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Happy Birthday, Wanda June

  • 1971
  • R
  • 1h 45m
IMDb RATING
6.0/10
342
YOUR RATING
Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
ComedyDrama

A family reacts to the return of the patriarch who abandoned them seven years prior.A family reacts to the return of the patriarch who abandoned them seven years prior.A family reacts to the return of the patriarch who abandoned them seven years prior.

  • Director
    • Mark Robson
  • Writer
    • Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
  • Stars
    • Rod Steiger
    • Susannah York
    • George Grizzard
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    6.0/10
    342
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Mark Robson
    • Writer
      • Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
    • Stars
      • Rod Steiger
      • Susannah York
      • George Grizzard
    • 22User reviews
    • 11Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos9

    Rod Steiger, George Grizzard, Steven Paul, and Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    Rod Steiger, William Hickey, and Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    Rod Steiger and Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    George Grizzard, Steven Paul, and Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    Rod Steiger and Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    Rod Steiger and Susannah York in Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)
    Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Rod Steiger
    Rod Steiger
    • Harold Ryan
    Susannah York
    Susannah York
    • Penelope Ryan
    George Grizzard
    George Grizzard
    • Dr. Norbert Woodley
    Don Murray
    Don Murray
    • Herb Shuttle
    William Hickey
    William Hickey
    • Looseleaf Harper
    Steven Paul
    Steven Paul
    • Paul Ryan
    Pamelyn Ferdin
    Pamelyn Ferdin
    • Wanda June
    Pamela Saunders
    • Mildred Ryan
    Louis Turenne
    Louis Turenne
    • Major von Koningswald
    C.C. Whitney
    • Mrs. Kestenbaum
    Lester Goldsmith
    • Mr. Kestenbaum
    • (as Lester M. Goldsmith)
    • Director
      • Mark Robson
    • Writer
      • Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The original Broadway production of "Happy Birthday, Wanda June" by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. opened at the Edison Theater on December 22, 1970, ran for 96 performances and closed on March 14, 1971.
    • Quotes

      Penelope Ryan: Doctor Woodley, I would like you to meet Harold, my husband. Harold, I would like you to meet Doctor Woodley, my fiancé. Goodnight dear

      [kisses Harold]

      Penelope Ryan: goodnight dear

      [kisses Dr Woodley]

      Penelope Ryan: . Stay or go; talk or sulk; laugh or cry - as you wish. Do whatever seems called for. My mind is gone. Good night.

      [she closes and locks door]

    • Connections
      Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: 12 to the Moon (1994)

    User reviews22

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    Shuffleboard anyone?
    Yes, I have to toss my two thumbs up into the heavens for this film as well. Seen a few times at a very young age. Bit of a slow start as Harold returns home and all. But soon as the cake is introduced with 'Happy Birthday Wanda June' on the counter, the surreal begins! A brilliantly funny, but I'm sure 'unpolitically correct' view of 'heaven' - even at my young virgin age, I was kinda shocked. Wanda June, cute as a bugs ear - but tragically hit by a truck before her birthday. Assistited by a fatherly Nazi to help explain the utopia of their afterlife. Like Nazis and Jesus playing shuffleboard all day in heaven? And you know Jesus is like really good, because he has the satin jacket and all that. Then back down to New York, where Harold and his buddy try desperately to reintegrate themselves into a world that now seems so foreign. I wouldn't say it was a 'feminist' movie, nor was it glorifying or lambasting the idea of brutality and war. I'd say it was simply about 'time' itself. As in 'time is fleeting', 'time heals all wounds', 'remember the good times and forget the bad'. As irrational and surreal as it was - long before Updike treatments. It's probably the one that comes off the most sane and human out of the lot. Kings, Heros, Madmen, and the wakes of their plunder and destruction. Queens, Innocent beauty, and youth. All but ripples on the shore that cannot stand up to natural currents and waves - only help contribute to them until the tides change. And that you can set your watch to. Brilliant film!
    helpful•3
    0
    • dungeonstudio
    • Mar 28, 2010

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 9, 1971 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.'s Happy Birthday, Wanda June
    • Production companies
      • Red Lion
      • Sourdough
      • The Filmakers Group
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 45 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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