Radio Days (1987)

A nostalgic look at radio's golden age focusing on one ordinary family and the various performers in the medium.

Director:

Woody Allen

Writer:

Woody Allen

Stars:

Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest, Mike Starr

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mike Starr	...	Burglar
Paul Herman	...	Burglar
Don Pardo	...	'Guess That Tune' Host
Martin Rosenblatt	...	Mr. Needleman
Helen Miller	...	Mrs. Needleman
Danielle Ferland	...	Child Star
Julie Kavner	...	Tess, the mother
Julie Kurnitz	...	Irene
David Warrilow	...	Roger
Wallace Shawn	...	Masked Avenger
Mick Murray	...	Avenger Crook (as Michael Murray)
William Flanagan	...	Avenger Announcer
Seth Green	...	Joe
Michael Tucker	...	Martin, the father
Josh Mostel	...	Abe

Storyline

Woody Allen's sentimental reminiscence about the golden age of radio. A series of vignettes involving radio personalities is intertwined with the life of a working class family in Rockaway Beach, NY circa 1942.

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Plot Keywords:

1940s | coney island brooklyn | radio city music hall | new york city | radio | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish Italian

Release Date:

30 January 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Días de radio

Filming Locations:

Radio City Music Hall - 1260 6th Avenue, Rockefeller Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$16,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$1,522,423, 1 February 1987, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$14,792,779

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jack Rollins & Charles H. Joffe Productions,Orion Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Quite a number of the life story anecdotes heard in the movie were derived directly from Woody Allen's own childhood.

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Goofs

The burglars turn on a radio and instantly hear sound, when the vacuum tubes should have taken longer to warm up.

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Quotes

Narrator: My most vivid memory connected with an old radio song I associate with the time that Aunt Bea and her then-boyfriend Chester took me into New York to the movies. It was the first time I'd ever seen the Radio City Music Hall and it was like entering heaven. I just never saw anything so beautiful in my life.

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Connections

Spoofs Name That Tune (1953)

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Soundtracks

One, Two, Three, Kick
(1933-42)
Music by Xavier Cugat
Lyrics by Al Stillman
Performed by Xavier Cugat on radio
Courtesy of RCA Records

User Reviews

well photographed trip in time

Woody's best " memory" piece has great set designs, a sad and funny script and the usual great, well chosen cast, including a very young Seth Green playing Allen as a boy. Diane Wiest and Julie Kavner excel strongly in the female leads, Allen's voice narrates the whole picture, and Mia Farrow squeaks deliciously as a bimbo cigarette girl who gets a culture make-over. This is the only Allen movie that both Farrow and Diane Keaton appear in (she has a very brief cameo singing a song in a night club.) The final scene on top of the roof is almost bittersweet, altho it is nice to see a landscape filled with wide eyed people, before the world was dominated by television. The story becomes even more poignant as you age. Watch it repeatedly over different stages of your life...