Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? (1969)Heironymus Merkin screens an autobiographical movie of his life, growth and moral decay. Director:Anthony Newley |
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Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? (1969)Heironymus Merkin screens an autobiographical movie of his life, growth and moral decay. Director:Anthony Newley |
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Anthony Newley | ... |
Heironymus Merkin
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| Joan Collins | ... |
Polyester Poontang
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Alexander Newley | ... |
Thaxted
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Tara Newley | ... |
Thumbelina
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| Milton Berle | ... |
Goodtime Eddie Filth
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Connie Kreski | ... |
Mercy Humppe
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George Jessel | ... |
The Presence
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Bruce Forsyth | ... |
Uncle Limelight
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Patricia Hayes | ... |
Grandma
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Stubby Kaye | ... |
Fat Writer
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Ronald Rubin | ... |
Skinny Writer
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Louis Negin | ... |
Producer Peter
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| Tom Stern | ... |
Producer Ron
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Ronald Radd | ... |
Critic Bentley
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Rosalind Knight | ... |
Critic Penelope
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Hieronymus Merkin has recently turned 40, and is in the midst of preparing a film that details his life's history and development. Portraying himself as a marionette being controlled by an unseen puppet master, young Merkin is led away from the innocence of youth and into the waiting arms of one woman after another by Goodtime Eddie Filth. With Filth's guidance, Merkin steadily transforms into a self-centered womanizer, save only for the longing he feels for his one lost love, Mercy Humppe. As the producers of his life story scream for him to come up with an ending, Merkin must look back and decide what, if anything, he's learned from his experiences. Written by Jean-Marc Rocher <rocher@fiberbit.net>
I saw this film during its original release at the Pearl Art Theater in Denver, Colorado. I was amazed by the film's originality (the premise... not the humor) and the convoluted script (very self-serving for Newley). Just the same, I loved the film and wanted to see it again
- if for no other reason than to jot down the jokes... why not, the
script writers got them the same way. So, last February, to my surprise, my wife presented me with a video copy of the film.(I had been searching for it for more than 30 years.) On second viewing, it is now very dated, but still just as delightful and wacky. As the Late George Gessel crooned... "When ya gotta go, ya gotta go. Even though you'd like to stick a round a while." - I remembered that line for 30 years.