Edited by | David Rawlins |
Music by | Ralph Burns |
Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 135 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $10 million [1] |
Box office | $53.3 million |
Urban Cowboy is a 1980 American romantic Western film directed by James Bridges. The plot concerns the love-hate relationship between Buford "Bud" Davis (John Travolta) and Sissy (Debra Winger). The film's success was credited for spurring a mainstream revival of country music. [2] Much of the action revolves around activities at Gilley's Club, a football-field-sized honky tonk in Pasadena, Texas.
Buford "Bud" Davis moves to Pasadena, Texas for an oil refinery job where his uncle, Bob Davis, works. Bud wants to earn enough money to buy land near his hometown of Spur. While staying with Bob and his family, Bud embraces the local nightlife, including Gilley's, a popular Pasadena bar and nightclub.
There, Bud meets fellow Gilly's patron, Sissy. They marry soon after and buy a mobile home, settling into a routine of working during the day and socializing at Gilley's at night. Bud enjoys riding the mechanical bull, but when Sissy wants to try, Bud forbids it.
Wes Hightower, a recently paroled convict and prison rodeo champion, is hired to operate Gilley's mechanical bull. One evening, a drunken Bud becomes enraged when Wes flirtatiously tips his hat at Sissy. A fist fight ensues, with Wes besting Bud. Wanting to impress Bud, Sissy secretly spends time at Gilley's where Wes teaches her how to ride the mechanical bull. When Sissy successfully rides the bull, Bud is angry that she defied him. During Bud's ride, Wes intentionally swings the bull around hard, breaking Bud's arm. At home, Bud and Sissy argue. She claims that Bud is jealous because she rides the bull better than him, causing Bud to slap Sissy and throw her out of their mobile home. Some nights later, Bud sees Sissy at Gilley's and gives her a smile, but she ignores him. Bud angrily retaliates by dancing with Pam, the daughter of a rich oilman. Bud makes sure that Sissy sees them leaving together. Sissy moves in with Wes, who lives in a run-down trailer behind Gilley's.
Bud, unable to work while wearing an arm cast, wants to compete in Gilley's upcoming mechanical bull riding rodeo contest for the $5,000 prize. While Bud is training with his uncle, a former rodeo champion, Sissy stops by the mobile home to collect her belongings. While there, she cleans and leaves Bud a note saying she hopes they can get back together. Pam arrives as Sissy is leaving. She finds Sissy's note and throws it away. Bud arrives and thinks Pam did the cleaning. Sissy returns to Wes's trailer and catches him with Marshalene, who works at Gilley's. After Marshalene leaves, an angry Sissy throws a cigarette carton at him. Wes slaps Sissy and forces her to fix him a meal.
Bob urges Bud to reconcile with Sissy, citing how he nearly ruined his own marriage. Soon after, Bob is killed in a refinery explosion, devastating Bud. At the funeral, Sissy tells Bud that Wes was fired from Gilley's, and they are leaving for Mexico after Wes wins the contest.
Bud plans to skip the contest but changes his mind after his Aunt Corene insists that Bob would want him to compete. Bud out-scores Wes to win, but he is disappointed that Sissy is not there to see his victory. Pam realizes that Bud still loves Sissy and admits that it was Sissy who cleaned the mobile home and left him a note. Pam urges Bud to reconcile with Sissy before it is too late. As Sissy waits in her car, Wes sneaks into Gilley's main office armed with a pistol to steal the prize money. Bud finds Sissy in the parking lot and says that he loves her and apologizes for being stubborn and hitting her. After they reunite, Bud sees Sissy's bruised face. Furious, he goes after Wes. A fight ensues outside the bar. Wes drops his gun, and the stolen money falls from his jacket. Wes is apprehended while Sissy swears she knew nothing about Wes robbing the bar. She and Bud go home together.
The film's screenplay was adapted by Aaron Latham and James Bridges from an article by the same name in Esquire written by Latham. The original Esquire article centered on the romance between two of Gilley's regulars named Dew Westbrook and Betty Helmer. Westbrook and Helmer's relationship became the inspiration for the romance between John Travolta's and Debra Winger's characters "Bud" and "Sissy". [3] The movie was directed by Bridges. Some film critics referred to the movie as a country music version of Saturday Night Fever . The film grossed almost $47 million in the United States alone and represented a temporary recovery for Travolta from 1978's poorly received Moment by Moment , but the film was not nearly as successful as either Saturday Night Fever ($94 million) or Grease ($188 million). While filming Urban Cowboy, Travolta had a private corner at the Westheimer Road location of the Ninfa's restaurant chain in Houston. [4] Urban Cowboy was the first motion picture to be choreographed by Patsy Swayze, which launched her career as a film choreographer. [5]
The film received generally positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film received a 70% "Fresh" rating based on 23 reviews. [6] "Urban Cowboy is not only most entertaining but also first-rate social criticism," said Vincent Canby of The New York Times . [7] Variety wrote: "Director James Bridges has ably captured the atmosphere of one of the most famous chip-kicker hangouts of all: Gilley's Club on the outskirts of Houston." [8]
The film gave Pasadena and Houston a brief turn under the Hollywood spotlight. Andy Warhol, Jerry Hall and many other celebrities attended the premiere in Houston. [9] [10] Mickey Gilley's career was revived after the film release, and the soundtrack started a music movement. [11]
As a result of the film's success, there was a mainstream revival of country music. [2] The term "Urban Cowboy" was also used to describe the soft-core country music of the early 1980s epitomized by Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton, Johnny Lee, Mickey Gilley, Janie Frickie and other vocalists whose trademarks were mellow sounds of the sort heard in the movie. This sound became a trademark in country music from the early to mid '80s, in which record sales for the genre soared. The ingenious impactful weaving of highly accessible country music into the film's dramatic soundtrack fabric was largely attributable to the skills of music industry impresario Irving Azoff, who co-produced the film with Robert Evans.
The film featured a hit soundtrack album spawning numerous Top 10 Billboard Country Singles, such as #1 "Lookin' for Love" by Johnny Lee, #1 "Stand by Me" by Mickey Gilley, #3 (AC chart) "Look What You've Done to Me" by Boz Scaggs, #1 "Could I Have This Dance" by Anne Murray and #4 "Love the World Away" by Kenny Rogers. It also included songs that were hits from earlier years such as #1 "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by the Charlie Daniels Band and "Lyin' Eyes" by the Eagles. The film is said to have started the 1980s boom in pop-country music known as the "Urban Cowboy Movement", also known as Neo-Country or Hill Boogie. In December 2018, the soundtrack was certified triple platinum by the RIAA for sales of three million copies. [12]
On May 28, 2015, it was announced that 20th Century Fox Television had teamed with Paramount Television to adapt Urban Cowboy into a television series, and set Craig Brewer to write and direct the pilot, as well as to executive produce the whole series. [13] Chris Levinson was set as the showrunner and would also executive produce the series, along with Robert Evans and Sue Naegle. In December, Fox cancelled the pilot. [14] On February 1, 2022, it was announced that a television adaptation was in development at Paramount+, with James Ponsoldt serving as director and co-writer alongside Benjamin Percy. [15]
John Joseph Travolta is an American actor, singer, and producer. He began acting in television before transitioning into a leading man in films. His accolades include a Primetime Emmy Award and three Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Pasadena is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Harris County. It is part of the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 151,950, making it the 23rd most populous city in Texas and the second most populous in Harris County, after Houston. The area was founded in 1893 by John H. Burnett of Galveston, who named the area after Pasadena, California, because of the perceived lush vegetation.
Mickey Leroy Gilley was an American country music singer and musician. Although he started out singing straight-up country and western material in the 1970s, Gilley moved towards a more pop-friendly sound in the 1980s, bringing him further success on not just the country charts, but the pop charts as well.
Kelly Ann Lynch is an American film and television actress. She had her breakthrough role in the 1988 film Cocktail, before playing a romantic lead opposite Patrick Swayze in the cult film Road House (1989). She was subsequently nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in Drugstore Cowboy (1989), and for Best Supporting Female for The Beans of Egypt, Maine (1994).
Country pop is a fusion genre of country music and pop music that was developed by members of the country genre out of a desire to reach a larger, mainstream audience. Country pop music blends genres like rock, pop, and country, continuing similar efforts that began in the late 1950s, known originally as the Nashville sound and later on as Countrypolitan. By the mid-1970s, many country artists were transitioning to the pop-country sound, which led to some records charting high on the mainstream top 40 and the Billboard country chart. In turn, many pop and easy listening artists crossed over to country charts during this time. After declining in popularity during the neotraditional movement of the 1980s, country pop had a comeback in the 1990s with a sound that drew more heavily on pop rock and adult contemporary. In the 2010s, country pop metamorphosized again with the addition of hip-hop beats and rap-style phrasing.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1976.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1980.
The Boy in the Plastic Bubble is a 1976 American made for television drama film inspired by the lives of David Vetter and Ted DeVita, who lacked effective immune systems. It stars John Travolta, Glynnis O'Connor, Diana Hyland, Robert Reed, Ralph Bellamy and P.J. Soles. It was written by Douglas Day Stewart, produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg, and directed by Randal Kleiser, who would work with Travolta again in the 1978 hit musical film adaptation of Grease shortly after. The original music score was composed by Mark Snow. The theme song "What Would They Say" was written and sung by Paul Williams. William Howard Taft High School was used for filming.
The Boar's Nest is a fictional local restaurant and tavern appearing in the television series The Dukes of Hazzard and its various spinoff films and other productions, and the movie Moonrunners.
KNTH is a conservative talk radio station serving the Houston, Texas metropolitan area. It is owned by Salem Media Group. KNTH's transmitter site is located in Northwest Harris County and its studios are located in Sharpstown district in Southwest Houston. KNTH relays its programming on to an FM relay translator, purchased from Armida Saille, on 103.3 FM from a transmit site near Farm to Market Road 1960 and T.C. Jester Boulevard in Bammel Village. This translator originally operated in Kingsville, Texas before moving to Houston.
Urban Cowboy is a musical with a book by Aaron Latham and Phillip Oesterman and a score by Broadway composer-lyricists Jeff Blumenkrantz and Jason Robert Brown and a variety of country music tunesmiths, including Clint Black and Charlie Daniels.
"Lookin' for Love" is a song written by Wanda Mallette, Bob Morrison and Patti Ryan, and recorded by American country music singer Johnny Lee. It was released in June 1980 as part of the soundtrack to the film Urban Cowboy, released that year. The background vocalists are Marcy Levy, Rosemary Butler and Tom Kelly. "Lookin' for Love" was reissued as the lead song on Lee's October 1980 album of the same name. Johnny Lee also recorded a Spanish language version of "Lookin' for Love" known as 'Buscando Amor'.
Bruce Nelson Stratton was an American radio personality. Known as "Dr. Bruce", Stratton began his career in the 1960s and 1970s where he served as on-air personality and programmer for such legendary Country station as WPLO, Atlanta; WMIL, Milwaukee; KENR, Houston; WUBE, Cincinnati; and KNUZ, Houston.
Charley Sherwood Cryer was an American entrepreneur. After forming a partnership with Mickey Gilley, Cryer became co-owner of Gilley's, a Pasadena, Texas-based western nightclub and bar.
"Here Comes the Hurt Again'" is a song written by Jerry Foster and Bill Rice, and recorded by American country music artist Mickey Gilley. It was released in July 1978 as the second single from his album Flyin' High. The song reached number 9 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and number 43 on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart in Canada.
Yvonne Helen "Patsy" Swayze was an American film choreographer, dancer, and dance instructor, and the mother of actors Patrick Swayze and Don Swayze. Her credits include choreography for Urban Cowboy, Liar's Moon and Hope Floats.
Too Good to Stop Now is a studio album by American country music singer Mickey Gilley released in 1984 by Epic Records. The album peaked at #34 in the US country chart. The title track, “Too Good to Stop Now”, reached #4 in the US country chart and #1 in the Canadian country chart. Another single from the album, “I’m the One Mama Warned You About” reached #10 in the country charts of both countries.
Gilley's Saloon, Dancehall and Bar-B-Que is a restaurant, bar and dance hall in Las Vegas, Nevada in the United States. It serves barbecue and has a Western theme. It's owned by and located at Treasure Island Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.
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Urban Cowboy: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack to the 1980 film Urban Cowboy. It spawned numerous Top 10 Billboard Country Singles, such as #1 "Lookin' for Love" by Johnny Lee, #1 "Stand by Me" by Mickey Gilley, #3 "Look What You've Done to Me" by Boz Scaggs, #1 "Could I Have This Dance" by Anne Murray, and #4 "Love the World Away" by Kenny Rogers. It also included songs that were hits from earlier years such as #1 "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by the Charlie Daniels Band and "Lyin' Eyes" by the Eagles. The film is said to have started the 1980s boom in pop-country music known as the "Urban Cowboy Movement" also known as Neo-Country or Hill Boogie. In December 2018 the soundtrack was certified triple platinum by the RIAA for sales of three million copies.