Happy Birthday, Wanda June

Bill Hickey is fabulous as Col. Harper, Rod Stieger chews the scenery as Harold Ryan. This movie is very confusing, I have only met one person who saw it in a theater, ABC used to show it late at night, the last time I saw it they showed the reels out of order, nice guys, no way you could possibly have a clue.

It is the Homecoming of Odesius from the Trojan Wars, Penelope (Susanah York) has two lovers, a doctor and a vacuum cleaner salesman. Ryan and Harper have been lost for seven years, and they return without warning having found diamonds the size of grapefruits.

I have not been able to locate this film other than on 1 inch video tape, I would love to get a good copy of it.

I can't believe only one other person has commented on this movie! I guess it must be virtually pulled from circulation. I haven't seen it for years, but i've always remembered it and have been looking for it ever since one chance viewing on late night TV.

I just thought it was brilliant but have subsequently learned that critics thought it was horrible. oh well.

it felt like a drama by a great playwright. primal man vs. refined culture. outdoorsman vs. city folk. men vs. women.

and it's played to the hilt by Steiger and William Hickey. Hickey gives one of those most wonderful, funny, quirky, memorable performances i've ever seen in a film. and Steiger very effectively makes you hate him, playing this full-of-himself a*shole to the hilt -- but who can also appeal to any burgeoning Thoreauvian, or maybe even xtreme sports enthusiast.

there are some very funny scenes involving a violin that obviously symbolizes refined culture. There's almost something of a Simpsons in this -- an adult comedic violent film version of Homer vs. Lisa.

there's gotta be some reason this has been pulled from circulation cuz it's just too good and weird to not make more frequent appearances on the second-string movie channels. if you ever get a chance to see it, i say, email me and lemmi know when it's on! and don't miss it.

William Hickey: Thanks for being here!

This is one of my favourites, so I admit to being terrible biased about its merit. As a movie it's a bit clunky in places, but the cast is wonderful. For me the best of these is William Hickey. He often has the best lines in the fashion of the fool in Shakepeare. A drunken broken man whose one defining moment (in his friend's eyes anyway) he regrets totally. The movie is worth a look just for him. If you don't understand or enjoy Kurt Vonnegut's cynicism you won't enjoy this film. All of the "living" characters leave something to be desired, and there is little to inspire here. But it is funny in an ironic kind of way, and so indicative of humanity. The deceased characters (who all play shuffleboard in heaven on Jesus' team) are a hoot as well.

Based on Kurt Vonnegut's off-Broadway play, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WANDA JUNE,

is essentially about Susannah York's character Penelope Ryan and the

men that dominate her life, including a phenomenal Rod Steiger as ultra-

macho big game hunter Harold. The story also occasionally jumps to

heaven (yes, really), where Wanda June, the victim of a drunk driving

incident, plays shuffleboard for all eternity. This excellent film has

sadly never been available on video or DVD. I've only seen it on a

bootleg DVD made from a TBS broadcast in the late 80's (with some of

the language censored).

I saw this film in, maybe 1975-6. I was working the graveyard shift in a hotel and they had an "in room movie" feature that consisted of a Video Tape Deck that used 2" on big reels. While I was settling all of the accounts, I had to change the reels for the next movie. Anyway, H.B.W.J. was one of the vast array of maybe 25 films they had. If I could get done early I could watch a movie. There were never more than two or three people in a day that watched any of the crappy films. Well I watched it and loved it! I brought friends and we watched it, maybe twentyfive times. I had a tape from the local ABC affiliate which was shown out of order. This was a very strange and complicated film made totally incomprehensible.

al:^)