The Jerk (1979)

A simpleminded, sheltered country boy suddenly decides to leave his family home to experience life in the big city, where his naivete is both his best friend and his worst enemy.

Director:

Carl Reiner

Writers:

Steve Martin (screenplay), Carl Gottlieb (screenplay)

Stars:

Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Catlin Adams

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steve Martin	...	Navin / Cat Juggler (as Pig Eye Jackson also)
Bernadette Peters	...	Marie
Catlin Adams	...	Patty Bernstein
Mabel King	...	Mother
Richard Ward	...	Father
Dick Anthony Williams	...	Taj
Bill Macy	...	Stan Fox
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Madman
Dick O'Neill	...	Frosty
Maurice Evans	...	Hobart
Helena Carroll	...	Hester
Renn Woods	...	Elvira (as Ren Wood)
Pepe Serna	...	Punk #1
Sonny Terry	...	Blues Singer
Brownie McGhee	...	Blues Singer (as Brownie McGee)

Storyline

Navin is an idiot. He grew up in Mississippi as the adopted son of a black family, but on his 18th birthday he feels he wants to discover the rest of the world and sets out for St. Louis. There everyone exploits his naivete, until a simple invention brings him a fortune.

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Plot Keywords:

fish out of water | eyeglasses | mississippi | told in flashback | cat juggling | 

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Taglines:

From rags to riches... to rags.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

"Premiere" magazine readers voted Steve Martin's performance as Navin Johnson #99 for their "The 100 Greatest Performances of All Time" poll.

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Goofs

Navin opens his door and throws popcorn in the face of the Private Investigator, right after the popcorn bounces off the face the PI spits a mouthful out. The PI never opened his mouth prior to the throw.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Navin R. Johnson: Huh? I am *not* a bum. I'm a jerk. I once had wealth, power, and the love of a beautiful woman. Now I only have two things: my friends, and... uh... my thermos. Huh? My story? Okay. It was never easy for me. I was born a poor black child. I remember the days, sittin' on the porch with my family, singin' and dancin' down in Mississippi...

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Crazy Credits

Pig Eye Jackson - Cat Juggler (Steve Martin)

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Alternate Versions

On most edited versions of The Jerk, a small amount of sexually-suggestive dialogue is cut out when Hartounian briefly introduces Navin to his wife at the gas station before leaving him in charge for the day.

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Connections

Featured in Aloha (2015)

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Soundtracks

Pick A Bale Of Cotton
Sung by Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee (as Brownie McGee)
Words and Music by Leadbelly (as Huddie Ledbetter)
Collected and Adapted by John A. Lomax and Alan Lomax

User Reviews

Laugh so hard, you'll miss half the movie

I'm glad that I didn't see this in the theatre, because when I watched it the first time on video, I needed to pause the movie several times just to catch my breath from laughing so hard! Wait a minute...was that the first time, or the tenth time? Playing Navin R. Johnson, the white son of a black family, Steve Martin leaves home to find "his special purpose." By the end of the movie, we all know what that was...to entertain his fans the way he has! As for Navin's special purpose, if you haven't already seen the movie, you aren't going to get any more information than what's here. It takes intelligence to play a complete idiot, and Steve Martin does the job extremely well. Also take note of Martin's costar Bernadette Peters, and the cameo appearances by Jackie Mason and Carl Reiner. Whoever wrote that people who watch "The Jerk" will be quoting its jokes for years after was absolutely right. This was the funniest of Steve Martin's movies!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 December 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Easy Money

Filming Locations:

N Rosemead Blvd & N Halstead St, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,935,025, 16 December 1979

Gross USA:

$73,691,419

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$73,691,419

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Aspen Film Society

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min 34 min (Super 8-version in 2 parts)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1