Harry and Tonto (1974)

When his apartment building is torn down, a retired lifelong New Yorker goes on a cross country odyssey with his beloved cat Tonto.

Director:

Paul Mazursky

Writers:

Paul Mazursky, Josh Greenfeld

Stars:

Art Carney, Ellen Burstyn, René Enríquez

Won 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Art Carney	...	Harry
René Enríquez	...	Grocery Clerk
Herbert Berghof	...	Rivetowski
Michael McCleery	...	Mugger
Avon Long	...	Leroy
Rashel Novikoff	...	Mrs. Rothman
Philip Bruns	...	Burt (as Phil Bruns)
Cliff De Young	...	Burt Jr.
Josh Mostel	...	Norman (as Joshua Mostel)
Dolly Jonah	...	Elaine
Sybil Bowan	...	Old Landlady
Joe Madden	...	Panhandler
Bette Howard	...	Morgue Clerk
Patricia Fay	...	Airport Security Woman
Muriel Beerman	...	Taxi Driver

Storyline

Harry is a retired teacher in his 70s living in the Upper West Side of New York City, where his late wife and he raised his children, where he's lived all of his life. When the building, in which he lives, is torn down to make way for a parking garage, Harry and his beloved cat Tonto begin a journey across the U.S., visiting his children, seeing a world he never seemed to have the time to see before, making new friends, and saying goodbye to old friends.

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Plot Keywords:

cat movie | road trip | character names as title | tonto the cat character | forename in title | 

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Taglines:

Get a Lift

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 January 1975 (France)

Also Known As:

Harry & Tonto

Filming Locations:

Hollywood Walk of Fame, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$980,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of two movies, in which Art Carney appeared, to predominately feature Las Vegas and casino craps, the other being Going in Style (1979).

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Goofs

When Harry is briefly jailed, he is allowed to keep his suitcase and other personal belongings in his cell. None of these things would ever be allowed in a holding tank.

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Quotes

Harry: How old are you?
Ginger: Sixteen.
Harry: I guess I don't know much about being 16 these days.
Ginger: Neither do I.

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Crazy Credits

Tonto is billed "and TONTO"

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Alternate Versions

In the original theatrical version, Norman (Josh Mostel) says to Shirley (Ellen Burstyn), "I like you too, Aunt Shirley, but you're a c**t." When the ratings board gave the film an R rating because of this line, Mazursky changed the line to "But you're a bitch." All subsequent prints after the initial theatrical release contain this line, and the original has since disappeared.

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Connections

Referenced in MST3K Little Gold Statue Preview Special (1995)

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Soundtracks

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
(uncredited)
Music by Sammy Fain
Heard on soundtack while Harry is with hooker

User Reviews

An introspective, cross-country road trip with a wonderful performance by Carney

Art Carney's Oscar-winning role as a elderly man who is forced to move out of his NYC apartment and takes a cross-country trip to California to start a new life with his elderly cat in tow, was filled with light comic touches and very moving dramatic moments. Compared to his iconic character Ed Norton, Carney's performance as Harry Coombes was relatively low-key.

Some critics played the "age", "veteran" or sympathy card when, in the spring of 1975, Carney beat out Jack Nicholson (Chinatown), Al Pacino (The Godfather Part II), Dustin Hoffman (Lenny) and Albert Finney (Murder on the Orient Express) for Best Actor. In retrospect, I don't think that was a fair assessment to Carney. In my opinion, Carney's later performances in "The Late Show" and "Going in Style" were just as good, maybe even better than his award-winning role as Harry Coombes. Carney's win was unexpected but his performance in "Harry and Tonto" was not a fluke.