The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982)

Director:

Colin Higgins

Writers:

Larry L. King (magazine article)
Larry L. King (musical) ...
(more)

Release Date:

23 July 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical

Tagline:

With Burt and Dolly this much fun just couldn't be legal!

Plot:

Town Sheriff and regular patron, fights to keep a historical whorehouse open when a TV preacher targets it as the Devils playhouse. |

Plot Keywords:

Sheriff | Blockbuster | Buxom | Texas | Madame

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Burt Reynolds	...	Sheriff Ed Earl Dodd
Dolly Parton	...	Mona Stangley
Dom DeLuise	...	Melvin P. Thorpe
Charles Durning	...	Governor
Jim Nabors	...	Deputy Fred
Robert Mandan	...	Senator Charles Wingwood
Lois Nettleton	...	Dulcie Mae
Theresa Merritt	...	Jewel
Noah Beery Jr.	...	Edsel
Barry Corbin	...	C.J.
Ken Magee	...	Mansel
Mary Jo Catlett	...	Rita Crowell
Mary Louise Wilson	...	Miss Modene
Howard K. Smith	...	Himself
Gail Benedict	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Valerie Leigh Bixler	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Leslie Cook	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Carol Culver	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Lorraine Fields	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Trish Garland	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Sandy Johnson	...	Chicken Ranch Girl (as Sandi Johnson)
Lee Lund	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Paula Lynn	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Lily Mariye	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Andrea Pike	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Terri Robinson	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Jennifer Nairn-Smith	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Terri Treas	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Melanie Winter	...	Chicken Ranch Girl
Stephen Bray	...	Aggie
Brian Bullard	...	Aggie
Jeff Calhoun	...	Aggie
Gary Chapman	...	Aggie
John Dolf	...	Aggie
David Engel	...	Aggie
Edmond Alan Forsyth	...	Aggie (as Ed Forsyth)
Mark Fotopoulos	...	Aggie
Michael Fullington	...	Aggie
David Warren Gibson	...	Aggie
Joe Hart	...	Aggie
Jeffrey Hornaday	...	Aggie
Patrick Maguire	...	Aggie
Ted Marriot	...	Aggie
Jerry Mitchell	...	Aggie
Steven Moore	...	Aggie
Douglas Robb	...	Aggie
Kevin Ryan	...	Aggie
Tim Topper	...	Aggie
Marvin Tunney	...	Aggie
Randy Val Cupp	...	Aggie
Robert Warners	...	Aggie
Robin Lynn Funk	...	Dogette
Larry Kenton	...	Dogette
Mark Thomas McGee	...	Dogette
Karen McLain	...	Dogette
Benjamin Taylor	...	Dogette
Arnetia Walker	...	Dogette
Ty Whitney	...	Dogette
Robert Briscoe Evans	...	Melvin's Crew (as Robert Briscoe)
John Walter Davis	...	Melvin's Crew
Gregory Itzin	...	Melvin's Crew
Timothy Stack	...	Melvin's Crew
Larry B. Williams	...	Melvin's Crew
Harvey Christiansen	...	Old Farmer
Donald F. Colson	...	Jeff Gerald
Helen Kleeb	...	Dora
Mickey Jones	...	Henry
Bobby Fite	...	Dulcie Mae's Son
Paula Shaw	...	Wulla Jean
Kenneth White	...	Sheriff Jack Roy Wallace
Ted Gehring	...	Sheriff Chapman
Wayne Heffley	...	TV Station Manager
Verne Lundquist	...	Football Announcer
Lee Grosscup	...	Football Color Man
Lee Ritchey	...	Governor's Aide
Alice Drummond	...	Governor's Secretary
Karyn Harrison	...	Chicken Girl
Randy Bennett	...	Privates Boy
Willie T. Neely	...	Nester
Harold Offer	...	Nester
Kenneth Threadgill	...	Nester
John Edson	...	Male Reporter
Robert Ginnaven	...	Male Reporter
Sharon Ammann	...	Female Reporter
Claudette Gardner	...	Female Reporter
Suzi McLaughlin	...	Female Reporter
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Raleigh Bond	...	Rufus, Mayor of Gilbert Texas
Kay Parker
Mary Louise Smith	...	Modene
Bret Williams	...	Silhouette Cowboy
Chuck Dawson	...	JukeBox Delivery Man (uncredited)
Anne Gaybis	...	Chicken Ranch Girl (uncredited)
Catherine Wilkinson	...	Young Whore Dancer (uncredited)

Directed by
Colin Higgins

Writing credits
Larry L. King		(magazine article)
Larry L. King		(musical) &
Peter Masterson		(musical)
Colin Higgins		(writer)

Produced by
Robert L. Boyett	....	producer
Colin Higgins	....	producer
Peter Macgregor-Scott	....	co-producer
Edward K. Milkis	....	producer
Thomas L. Miller	....	producer

Original Music by
Carol Hall
Patrick Williams

Cinematography by
William A. Fraker

Film Editing by
David Bretherton
Nicholas Eliopoulos
Pembroke J. Herring
Jack Hofstra

Production Design by
Robert F. Boyle

Art Direction by
Norman Newberry

Costume Design by
Theadora Van Runkle

Makeup Department
Marvin G. Westmore	....	makeup artist
Brad Wilder	....	makeup artist: Ms. Parton

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Emmitt-Leon O'Neill	....	assistant director
Jack Frost Sanders	....	assistant director
Jim Van Wyck	....	assistant director

Art Department
Marco A. Campos	....	propmaker
Joseph Hurley	....	production illustrator
Greg C. Jensen	....	general construction foreman
Daniel Maltese	....	set designer
Frank Richwood	....	assistant art director
Curtis A. Schnell	....	set designer
Robert A. Sturtevant	....	stand-by propmaker
Glenn Dunn	....	propmaker (uncredited)
Robert Misetich	....	painter (uncredited)

Sound Department
William B. Kaplan	....	sound mixer
Steven Klinghoffer	....	sound utility
Earl Sampson	....	boom operator
Ross Taylor	....	foley artist (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Henry Schoessler	....	visual effects
Albert Whitlock	....	special visual effects

Stunts
Eddie Hice	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Fredrick Albrecht	....	grip
Dave Anderberg	....	grip
Bobby Byrne	....	director of photography: additional photography
Gary R. Dodd	....	key grip
Jan Koshay	....	dolly grip
Michael Orefice	....	electrician
Keith Peterman	....	first assistant camera
Steven Poster	....	additional photographer
Lawrence Grauman	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Ann Lukacs	....	second unit (uncredited)

Music Department
Gene N. Fowler	....	music editor
Gregg Perry	....	score produced and arranged by
Dan Wallin	....	score mixer

Other crew
Stanley Brossette	....	unit publicist
Nicholas Eliopoulos	....	pre-production coordinator
Dow Griffith	....	location manager
Tony Habeeb	....	unit publicist
Richard Holley	....	helicopter pilot (as Rick Holley)
Tony Stevens	....	choreographer

Production Companies

• RKO Pictures

Distributors

• Universal Pictures (1982) (USA) (theatrical)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1984) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• MCA/Universal Home Video (1992) (USA) (VHS)
• Universal Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures Benelux (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• Universal Pictures Benelux (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)
• Argentina Video Home (19??) (Argentina) (VHS)
• CIC Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Universal Home Video (Brazil) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Cadence Cloggers of San Antonio  extras casting (uncredited)

Also Known As:

The Best Little Cathouse in Texas (Canada: English title) (bowdlerized title)

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Certification:

Peru:14 | South Korea:18 | Australia:M | Argentina:13 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (DVD rating) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | Canada:R (Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Singapore:(Banned)

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

RKO Pictures

Trivia:

Henderson Forsythe won the 1979 Tony Award (New York City) for Supporting or Features Actor in a Musical for "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" in the role of Sheriff Ed Earl Dodd.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Sheriff Dodd punches Melvin P. Thorpe and sends him sliding across the floor, Thorpe slides across a design in the floor and stops with his head and shoulders outside the design. The following aerial shot shows him with his head centered perfectly in the middle of the design.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Deputy Fred: It was the nicest little whorehouse you ever saw!

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Memphis Cathouse Blues (1982)

Soundtrack:

20 Fans

One of the most fun and upbeat musicals ever made.

How could anyone not love this movie? Being a big fan of musicals myself, I love this movie for the fun, campy performances, larger then life, sassy, characters,smalltown southern charm, the surprisingly sweet romance between Reynolds and Parton(I'm a big fan of both) and the homage to the south in general-YEEHAW!!! This is a perfect movie to watch directly after you've watched a heavy movie and want to "come down". It's bright, fun and filled with wicked gaiety. Anyone who's a fan of musicals should see this, I've seen many a stage show as well, my one big regret is I never saw the play version of this.

I don't see how anyone could fault Burt Reynolds performance in this, in my opinion the casting choices-all of them-were as close to perfect as there is. Although I do not live in Texas, I have visited and hold a deep admiration for Texas and all it has to offer. I love movies about one of my favorite states in the country, as well as musicals, so this was a double plus. And everyone played their roles with such charm, Dolly was so lovable, Reynolds, the tough sheriff yet so decent at heart and Charles Durning as mentioned by nearly EVERYBODY was amazing.

This ranks up there as one of my all time top musicals, it's got so much gaiety and is so infectiously warm, inviting and a celebration of fun! A must see. 8 of 10.