Themes: Single Life, Actor's Life, Mothers and Daughters
Main Cast: Marsha Mason, Kristy McNichol, James Coco, Joan Hackett, David Dukes
Release Year: 1981
Country: US
Run Time: 120 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Playwright Neil Simon made one of his periodic forays into serious themes with the drama The Gingerbread Lady, and while this screen adaptation adds a bit more wit to the proceedings, it remains a change of pace from his usual breezy comedies. Georgia (Marsha Mason) is a successful actress who has just spent 90 days in a rehab clinic in an effort to beat her addiction to alcohol. A number of crises are waiting for Georgia upon her return; her teenage daughter Polly (Kristy McNichol), whom she neglected as a child, wants to move back in, though they still have a ways to go in repairing their relationship. And her ex-husband David (David Dukes), a writer, has just penned a new drama that he wants her to star in -- a fictionalized version of their often-combative marriage. Georgia also has to tend to her best friends, bitter socialite Toby (Joan Hackett) and Jimmy (James Coco), a gay actor who drowns his sorrows in food. Only When I Laugh garnered Oscar nominations for Mason, Coco, and Hackett, while the latter won a Golden Globe for her performance. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Kevin Bacon - Don; John Bennett Perry - Lou, the actor; Guy Boyd - Man; Ed Moore - Dr. Komack; Byron Webster - Tom; Peter Coffield - Mr. Tarloff; Mark Schubb - Adam Kasabian; Venida Evans - Nurse Garcia; Birdie M. Hale - Super's Wife; Ellen La Gamba - Receptionist; Dan Monahan - Jason; Nancy Nagler - Heidi; Henry Olek - George the Director; Tom Ormeny - Kyle; Rebecca Stanley - Denise Summers; John Vargas - Manuel; Michael Ross - Paul
Credit
David M. Haber - Art Director, Ann Roth - Costume Designer, Glenn Jordan - Director, Vernon Lawrence - Director, John Wright - Editor, David Shire - Composer (Music Score), Albert Brenner - Production Designer, Jim Van Wyck - Production Designer, David M. Walsh - Cinematographer, Neil Simon - Producer, Roger M. Rothstein - Producer, Vernon Lawrence - Producer, Neil Simon - Screenwriter, Eric Chappell - Screenwriter, Neil Simon - Play Author
The story is about an alcoholicBroadway actress who tries to stay sober while dealing with the problems of her teenaged daughter and her friends: an overly vain woman who fears the loss of her looks and a gay actor relegated to small roles in third-rate shows. Simon changed the main character's name to Georgia Hines for the film adaptation; The character was named Evy Meara in the stage version. Also of note, the main character went from being a cabaret singer to a Broadway stage actress.
