Doctor Detroit (1983)

A pimp on the run trusts his sex workers to a meek professor of literature, who accepts the challenge.

Director:

Michael Pressman

Writers:

Bruce Jay Friedman (story), Carl Gottlieb

Stars:

Dan Aykroyd, Howard Hesseman, Donna Dixon

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dan Aykroyd	...	Clifford Skridlow / Doctor Detroit
Howard Hesseman	...	Smooth Walker
Donna Dixon	...	Monica McNeil
Lydia Lei	...	Jasmine Wu
T.K. Carter	...	Diavolo Washington
Lynn Whitfield	...	Thelma Cleland
Fran Drescher	...	Karen Blittstein
John A. Maloney	...	Commodore
Pershing P. Anderson	...	Stretch
William Munchow	...	Professor Artel
Ed Meekin	...	Professor Durant (as Edward Meekin)
Hank Salas	...	Johnny
Rudolph Kovar	...	Carson (as Rudolf Kovar)
Kate Murtagh	...	Mom
Peter Elbling	...	Guptor

Storyline

Clifford Skridlow teaches at a small Chicago college run by his father. Conned into managing four prostitutes by their pimp, who skips town to escape the mob boss known as Mom, Clifford draws on his course in medieval literature in his quest to save the women from Mom.

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Plot Keywords:

pimp | lingerie | college professor | voyeurism | voyeur | 

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Taglines:

He's making the world safe for insanity.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

Film debut of Lynn Whitfield.

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Goofs

Doctor Detroit's upraised arm/hand do not exactly match the cut-out left as the tow truck smashes through the fence.

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Quotes

Diavolo Washington: [as Sidney Poitier] They'll call me *Mister* Diavolo!

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the credits, we see "Coming soon: Doctor Detroit II, the Wrath of Mom."

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Connections

Referenced in The Simpsons: Frink Gets Testy (2018)

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Soundtracks

Working Girls
Performed by Pattie Brooks and Dan Aykroyd
Courtesy of Backstreet Records
Pattie Brooks appears courtesy of Mirage Records

User Reviews

The 2nd greatest sound track ever!

As others may have pointed out, this is mostly Dan A. doing his schtick with a couple of characters that he had not entirely fleshed out. But one thing you should see (hear) this movie for is the sound track!

You have Devo, James Brown, and Lalo Schifrin (in probably his only excursion into "soul music"--and what an excursion it is).

Almost 20 years later, I still listen to this album on a regular basis.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Peacock TV [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 May 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Doctor Detroit

Filming Locations:

Biltmore Hotel - 506 S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,295,722, 8 May 1983

Gross USA:

$10,375,893

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$10,375,893

Company Credits

Production Co:

Black Rhino Productions, Brillstein Company, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1