''The Comedy Man'' is a 1964 British
kitchen sink realism
Kitchen sink realism (or kitchen sink drama) is a British cultural movement that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in theatre, art, novels, film and television plays, whose protagonists usually could be described as "angry young men" w ...
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
directed by
Alvin Rakoff
Alvin Rakoff (born Abraham Rakoff; February 6, 1927) is a Canadian director of film, television and theatre productions. He has worked with actors including Laurence Olivier, Peter Sellers, Sean Connery, Judi Dench, Rex Harrison, Rod Steiger, Hen ...
and starring
Kenneth More
Kenneth Gilbert More, CBE (20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was an English film and stage actor.
Initially achieving fame in the comedy '' Genevieve'' (1953), he appeared in many roles as a carefree, happy-go-lucky gent. Films from this per ...
,
Cecil Parker,
Dennis Price
Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Louis Mazzini in the film '' Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and for his portrayal of the omnicompetent valet Jeeve ...
and
Billie Whitelaw. It depicts the life of a struggling actor in
Swinging London
The Swinging Sixties was a youth-driven cultural revolution that took place in the United Kingdom during the mid-to-late 1960s, emphasising modernity and fun-loving hedonism, with Swinging London as its centre. It saw a flourishing in art, mus ...
.
More later said that when he read the script he "was profoundly struck by its relevance to my own life, and to the lives of so many actors I had known." The film was shot in 1962 but not released until two years later. It received limited distribution, being released on a
double bill
The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown.
Opera use
Opera ho ...
with ''
Lord of the Flies
''Lord of the Flies'' is a 1954 novel by the Nobel Prize-winning British author William Golding. The plot concerns a group of British boys who are stranded on an uninhabited island and their disastrous attempts to govern themselves. Themes i ...
'' (1963).
Plot
Sacked from his job in provincial
rep
Rep, REP, or a variant may refer to:
As a word
* Rep (fabric), a ribbed woven fabric made from various materials
* ''Rep'' (TV series), a 1982 British comedy series
* '' The Rep'', an entertainment guide published by the ''Arizona Republic'' 1997 ...
, actor Chick Byrd moves into digs in London with Julian, a fellow actor. Julian's career soars after a successful
screen test
A screen test is a method of determining the suitability of an actor or actress for performing on film or in a particular role. The performer is generally given a scene, or selected lines and actions, and instructed to perform in front of a came ...
, but Chick's meets with continued failure. After the
suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
of an actor friend, Jack Lavery, Chick is informed by his widow that just after Jack's death he was offered a job by Tommy Morris, an agent.
Chick contacts Tommy and takes Jack's job for a
TV commercial
A television advertisement (also called a television commercial, TV commercial, commercial, spot, television spot, TV spot, advert, television advert, TV advert, television ad, TV ad or simply an ad) is a span of television programming produce ...
. Chick finally finds fame when the commercial is a hit and he's signed for a series of commercials for breath mints. Confident of his talents for the first time, but fearing he may have
sold out
"Selling out", or "sold out" in the past tense, is a common expression for the compromising of a person's integrity, morality, authenticity, or principles by forgoing the long-term benefits of the collective or group in exchange for personal ga ...
, Chick leaves London to return to rep.
Cast
*
Kenneth More
Kenneth Gilbert More, CBE (20 September 1914 – 12 July 1982) was an English film and stage actor.
Initially achieving fame in the comedy '' Genevieve'' (1953), he appeared in many roles as a carefree, happy-go-lucky gent. Films from this per ...
- Chick Byrd
*
Cecil Parker - Thomas Rutherford
*
Dennis Price
Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Louis Mazzini in the film '' Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and for his portrayal of the omnicompetent valet Jeeve ...
- Tommy Morris
*
Billie Whitelaw - Judy
*
Norman Rossington
Norman Rossington (24 December 1928 – 21 May 1999) was an English actor best remembered for his roles in ''The Army Game'', the ''Carry On'' films and the Beatles' film '' A Hard Day's Night''.
Early life
Born in Liverpool, Lancashire, ...
- Theodore Littleton
*
Angela Douglas
Angela Douglas (born 29 October 1940), born Angela McDonagh, is an English actress.
Early life
Douglas was born in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire.
Career
Douglas started acting as a teenager, joining the Worthing, West Sussex repertory comp ...
- Fay Trubshaw
*
Edmund Purdom
Edmund Anthony Cutlar Purdom (19 December 19241 January 2009) was an English actor, voice artist, and director. He worked first on stage in Britain, performing various works by Shakespeare, then in America on Broadway and in Hollywood, and event ...
- Julian Baxter
*
Frank Finlay
Francis Finlay, (6 August 1926 – 30 January 2016) was an English stage, film and television actor, Oscar-nominated for a supporting role as Iago in Laurence Olivier's 1965 film adaptation of ''Othello''.
In 1983, Finlay was directed by Ital ...
- Prout
*
Alan Dobie
Alan Russell Dobie (born 2 June 1932) is an English stage, television and film actor and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Early life and career
Dobie was born in Wombwell, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, to George Russ ...
- Jack Lavery
*
J.G. Devlin
James Gerard Devlin (8 October 1907 – 17 October 1991) was a Northern Irish actor who made his stage debut in 1931, and had long association with the Ulster Group Theatre. In a career spanning nearly sixty years, he played parts in TV pro ...
- Sloppitt
* Valerie Croft - Yvonne
* Leila Croft - Pauline
*
Gerald Campion
Gerald Theron Campion (23 April 1921 – 9 July 2002) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his role as Billy Bunter in a 1950s television adaptation ('' Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School'') of books by Frank Richards (Charles Hamil ...
- Gerry
*
Jacqueline Hill
Grace Jacqueline Hill (17 December 1929 – 18 February 1993)[Obituary](_blank)
cuttin ...
- Sandy Lavery
*
Harold Goodwin - Assistant director
*
Penny Morrell
Penny Morrell (4 February 1938 – 3 January 2020) was a British actress. She was married to the actor George Cole until his death in 2015.
Death
Penny Morrell died at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, Berkshire, England on 3 January 2020, aged 81 ...
- Actress
*
Naomi Chance
Naomi Chance (born Naomi Freeman, December 1927 – 18 March 2003) was an English film and television actress. Chance was at one time married to the film director Guy Hamilton.
She appeared in many television shows, including The Plane Makers, ...
- Bit part
*
Guy Deghy
Guy Deghy (born Gedeon Aladar Istvan Deghy; 11 October 1912 – 25 February 1992), was a Hungarian-born actor who appeared largely in British films and television, as in the 5th episode of the first season of '' The Saint'' depicting Inspector ...
- Schuyster
*
Derek Francis
Derek Francis (7 November 1923 – 27 March 1984) was an English comedy and character actor.
Biography
Francis was a regular in the Carry On film players, appearing in six of the films in the 1960s and 1970s. He appeared in '' The Tomb of Lig ...
- Merryweather
* Myrtle Reed - Tommy's secretary
*
Edwin Richfield
Edwin Richfield (11 September 1921 – 2 August 1990) was an English actor.
Career
Richfield starred in the television series ''Interpol Calling'' (1959). He was ''The Odd Man'' in Granada Television's series of the same name in the early 196 ...
- Commercial director
*
Gordon Rollings
Gordon Charles Rollings (17 April 1926 – 7 June 1985) was an English actor who mainly appeared on television, but also appeared on-stage and in feature films. He was born in Batley, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England in 1926 and start ...
- Skippy
*
Eileen Way
Eileen Mabel Elizabeth Way (2 September 1911 – 16 June 1994) was a British actress who appeared in film and television roles in a career dating back to the 1930s. She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from the age of 16.
She was i ...
- Landlady
*
Freddie Mills
Frederick Percival Mills (26 June 1919 – 25 July 1965) was an English boxer, and the world light heavyweight champion from 1948 to 1950. Mills was tall and did not have a sophisticated boxing style; he relied on two-fisted aggression, relen ...
- Indian Chief/Union steward
*
Frank Thornton
Frank Thornton Ball (15 January 192116 March 2013), professionally known as Frank Thornton, was an English actor. He was known for playing Captain Peacock in ''Are You Being Served?'' and its sequel ''Grace & Favour'' (''Are You Being Served? ...
- Producer
*
John Horsley - Co-pilot
*
Wally Patch
Walter Sydney Vinnicombe (26 September 1888 – 27 October 1970) was an English actor and comedian. He worked in film, television and theatre.
Biography
Vinnicombe was born in Willesden, Middlesex and began working on the music hall stages in ...
- Bar manager
*
Talitha Pol
Talitha Dina Getty (; 18 October 1940 – 11 July 1971) was a Dutch actress, socialite, and model who was regarded as a style icon of the late 1960s. She lived much of her adult life in Britain and, in her final years, was closely associated w ...
- Actress at Party
*
Hamilton Dyce
Hamilton Dyce (14 March 1912 – 8 January 1972) was an English stage, film and television actor.
His television work included the 1970 '' Doctor Who'' serial ''Spearhead from Space'', where he played General Scobie.
Selected filmography
* ...
- Burial minister
* Anthony Blackshaw - Bus conductor
*
Richard Pearson - Advertising Man
* Maurice Durant - Barman
*
Ronald Lacey
Ronald William Lacey (28 September 1935 – 15 May 1991) was an English actor. He made numerous television and film appearances over a 30-year period. His roles included Harris in ''Porridge'' (1977), Frankie in the Bud Spencer comedy '' Ch ...
- Assistant Director
*
Jill Adams
Jill Adams (22 July 1930 – 13 May 2008) was an English actress, artist and fashion model. She featured or starred in over 25 films during the 1950s and 1960s.
Life
Jill Adams was born Jill Siggins in London in 1930, the daughter of the sil ...
- Jan Kennedy
*
Robert Raglan
Robert Raglan (7 April 1909 – 18 July 1985) was a British actor best known for his semi-regular role in ''Dad's Army'' as Colonel Pritchard. He also starred in a number of other television series and films such as ''Fabian of the Yard'' (1954 ...
- Man at Party
*
Alan Browning
Alan Brown (23 March 1926 – 7 September 1979), known professionally as Alan Browning, was an English actor. He is best remembered for portraying Alan Howard in the television series ''Coronation Street'', a role he played from 1969 to 1973. H ...
- Actor at audition
Critical reception
''
Radio Times
''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...
'' wrote, "written by Peter Yeldham with a nice balance between irony and drama, and directed by Alvin Rakoff with an accurate eye for the dingy environments and brave bonhomie of unemployed actors, this modest British film boasts a superior cast" ; while ''
Allmovie
AllMovie (previously All Movie Guide) is an online database with information about films, television programs, and screen actors. , AllMovie.com and the AllMovie consumer brand are owned by RhythmOne.
History
AllMovie was founded by popular-cult ...
'' wrote, "matching More's terrific starring performance are such British "regulars" as Dennis Price, Billie Whitelaw, Cecil Parker, Norm Rossington, and Frank Finlay" ; and the ''
Sunday Mirror
The ''Sunday Mirror'' is the Sunday sister paper of the ''Daily Mirror''. It began life in 1915 as the ''Sunday Pictorial'' and was renamed the ''Sunday Mirror'' in 1963. In 2016 it had an average weekly circulation of 620,861, dropping marke ...
'' noted, "Kenneth More in the greatest performance of his career. Brilliantly directed."
References
External links
*
1964 films
1964 drama films
British drama films
Films directed by Alvin Rakoff
Films based on British novels
1960s English-language films
1960s British films
{{1960s-UK-film-stub