The Comic
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| The Comic | |
|---|---|
 VHS cover |
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| Directed by | Carl Reiner |
| Produced by | Carl Reiner Aaron Ruben |
| Written by | Carl Reiner Aaron Ruben |
| Narrated by | Dick Van Dyke |
| Starring | Dick Van Dyke Mickey Rooney Michele Lee Cornel Wilde Nina Wayne Pert Kelton Jeannine Riley |
| Music by | Jack Elliott |
| Cinematography | W. Wallace Kelley |
| Editing by | Adrienne Fazan |
| Distributed by | Acre Enterprises Inc. Columbia Pictures Corporation |
| Release date(s) | Premiere: 19 November 1969 |
| Running time | 94 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Comic is a 1969 drama/black comedy film co-written, co-produced and directed by Carl Reiner. It stars Dick Van Dyke as Billy Bright (the original title).
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Billy Bright (Dick Van Dyke), a silent-era film comedian, narrates this film which begins at his character's funeral and tells his life story in flashbacks. At the funeral his sidekick Cockeye (Mickey Rooney) honors his last request by hitting the preacher in the face with a pie.
Bright was a popular silent picture comedian in the era of Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel. He has difficulty making the transition to talkies, and sinks into despair and alcoholism. Bright's wife Mary (Michele Lee) becomes alienated by his drunk and abusive behavior.
Steve Allen (as himself) revives Bright's career towards the end of his life.
[edit] Production
In his autobiography, Carl Reiner said he intended this as a vehicle for Dick Van Dyke who had, on the set of their TV show, often expressed the wish that he had been working at the same time as comedy legends such as his hero Stan Laurel. [1]
[edit] Response
Dick Van Dyke said of The Comic: "very few people saw that movie, but we were proud of it." [2]
[edit] Availability
The Comic was produced on a VHS tape published by RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (Burbank, CA) in 1986 (OCLC 17939307). Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment also released a VHS edition the same year (ISBN 0800132823).
[edit] Cast
- Dick Van Dyke as Billy Bright
- Michele Lee as Mary Gibson
- Mickey Rooney as Cockeye
- Cornel Wilde as Frank Powers
- Nina Wayne as Sybil
- Pert Kelton as Mama
- Steve Allen as Himself
- Barbara Heller as Ginger
- Ed Peck as Edwin G. Englehardt
- Jeannine Riley as Lorraine
- Gavin MacLeod as 1st Director
- Jay Novello as Miguel
- Craig Huebing as Doctor
- Paulene Myers as Phoebe
- Fritz Feld as Armand
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ My Anecdotal Life by Carl Reiner (St. Martin's Press; 2003, hardcover, ISBN 0312311044). Quoted on The Comic trivia page at the Internet Movie Database.
- ^ On Larry King Live, "Dick Van Dyke Discusses His Career in Entertainment". Aired September 22, 2000. http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0009/22/lkl.00.html
