Urban Cowboy (1980)

Bud is a young man from the country who learns about life and love in a Houston bar.

Director:

James Bridges

Writers:

Aaron Latham (story "The Ballad of the Urban Cowboy"), James Bridges (screenplay)

Stars:

John Travolta, Debra Winger, Scott Glenn

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Travolta	...	Bud
Debra Winger	...	Sissy
Scott Glenn	...	Wes
Madolyn Smith Osborne	...	Pam (as Madolyn Smith)
Barry Corbin	...	Uncle Bob
Brooke Alderson	...	Aunt Corene
Cooper Huckabee	...	Marshall
James Gammon	...	Steve Strange
Mickey Gilley	...	Mickey Gilley
Johnny Lee	...	Johnny Lee
Bonnie Raitt	...	Bonnie Raitt
The Charlie Daniels Band	...	The Charlie Daniels Band
Betty Murphy	...	Bud's Mom
Ed Geldart	...	Bud's Dad
Leah Geldart	...	Bud's Sister

Storyline

Bud Davis is a country boy who moves to the city to visit his uncle and his family. He starts hanging out at Gilley's, the popular nightclub owned by Mickey Gilley himself. He takes a job at the oil refinery where his uncle works, hoping to save enough money to buy some land. He also meets a cowgirl named Sissy, they dance together, fall in love and suddenly get married. And then their marriage is shattered when Bud sees Sissy allegedly seeing con man Wes, who teaches her how to ride the mechanical bull... and plans to rob Gilley's. When a bull-riding contest at Gilley's is announced, Bud decides to sign up. Can he win the contest and save his marriage to Sissy?

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Plot Keywords:

nightclub | bar fight | cowboy | country music | domestic violence | 

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Taglines:

Hard hat days and honky-tonk nights.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

6 June 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Urban Cowboy

Filming Locations:

2213 Westside Drive, Deer Park, Texas, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$46,918,287

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$46,918,287

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Robert Evans Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

132 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The production shoot of this movie featured a closed set with many security precautions implemented to protect John Travolta from the media. Travolta had mandated no publicity during filming and was at the time known to have become reclusive. This movie though garnered much negative publicity during principal photography anyway with Producer Robert Evans once exclaiming "the press relations on this film stink and there's nothing I can do about it."

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Goofs

Bud's truck does not have a Texas Inspection Certificate sticker on its driver's side windshield - a strictly enforced requirement for all Texas-registered passenger vehicles and light trucks since 1950.

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Quotes

Sissy: I brought ya some coffee.
Bud: Get me a beer.
Sissy: Bud, if they smell beer on your breath at work -
Bud: JUST GET ME A BEER!
Sissy: Yessir.

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Alternate Versions

The version that NBC ran in 1983 had about 12 minutes of out-take put back, to expand the film for a three-hour time slot.

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Connections

Referenced in Three's Company: Urban Plowboy (1982)

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Soundtracks

The Moon Just Turned Blue
Written by JD Souther
Performed by JD Souther

User Reviews

Vinnie Barbarino does the Texas 2 Step

I bellied up to the bar expecting this to be a hot beer on a sweltering Texas day but was pleasantly surprised. After suffering through "Saturday Night Foolishness" I had no desire to see a re-make in some south Texas barnyard....and I didn't. John Revolta was good as the jealous redneck, Scott Glenn was well cast as a thuggie ex-con, and Debra Winger was, as always, a delight. *Love that woman* Plus, the soundtrack was dynamite [and this comes from a guy that can't stand the sound of country music]. A fun film all the way.