Rich and Famous (1981)

Liz and Merry Noel become friends as college roommates and their friendship endures over the years. Liz becomes a respected "serious" novelist. Merry Noel marries, has a daughter and writes... See full summary »

Director:

George Cukor

Writers:

Gerald Ayres, John Van Druten (play)

Stars:

Jacqueline Bisset, Candice Bergen, David Selby

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jacqueline Bisset	...	Liz Hamilton
Candice Bergen	...	Merry Noel Blake
David Selby	...	Douglas 'Doug' Blake
Hart Bochner	...	Christopher 'Chris' Adams
Steven Hill	...	Jules Levi
Meg Ryan	...	Debby Blake, 18 Years
Matt Lattanzi	...	Jim, the Boy
Daniel Faraldo	...	Ginger Trinidad
Nicole Eggert	...	Debby Blake, 8 Years
Joe Maross	...	Martin Fornam
Kres Mersky	...	Judy Heller
Cloyce Morrow	...	Martha Antilles
Cheryl Robinson	...	UCLA Voice (voice)
Allan Warnick	...	Desk Clerk
Ann Risley	...	Max's Wife

Storyline

Liz and Merry Noel become friends as college roommates and their friendship endures over the years. Liz becomes a respected "serious" novelist. Merry Noel marries, has a daughter and writes, too: "trash" fiction which becomes enormously successful. Their story begins in college and jumps ahead some years at a time to show their relationship with each other and those in their orbits as they grow and mature.

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Plot Keywords:

college roommate | roommate | friendship | friend | rival | 

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Taglines:

From the very beginning, they knew they'd be friends to the end. What they didn't count on was everything in between.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 September 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ricas y famosas

Filming Locations:

Algonquin Hotel - 59 W. 44th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jaquet, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was made and released about forty years after its source play 'Old Acquaintance' by John Van Druten was first performed in 1941.

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Goofs

Merry is in bed when she suddenly comes up with title for her next novel - "Home Cookin'". But a moment later, when she rushes into her office, that title is already scrawled across the blackboard where she jots down her ideas.

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Quotes

Liz Hamilton: I need the press of human flesh, and you're the only flesh around.
Merry Noel Blake: After all these years are you trying to tell me there's something strange about you?

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Connections

Referenced in The 53rd Annual Academy Awards (1981)

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Soundtracks

"On The Sunny Side of the Street"
Sung by Willie Nelson
Composed by Jimmy McHugh (uncredited)
Lyrics by Dorothy Fields (uncredited)
Courtesy of Columbia Records

User Reviews

Can I just say...I really liked this film!

Gosh, I am learning pretty fast that sometimes when you see a film as a youngster and then again 20 years later you gain a different view -- primarily because in 20 years you learn more. For example, I had no idea who George Cukor was - how great of a director he was and how much of that made this film fly. All I can say is..I really liked this film for it touched on an area that paralleled my life: lifelong friendship between two women. Can that EVER exist? Well, in certain doses, yes...and this film let out in a bit on ... "how".

Being a youngster with not a lot of life experience at the first time I saw this so I focused more on the "rich" and "famous" part between the two. At the time, I had no idea there was a difference and what would happen to two women who discovered there was...and how that would effect their friendship. Through their men, their career, the decades that defined them. And coming to realize one thing remained stronger than anything else...their friendship and knowing each other more than anyone else could have.

Then I got older, studied film a bit... and watched this film again with my best friend from High School. We do understand the 'rich' and 'famous' angle ... and we are still the best of friends...but this film is not a cinematic masterpiece...it can be seen as a bit campy at times...a little over the top at points (kinda on a 'Dynasty' and 'Dallas' level to me..) and honestly I can identify with the "teddy bear" scene for we do share a bear that means a lot more than a stuffed fun toy through our trials and tribulations with men/careers, et al..so its not as over the top as it seems....! As many already said, seeing Meg Ryan and Matt Latanzzi and Dack Rambo and David Selby are great in this 1981 piece. this is a nice "chick" flick!