Bye Bye Birdie (1963)

Director:

George Sidney

Writers:

Michael Stewart (book)
Irving Brecher (screenplay)

Release Date:

4 April 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Musical | Family | Comedy

Plot:

A rock singer travels to a small Ohio town to make his "farewell" television performance and kiss his biggest fan before he is drafted.

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Can Opener | Battle Hymn Of The Republic | Teenage Girl | Broadway Musical

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Janet Leigh	...	Rosie DeLeon
Dick Van Dyke	...	Albert F. Peterson
Ann-Margret	...	Kim McAfee
Maureen Stapleton	...	Mama Mae Peterson
Bobby Rydell	...	Hugo Peabody
Jesse Pearson	...	Conrad Birdie
Paul Lynde	...	Harry McAfee
Mary LaRoche	...	Doris McAfee
Michael Evans	...	Claude Paisley
Robert Paige	...	Bob Precht
Gregory Morton	...	Maestro Borov
Bryan Russell	...	Randolph McAfee
Milton Frome	...	Mr. Maude
Ed Sullivan	...	Himself

Runtime:

112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Russian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Singapore:PG | USA:Approved (No. 20408) | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:G (1996)

Filming Locations:

Greek Theatre, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Melody Patterson's film debut.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When the turtle accelerates up some steps and out of an open door, you can see a clear ramp over the steps that allowed the turtle prop to slide cleanly up and out.

Quotes:

Harry McAfee: The next time I have a daughter, I hope it's a boy!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Mike Myers/Aerosmith (#22.16)" (1997)

Soundtrack:

One Last Kiss

More than a musical, it's a celebration of an era!

I tend to agree with Alice from Orlando regarding this film. While "Bye Bye, Birdie" is a terrific film with terrific performances, viewed today, it's also a tribute to an era that we'll never get back. I completely agree with those historians who feel that 1953 - 1963, the ten year period between the end of the Korean War and that dark day in Dallas, was the last real "Era of Good Feeling" in American history. By and large, we knew who we were, what we were, and where we were going. Then came political assasination, the "Summer of Love," Viet Nam, Watergate, et. al., and we have a society that's not sure of anything anymore. Happily, there are films like "Bye Bye, Birdie," made during the apex of the 1953-63 period, to remind those of us who came of age during that era what we've lost, and to show those who weren't there what it was like. Would that we all had a Sweetapple, Ohio, to go back to again.