The Bear (1984)

Biopic about the great college football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant of the University of Alabama.

Director:

Richard C. Sarafian

Writer:

Michael Kane

Stars:

Gary Busey, Cynthia Leake, Carmen Thomas

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gary Busey	...	Paul W. Bryant
Cynthia Leake	...	Mary Harmon Bryant
Carmen Thomas	...	Mae Martin Bryant
Cary Guffey	...	Grandson Marc
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Coach Thomas
Jon-Erik Hexum	...	Pat Trammell
Steve Greenstein	...	Joe Namath
Michael McGrady	...	Gene Stallings
William Wesley Neighbors Jr.	...	Billy Neighbors
Brett Rice	...	Don Hutson
Buddy Farmer	...	Herman Ball
Owen Orr	...	Ermal Allen (as Owen E. Orr)
Charles Gabrielson	...	Steve Meilinger
D'Urville Martin	...	Billy
Ken Taylor	...	Jimbo / Ball Player

Storyline

Biopic about the great college football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant of the University of Alabama.

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Plot Keywords:

character name as title | nickname as title | two word title | paul bryant character | college football | 

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Taglines:

WINNING. That was the difference between playing football and playing for "The Bear".

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Family | Sport

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 September 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Bär

Filming Locations:

Georgia Tech Football Practice Field, Rose Bowl Field, Georgia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$221,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,160,644, 30 September 1984, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$2,687,148

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gene Stallings, who played for Bear Bryant at Texas A&M and went on to become head football coach at Alabama, was the technical advisor on the film.

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Connections

Referenced in The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: Gary Busey/Roseanne Barr/Steve Trotter (1985)

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Soundtracks

I'll Be Home Again
Music by Bill Conti
Lyrics by Dennis Lambert

User Reviews

Low Budget and Low Interest

I was an unpaid extra in this film and after 3 hours of Busey forgetting his lines he finally got it right and we got to go home. For my "work" I did get to go to the premier...and every one in the audience knew this film was *crap*. Heck, Julie Andrews could have done a better job...at least she could have put 3 sentences together coherently. The edits are ham-fisted, and the stock footage doesn't match the current footage. The Continuity person must have had a blind seeing-eye dog. All in all I would put this film right up there with "Attack of the Killer Tomatos" except that this film isn't nearly as funny or as campy...witness the near zero commercial demand. If you are a video masochist: find this film and watch it often. The only problem is that because it is such tripe you will have a rather difficult time buying it.