Joel Grey Movies
American entertainer Joel Grey was the son of Mickey Katz, the famous "gurgler" of the Spike Jones Orchestra and a legend in his own right as a performer/producer of nightclub, resort and Broadway satirical revues. Growing up around some of the best comics, musical performers and second bananas in the business, Joel was all but predestined to enter show business himself. An accomplished singer and dancer, Grey was rather wasted in such early film roles as About Face (1953) and Come September (1961), though he achieved minor fame on TV variety shows and in the lead of a televised musical version of Jack and the Beanstalk; ironically, one of his best TV parts was on an episode of 77 Sunset Strip as a second-rate comic unable to live up to the accomplishments of a famous relative.Grey's career was boosted in 1966 when he was cast in the Broadway musical Cabaret as the Master of Ceremonies, a white-faced, smirking, sexually ambivalent observer of changing mores and philosophies in pre-Hitler Berlin. Grey won a Tony Award for his brilliant portrayal, and copped an Academy Award for repeating the role in the 1972 film version of Cabaret. Grey enjoyed a second Broadway triumph as George M. Cohan in the 1969 musical George M., a virtuoso performance he recreated on TV in the early 1970s. Thanks to his highly stylized Broadway roles, Joel Grey has not been easy to cast in "normal" movie parts; among his better roles were that of an Austrian petty criminal in The Seven Per Cent Solution (1976) and an ancient and irredeemably sarcastic oriental martial arts master in Remo Williams (1985). On the final episode of the TV serial Dallas in 1991, Grey was a red-eyed satanic chap who showed a suicidal J.R. (Larry Hagman) how much better the world would have been without him. Joel Grey is the father of actress Jennifer Grey, whose breakthrough role was in Dirty Dancing, which coincidentally was set in a Catskills resort not unlike those in which her dad Joel learned his craft. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1985
- PG13
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Adapted from the "Destroyer" series of novels and comic books (not exactly the level of Ian Fleming), Remo Williams (Fred Ward) is a New York cop who works for a top-secret government agency accountable directly to the President of the U.S. After his reluctant induction into this agency, Remo is trained in a near-magical Korean martial arts form by Chiun (Joel Grey) in great sequences where walking on water is taken in stride. After his training, Remo goes after a corrupt arms manufacturer with connections in the U.S. military and acquires the necessary help-mate in the form of Major Rayner Fleming (Kate Mulgrew). Antics at the Statue of Liberty and other stunts enliven the action, but cannot make up for comic-book level characters. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- 1982
In this first episode of a two-part story, Mel (Vic Tayback) agrees to finance a musical revue starring Alice (Linda Lavin). Dropping into the diner at this moment, guest star Joel Grey decides to help Alice out by starring in the revue--but first he must audition with a plaintive rendition of "Swanee". Trouble is, Mel has no idea who Joel Grey is, and thus hands the leading role to his own bookie Jimmy (Tom Williams)...and this will not be the last bonehead decision made by the stagestruck restauranteur. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1982
In the conclusion of a two-part story, guest star Joel Grey has agreed to headline the musical play starring Alice (Linda Lavin) and bankrolled by Mel (Vic Tayback). But Grey ankles the project when Mel transforms the show from a sophisiticated Manhattan revue to a desert "folk opera", repleted with a line of cowboy-clad chorines and such deathless tunes as "Ramona from Arizona" (this is Alice's big solo, much to her dismay). As indicated by the episode's title, Joel Grey WILL save the day...but not until the very, very last minute! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Claire Powell stars as Phoebe Meryll in this production of one of Gilbert & Sullivan's more serious operas, which revolves around the impending execution of Colonel Fairfax. Phoebe's father, who has twice saved Fairfax's life, devises a plan to disguise him as a yeoman to help him escape. Meanwhile, the jester Jack Point arrives with his sweetheart Elsie, and both are caught up in the escape plans with results unlike any other Gilbert & Sullivan opera. Conducted by Alexander Faris, the London Symphony Orchestra provides the music. The Yeoman of the Guard also features Joel Grey, David Hillman, Alfred Marks, and Elizabeth Gale. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elizabeth Gale, Joel Grey, (more)
- 1976
- R
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"Truth is whatever gets the loudest applause." Debunking western myths even more than he did in McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), Robert Altman's Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson (1976) sardonically explores the gap between western history and legend in show biz-obsessed America. Megalomaniac "Buffalo Bill" Cody (Paul Newman) assumes the legend created for him by writer Ned Buntline (Burt Lancaster), aided and abetted by his producer (Joel Grey) and his publicist (Kevin McCarthy), perpetuating myths of white triumph over savage "Injuns" in his Wild West show, as audiences cheer him on and buy his merchandise. But when Sitting Bull (Frank Kaquitts) joins the troupe with his interpreter (Will Sampson), his request for authenticity threatens to throw a wrench into the proceedings. Regardless of how Bill may feel about the facts, he must bow to the preferences of the paying public. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Newman, Joel Grey, (more)
- 1976
- PG
Nicholas Meyer based his screenplay for the "retro" Sherlock Holmes adventure The Seven Percent Solution on his own best-selling novel. As any Baker Street Irregular will tell you, the title refers to the dosage of cocaine taken by Sherlock Holmes (Nicol Williamson). The Great Detective's friend and chronicler Doctor Watson (Robert Duvall), concerned that Holmes' drug dependency is getting out of hand, suggests a cure under the auspices of Viennese psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud (top-billed Alan Arkin). While undergoing treatment, Holmes comes to the realization that his archival Professor Moriarty (Laurence Olivier) is not the Napoleon of Crime, but instead a somewhat pathetic philanderer. Not yet completely cured, Holmes recharges his deductive batteries by undertaking a tricky conspiracy case involving another ex-addict, beautiful actress Lola Devereaux (Vanessa Redgrave). The traditional Holmesian sleuthing and split-second rescues of the film's second half are not as innovative as the Holmes-Freud scenes at the beginning of The Seven Percent Solution, but they provide this largely cerebral effort with a rousing climax. A success with both critics and filmgoers, The Seven Percent Solution opened the floodgates for subsequent TV and movie "reprises" of Conan Doyle's immortal literary figure. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alan Arkin, Vanessa Redgrave, (more)
- 1974
This animated story tells why Santa Claus won't visit Junctionville, and all because of an insulting letter that was printed in the newspaper. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1974
Man on a Swing, purportedly based on a true case, is a puzzling crime thriller concerning a clairvoyant who helps find a murderer. After a murder is committed, supposed clairvoyant Franklin Wills goes to police Chief Lee Tucker (Cliff Robertson) and gives him details of the crime that he has seen in visions. The details are startlingly correct and could only have been known to the killer. Tucker, not convinced that Wills is indeed clairvoyant, begins to suspect him of the murder. Man on a Swing, directed by Frank Perry, over-complicates its central theme, distracting the viewer from the film's strong central theme, the ambiguity of Wills. Joel Grey gives an outstanding, scene-stealing performance in that role, giving Wills both menace and a surprising vulnerability. Cliff Robertson is far-less successful in his portrayal of the no-nonsense police chief. The film's ambiguous ending should increase the suspense of the film but instead further confuses the viewer. However, because of the superb performance of Grey, Man on a Swing is worth a view. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
Originally a 1966 Broadway musical, this groundbreaking Bob Fosse musical was in turn based on Christopher Isherwood's Goodbye to Berlin, previously dramatized for stage and screen as I Am a Camera with Julie Harris as Sally Bowles. Fosse uses the decadent and vulgar cabaret as a mirror image of German society sliding toward the Nazis, and this intertwining of entertainment with social history marked a new step forward for the movie musical. Michael York plays a British writer who comes to Berlin in the early 1930s in hopes of becoming a teacher. He makes the acquaintance of flamboyant American entertainer Sally Bowles, played by Liza Minnelli. Sally works at the Kit Kat Klub, a George Grosz-like Berlin cabaret where each night the smirking, androgynous Master of Ceremonies (Joel Grey) introduces a jazz-driven "girlie show" to his debauched audience. Virtually all the film's musical numbers are staged within the confines of the Kit Kat Klub, and each song comments on the plot and on Germany's "progression" from hedonism to Hitlerism. Most of the Broadway score by John Kander and Fred Ebb was retained, with the welcome addition of "The Money Song." Although it lost Best Picture to The Godfather, Cabaret won eight Oscars, including awards to Minnelli, Grey, and Fosse. A heavily expurgated 88-minute version of Cabaret has been prepared for commercial TV presentations, regarded by many as dramatically inferior to the full cut. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Liza Minnelli, Michael York, (more)
- 1971
Man on a String was a derivation of Tightrope, a 1959-60 TV series starring Mike Connors as an undercover agent. Despite high ratings, Tightrope was forced off the air due to its excessive violence, but its producers held out hopes that someday they'd be able to revive the property. This 1971 TV-movie attempt stars Christopher George as a government undercover man, answerable only to his superior William Schallert. Guest-star Joel Grey plays a psychic criminal, called in to help solve a series of murders. Man on a String was first telecast on February 18, 1972; its ratings were respectable, but a series was not forthcoming. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher George, Jack Warden, (more)
- 1971
Broadway musical star Joel Grey appears in this episode as jockey Eddie Yeager, who is suspected of throwing several horse races. Ironside (Raymond Burr) wonders if Eddie is the real culprit, or if the brains of the operation is a certain Scott Bradley (played by TV's former "Tarzan" Ron Ely). Complicating matters is the fact that Bradley is the ex-fiance of Ironside's assistant Eve (Barbara Anderson). Featured in the cast is future movie-studio executive Sherry Lansing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Rock Hudson stars in this frothy romantic comedy as filthy-rich American Robert Talbot. Talbot owns an Italian villa, where he traditionally stays only one month out of the year (September), but when Talbot suddenly decides to show up in July, Talbot's major overseer Maurice (Walter Slezak) is shocked out of his skin to see him -- it seems that Maurice has turned Talbot's villa into a hotel for the remaining eleven months of the year. But it's July in Italy, and love is in the air, and Talbot becomes distracted by the beautiful Lisa (Gina Lollobrigida) and soon he is trying to prevent her from marrying another man. Sandra Dee and Bobby Darin (in his first screen role) play young guests of the villa. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rock Hudson, Gina Lollobrigida, (more)
- 1959
Bret (James Garner) finds himself in the middle of a "convention" held by some of the west's most notorious outlaws, including Jesse James (William Shaw), Belle Starr (Jean Willes), Cole Younger (Gregory Walcott) and Black Bart (George Barrows). To keep himself from being perforated with bullets, Bret allows the desperadoes to mistake him for famous lawbreaker Foxy Smith, who has sent word ahead that he is planning the greatest hold-up in history. Covering himself, Bret claims that he plans to rob the Denver Mint, secure in the belief that the outlaws will merely laugh in his face--but they don't. Featured in the cast is a very young Joel Grey as a petulant, whiny Billy the Kid; and a pre-Beverly Hillbillies Nancy Kulp as a sentimental waitress. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1957
This lively musical was made to capitalize on the popularity of calypso music and features some excellent production numbers. It all begins when a jukebox magnate tries to force his way into a record company. They succeed and this angers the labels biggest star, who doesn't want to change his style. He disappears and so does all of the company's profits. Musical chaos reigns for awhile, but eventually everything is set to rights and happiness ensues. Look for distinguished poet Maya Angelou singing "Run Joe" and actor Alan Arkin's performance with the folk group the Tarriers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Desmond, Merry Anders, (more)
- 1956
This live, full-color musical version of Jack and the Beanstalk was one of NBC's most ambitious productions, costing $300,000 and utilizing 17 sets, all specially constructed at the network's vast Brooklyn studios. Though set in olden times, this version has a decidedly contemporary slant, with Jack depicted as a teenaged layabout who must redeem himself in the eyes of the community by doing "something big"--namely, climbing a beanstalk and conquering a giant. But from that point forward, the story doesn't quite adhere to formula: The so-called giant isn't nearly as fierce (or as big) as he's supposed to be, and there's a climactic surprise delivered by Jack's dyspeptic employer Mr. Poopledoop. Joel Grey, still ten years away from becoming an "overnight star" by virtue of the Broadway musical Cabaret, is cast as Jack, with Billy Gilbert as Poopledoop, Peggy King (then the vocalist on The George Gobel Show) as the Love Interest, Celeste Holm as a local looney, Cyril Ritchard ("Captain Hook" in the Mary Martin version of Peter Pan) as the bean peddler, and scrawny Arnold Stang as one "Mr. Fum." The lively but forgettable score by Jerry Livingston (Hello Dolly, Mame etc.) and Helen Deutsch includes"This is the One", "He Never Looks My Way", "Where Are the White Birds Flying?", "People Should Listen to Me", "Sweet World", "Twelve Feet Tall", "Looka Me", and "I'll Go Along With You". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1952
About Face is a musicalized remake of the old stage and film comedy Brother Rat. The basic story remains the same, as military-school cadet Boff Roberts (Eddie Bracken) tries to keep his forbidden marriage to Alice Wheatley (Phyllis Kirk) a secret. Meanwhile, Boff's roommates Tony Williams (Gordon MacRae) and Dave Crouse (Dick Wesson) do their best to woo and win lovely Betty Long (Virginia Gibson) and Lorna Carter (Ailene Stanley Jr.). Cliff Ferre co-stars as the much-hated Lt. Jones, who turns out to be an accomplished tap-dancer in the film's closing sequence (but that's only after he's been "humanized" when his hair is dyed blue!) Future Cabaret star Joel Grey has a few funny moments as a put-upon "plebe." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gordon MacRae, Eddie Bracken, (more)
