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Being there [videorecording] / Warner Bros. Pictures ; Lorimar presents a Northstar International picture ; produced by Andrew Braunsberg ; screenplay by Jerzy Kosinski ; directed by Hal Ashby.

Contributor(s): Material type: FilmFilmPublisher number: 2000005232 | Warner Home VideoLanguage: English, French, Spanish Subtitle language: French, Spanish Publication details: Burbank, CA : Warner Home Video, [2009]Edition: Deluxe edDescription: 1 videodisc (130 min.) : sd., col. ; 4 3/4 inISBN:
  • 1419873296
  • 9781419873294
Subject(s): Genre/Form: Production credits:
  • Director of photography, Caleb Deschanel ; editor, Don Zimmerman ; music, Johnny Mandel.
Awards:
  • Academy Awards (1980): winner for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Melvyn Douglas); nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Peter Sellers); Golden Globes (1980): winner for Best Motion Picture Actor - Musical/Comedy (Sellers); Best Motion Picture Actor in a Supporting Role (Douglas); nominated for Best Director - Motion Picture; Best Motion Picture - Musical/Comedy; Best Motion Picture Actress - Musical/Comedy (Shirley MacLaine); Best Screenplay - Motion Picture (Kosinski).
Cast: Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Warden, Melvyn Douglas, Richard Dysart, Richard Basehard, Ruth Attaway, Dave Clennon.Summary: Chance is a secluded gardener who has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television. After a run in with a limousine, he ends up a guest of Eve and her husband Ben. Ben is an influential, but sickly businessman. Now called Chauncey Gardner, Chance becomes friend and confidante to Ben, as well as an unlikely political insider.
Audiovisual profile: Click to open in new window
Holdings
Item type Home library Collection Call number Materials specified Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Adult DVD Adult DVD Dr. James Carlson Library DVD COMEDY Being th Available 33111008295798
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Having lived his life as the gardener on a millionaire's estate, Chance (Peter Sellers) knows of the real world only what he has seen on TV. When his benefactor dies, Chance walks aimlessly into the streets of Washington D.C., where he is struck by a car owned by wealthy Eve Rand (Shirley MacLaine). Identifying himself, the confused man mutters "Chance...gardener," which Eve takes to be "Chauncey Gardiner." Eve takes him to her home to convalesce, and because Chance is so well-dressed and well-groomed, and because he speaks in such a cultured tone, everyone in her orbit assumes that "Chauncey Gardiner" must be a man of profound intelligence. No matter what he says, it is interpreted as a pearl of wisdom and insight. He rises to the top of Washington society, where his simplistic responses to the most difficult questions (responses usually related to his gardening experience) are highly prized by the town's movers and shakers. In fact, there is serious consideration given to running Chance as a presidential candidate. Both a modern fable and a political satire, Being There was based on the novel by Jerzy Kosinski and costars Melvyn Douglas, who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as Eve's aging power-broker husband. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Based on the novel by Jerzy Kosinski.

Dual-layer format.

Originally produced as a motion picture in 1979.

Recorded in Dolby digital mono.

Special features: Memories from Being there (featurette); theatrical trailer.

Widescreen (1.78:1) presentation.

Director of photography, Caleb Deschanel ; editor, Don Zimmerman ; music, Johnny Mandel.

Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Warden, Melvyn Douglas, Richard Dysart, Richard Basehard, Ruth Attaway, Dave Clennon.

Chance is a secluded gardener who has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television. After a run in with a limousine, he ends up a guest of Eve and her husband Ben. Ben is an influential, but sickly businessman. Now called Chauncey Gardner, Chance becomes friend and confidante to Ben, as well as an unlikely political insider.

MPAA rating: PG.

DVD format.

English, French or Spanish dialogue with optional French or Spanish subtitles; English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing.

Academy Awards (1980): winner for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Melvyn Douglas); nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Peter Sellers); Golden Globes (1980): winner for Best Motion Picture Actor - Musical/Comedy (Sellers); Best Motion Picture Actor in a Supporting Role (Douglas); nominated for Best Director - Motion Picture; Best Motion Picture - Musical/Comedy; Best Motion Picture Actress - Musical/Comedy (Shirley MacLaine); Best Screenplay - Motion Picture (Kosinski).

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