Wikipedia

Lovers and Other Strangers

Lovers and Other Strangers is a 1970 American romantic comedy film directed by Cy Howard, adapted from the 1968 Broadway play by Renée Taylor and Joseph Bologna. The cast includes Richard S. Castellano, Gig Young, Cloris Leachman, Anne Jackson, Bea Arthur, Bonnie Bedelia, Michael Brandon, Harry Guardino, Anne Meara, Bob Dishy, Marian Hailey, Joseph Hindy, and, in her film debut, Diane Keaton. Sylvester Stallone was an extra in this movie.[2]

Lovers and Other Strangers
Theatrical release poster
Directed byCy Howard
Screenplay byJoseph Bologna
David Zelag Goodman
Renée Taylor
Based onLovers and Other Strangers (play)
by Joseph Bologna and Renée Taylor
Produced byDavid Susskind
StarringBeatrice Arthur
Bonnie Bedelia
Michael Brandon
Richard Castellano
Bob Dishy
Harry Guardino
Marian Hailey
Anne Jackson
Cloris Leachman
Anne Meara
Gig Young
CinematographyAndrew Laszlo
Edited byDavid Bretherton
Sidney Katz
Music byFred Karlin
Production
company
Distributed byCinerama Releasing Corporation
Release date
  • August 12, 1970 (1970-08-12)
Running time
104 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$2.5 million[1]
Box office$7.7 million[1]

The film was nominated for three Academy Awards (it won the Academy Award for Best Original Song), and was one of the top box-office performers of 1970. It established Richard S. Castellano as a star (receiving an Oscar nomination for his performance) and he and Diane Keaton were cast in The Godfather (1972). The Oscar-winning song, "For All We Know", was composed by Fred Karlin, with lyrics by Bread's Jimmy Griffin and Robb Royer. It was famously covered by The Carpenters.

Lovers and Other Strangers was originally distributed by Cinerama Releasing Corporation. The film was released on VHS in 1980 by Magnetic Video, but was soon deleted. The Magnetic Video release was a collector's item for many years, but the film was eventually re-released on VHS by CBS/Fox Video in the 1990s. It is now available on DVD from MGM Home Entertainment, and on Blu-ray by Kino-Lorimer.[3]

Taylor and Bologna followed up with their second screenplay the following year, Made for Each Other in which they also starred.

Plot

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Mike Vecchio and Susan Henderson are engaged to be married. Mike wants to call off the wedding, arguing that it would be hypocritical for them to get married when they have already been living together for one year and a half. Mike relents on calling off the wedding after learning that Susan went to her first Halloween party dressed as a bride.

Mike's brother Richie and his wife Joan have grown "incompatible" and are considering divorce. Mike's Italian-American parents, Frank and Bea, are relentlessly trying to dissuade Richie and Joan from divorcing.

Cast

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Release

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Home media

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The vinyl LP soundtrack of the film was released by ABC Records in 1971, catalogue #ABCS 0C 15.[4] It has not been released on compact disc. The film was released by MGM on DVD on July 6, 2004 in full-screen format. The film was released on Blu-ray by KL Studio Classics on March 19, 2019 in anamorphic format with an HD master from a 4K scan of the original camera negative, and includes an audio commentary by film historian Lee Gambin.[5] The aspect ratio for the Blu-ray is 1.85.1 (i.e., the screen dimensions of the original film).[6]

Reception

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Box office

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The film was popular at the box office, earning $7.7 million in gross rentals in North America. It recorded an overall profit of $790,000.[1][7]

Accolades

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Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
Academy Awards Best Supporting Actor Richard S. Castellano Nominated [8]
Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium Renée Taylor, Joseph Bologna,
and David Zelag Goodman 		Nominated
Best Song – Original for the Picture "For All We Know"
Music by Fred Karlin;
Lyrics by Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin 		Won
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Nominated [9]
Laurel Awards Best Picture 9th Place
Top Male Supporting Performance Richard S. Castellano 4th Place
New York Film Critics Circle Awards Best Supporting Actor Nominated [10]
Writers Guild of America Awards Best Comedy – Adapted from Another Medium Renée Taylor, Joseph Bologna,
and David Zelag Goodman 		Nominated [11]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ a b c "ABC's 5 Years of Film Production Profits & Losses". Variety. 31 May 1973. p. 3.
  2. ^ a b "Sly Scores". StalloneZone.
  3. ^ "Lovers and Other Strangers". www.amazon.com. 19 March 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  4. ^ "Fred Karlin - Lovers and Other Strangers". www.discogs.com. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  5. ^ "Lovers and Other Strangers". www.amazon.com. 6 July 2004. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  6. ^ "Lovers and Other Strangers Blu-ray". www.blu-ray.com. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  7. ^ Donahue, Suzanne Mary (1987). American film distribution : the changing marketplace. UMI Research Press. p. 293. ISBN 978-0-8357-1776-2. Please note figures are for rentals in US and Canada
  8. ^ "The 43rd Academy Awards | 1971". Academy Awards. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. 4 October 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  9. ^ "Lovers and Other Strangers". Golden Globe Awards. Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  10. ^ "1970 New York Film Critics Circle Awards". New York Film Critics Circle. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  11. ^ "Awards Winners". wga.org. Writers Guild of America. Archived from the original on 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2010-06-06.
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