Trivia for
The Goodbye Girl (1977) More at IMDbPro »

• Originally entitled "Bogart Slept Here" with Robert De Niro as leading man and Mike Nichols as director. The story was supposedly based on Dustin Hoffman's life as a struggling actor (Hoffman wanted a part on the film but was turned down). Artistic differences ultimately forced De Niro and Nichols out, two weeks into the shoot. Other actors who were also candidates for the role were Jack Nicholson, James Caan and Tony Lo Bianco.
  
  
• Richard Dreyfuss won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role as Elliot Garfield. At 29, he was the youngest actor to win this Oscar. This record was broken by Adrien Brody when he won the Best Actor Oscar in 2003 for his lead role in The Pianist (2002)
  
  
• Richard Dreyfuss based his character of Elliot Garfield on that of his friend, Harlan Ellison.
  
  
• Marsha Mason is basically playing herself because Neil Simon based the story on their marriage.
  
  
• Neil Simon adapted his own screenplay for the book of a successful Broadway musical.
  
  
• Sources point to this film as the first romantic comedy to gross 100 million dollars.
  
  
• Quinn Cummings' feature film debut.
  
  
• The musical version of the movie entitled "The Goodbye Girl" opened at the Marquis Theater on March 4, 1993, ran for 188 performances, was nominated for the 1993 Tony Award for the Best Musical and starred Bernadette Peters and Martin Short. Both actors received Tony Award nominations for their performances.
  
  

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