Talk Radio (1988)

A rude, contemptuous talk show host becomes overwhelmed by the hatred that surrounds his program just before it goes national.

Director:

Oliver Stone

Writers:

Stephen Singular (book), Eric Bogosian (play)

Stars:

Eric Bogosian, Ellen Greene, Leslie Hope

3 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eric Bogosian	...	Barry
Ellen Greene	...	Ellen
Leslie Hope	...	Laura
John C. McGinley	...	Stu
Alec Baldwin	...	Dan
John Pankow	...	Dietz
Michael Wincott	...	Kent / Michael / Joe
Linda Atkinson	...	Sheila Fleming
Robert Trebor	...	Jeffrey Fisher / Francine
Zach Grenier	...	Sid Greenberg
Tony Frank	...	Dino
Harlan Jordan	...	Coach Armstrong
Bill Johnson	...	Fan #1
Kevin Howard	...	Fan #2
Anna Levine	...	Woman at Basketball Game / Denise

Storyline

An acerbic radio talk show host based in Dallas starts what could be an important few days when he discovers that his controversial late night show is about to be "picked up" by a nationwide network of radio stations. However, all is not perfect for him, because on top of troubles with his love life and fears that the management of the network will try to alter the content of his show he has to cope with a neo-nazi group who have been angered by his forthright opinions.

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Plot Keywords:

hatred | radio station | radio talk show | anonymity | hate speech | 

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Taglines:

Words can kill...

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 January 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

As Vozes da Ira

Filming Locations:

Building One, Studios at Las Colinas - 6301 North O'Connor Road, Irving, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$3,468,572

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cineplex-Odeon Films, Ten-Four Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The name of Barry Champlain (Eric Bogosian)'s radio talk-show was "Night Talk".

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Goofs

The radio station gives its identification as "KGAB in Dallas". Dallas shares its media market with Fort Worth, so all radio and television stations give their identification as being from "Dallas-Fort Worth".

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Quotes

Barry: We have a very special guest with us tonight... Kent. Say hello to everybody, Kent.
Kent: Alright!
Barry: My sentiments exactly. We've brought Kent on board to get an inside look on the future of America. Kent is the classic American youth: energetic and resourceful, spoiled, perverse, and disturbed. Would you say that's an accurate description, Kent?
Kent: Yup, sure!
Barry: Now what do you call that haircut?
Kent: I don't know... Rock and roll!
Barry: ...Are you high right now Kent?
Kent: Am I high?
Barry: Are you on drugs, or is this your ...
[...]

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Connections

References 60 Minutes (1968)

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Soundtracks

KGAB Radio ID's
Written & Arranged by Otis Conner and Whitey Thomas
Produced by Otis Conner
Recorded at The Otis Conner Companies Studio, Dallas, Texas
Additional KGAB Music Backgrounds Provided by APM

User Reviews

WOW a masterpiece of a movie not to be missed

WOW, a masterpiece of a movie not to be missed.

I had no idea what this movie was when I started watching it late night. I didn't find out it was a Stone film until after the film when I went on IMDb. Watching it, I was mesmerized. The cast, especially Eric Bogosian is just superb. One of the best scripts and camera work ever...The movie drew me in and kept me entranced until the very end...I did not dare blink for fear of missing something...Amazing how a small-budget film can be so engrossing and well made while huge-budget films that feature tons of action and computer generated special effects can be so incredibly boring. Don't miss this film...