Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (2007)

This terrific feature film comedy reveals the background of one of the legends of comedy, Don Rickles. Hailed by some of today's biggest comedians as one of the classics, who they aspire to... See full summary »

Director:

John Landis

Stars:

Harry Dean Stanton, John Landis, Don Rickles

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Self / Private Willard
John Landis	...	Self / Sister Rosa Stigmata
Don Rickles	...	Self / Crapgame / Petty Officer Ruby / Crane / Nellie / Anne Bancroft / Big Drop / Mr. Potato Head - (voice)
Clint Eastwood	...	Self / Private Kelly / Harry Callahan
Robert De Niro	...	Self
Richard Lewis	...	Self
Victor Figueredo	...	Self
Conrad Hermogenes	...	Self
Paul Shefrin	...	Self
Heidi Akawa	...	Self
Peggy March	...	Self
Joe Mele	...	Self
Chris Rock	...	Self
Tom McDermott	...	Guitar
Jack Cenna	...	Percussion

Storyline

This terrific feature film comedy reveals the background of one of the legends of comedy, Don Rickles. Hailed by some of today's biggest comedians as one of the classics, who they aspire to emulate in their own comedy. Comedians reveal their unique stories, and tell how chance meetings and personal connections propelled them to the heights of comedy.

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Plot Keywords:

comedian | stand up comedian | las vegas nevada | racial slur | racism | 

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Taglines:

No one is safe from the most dangerous man in America

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Genres:

Documentary | Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Goofs

While Bobby Slayton lists the many shows Rickles appeared on in the 1960's, he names Bewitched. Rickles never appeared on the show.

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Quotes

Steve Lawrence: Black people can do black jokes, Jew do Jew jokes, Italians do Italian jokes, etc, etc. He does em all and gets away with it because he's hysterical.

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Connections

Features X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes (1963)

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Soundtracks

Laughter for Love
Written by Ron Gaylord

User Reviews

Good for fans. Wish more contemporaries were alive to be included.

Loving documentary about comedian Don Rickles from director John Landis. Part biography, part tribute by past and contemporary entertainers, and also a dissection about why Rickles racist and seemingly mean-spirited schtick goes over so well with audiences. For anyone familiar with Rickles, the film doesn't really cover any new ground, but the best part of the film is the interviews with the people who worked with him in Las Vegas back in the Rat Pack days. Sadly there aren't so many of them still alive, but there are chats with the likes of Bob Newhart, Steve Lawrence, Ed McMahon, Debbie Reynolds, Jack Carter, Joan Rivers, Keely Smith, Tom and Dick Smothers, and Frankie Avalon. It's their behind the scenes stories from back in the day that I found most interesting and wish the film had focused more on, although it is also somewhat interesting to hear younger generations of comedians commenting on Rickles' influence (Richard Lewis, Chris Rock, Sarah Silverman, Whoopie Goldberg, Robin Williams, Rosanne Barr, Dave Attell, Christopher Guest, Billy Crystal, Penn Jillette, Bobby Slayton, George Lopez, Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, Harry Shearer, Bob Saget) or hearing actors and filmmakers he's worked with share stories (Harry Dean Stanton, Clint Eastwood, Robert De Niro, Sidney Poitier, Martin Scorsese, Ernest Borgnine, Carl Reiner, Roger Corman, James Caan, John Lasseter, John Stamos). Overall, this is worth watching for fans of Rickles, but is not really insightful enough to draw in a wider unfamiliar audience.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 December 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Don Rickles Documentary

Filming Locations:

British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dark Horse Indie, Salient Media

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color Black and White (archive footage)

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1