Ringmaster (film)

Ringmaster

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Neil Abramson
Produced by Gary W. Goldstein
Written by Jon Bernstein
Starring Jerry Springer
Jaime Pressly
William McNamara
Molly Hagan
John Capodice
Wendy Raquel Robinson
Ashley Holbrook
Tangie Ambrose
Nicki Micheaux
Krista Tesreau
Dawn Maxey
Maximilliana
with Michael Jai White
and Michael Dudikoff
Music by Kennard Ramsey
Cinematography Russ Lyster
Edited by Suzanne Hines
Production
company
Distributed by Artisan Entertainment
Release dates
November 25, 1998
Running time
90 min
Country  United States
Language English
Budget $20 million
Box office $9,257,103

Ringmaster is a 1998 American comedy film starring Jerry Springer playing (essentially) himself as Jerry Farrelly, host of a show similar to his own, in this case called simply Jerry.[1]

Plot

There are three ongoing plots in the film. The primary one surrounds a white trash, trailer park family in which the daughter is sleeping with her mother's husband, prompting the mother to constantly try to outdo her promiscuous daughter's behavior out of spite, including sleeping with her daughter's boyfriend. The secondary plot revolves around an urban black woman whose boyfriend is sleeping with her two best friends, but the three are united against the boyfriend when he begins sleeping with the daughter of the above mentioned family. The third plot revolves around Jerry and the show itself, detailing the difficulty Jerry faces in trying to come to terms with his rather dubious claim to fame, and the staff's utter amazement at the bizarre stories they must deal with.

A minor sub-plot involves a producer on the show who mistakenly picks up one of the guests, a self-proclaimed "man-by-day-woman-by-night."

Cast

Reception

The film had a generally negative reception, with Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 22% rating.[2][3] Jerry Springer's performance in Ringmaster won him the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst New Star (tied with Joe Eszterhas for his small cameo in An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn).

Soundtrack

A soundtrack containing hip hop music was released on March 23, 1999 by Lil' Joe Records. It peaked at #80 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.

References

  1. Siskel, Gene (1998-11-27). "Ringmaster Just Another Springer Circus". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2010-09-17.
  2. Thomas, Kevin (1998-11-25). "Ringmaster Presides Over a Lively Circus". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-09-17.
  3. Johnson, Steve (1998-12-02). "Circus Ringmaster". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2010-09-17.

External links