Blaze (1989)

Director:

Ron Shelton

Writers (WGA):

Blaze Starr (book) and
Huey Perry (book) ...

Release Date:

13 December 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Plot:

This movie tells the story of the latter years of Earl Long, a flamboyant governor of Louisiana. The aging Earl...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Civil Rights | Governor | 1950s | Louisiana

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Paul Newman	...	Gov. Earl K. Long
Lolita Davidovich	...	Blaze Starr
Jerry Hardin	...	Thibodeaux
Gailard Sartain	...	LaGrange
Jeffrey DeMunn	...	Eldon Tuck
Garland Bunting	...	Doc Ferriday
Richard Jenkins	...	Picayune
Brandon Smith	...	Arvin Deeter
Jay Chevalier	...	Wiley Braden
Robert Wuhl	...	Red Snyder
Michael Brockman	...	Bobby
Eloy Casados	...	Antoine
James Harper	...	Willie Rainach
Teresa Gilmore	...	Tamara Knight
Dianne Brill	...	Delilah Dough

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | Canada:14A | Iceland:12

Filming Locations:

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA

Company:

A&M Films

Trivia:

The year this film was shot there was an election in Louisiana. One of the items to vote on was bill that had many different state projects. It was defeated the same day the crew was filming the funeral scene overnight in the Capital Building in Baton Rouge. The crew had to leave before all the props could be removed, including the coffin. The defeated bill was laid in the coffin by someone before the next daily legislative session began.

Quotes:

Earl Long: The three best friends the poor people have ever had are Jesus Christ, Sears & Roebuck and Earl K. Long.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Welcome to Hollywood (1998)

Earl K. Long 1895-1960

I'm happy the film Blaze came out if for no other reason than Earl Long finally got his place in film history beside his more famous brother Huey. Earl spent a lot more years in public office and maybe no man ever enjoyed just campaigning for office and the trappings thereof when elected.

I was a mere lad, but I do remember Earl's tumultuous and final term as Governor of Louisiana. The stuff you see here about Earl Long, the relationship with stripper Blaze Starr and the rest, was big news back in the day. One of the reasons that Earl could not do what George C. Wallace did was that Wallace had a most compliant first wife in Lurleen Wallace. One character we do not see here was his wife and later widow Blanche. Long was very much married at the time all of his antics were front page news, it was Blanche in fact who had him shipped to the funny farm.

Just as Blanche Long is eliminated from this story so is United States Senator Russell B. Long, son of Huey. Russell Long, who was barely the minimal 30 years old, was appointed by his uncle who happened to be Governor at the time to the U.S. Senate following the death of John H. Overton was still in the Senate when Uncle Earl's antics was big and embarrassing news. Russell Long served in the Senate for over 40 years and unlike his father and uncle became a most powerful Senator through his patient rise up the seniority ladder.

Even without Blanche and Russell, Earl Long's affair with Blaze Starr is the basis of a fine motion picture. Lolita Davidovitch is a warm and earthy Blaze Starr, a Loretta Lynn/Patsy Cline type from West Virginia without their talent. Still she might not have sung, but the woman had one fine figure. And when she pointed those glockenspiels of mass destruction at Earl Long, he was cooked. Imagine watermelon as an aphrodisiac?

Paul Newman does very well indeed as the irascible old governor just hanging on despite physical and mental problems. Today Earl Long might have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease or as some have speculated with bi-polar disorder. He might have been given the proper medication.

If Blaze has a fault and it's a big one, it's the lack of secondary character development. We don't really get to know about any of the other people in the Earl and Blaze story.

But we do get to know Earl and Blaze. And if Earl K. Long was indeed bi-polar and been given the proper medication, we might have never have had this story or this film.