Melvin and Howard (1980)

The story of hard-luck Melvin Dummar, who claimed to have received a will naming him an heir to the fortune of Howard Hughes.

Director:

Jonathan Demme

Writer:

Bo Goldman

Stars:

Jason Robards, Paul Le Mat, Elizabeth Cheshire

Won 2 Oscars. Another 19 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jason Robards	...	Howard Hughes
Paul Le Mat	...	Melvin Dummar
Elizabeth Cheshire	...	Darcy Dummar
Mary Steenburgen	...	Lynda Dummar
Chip Taylor	...	Clark Taylor
Melvin E. Dummar	...	Bus Depot Counterman
Michael J. Pollard	...	Little Red
Denise Galik	...	Lucy
Gene Borkan	...	Go-Go Club Owner #1
Lesley Margret Burton	...	Go-Go Dancer
Wendy Lee Couch	...	Go-Go Dancer
Marguerite Baierski	...	Go-Go Dancer
Janice King	...	Go-Go Dancer
Deborah Ann Klein	...	Go-Go Dancer
Theodora Thomas	...	Go-Go Dancer

Storyline

This movie tells the possibly true story of Melvin Dummar. Melvin is a nice guy, but he is a total loser: unlucky, impractical and can't keep a job. One night, however, he helps an old man who has had a motorcycle accident in the desert. Melvin laughs when the old man says he is Howard Hughes, the eccentric multimillionaire. But when Howard Hughes dies, Melvin is mailed a will leaving him part of the estate!

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Plot Keywords:

desert | motorcycle | last will and testament | hoax | reno nevada | 

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Taglines:

A true story?

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 September 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Melvin (and Howard)

Filming Locations:

Gabbs, Nevada, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The name of the television game show was "Easy Street". The real life TV game-shows that it was a fictional amalgam of were The Gong Show and Let's Make a Deal. The amount of money that Lynda Dummar (Mary Steenburgen) won for tap-dancing to The Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction" on the show was US $10,000.

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Goofs

At the end of the truck ride to Vegas, Hughes doesn't know how to open the passenger door from the inside, but in Dummar's flashback at the end of the movie (when Hughes gets to drive the truck), Hughes has no trouble opening the door.

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Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Glenn Close/Black Crowes (1992)

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Soundtracks

"She's About a Mover"
Performed by Sir Douglas Quintet
Courtesy of Crazy Cajun Records

User Reviews

One of the most neglected

I just noticed that "Melvin and Howard" registered a mere 6.6 on the IMDb rating scale. Don't you believe it! This is a great American movie. Director Demme and writer Goldman take a footnote to history -- a contested Howard Hughes will that named Melvin Dummar, a milkman who once loaned him a quarter, as one of his heirs -- and turn that slight material into a wry meditation on the American Dream. Or more specifically, the thin line that separates the American Dream from pure hell. Demme has a great eye for people like Dummar, a dreamer whose clock for realizing his dreams is winding down. The performances are terrific, especially Paul Le Mat as Dummar (whatever happened to Le Mat?) and Mary Steenburgen who won an Oscar for playing his wife. Jason Robards does one of his patented cameos playing a real life character (his Howard Hughes makes a neat hat trick with his Oscar winning performances as Dashiell Hammett and Ben Bradley.) Watch for the real-life Melvin Dummar as the counterman in the bus station where Steenburgen makes a sandwich for her daughter. This is a small but knowing and winning movie. It definitely gets my vote for "Milkman of the Month"!