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Being There (1979)
- Starring:
- Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, (more)
- Director(s):
- Hal Ashby
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG
- Category:
- Comedy
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Having lived his life as the gardener on a millionaire's estate, Chance (Peter Sellers) knows of the real world only what he has seen on TV. When his benefactor dies, Chance walks aimlessly into the streets of Washington D.C., where he is struck by a car owned by wealthy Eve Rand (Shirley MacLaine). Identifying himself, the confused man mutters "Chance...gardener," which Eve takes to be "Chauncey Gardiner." Eve takes him to her home to convalesce, and because Chance is so well-dressed and well-groomed, and because he speaks in such a cultured tone, everyone in her orbit assumes that "Chauncey Gardiner" must be a man of profound intelligence. No matter what he says, it is interpreted as a pearl of wisdom and insight. He rises to the top of Washington society, where his simplistic responses to the most difficult questions (responses usually related to his gardening experience) are highly prized by the town's movers and shakers. In fact, there is serious consideration given to running Chance as a presidential candidate. Both a modern fable and a political satire, Being There was based on the novel by Jerzy Kosinski and costars Melvyn Douglas, who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as Eve's aging power-broker husband. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 130 mins
Complete Cast:
- Peter Sellers - Chance the Gardener
- Melvyn Douglas - Benjamin Rand
- Richard Basehart - Vladimir Skrapinov
- Ruth Attaway - Louise
- Fran Brill - Sally Hayes
- Arthur Grundy - Arthur
- Katherine de Hetre - Kinney, News Researcher
- Maurice Copeland - Pallbearer
- William Larsen - Lyman Stuart
- Arthur Rosenberg - Morton Hull
- Danna Hansen - Mrs. Slipshod
- Kenneth Patterson - Perkins
- Alice Hirson - First Lady
- Stanley Grover - Baldwin
- Allen Williams - Reporter
- Melendy Britt - Sophie
- Ravenell Keller III - Abbaz
- Jerome Hellman - Gary Burns
- John Miller - Ron Steigler
- Sandy Ward - Sen. Slipshod
- Oteil Burbridge - Lolo
- Sam Weisman - Colson
- Austin Hay - Pallbearer
- Shirley MacLaine - Eve Rand
- Jack Warden - President Bobby
- Richard Dysart - Dr. Robert Allenby
- David Clennon - Thomas Franklin
- Denise Du Barry - Johanna Franklin
- Donald Jacob - David, chauffeur
- Fredric Lehne - TV Page
- Hanna Hertelendy - Natasha Skrapinov
- Elya Baskin - Karpatov
- Terrence Currier - Pallbearer
- Than Wyenn - Ambassador Gaufridi
- James Noble - Kaufman, Presidential Advisor
- Ernest McClure - Jeffery
- Brian Corrigan - Policeman
- Gwen Humble - TV Guest
- Alfredine Brown - Old Woman
- John Harkins - Courtney
- Richard Venture - Wilson
- Mark Hammer - Pallbearer
- Georgine Hall - Mrs. Aubrey
- Ned Wilson - Honeycutt
- Mitch Kreindel - Dennis Watson
- Paul Marin - Reporter
- Director(s):
- Hal Ashby
- Writer(s):
- Jerzy Kosinski, Robert Jones
- Producer(s):
- Jack Schwartzman, Charles B. Mulvehill, Andrew Braunsberg
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG(Adult Humor, Adult Situations, Questionable for Children)
- Categories:
- Comedy
- Closed Captioning:
- Check All Versions
- Subtitles:
- Check All Versions
- 1980 - Being There - British Academy of Film and Television Arts - Best Screenplay
- 1979 - Being There - Golden Globe - Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
- 1979 - Being There - Golden Globe - Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
- 1979 - Being There - Los Angeles Film Critics Association - Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
- 1979 - Being There - National Board of Review - Best Actor
- 1979 - Being There - New York Film Critics Circle - Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
