The Fortune Cookie (1966)

A crooked lawyer persuades his brother-in-law to feign a serious injury.

Director:

Billy Wilder

Writers:

Billy Wilder, I.A.L. Diamond

Stars:

Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, Ron Rich

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Lemmon	...	Harry Hinkle
Walter Matthau	...	Willie Gingrich
Ron Rich	...	Luther 'Boom Boom' Jackson
Judi West	...	Sandy Hinkle
Cliff Osmond	...	Purkey
Lurene Tuttle	...	Mother Hinkle
Harry Holcombe	...	O'Brien
Les Tremayne	...	Thompson
Lauren Gilbert	...	Kincaid
Marge Redmond	...	Charlotte Gingrich
Noam Pitlik	...	Max
Harry Davis	...	Dr. Krugman
Ann Shoemaker	...	Sister Veronica
Maryesther Denver	...	Nurse
Ned Glass	...	Doc Schindler

Storyline

A cameraman is knocked over during a football game. His brother in law as the king of the ambulance chasing lawyers starts a suit while he's still knocked out. The cameraman is against it until he hears that his ex-wife will be coming to see him. He pretends to be injured to get her back, but also sees what the strain is doing to the football player who injured him.

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Plot Keywords:

lawyer | football | cameraman | law | insurance | 

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Taglines:

Some people will do anything for $249,000.92

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 October 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Glückspilz

Filming Locations:

Municipal Stadium - 1085 W. Third Street, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,705,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mirisch Corporation, The, Phalanx-Jalem

Technical Specs

Runtime:

125 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Billy Wilder came up with the idea for this film when he saw a player run into a cameraman on the sidelines while watching a football game.

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Goofs

During the football game in which Harry is injured, the Browns are playing the Minnesota Vikings. On Boom-Boom's punt return, however, the opponents are the Philadelphia Eagles.

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Quotes

Harry Hinkle: Florida and Mustangs and foxes, how are you gonna pay for all of this?
Willie Gingrich: Our credit is good.
Harry Hinkle: Well don't you think we better wait 'til we see some of that insurance money?
Willie Gingrich: Wait? Who waits nowadays? Take the government. When they shoot a billion dollars worth of hardware into space, do you think they pay cash? It's all on the Diner's Club!

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Connections

Featured in The 70th Annual Academy Awards (1998)

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Soundtracks

"You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To"
Music and lyrics by Cole Porter
Sung by Judi West
Also strains played throughout the movie

User Reviews

Mix a shyster with a nitwit...

Little-known, but has fine performances by Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau. Lemmon is a not-too-bright sports cameraman who gets knocked over by a football player (Ron Rich) and is persuaded by his crooked, ambulance-chasing brother-in-law lawyer (Matthau) to fake an injury for the insurance money. Lemmon tries to go along with the scam, but is consumed by guilt because the guilt Rich feels for the "injury" is quickly wrecking his life. Added to this is the return of Lemmon's ex-wife (Judi West), with whom he is still obviously in love. He is completely oblivious to the fact she is a gold-digger--in his case, love truly is blind. Everything resolves itself as it should, but not as you might think. It's a funny, dramatic, and touching film.