Bus Riley's Back in Town (1965)

A young sailor returns home to discover his girl has married an older, wealthy man.

Director:

Harvey Hart

Writer:

William Inge (as Walter Gage)

Stars:

Ann-Margret, Michael Parks, Janet Margolin

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ann-Margret	...	Laurel
Michael Parks	...	Bus Riley
Janet Margolin	...	Judy
Brad Dexter	...	Slocum
Jocelyn Brando	...	Mrs. Riley
Larry Storch	...	Howie
Crahan Denton	...	Spencer
Kim Darby	...	Gussie
Brett Somers	...	Carlotta
Mimsy Farmer	...	Paula
Nan Martin	...	Mrs. Nichols
Lisabeth Hush	...	Joy
Ethel Griffies	...	Mrs. Spencer
Alice Pearce	...	Housewife
Chet Stratton	...	Benii

Storyline

A young man returns home after a three year tour of duty in the navy only to find things are somewhat different from when he left. His kid sister has grown into a young woman, the job he thought was waiting for him turns out to have some unique conditions, and perhaps most importantly his former sweetheart has married a wealthy and much older man. Disillusioned, he drifts from job to job while trying hard to avoid the advances of his former girlfriend, who is unhappy in her marriage and longs for something extra. While all he wants to do is make something of his life, his will power will be put to the ultimate test.

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Plot Keywords:

brother sister relationship | mortician | ex boyfriend ex girlfriend relationship | heartbreak | small town | 

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Taglines:

Her wedding band was the only thing she didn't abandon!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 September 1965 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

All Kinds of People

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The New York Times reported in its review of the film that writer William Inge requested his name be removed from the credits due to changes made by the films producer to "glorify Ann-Margret." The screenplay was credited to "Walter Gage" in the finished film. In a interview for "Films and Filming," from January 1976, Ann-Margret explained the real story: "You should have seen the film we originally shot. After the alterations were made William Inge had his name taken off of it. His screenplay had been wonderful. So brutally honest. And the woman Laurel, as he wrote her, was mean...and he made that very sad. But the studio at that time didn't want me to have that kind of an image for the young people of America. They thought it was too brutal a portrayal. It had been filmed entirely, using William Inge's script, but a year after it was completed they got another writer in, and another director. They wanted me to re-do five key scenes. And those scenes changed the story. That's when Inge took his name off. There were two of those scenes that I just refused to do. The other three...I did, but I was upset and angry. They'd altered the whole life of the story and made the character I played another person altogether. To put it mildly, they'd softened the blow that Inge had delivered. If only everyone could have seen that film the way he wrote it."

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Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Mouth 3 (2018)

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Soundtracks

I Want You To Know
Music by Richard Markowitz
Lyrics by Jacques Wilson
Sung by Dobie Gray

User Reviews

Try to catch this Bus!

It's amazing that Ann-Margret had any friends left in Hollywood after she was put in the forefront of "State Fair", then the producers of "Bye Bye Birdie" geared that film around her then in this film, she was given top-billing and the story was re-structured to bring out her character more than was intended or necessary! It's not to say that she didn't do a good job on these movies, it's just that more than a few people involved got their feathers ruffled along the way and she seems to be none the worse for wear from it herself! Here, it was the author of the piece (William Inge) who tried to disassociate himself from the film when the producers decided to steer the production her way. The story is supposed to be about the title character (Parks) and the events that befall him when he comes home from a three year stint in the U.S. Navy. He has trouble finding his way and interacts with various locals and family members as he searches for purpose and the security of a bright future. Standing in the way of this is old flame Margret who, when he shipped out after a break up with her, married a wealthy older man. Parks and Margret have a great push-pull, moth-to-a-flame chemistry with Parks desperately trying to avoid what he knows will be his undoing. Fans of Margret will be doing backflips when watching this film as she purrs and slithers around in her Jean Louis dresses and tosses her lionesse mane of red hair. Her character makes little or no sense half the time (partly because it has been unduly featured as a starring part when it is actually just a plot device), but her followers won't care when she's writhing around and whispering romantic dialogue in lighting that would make Lucille Ball jealous. Parks can't quite shake the James Dean label entirely and the way he acts and looks sometimes, maybe he wasn't even trying, but he does give a thoughtful, often empathetic performance. The whole film is dotted with great character actors giving little doses of themselves. Sometimes, they get short shrift or their scenes don't add up to much, but their presence is enjoyable nonetheless. Brando gets one of her better roles as Parks' worried mother. The lovely Farmer plays his tarty, blonde sister while Darby does a fantastic job as his adoring younger sister. Her performance provides the film with a great deal of heart and realism. Other enjoyable work is done by Somers (she did something before "Match Game"?!) as a fussy boarder, Martin as a slovenly neighbor, Dexter as a slick salesman, Pearce as a dotty housewife and Griffies as a cantankerous mortician. Less showy, but just as good is Margolin as Darby's troubled friend. If the parts don't all add up to a brilliant whole, at least the film is pretty to look at and mostly entertaining. The characters are interesting enough to hold the viewers attention for the bulk of the time. Amusingly, the one hot pub in town (purportedly a straight bar) plays only Petula Clark songs until Margret slips a nickel in the juke box for one of her slinky come-ons. There's also a rather forward (for its time) scene of an older man attempting to make Parks his live-in "buddy". It would be interesting to see how the film played with Inge's perspective kept intact. As is, it's still a more than passable piece of entertainment.