| The Ladies Man | |
|---|---|
.jpg')) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jerry Lewis |
| Produced by | Jerry Lewis |
| Written by | Jerry Lewis Bill Richmond |
| Starring | Jerry Lewis Lillian Briggs Helen Traubel Kathleen Freeman Buddy Lester George Raft |
| Music by | Walter Scharf |
| Cinematography | W. Wallace Kelley |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 106 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3.1 million[1] |
| Box office | 926,423 admissions (France)[2] |
The Ladies Man is a 1961 American comedy film directed by and starring Jerry Lewis. It was released on June 28, 1961 by Paramount Pictures.[3]
Plot
Herbert H. Heebert is a young man who loses his girlfriend, swears off romance, and then takes a job at a genteel, women-only boarding house, run by Helen Wellenmellen. Although most of the women treat him like a servant, Fay helps him with his fear of women.
Cast
- Jerry Lewis as Herbert H. Heebert/Marna Heebert
- Helen Traubel as Helen N. Wellenmellon
- Pat Stanley as Fay
- Kathleen Freeman as Katie
- George Raft as Himself
- Harry James as Harry
- Marty Ingels as Himself
- Buddy Lester as Willard C. Gainsborough
- Gloria Jean as Gloria
- Hope Holiday as Miss Anxious
- Mary LaRoche as Miss Society
- Ann McCrea as Miss Sexy Pot
In addition, Lillian Briggs, the "Queen of Rock & Roll," made her Hollywood acting debut in this film and actor George Raft appeared in a cameo role.[4]
Production
The main set is a four-story doll house-like interior of a mansion turned boarding house with a central courtyard allowing crane shots spanning its three and a half floors. The structure was several rooms deep at each level and in total 177 feet long, 154 wide and 36 feet high.[1][5] The main set alone cost $500,000 to build (equivalent to $4,300,000 in 2019).[1]
Reception
Howard Thompson, in a review for The New York Times wrote: "Now, in all fairness to a frankly light-headed vehicle that dies on its feet, Mr. Lewis' latest gets off to a fresh and really funny beginning." However, after the first half-hour, "the remainder of the picture, with everyone else firmly relegated to the background, [it] has Mr. Lewis shuffling and stumbling in full view, as if he and the movie were merely improvising."[3]
In 1998, Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader included the film in his unranked list of the best American films not included on the AFI Top 100.[6]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 100% rating based on 10 reviews, with an average rating of 7.25/10.[7]
Accolades
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
- 2005: AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes:
- Herbert H. Heebert: "Hey, lady!" – Nominated[8]
Home media
The film was released on DVD on October 14, 2004 and again on July 15, 2014 in a 4-film collection, 4 Film Favorites: Jerry Lewis, with The Bellboy, The Errand Boy, and The Patsy.
References
- ^ a b c Hill, Gladwin (2 December 1960). "Comic Constructs Edifice for Film: Jerry Lewis Concocts a 40-Room Building for The Ladies Man". The New York Times. p. 33.
- ^ Box office information for film at Box office story
- ^ a b Thompson, Howard (July 13, 1961). "Ladies' Man Heads New Double Bill". The New York Times.
- ^ Vagg, Stephen (February 9, 2020). "Why Stars Stop Being Stars: George Raft". Filmink.
- ^ http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/ladiesman1961.php
- ^ Rosenbaum, Jonathan (June 25, 1998). "List-o-Mania: Or, How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love American Movies". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on April 13, 2020.
- ^ https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_ladies_man
- ^ "AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes Nominees" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-07-30.
External links
- The Ladies Man at IMDb
- The Ladies Man at the TCM Movie Database