Waiting for Guffman (1996)

An aspiring director and the marginally-talented amateur cast of a hokey small-town Missouri musical production go overboard when they learn that someone from Broadway will be in attendance.

Director:

Christopher Guest

Writers:

Christopher Guest, Eugene Levy

Stars:

Christopher Guest, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Deborah Theaker	...	Gwen Fabin-Blunt - Councilwoman
Michael Hitchcock	...	Steve Stark - Councilman
Scott Williamson	...	Tucker Livingston - Councilman
Larry Miller	...	Glenn Welsch - Mayor
Don Lake	...	Phil Burgess - Blaine Historian
Christopher Guest	...	Corky St. Clair
Fred Willard	...	Ron Albertson
Catherine O'Hara	...	Sheila Albertson
Parker Posey	...	Libby Mae Brown
David Cross	...	UFO Expert
Eugene Levy	...	Dr. Allan Pearl
James McQueen	...	Singing Auditioner (as Jim McQueen)
Turk Pipkin	...	Ping Pong Ball Juggler
Jerry Turman	...	Raging Bull Auditioner
Bob Balaban	...	Lloyd Miller

Storyline

A town of Blaine, Missouri is preparing for celebrations of its 150th anniversary. Corky St.Clair, an off-off-off-off-off-Broadway director is putting together an amateur theater show about the town's history, starring a local dentist, a couple of travel agents, a Dairy Queen waitress, and a car repairman. He invites a Broadway theater critic Mr. Guffman to see the opening night of the show.

---

Plot Keywords:

missouri | small town | dairy queen | dentist | travel agent | 

---

Taglines:

A New Comedy from the lead guitarist of 'Spinal Tap'

---

Genres:

Comedy

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. / Castle Rock [us]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 January 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Christopher Guest Project

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$37,990 (USA) (31 January 1997)

Gross:

$2,892,582 (USA) (18 July 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Castle Rock Entertainment, Pale Morning Dun, All Night Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SDDS SDDS (uncredited)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the collectible figures in Corky's shop at the end of the movie is Cliff Arquette in his Charley Weaver outfit. Cliff's son, Lewis Arquette, played Clifford Wooley, the narrator.

---

Goofs

The clock on the VCR in the trailer flashes (the time isn't set) in long shots, but is correctly set in close-up.

---

Quotes

Corky St. Clair: Everybody dance!

---

Crazy Credits

During the end credits Christopher Guest's character shows us some of the fun memorabilia that he sells in his store.

---

Connections

Referenced in Dog Eat Dog (2002)

---

Soundtracks

"Stool Boom"
Written by Harry Shearer and Christopher Guest
Courtesy of Dog on the Beach Music / Coney Island Whitefish Music / Hazen Music (ASCAP)
Sung by the cast in the show

User Reviews

Genius

It's amazing that Christopher Guest (and the great Eugene Levy) aren't more known. If I had my way, they'd be household names. With so many less talented actors making more money and films than these guys, it's proves it's an unfair world and an unfair biz.

Waiting for Guffman is a hilarious film. A great cast and a funny concept make this a classic. These are really talented people in this film, especially when you realize a lot of it was adlibbed.

"Only two people can do it all: Barbara Striesand and Corky..."

"I hate you and I hate your ass face."

I still laugh every time I see it. Eugene Levy (my favorite SCTV cast member) is so funny in this movie, I really wish he did more stuff. The man's a genius.

When you see these all time great comedy lists, ignore them. They were picked by 80 year old men who still think Buster Keaton is the funniest human to ever live. You'll never find movies like this on those lists. But this movie deserves to be. It's up there with "The Odd Couple" and "Airplane." Definitely check it out.