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⚫
{{For|the episode of the science fiction series Millennium|Goodbye Charlie (Millennium)}}
{{short description|1964 film by Vincente Minnelli}}
{{short description|1964 film by Vincente Minnelli}}
⚫
{{For|the episode of the science fiction series Millennium|Goodbye Charlie (Millennium)}}
{{Infobox film
{{Infobox film
| name = Goodbye Charlie
| name = Goodbye Charlie
| image = Goodbye Charlie - 1964 - Poster.png
| image = Goodbye Charlie - 1964 - Poster.png
| image_size =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = [[Vincente Minnelli]]
| director = [[Vincente Minnelli]]
| producer = [[David Weisbart]]
| producer = [[David Weisbart]]
| screenplay = [[Harry Kurnitz]]
| screenplay = [[Harry Kurnitz]]
| based_on = play by [[George Axelrod]]
| based_on = {{based on|''[[Goodbye Charlie (play)|Goodbye Charlie]]''<br>1959 play|[[George Axelrod]]}}
| narrator =
| narrator =
| starring = [[Tony Curtis]]<br>[[Debbie Reynolds]]<br>[[Pat Boone]]
| starring = [[Tony Curtis]]<br>[[Debbie Reynolds]]<br>[[Pat Boone]]
Line 25: Line 24:
| gross = $3,700,000 (US/ Canada rentals)<ref>This figure consists of anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Big Rental Pictures of 1965", ''Variety'', 5 January 1966 p. 6 and Solomon p. 229. Please note these figures are rentals accruing to distributors not total gross.</ref>
| gross = $3,700,000 (US/ Canada rentals)<ref>This figure consists of anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Big Rental Pictures of 1965", ''Variety'', 5 January 1966 p. 6 and Solomon p. 229. Please note these figures are rentals accruing to distributors not total gross.</ref>
}}
}}
'''''Goodbye Charlie''''' is a 1964 American [[comedy film]] directed by [[Vincente Minnelli]] and starring [[Tony Curtis]], [[Debbie Reynolds]] and [[Pat Boone]]. The film is about a callous womanizer who gets his just reward. It was adapted from [[George Axelrod]]'s 1959 play ''Goodbye, Charlie''. The play provided the basis for the 1991 film ''[[Switch (1991 film)|Switch]]'', with [[Ellen Barkin]] and [[Jimmy Smits]].
'''''Goodbye Charlie''''' is a 1964 American [[comedy film]] directed by [[Vincente Minnelli]] and starring [[Tony Curtis]], [[Debbie Reynolds]] and [[Pat Boone]]. The [[CinemaScope]] film is about a callous womanizer who gets his just reward after a jealous husband kills him. It is adapted from [[George Axelrod]]'s 1959 play ''Goodbye, Charlie''. The play also provided the basis for the 1991 film ''[[Switch (1991 film)|Switch]]'', with [[Ellen Barkin]] and [[Jimmy Smits]].


==Plot==
==Plot==
Philandering Hollywood writer Charlie Sorrel (Harry Madden) is shot and killed by Hungarian film producer Sir Leopold Sartori ([[Walter Matthau]]) when he is caught fooling around with Leopold's wife, Rusty ([[Laura Devon]]). Charlie's best and only friend, novelist George Tracy ([[Tony Curtis]]), arrives at Charlie's Malibu beach house for the memorial service, after an exhausting series of flights from Paris that have left him broke. There are only three people there, Charlie's agent and two ex-girlfriends. George does his best to eulogize his friend but there is little to be said in favor of Charlie, whose final bad joke on George is making him executor of his estate — which is a mess of debts and unpaid taxes.
[[Philandering]] Hollywood writer Charlie Sorrel is shot and killed by Hungarian film producer Sir Leopold Sartori when he is caught fooling around with Leopold's wife Rusty. Charlie's best and only friend, novelist George Tracy, arrives at Charlie's Malibu beach house for the memorial service, after an exhausting series of flights from Paris that have left him broke. There are only three people there: Charlie's agent and two ex-girlfriends. George does his best to eulogize his friend, but there is little to be said in favor of Charlie, whose final bad joke on George is making him executor of his estate, which is a mess of debts and unpaid taxes.


Soon after the guests leave, an exhausted George is awakened by a knock at the terrace door and the appearance of Bruce Minton III ([[Pat Boone]]) assisting a petite blonde woman ([[Debbie Reynolds]]) swathed in a huge brown overcoat. Bruce came to her aid when he found her dazed and wandering on the road, completely naked. She does not remember much, but she recognized Charlie's house as they drove past it and it made her feel safe. Bruce rushes off to a dinner engagement, leaving a sleep-deprived George to cope with the delirious woman. The next morning, George awakes to her screams. It all comes back to her: She is Charlie, [[reincarnation|reincarnated]] as a woman. After getting over the shock, she convinces George of her identity by telling him about a dirty trick that she had recently played on him as a man. George realizes that this must be a case of [[karma|karmic retribution]] for all of the women Charlie has used and betrayed.
Soon after the guests leave, an exhausted George is awakened by a knock at the terrace door and the appearance of Bruce Minton III assisting a petite blonde woman swathed in a huge brown overcoat. Bruce came to her aid when he found her dazed and wandering on the road, completely naked. She does not remember much, but she recognized Charlie's house as they drove past it and it made her feel safe. Bruce rushes off to a dinner engagement, leaving a sleep-deprived George to cope with the delirious woman. The next morning, George awakes to her screams. She recalls that she is Charlie, [[reincarnation|reincarnated]] as a woman. After getting over the shock, she convinces George of her identity by telling him about a dirty trick that she had recently played on him as a man. George realizes that this must be a case of [[karma|karmic retribution]] for all of the women that Charlie had used and betrayed.


All manner of complications arise as Charlie decides to take advantage of the situation. George helps her by establishing her as Charlie's widow, figuring out their finances — they are both broke — and boosting her morale. From the beginning, Charlie finds herself subject to a whole new set of emotions and sensations. Her masculine mannerisms begin to fade, partly because Charlie is a consummate actor, but also because the change is more than skin deep. At one point, she bursts into uncontrollable tears. George comforts her as he would comfort a weeping girl, wiping her tears and stroking her hair to calm her down, and then pulls back, disturbed at the tenderness.
All manner of complications arise as Charlie decides to take advantage of the situation. George helps her by establishing her as Charlie's widow, figuring out their finances—they are both broke—and boosting her morale. From the beginning, Charlie finds herself subject to a whole new set of emotions and sensations. Her masculine mannerisms begin to fade, partly because Charlie is a consummate actor, but also because the change is more than skin deep. At one point, she bursts into uncontrollable tears. George comforts her as he would a weeping girl, wiping her tears and stroking her hair to calm her, then pulls back, disturbed at the tenderness.


Although Charlie has changed her gender, she is unable to change her ways: she decides to solve her money problems by using her intimate knowledge for blackmail and by marrying Bruce for money. The plans fall apart when Bruce, on the verge of passing out, reveals the depth of his love for her. Charlie takes pity on him and slips the engagement ring into his hand.
Although Charlie has changed her gender, she is unable to change her ways. She decides to solve her money problems by using her intimate knowledge for blackmail and by marrying Bruce for money. The plans fall apart when Bruce, on the verge of passing out, reveals the depth of his love for her. Charlie takes pity on him and slips the engagement ring into his hand.


Eventually, in a grim role reversal that she recognizes all too well when it happens, Charlie ends up being chased around the house by Leopold, who cheerfully spouts amorous nonsense but is, in fact, intent on rape. Rusty arrives, gun in hand, and just as Charlie climbs onto the terrace railing to jump, Rusty shoots her; she plunges into the ocean below. George, who has arrived in the midst of the mélée, leaps after Charlie, but there is no sign of a body. After lecturing the Sartoris for their actions, George orders them to leave and never tell anyone about it. The couple reconcile and Leopold promises eternal gratitude to George.
Eventually, in a grim role-reversal that she recognizes when it happens, Charlie is chased around the house by Leopold, who cheerfully spouts amorous nonsense and is intent on making love to her. Rusty arrives, gun in hand, and, just as Charlie climbs onto the terrace railing with intent to jump, Rusty shoots her, and she plunges into the ocean below. George, who has arrived in the midst of the melee, leaps after Charlie, but there is no sign of a body. After admonishing the Sartoris for their actions, George orders them to leave and never tell anyone about it. The couple reconcile, and Leopold promises eternal gratitude to George.


George is asleep in a chair; the sound of a woman's voice calling "Charlie" over and over again wakes him. This time there are two beings on the terrace — a woman ([[Debbie Reynolds]]) and her [[Great Dane]], Charlie. George quickly establishes her bona fides as a real person, Virginia Mason. She takes one look at him and decides he needs food. She commands Charlie to sit and stay. Virginia and George talk in the kitchen; it is clearly [[love at first sight]]. The dog goes into the living room, to the bookcase, to Charlie's secret cache of vodka (behind ''[[War and Peace]]''). The bottle falls and breaks; Charlie laps a bit from the floor and looking heavenward, begins to howl.
George is asleep in a chair; the sound of a woman's voice repeatedly calling "Charlie" wakes him. This time, there are two beings on the terrace: a woman and her [[Great Dane]] Charlie. George quickly establishes herself as a real person, Virginia Mason. She takes a look at him and decides that he needs food. She commands Charlie to sit and stay. Virginia and George talk in the kitchen; it is clearly [[love at first sight]]. The dog goes into the living room, to the bookcase, to Charlie's secret cache of [[vodka]] (behind ''[[War and Peace]]''). The bottle falls and breaks; Charlie laps a bit from the floor and, looking heavenward, begins to howl.


==Cast==
==Cast==
{{castlist|
* [[Tony Curtis]] as George Tracy
* [[Tony Curtis]] as George Tracy
* [[Debbie Reynolds]] as Charles Sorel / Virginia Mason
* [[Debbie Reynolds]] as Charles Sorel / Virginia Mason
Line 56: Line 56:
* [[Anthony Eustrel]] as Butler (as Antony Eustrel)
* [[Anthony Eustrel]] as Butler (as Antony Eustrel)
* [[Donna Michelle]] as Woman Doing the Twist on Yacht
* [[Donna Michelle]] as Woman Doing the Twist on Yacht
⚫
}}{{Infobox play

==Original play==
⚫
{{Infobox play
| name = Goodbye Charlie
| name = Goodbye Charlie
| image =
| image =
| image_size =
| caption =
| caption =
| writer = [[George Axelrod]]
| writer = [[George Axelrod]]
| characters =
| characters =
| setting = The beach house of the late Charlie Sorel, a few miles north of Malibu, California. The present.
| setting = The beach house of the late Charlie Sorel, a few miles north of Malibu, California. The present.
| premiere = 16 December 1959
| premiere = December 16, 1959
| place = Lyceum Theatre, New York
| place = Lyceum Theatre, New York
| orig_lang = English
| orig_lang = English
Line 72: Line 69:
| genre = Comedy
| genre = Comedy
}}
}}
⚫
George Axelrod's play debuted on Broadway in 1959 starring [[Lauren Bacall]] and [[Sydney Chaplin (American actor)|Sydney Chaplin]], produced by [[Leland Hayward]], and directed by Axelrod himself. It was not a big success, running for only 109 performances.<ref>[http://www.playbillvault.com/Show/Detail/7169/Goodbye-Charlie ''Goodbye Charlie''] at Playbill</ref> The ''New York Times'' wrote it played like "an extended vaudeville sketch".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Theatre: Expanded Vaudeville Sketch: " Goodbye Charlie" Has Premiere at Lyceum Lauren Bacall Stars in Axelrod Comedy|author=BROOKS ATKINSON|date=Dec 17, 1959|work=New York Times|page=50}}</ref>


==Production==
==Production==
Film rights to the play were bought before it premiered by 20th Century Fox for $150,000 plus a percentage of the profits.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Of Local Origin|date=July 3, 1959|work=New York Times|page=8}}</ref> [[James Garner]] and [[Marilyn Monroe]] were discussed as stars.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Garner Gets Offer to Co-Star with Marilyn|author=Hopper, Hedda|date=Jan 30, 1961|work=Chicago Daily Tribune|page=a1}}</ref>
Film rights to the play were bought by [[20th Century Studios|20th Century Fox]] before it premiered for $150,000 plus a percentage of the profits.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Of Local Origin|date=July 3, 1959|work=New York Times|page=8}}</ref> [[James Garner]] and [[Marilyn Monroe]] were discussed as stars.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Garner Gets Offer to Co-Star with Marilyn|author=Hopper, Hedda|date=Jan 30, 1961|work=Chicago Daily Tribune|page=a1}}</ref>


[[Darryl F. Zanuck]] offered the project to [[Billy Wilder]] after he returned to Fox, but Wilder turned it down, saying "no self-respecting picture maker would ever want to work for your company".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Studio Shakeups Send Hopes High: Hollywood Letter|author=John C. Waugh|date=Dec 13, 1962|work=The Christian Science Monitor|page=6}}</ref> (Zanuck had just forced [[Joseph L. Mankiewicz]] to re-cut ''[[Cleopatra (1963 film)|Cleopatra]]'' (1963)).
[[Darryl F. Zanuck]] offered the project to [[Billy Wilder]] after he returned to Fox, but Wilder turned it down, saying that "no self-respecting picture maker would ever want to work for your company".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Studio Shakeups Send Hopes High: Hollywood Letter|author=John C. Waugh|date=Dec 13, 1962|work=The Christian Science Monitor|page=6}}</ref> (Zanuck had just forced [[Joseph L. Mankiewicz]] to re-cut ''[[Cleopatra (1963 film)|Cleopatra]]'' (1963)).


Playwright Harry Kurnitz was hired to write the script and Tony Curtis was attached early.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Looking at Hollywood: 'Goodbye, Charlie' Script Is in Work|author=Hopper, Hedda|date=Feb 20, 1964|work=Chicago Tribune|page=c2}}</ref> [[Vincente Minnelli]] was hired to direct, his first movie away from MGM since 1942.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Film Director Moves to Fox|date=Jan 21, 1964|work=New York Times|page=24}}</ref>
Playwright [[Harry Kurnitz]] was hired to write the script, and [[Tony Curtis]] was attached early.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Looking at Hollywood: 'Goodbye, Charlie' Script Is in Work|author=Hopper, Hedda|date=Feb 20, 1964|work=Chicago Tribune|page=c2}}</ref> [[Vincente Minnelli]] was hired to direct, his first movie away from [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM]] since 1942.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Film Director Moves to Fox|date=Jan 21, 1964|work=New York Times|page=24}}</ref>


==Reception==
==Reception==
According to Fox records, the film needed to earn $7 million in rentals in order for the studio to break even on its release. The film ultimately failed to make this goal, making only $4,555,000.<ref>{{cite book|page=[https://archive.org/details/foxthatgotawayt00silv/page/323 323]|title=The Fox that got away: the last days of the Zanuck dynasty at Twentieth Century-Fox|url=https://archive.org/details/foxthatgotawayt00silv|url-access=registration|last=Silverman|first=Stephen M|year=1988|publisher=L. Stuart|isbn=9780818404856}}</ref>
According to Fox records, the film needed to earn $7 million in rentals for the studio to financially break even on its release. The film ultimately failed to make this goal, earning $4,555,000.<ref>{{cite book|page=[https://archive.org/details/foxthatgotawayt00silv/page/323 323]|title=The Fox that got away: the last days of the Zanuck dynasty at Twentieth Century-Fox|url=https://archive.org/details/foxthatgotawayt00silv|url-access=registration|last=Silverman|first=Stephen M|year=1988|publisher=L. Stuart|isbn=9780818404856}}</ref>


⚫
George Axelrod's play debuted on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] in 1959 starring [[Lauren Bacall]] and [[Sydney Chaplin (American actor)|Sydney Chaplin]], produced by [[Leland Hayward]], and directed by Axelrod. It was not a success, running for 109 performances.<ref>[http://www.playbillvault.com/Show/Detail/7169/Goodbye-Charlie ''Goodbye Charlie''] at Playbill</ref>
⚫
''Diabolique'' magazine later wrote "It's not that shocking to see the star of ''Spartacus'' (1960)... make moves on a woman not knowing she's a man, but it is a surprise to see Boone to do it. He later admitted to having a drinking problem around this time and shot some scenes for the movie while drunk.... This film remains resolutely undiscovered by queer/feminist film analysts, despite its subject matter and bisexual director... I think this is in part because Reynolds’ performance is so utterly sexless. It holds any feeling of kinkiness at bay. However, there's no denying it because Boone plays a guy who effectively tries to make out with a dude." The magazine also pointed out the opening scene features a tracking shot at a party where a man gets upset and shoots the man sleeping with his wife just like in ''[[Boogie Nights]]'' (1997).<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://diaboliquemagazine.com/the-surprisingly-interesting-cinema-of-pat-boone/|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|date=10 September 2019|magazine=Diabolique Magazine|title=The Surprisingly Interesting Cinema of Pat Boone}}</ref>

[[The New York Times|''The New York Times'']] critic [[Bosley Crowther]] led his review of the film by panning the play and the movie: "… '''Goodbye, Charlie'',' was bad enough on the stage. On the screen, it is a bleak conglomeration of outrageous whimsies and stupidities. And it has Debbie Reynolds and Tony Curtis so sadly cast in distasteful roles that it causes even a hardened moviegoer to turn away from it in pain and shame."<ref>{{Cite news |title=Debbie Reynolds Stars in 'Goodbye, Charlie' |language=en |work=The New York Times |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.comhttp//timesmachine.content-tagging.us-east-1-01.prd.dvsp.nyt.net/timesmachine/1964/11/19/97357426.html?pageNumber=49 |access-date=2023-10-22}}</ref> Crowther concluded, "Under Vincente Minnelli's direction, the film has a certain style and pace. But it is much more vulgar than stylish, much more sluggish and dull than fast."<ref>Crowther, Bosley. “Debbie Reynolds Stars in ‘Goodbye, Charlie’.” New York Times, 19 November 1964, 49.</ref>

⚫
In 2019, [[Stephen Vagg]] reviewed the film in ''Diabolique'' magazine: "It's not that shocking to see the star of ''Spartacus'' (1960)... make moves on a woman not knowing she's a man, but it is a surprise to see Boone to do it. He later admitted to having a drinking problem around this time and shot some scenes for the movie while drunk.... This film remains resolutely undiscovered by queer/feminist film analysts, despite its subject matter and bisexual director... I think this is in part because Reynolds's performance is so utterly sexless. It holds any feeling of kinkiness at bay. However, there's no denying it because Boone plays a guy who effectively tries to make out with a dude." The magazine also points out that the opening scene features a tracking shot at a party where a man gets upset and shoots the man sleeping with his wife, similar to ''[[Boogie Nights]]'' (1997).<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://diaboliquemagazine.com/the-surprisingly-interesting-cinema-of-pat-boone/|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|date=10 September 2019|magazine=Diabolique Magazine|title=The Surprisingly Interesting Cinema of Pat Boone}}</ref>

On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film has 50% rating, based on 8 contemporary and modern reviews.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1964-11-18 |title=Goodbye Charlie |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/goodbye_charlie |work=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=2023-10-22 }}</ref>


==Television adaptation==
==Television adaptation==
Line 90: Line 92:


==See also==
==See also==
*[[List of American films of 1964]]
* [[List of American films of 1964]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


== External links ==
== External links ==
* {{IMDb title|0058154}}
* {{IMDb title|0058154}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|goodbye_charlie}}
* {{amg movie|18885}}
* {{TCMDb title|16777}}
* {{TCMDb title|16777}}
* {{AFI film|22683}}
*[https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9A07E3D8133AE13ABC4152DFB767838F679EDE Review of film] at [[New York Times]]
* [https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9A07E3D8133AE13ABC4152DFB767838F679EDE Review of film] at [[New York Times]]
* {{IBDB title|2873}}
* {{IBDB title|2873}}

{{Vincente Minnelli}}
{{Vincente Minnelli}}


[[Category:1964 films]]
[[Category:1964 films]]
[[Category:1960s fantasy-comedy films]]
[[Category:1960s fantasy comedy films]]
[[Category:American films]]
[[Category:American fantasy comedy films]]
⚫
[[Category:American fantasy-comedy films]]
[[Category:American films based on plays]]
[[Category:American films based on plays]]
[[Category:Films about reincarnation]]
[[Category:Films about reincarnation]]
{[[Category:American LGBT-related films]]
[[Category:American LGBTQ-related films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Vincente Minnelli]]
[[Category:Films directed by Vincente Minnelli]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Harry Kurnitz]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Harry Kurnitz]]
Line 116: Line 119:
[[Category:1964 comedy films]]
[[Category:1964 comedy films]]
[[Category:CinemaScope films]]
[[Category:CinemaScope films]]
[[Category:1960s English-language films]]
[[Category:1960s American films]]
[[Category:English-language fantasy comedy films]]
⚫
[[Category:LGBTQ-related fantasy comedy films]]
[[Category:1964 LGBTQ-related films]]

Latest revision as of 17:47, 24 September 2024

For the episode of the science fiction series Millennium, see Goodbye Charlie (Millennium).
Goodbye Charlie
Theatrical release poster
Directed byVincente Minnelli
Screenplay byHarry Kurnitz
Based onGoodbye Charlie
1959 play
by George Axelrod
Produced byDavid Weisbart
StarringTony Curtis
Debbie Reynolds
Pat Boone
CinematographyMilton R. Krasner
Edited byJohn W. Holmes
Music byAndré Previn
Color processColor by DeLuxe
Production
company
Venice Productions
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release date
  • November 18, 1964 (1964-11-18)
Running time
117 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3.5 million[1]
Box office$3,700,000 (US/ Canada rentals)[2]

Goodbye Charlie is a 1964 American comedy film directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Tony Curtis, Debbie Reynolds and Pat Boone. The CinemaScope film is about a callous womanizer who gets his just reward after a jealous husband kills him. It is adapted from George Axelrod's 1959 play Goodbye, Charlie. The play also provided the basis for the 1991 film Switch, with Ellen Barkin and Jimmy Smits.

Plot

[edit]

Philandering Hollywood writer Charlie Sorrel is shot and killed by Hungarian film producer Sir Leopold Sartori when he is caught fooling around with Leopold's wife Rusty. Charlie's best and only friend, novelist George Tracy, arrives at Charlie's Malibu beach house for the memorial service, after an exhausting series of flights from Paris that have left him broke. There are only three people there: Charlie's agent and two ex-girlfriends. George does his best to eulogize his friend, but there is little to be said in favor of Charlie, whose final bad joke on George is making him executor of his estate, which is a mess of debts and unpaid taxes.

Soon after the guests leave, an exhausted George is awakened by a knock at the terrace door and the appearance of Bruce Minton III assisting a petite blonde woman swathed in a huge brown overcoat. Bruce came to her aid when he found her dazed and wandering on the road, completely naked. She does not remember much, but she recognized Charlie's house as they drove past it and it made her feel safe. Bruce rushes off to a dinner engagement, leaving a sleep-deprived George to cope with the delirious woman. The next morning, George awakes to her screams. She recalls that she is Charlie, reincarnated as a woman. After getting over the shock, she convinces George of her identity by telling him about a dirty trick that she had recently played on him as a man. George realizes that this must be a case of karmic retribution for all of the women that Charlie had used and betrayed.

All manner of complications arise as Charlie decides to take advantage of the situation. George helps her by establishing her as Charlie's widow, figuring out their finances—they are both broke—and boosting her morale. From the beginning, Charlie finds herself subject to a whole new set of emotions and sensations. Her masculine mannerisms begin to fade, partly because Charlie is a consummate actor, but also because the change is more than skin deep. At one point, she bursts into uncontrollable tears. George comforts her as he would a weeping girl, wiping her tears and stroking her hair to calm her, then pulls back, disturbed at the tenderness.

Although Charlie has changed her gender, she is unable to change her ways. She decides to solve her money problems by using her intimate knowledge for blackmail and by marrying Bruce for money. The plans fall apart when Bruce, on the verge of passing out, reveals the depth of his love for her. Charlie takes pity on him and slips the engagement ring into his hand.

Eventually, in a grim role-reversal that she recognizes when it happens, Charlie is chased around the house by Leopold, who cheerfully spouts amorous nonsense and is intent on making love to her. Rusty arrives, gun in hand, and, just as Charlie climbs onto the terrace railing with intent to jump, Rusty shoots her, and she plunges into the ocean below. George, who has arrived in the midst of the melee, leaps after Charlie, but there is no sign of a body. After admonishing the Sartoris for their actions, George orders them to leave and never tell anyone about it. The couple reconcile, and Leopold promises eternal gratitude to George.

George is asleep in a chair; the sound of a woman's voice repeatedly calling "Charlie" wakes him. This time, there are two beings on the terrace: a woman and her Great Dane Charlie. George quickly establishes herself as a real person, Virginia Mason. She takes a look at him and decides that he needs food. She commands Charlie to sit and stay. Virginia and George talk in the kitchen; it is clearly love at first sight. The dog goes into the living room, to the bookcase, to Charlie's secret cache of vodka (behind War and Peace). The bottle falls and breaks; Charlie laps a bit from the floor and, looking heavenward, begins to howl.

Cast

[edit]
Goodbye Charlie
Written byGeorge Axelrod
Date premieredDecember 16, 1959
Place premieredLyceum Theatre, New York
Original languageEnglish
GenreComedy
SettingThe beach house of the late Charlie Sorel, a few miles north of Malibu, California. The present.

Production

[edit]

Film rights to the play were bought by 20th Century Fox before it premiered for $150,000 plus a percentage of the profits.[3] James Garner and Marilyn Monroe were discussed as stars.[4]

Darryl F. Zanuck offered the project to Billy Wilder after he returned to Fox, but Wilder turned it down, saying that "no self-respecting picture maker would ever want to work for your company".[5] (Zanuck had just forced Joseph L. Mankiewicz to re-cut Cleopatra (1963)).

Playwright Harry Kurnitz was hired to write the script, and Tony Curtis was attached early.[6] Vincente Minnelli was hired to direct, his first movie away from MGM since 1942.[7]

Reception

[edit]

According to Fox records, the film needed to earn $7 million in rentals for the studio to financially break even on its release. The film ultimately failed to make this goal, earning $4,555,000.[8]

George Axelrod's play debuted on Broadway in 1959 starring Lauren Bacall and Sydney Chaplin, produced by Leland Hayward, and directed by Axelrod. It was not a success, running for 109 performances.[9]

The New York Times critic Bosley Crowther led his review of the film by panning the play and the movie: "… 'Goodbye, Charlie,' was bad enough on the stage. On the screen, it is a bleak conglomeration of outrageous whimsies and stupidities. And it has Debbie Reynolds and Tony Curtis so sadly cast in distasteful roles that it causes even a hardened moviegoer to turn away from it in pain and shame."[10] Crowther concluded, "Under Vincente Minnelli's direction, the film has a certain style and pace. But it is much more vulgar than stylish, much more sluggish and dull than fast."[11]

In 2019, Stephen Vagg reviewed the film in Diabolique magazine: "It's not that shocking to see the star of Spartacus (1960)... make moves on a woman not knowing she's a man, but it is a surprise to see Boone to do it. He later admitted to having a drinking problem around this time and shot some scenes for the movie while drunk.... This film remains resolutely undiscovered by queer/feminist film analysts, despite its subject matter and bisexual director... I think this is in part because Reynolds's performance is so utterly sexless. It holds any feeling of kinkiness at bay. However, there's no denying it because Boone plays a guy who effectively tries to make out with a dude." The magazine also points out that the opening scene features a tracking shot at a party where a man gets upset and shoots the man sleeping with his wife, similar to Boogie Nights (1997).[12]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has 50% rating, based on 8 contemporary and modern reviews.[13]

Television adaptation

[edit]

In 1985, Goodbye Charlie was made into a TV series (starring Suzanne Somers as the reincarnated Charlie), but only the pilot episode was broadcast.[14]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Solomon, Aubrey. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-8108-4244-1. p254
  2. ^ This figure consists of anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Big Rental Pictures of 1965", Variety, 5 January 1966 p. 6 and Solomon p. 229. Please note these figures are rentals accruing to distributors not total gross.
  3. ^ "Of Local Origin". New York Times. July 3, 1959. p. 8.
  4. ^ Hopper, Hedda (Jan 30, 1961). "Garner Gets Offer to Co-Star with Marilyn". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. a1.
  5. ^ John C. Waugh (Dec 13, 1962). "Studio Shakeups Send Hopes High: Hollywood Letter". The Christian Science Monitor. p. 6.
  6. ^ Hopper, Hedda (Feb 20, 1964). "Looking at Hollywood: 'Goodbye, Charlie' Script Is in Work". Chicago Tribune. p. c2.
  7. ^ "Film Director Moves to Fox". New York Times. Jan 21, 1964. p. 24.
  8. ^ Silverman, Stephen M (1988). The Fox that got away: the last days of the Zanuck dynasty at Twentieth Century-Fox. L. Stuart. p. 323. ISBN 9780818404856.
  9. ^ Goodbye Charlie at Playbill
  10. ^ "Debbie Reynolds Stars in 'Goodbye, Charlie'". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-10-22.
  11. ^ Crowther, Bosley. “Debbie Reynolds Stars in ‘Goodbye, Charlie’.” New York Times, 19 November 1964, 49.
  12. ^ Vagg, Stephen (10 September 2019). "The Surprisingly Interesting Cinema of Pat Boone". Diabolique Magazine.
  13. ^ "Goodbye Charlie". Rotten Tomatoes. 1964-11-18. Retrieved 2023-10-22.
  14. ^ Goodbye Charlie (TV pilot) at IMDb
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