1.
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
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The cinematography for the film was by Charles Lang. The film received four Academy Award nominations, including ones for Gould, after a weekend of emotional honesty at an Esalen-style retreat, Los Angeles sophisticates Bob and Carol Sanders return to their life determined to embrace complete openness. They share their enthusiasm and excitement over their new-found philosophy with their conservative friends Ted and Alice Henderson. Soon after, Bob, a filmmaker, has an affair with a young and he admits this to Carol after arriving home, describing the event as a purely physical act, not an emotional one. To Bobs surprise, Carol is completely accepting of this, later, Carol gleefully reveals the affair to Ted and Alice as they are leaving a dinner party. Alice is particularly disturbed both by Bobs infidelity, as well as Carols candor, becoming ill on the drive home. She and Ted have a hard time coping with the news in bed later that evening, however, as time passes, they grow to accept that Bob and Carol really are fine with the affair. Later, Ted admits to Bob that he was tempted to have an affair once, during another visit to San Francisco, Bob decides to skip a second encounter with the blonde woman, and instead returns home a day earlier than expected. When he arrives, he finds that Carol is having an affair of her own, although initially outraged, Bob quickly realizes that, like his own affair, the encounter was purely physical. Bob settles down, and even shares a drink and conversation with the tennis instructor, when the two couples travel together to Las Vegas, Bob and Carol reveal Carols affair to Ted and Alice. Ted then admits to an affair on a recent business trip to Miami, an outraged Alice demands that this new ethos be taken to its obvious conclusion, a mate-sharing foursome. Ted is reluctant, explaining that he loves Carol like a sister, after discussing it, all four remove their clothes and climb into bed together. Swapping partners, Bob and Alice kiss fervently, as do Ted and Carol, however, after a few moments, the scene cuts to the couples walking to the elevator, riding it down, and walking out of the casino hand-in-hand with their original partners. Over this final scene, the theme song reminds the viewer that what the world needs now is love. As Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice look into each partners eyes, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice became the signature film for Paul Mazursky and was a critical and commercial success. It was the fifth highest-grossing film of 1969, after this films release, it led to other movies dealing with wife swapping, infidelity, and other types of experimentation with interpersonal relationships inside American society. Mazursky himself would do a few stories set in California, including Alex in Wonderland and Down. Writing in The New Yorker the film critic Pauline Kael praised both the film and director Mazursky, calling it a slick, whorey movie, and the liveliest American comedy so far this year
2.
Paul Mazursky
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Irwin Lawrence Paul Mazursky was an American film director, screenwriter, and actor. Other films written and directed by Mazursky include Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, Blume in Love, Harry and Tonto, Moscow on the Hudson, and Down and Out in Beverly Hills. He was born in to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Jean, a player for dance classes, and David Mazursky. Mazurskys grandfather was an immigrant from Ukraine, although his surname implies Masurian ancestry, Mazursky graduated from Brooklyn College in 1951. Mazursky was married to Betsy Mazursky from 1953 until his death, Mazursky began his film career as an actor in Stanley Kubricks first feature, Fear and Desire. Kubrick asked for verification of his name for the credits and at that point he decided on a change to Paul. Two years later he appeared in a position as one of a classroom of teenagers with issues towards authority in The Blackboard Jungle. His acting career continued for decades, starting with parts in episodes of television series such as The Twilight Zone. Mazursky appeared in supporting roles or cameos in most of his own films and he also performed the voice of the Psychologist in Antz. In later years, Mazursky had a part as Sunshine the poker dealer in The Sopranos. He also appeared in five episodes of season 4 of Curb Your Enthusiasm as Mel Brooks associate Norm, soon after starting his acting career, Mazursky became a writer and worked on The Danny Kaye Show in 1963. In 1965, he collaborated with Larry Tucker in crafting the script of the pilot of The Monkees television series. Mazurskys debut as a screenplay writer was the Peter Sellers comedy I Love You. The following year he directed his first film Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, the film was the fifth highest grossing of the year and earned Mazursky his first Oscar nomination. His career behind the camera continued for the two decades as he wrote and directed a prolific string of quirky, dramatic and critically popular films. Film critic Roger Ebert was a fan of Mazurskys work. In 1986, Ebert stated that Mazursky has a way of making comedies that are intelligent and relevant than most of the serious films around. Mazursky experienced less success in the 1990s, beginning with Scenes from a Mall, starring Woody Allen and Bette Midler
3.
Robert Urich
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Robert Michael Urich was an American film, television and stage actor and television producer. Over the course of his 30-year career, he starred in a record 15 television series, Urich began his career in television in the early 1970s. After guest stints and roles in short-lived television series, he won a co starring role in the drama series S. W. A. T. in 1975. In 1976, he landed the role of Dan Tanna in the drama series Vega$. It aired on ABC from 1978 to 1981, and earned him two Golden Globe Award nominations, in addition to his work in television, he also starred in several feature films, including Magnum Force, The Ice Pirates, and Turk 182. From 1985 to 1988, he portrayed the role in the detective television series Spenser, For Hire. Parkers popular series of mystery novels, in 1988, he began hosting the documentary series National Geographic Explorer. He won a CableACE Award for his work on the series and he was also awarded a Golden Boot Award for his work in Western television series and films. In 1996, Urich starred in the The Lazarus Man and it was canceled shortly after he announced that he was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma, a rare cancer, in July 1996. He sought treatment for his illness while continuing his career and also worked to raise money for cancer research and he was declared cancer free in 1998 and returned to television in the UPN series, Love Boat, The Next Wave. In 2000, he made his Broadway debut as Billy Flynn in the musical Chicago and his last role was in the NBC sitcom Emeril in 2001, but in fall that year, his cancer returned. He died of sarcoma in Thousand Oaks, California, in 2002 at the age of 55. Urich was born in Toronto, Ohio, the son of John Paul and he was of Rusyn and Slovak extraction and raised Byzantine Catholic and Roman Catholic. Urich attended Florida State University on a scholarship, and was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity. In 1968, he earned a degree in Radio and Television Communications. He went on to Michigan State University after working in Ohio to earn a degree in Broadcast Research. He then worked as a salesman in Chicago at WGN-TV and he later worked as a weatherman. After appearing in a production of The Rainmaker with Burt Reynolds, Urich made his television debut in a guest starring role in The F. B. I. in 1972
4.
Anne Archer
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Anne Archer is an American actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1987 film Fatal Attraction and her other film appearances include Paradise Alley, Patriot Games, Short Cuts, Clear and Present Danger and Lullaby. On stage, she starred as Mrs. Robinson in the West End production of The Graduate in 2001, Archer was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of actors John Archer and Marjorie Lord. Archers first television appearance was in 1970 on the series Men at Law and she was named Miss Golden Globe in 1971. Her first feature film was The Honkers, which was followed by Lifeguard and she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Beth Gallagher in the film Fatal Attraction. Her other prominent film roles include Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, in 2001, Archer portrayed Mrs. Robinson at the Gielgud Theatre in a West End production of The Graduate. She was a regular on the short-lived sitcom Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice in 1973, in 2014, she played Jane Fonda in the premier production of the play The Trial of Jane Fonda, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Archer married William Davis in 1969, the couple divorced in 1977 and she married Terry Jastrow in 1979. Archer has two sons, one from each marriage and she was originally a Christian Scientist, but she and her husband have been members of the Church of Scientology since 1975. Between 1982 and 1986, she was a spokeswoman for Applied Scholastics and her son Tommy Davis was the head of the Church of Scientologys Celebrity Centre International in Los Angeles. Official website Anne Archer at the Internet Movie Database Artists for Human Rights website Anne Archer at AllMovie Anne Archer at the TCM Movie Database Anne Archer Biography at filmreference. com
5.
Screen Gems
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The label currently specializes in genre films, namely horror. The name was used in 1933, when Columbia Pictures acquired a stake in Charles Mintzs animation studio. The name was derived from an early Columbia Pictures slogan, Gems of the Screen, itself a takeoff on the song Columbia, for an entire decade, Charles Mintz distributed his Krazy Kat, Scrappy, and Color Rhapsody animated film shorts through Columbia Pictures. When Mintz became indebted to Columbia in 1939, he ended up selling his studio to them, Mintzs production manager became the studio head, but was shortly replaced by Mintzs brother-in-law, George Winkler. Columbia then decided to house by ousting the bulk of the staff. After Tashlins short stay came Dave Fleischer, formerly of the Fleischer Studios, animators, directors, and writers at the series included people such as Art Davis, Sid Marcus, Bob Wickersham, and during its latter period, Bob Clampett. Like most studios, the Screen Gems studio had several established characters on their roster and these included Flippity and Flop, Willoughby Wren, and Tito and His Burrito. However, the most successful characters the studio had were The Fox and the Crow, a duo of a refined Fox. Screen Gems was, in an attempt to keep costs low, the final black-and-white Screen Gems shorts appeared in 1946, over three years after the second-longest holdouts. During that same year, the studio shut its doors for good, the Screen Gems cartoons were only moderately successful in comparison to those of Disney, Warner Bros. and MGM. Pioneer was later reorganized as Screen Gems, the studio started its new business in New York on April 15,1949. By 1951, Screen Gems became a television studio by producing and syndicating several popular shows. By 1952, the studio had produced a series of about 100 film-record coordinated releases for television under the brand TV Disk Jockey Toons in which the films synchronize perfectly with the records. On December 10,1956, Screen Gems expanded into television syndication by acquiring Hygo Television Films and its affiliated company United Television Films, Hygo Television Films was founded in 1951 by Jerome Hyams, who also acquired United Television Films in 1955 that was founded by Archie Mayers. Earlier on August 2,1957, they acquired syndication rights to Shock. A package of Universal horror films, which was successful in reviving that genre. The name Screen Gems, at the time, was used to hide the fact that the studio was entering television production and distribution. Many film studios saw television as a threat to their business, however, Columbia was one of a few studios who branched out to television under a pseudonym to conceal the true ownership of the television arm
