A dying millionaire has her soul transferred into a younger, willing woman. However, something goes wrong, and she finds herself in her lawyer's body - together with the lawyer.
Director:
Carl Reiner
Stars:
Steve Martin,
Lily Tomlin,
Victoria Tennant
With the help of a talking freeway billboard, a wacky weatherman tries to win the heart of an English newspaper reporter, who is struggling to make sense of the strange world of early 1990s Los Angeles.
Director:
Mick Jackson
Stars:
Steve Martin,
Victoria Tennant,
Richard E. Grant
The Buckmans are a midwestern family all dealing with their lives: estranged relatives, raising children, pressures of the job, and learning to be a good parent and spouse.
Director:
Ron Howard
Stars:
Steve Martin,
Mary Steenburgen,
Dianne Wiest
Navin is an idiot. He grew up in Mississippi as 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 to St. Louis. There everyone exploits his naivety, but then a simple invention brings him a fortune.Written by
Tom Zoerner <Tom.Zoerner@informatik.uni-erlangen.de>
The director, Carl Reiner, talks about making The Jerk on Episode #156 of Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast (5/22/17) from 1:04 to 1:14. See more »
Goofs
When Navin fills up the tank of the lowrider's car, he leaves the hose in the car and leaves. When he returns, the hose has been replaced back on the gas pump. See more »
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...
See more »
Crazy Credits
Pig Eye Jackson - Cat Juggler (Steve Martin) See more »
Alternate Versions
Generally, commercial TV prints that edit Navin's dog's name to "Stupid", show Navin on the amusement park ride, "so broke that he had to spin," show Navin conned into giving a man money after looking at "unpleasant photographs," and show the Texas Millionaire complaining about the seat cracks on his airplane. There is also extended dialog with Navin elaborating with Mr. Hartounian about making $1.10 an hour. Additionally, these prints have close up camera angles, to avoid showing Billy's profane T-Shirt. Most sexual reference dialogue by Patti is cut. See more »
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!
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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!