The Nutty Professor, starring Jerry Lewis, was filmed from October 9-December 17, 1962. Written, produced, and directed by Lewis, it was released by Paramount Pictures on June 4, 1963, and proved to be one of the comedian's most popular films.
| The Nutty Professor | |
|---|---|
| File:Nutty professor.jpg Theatrical poster for The Nutty Professor (1963) | |
| Directed by | Jerry Lewis |
| Written by | Jerry Lewis Bill Richmond |
| Produced by | Ernest D. Glucksman Arthur P. Schmidt |
| Starring | Jerry Lewis Stella Stevens Del Moore |
| Cinematography | W. Wallace Kelley |
| Edited by | John Woodcock |
| Music by | Walter Scharf |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates | June 4, 1963 |
Running time | 107 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
Plot
Professor Julius Kelp (Jerry Lewis), is an unkempt, buck-toothed, introverted, socially inept college faculty member who invents a serum that turns him into the extremely smooth, obnoxious, girl-chasing hipster Buddy Love. This newfound persona gives him the confidence to pursue one of his students, Stella Purdy (Stella Stevens). At first she despises Love, but she finds herself strangely attracted to him.
The formula wears off at inopportune times, often to Kelp's embarrassment. He must rush back to his laboratory in the hopes that no one will discover his secret.
Although Kelp knows that his alternate persona is an arrogant person, he cannot prevent himself from continually taking the formula as he enjoys the newfound attention that Love receives.
In the end his true identity is revealed during the prom, as the Love persona transforms to Kelp during a speech. He admits that he has learned a valuable lesson, and Purdy admits that she likes Kelp better than Love and they get married.
Trivia
- The plot is a loose parody of Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
- The character of Buddy Love is often interpreted as a lampoon of Lewis' former showbusiness partner Dean Martin, however Lewis has denied this in his 1982 autobiography. Many believe the character of Buddy Love is actually a goof on Frank Sinatra.
- In 2004, the film was added to the National Film Registry.
- The Professor Johnathan I. Q. Frink, Jr. character from the animated television series The Simpsons loosely borrows much of his mannerisms and technique from Lewis's delivery of the Julius Kelp character. In one episode, the character of Frink's father appears, and was voiced by guest star Lewis.
- Lewis produced the 1996 remake with Eddie Murphy
DVD releases
-
October 27, 2000 -
October 12, 2004
See also
References
- Jerry Lewis: In Person with Herb Gluck. New York: Atheneum, 1982, ISBN 0-689-11290-4
External links
- The Nutty Professor on imdb.com