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Paper Man

  • TV Movie
  • 1971
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 15m
IMDb RATING
5.9/10
579
YOUR RATING
Paper Man (1971)
DramaHorrorMysterySci-Fi

A prank that starts with a group of college students creating a fictitious person so they can get a credit card develops into a plot that takes a murderous turn.A prank that starts with a group of college students creating a fictitious person so they can get a credit card develops into a plot that takes a murderous turn.A prank that starts with a group of college students creating a fictitious person so they can get a credit card develops into a plot that takes a murderous turn.

  • Director
    • Walter Grauman
  • Writers
    • James D. Buchanan
    • Ronald Austin
    • Anthony Wilson
  • Stars
    • Dean Stockwell
    • Stefanie Powers
    • James Stacy
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.9/10
    579
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Walter Grauman
    • Writers
      • James D. Buchanan
      • Ronald Austin
      • Anthony Wilson
    • Stars
      • Dean Stockwell
      • Stefanie Powers
      • James Stacy
    • 30User reviews
    • 7Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos5

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    Top Cast17

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    Dean Stockwell
    Dean Stockwell
    • Avery Jensen
    Stefanie Powers
    Stefanie Powers
    • Karen McMillan
    James Stacy
    James Stacy
    • Jerry
    Tina Chen
    Tina Chen
    • Lisa
    Elliott Street
    Elliott Street
    • Joel Fisher
    James Olson
    James Olson
    • Art Fletcher
    Jason Wingreen
    Jason Wingreen
    • Doctor
    Dan Barton
    • Electronics Expert
    Robert Patten
    Robert Patten
    • Father
    Suzanne Taylor
    Suzanne Taylor
    • Mother
    • (as Sue Taylor)
    Johnny Scott Lee
    • Avery - as a Boy
    Len Wayland
    Len Wayland
    • Executive
    Dean Harens
    Dean Harens
    • Bureaucrat
    Bob Golden
    • Deputy
    Marcy Lafferty
    Marcy Lafferty
    • Secretary
    Craig Guenther
    • Federal Agent
    Ross Elliott
    Ross Elliott
    • Sheriff
    • Director
      • Walter Grauman
    • Writers
      • James D. Buchanan
      • Ronald Austin
      • Anthony Wilson
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews30

    5.9579
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    Featured reviews

    Dethcharm

    "Will The Real Henry Norman, Please Stand Up?!"...

    When a group of college students mistakenly come into the possession of a credit card, the titular PAPER MAN is born. His name is "Henry Norman" and the group conspires to give him a fictitious "life" of his own. When the bank gets wise, another student named Avery (Dean Stockwell) reluctantly joins in. Avery is a computer genius, and uses his skills to complete the ruse.

    Not too shockingly, things begin to get a bit more complicated than originally anticipated, even taking a turn for the sinister and deadly. Has "Mr. Norman" somehow become real?

    PAPER MAN is a very good made-for-TV, science fiction / horror / mystery movie from the golden age of such projects. There are some genuinely creepy moments here! The story is solid, and the characters are well-realized, sort of prefiguring the students in FLATLINERS in both arrogance and naivete. The ending is astutely chilling, considering how computers have actually developed in the decades since!

    Co-stars Stefanie Powers as Karen, and James Olson as Art Fletcher.

    EXTRA POINTS FOR: Spotting the printout portrait of Alfred E. Neuman in the computer room!

    This film deserves to be rediscovered...
    kundk

    Precursor to current crop of hacker/i.d. theft s.f. horror

    I saw this on TV when I was 8; it was incredibly scary then. Saw it years later and marveled at the prescient use of computers and identity theft mixed with s.f. horror that could have appeared in "Ring." And there would be no "Videodrome" without it.
    8martin_houser

    Well done little TV thriller

    This is actually an enjoyable little computer thriller that shows off the popular perception of computers in 1971. Aside from enjoying Dean Stockwell's great early-70s hair, it's great to see the characters gather around a hard copy terminal as they enter input, and shuffle through the piles of printed output. Taking advantage of a computer error, a group of college students create computer records for a fictitious persona to use an untraceable credit card - an early attempt at identity theft that becomes dangerous when the students start dying one by one. I am a big fan of these 1970s TV movies, and this is a decent example with the mystery keeping my interest throughout.
    7Wuchakk

    Killing Machine

    After a credit card is mistakenly issued to someone who does not exist, four college students (Stefanie Powers, James Stacy, etc.) take advantage by using the university's computer to create a fictitious person and partake of the benefits thereof. An introverted computer wiz (Dean Stockwell) helps them get away with it. Then cryptic things start happening. James Olson is on hand as a technician who objects to the proceedings.

    "Paper Man" (1971) was initially released to theaters, but quickly pulled and cut by 15 minutes, then released to television as a 75-minute movie. It's a cautionary techno-thriller with bits of horror ahead of its time, predicting a world of computer fraud and identity theft at least 25 years before they came into vogue.

    The inspiration for the story was likely taken from the 1969 episode of Journey to the Unknown "The Madison Equation" and maybe "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968). But it's different enough to stand on its own and no doubt influenced the future "Demon Seed" (1977). There's an interesting plot twist that I didn't see coming and Stockwell's character is interesting, as are James Stacy's fiery Vietnam vet and Olson's concerned tech.

    On the female front, Stefanie appears as a redhead and sure was a looker back then. William Shatner's beautiful raven-haired wife, Marcy Lafferty, also shows up for a brief bit as a secretary in the last act (they were married from 1973-1996).

    The film runs 1 hour, 30 minutes, with the television cut being 1 hour, 15 minutes (I advise seeing the longer version as it fleshes out the characters more). It was shot in Los Angeles.

    GRADE: B-/B.
    8renfield54

    PAPER MAN OR FLESH AND BLOOD???

    This is a TV movie, whose idea, should have been snapped up for a theatrical release. An updated version might work very well in today's more computer oriented society. It's surprising that no one has thought of doing just this. Prankish college students use their computer knowledge to create a "person" to get around credit restrictions on students. Somehow, getting out of hand, their made-up "person" won't allow himself to be "uncreated"!

    Suspense! Murder! Finger pointing!!! This movie keeps you guessing till the end and then is still not finished with you. I don't expect "Paper Man" to be shown often or in daylight hours, but if you come across it in the late night TV listings, set the timer on your VCR, it's worth it.......

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    Related interests

    Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, André Holland, Herman Caheej McGloun, Edson Jean, Alex R. Hibbert, and Tanisha Cidel in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
    Horror
    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
    James Earl Jones and David Prowse in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
    Sci-Fi

    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Released briefly in theaters in 1971. This is why the 20th Century-Fox fanfare plays before the film begins on the video releases. The theatrical release runs 15 minutes longer than the television release version.
    • Goofs
      When distraught Jerry meets Karen at his door, his shirt cuffs are all the way down, The camera switches to Karen alone, and after the time it takes for Jerry to ask "Would you like a drink?", the camera is back on him, his cuffs rolled to his elbows.
    • Quotes

      Sheriff: You know, if there's anything I don't look forward to it's spending some time with a brilliant student that's abnormally shy.

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    Details

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    • Release date
      • November 12, 1971 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • El hombre de papel
    • Production company
      • 20th Century Fox Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

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    • Runtime
      • 1h 15m(75 min)
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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