Rich and Famous (1981)

Liz and Merry Noel become friends as college roommates and their friendship endures over the years. Liz becomes a respected "serious" novelist. Merry Noel marries, has a daughter and writes... See full summary »

Director:

George Cukor

Writers:

Gerald Ayres, John Van Druten (play)

Stars:

Jacqueline Bisset, Candice Bergen, David Selby

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jacqueline Bisset	...	Liz Hamilton
Candice Bergen	...	Merry Noel Blake
David Selby	...	Doug Blake
Hart Bochner	...	Chris Adams
Steven Hill	...	Jules Levi
Meg Ryan	...	Debby at 18 years
Matt Lattanzi	...	The Boy, Jim
Daniel Faraldo	...	Ginger Trinidad
Nicole Eggert	...	Debby at 8 years
Joe Maross	...	Martin Fornam
Kres Mersky	...	Judy Heller
Cloyce Morrow	...	Martha Antilles
Cheryl Robinson	...	UCLA Voice (voice)
Allan Warnick	...	Desk Clerk
Ann Risley	...	Max's Wife

Storyline

Liz and Merry Noel become friends as college roommates and their friendship endures over the years. Liz becomes a respected "serious" novelist. Merry Noel marries, has a daughter and writes, too: "trash" fiction which becomes enormously successful. Their story begins in college and jumps ahead some years at a time to show their relationship with each other and those in their orbits as they grow and mature.

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Plot Keywords:

male rear nudity | roommate | friend | college roommate | friendship | 

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Taglines:

From the very beginning, they knew they'd be friends to the end. What they didn't count on was everything in between.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 October 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ricas y famosas

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$14,492,125

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jaquet, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The name of the book that Merry Noel Blake (Candice Bergen) read twice a year was Margaret Mitchell's "Gone with the Wind".

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Goofs

Jackie Bisset's character is shown flying from LA to NY in a 747, but that plane didn't enter service until 1970, the year after this scene takes place (1969).

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Quotes

Merry Noel Blake: I'm having tables all along here, just spilling over with whatever grows this time of year. The problem with December is there are no strawberries. How am I going to create a big red area in the middle?
Liz Hamilton: Stab one of the guests.

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Alternate Versions

ABC edited 22 minutes from this film for its 1984 network television premiere.

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Connections

Referenced in The Flower of My Secret (1995)

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Soundtracks

On The Sunny Side of the Street
Sung by Willie Nelson
Composed by Jimmy McHugh (uncredited)
Lyrics by Dorothy Fields (uncredited)
Courtesy of Columbia Records

User Reviews

A beautiful movie about friendship!

Okay, it is not the most upbeat movie ever shot, but it is for sure one of the smartest and deepest pictures about friendship. Candice Bergen and Jacqueline Bisset shine as two intelligent women who found wiseness, if not happiness, through the cracks of personal failure. Plus, this was Meg Ryan's first appearance, in a small role as Candice Bergen's daughter!