Private Parts (1997 film)

Private Parts

Theatrical release poster
Directed by Betty Thomas
Produced by Ivan Reitman
Screenplay by
Based on Private Parts 
by Howard Stern
Starring
Music by
Cinematography Walt Lloyd
Edited by Peter Teschner
Production
company
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release dates
  • February 27, 1997 (1997-02-27) (premiere)
  • March 7, 1997 (1997-03-07)
Running time
 109 minutes[1]
Country United States
Language English
Budget $28 million[2]
Box office $41.2 million[2]

Private Parts is a 1997 American biographical comedy film directed by Betty Thomas, produced by Ivan Reitman, and written by Len Blum and Michael Kalesniko. The film is an adaptation of the best-selling 1993 book of the same name by radio personality Howard Stern, who stars as himself. It follows his life from boyhood to the cusp of break-out success in radio. His radio show staff also star in the film, including newscaster and co-host Robin Quivers, producers Fred Norris and Gary Dell'Abate, and comedian Jackie Martling.

Development began after Stern, who insisted on script approval, rejected multiple write-ups. Filming started in May 1996 and lasted for four months, with a premiere on February 27, 1997 in New York City, followed by a general release in the United States on March 7. It topped the box office in its opening weekend with a gross of $14.6 million and received generally positive reviews from critics. In 1998, the film was released on DVD and Stern won a Blockbuster Award for Favorite Male Newcomer.

Plot

Following his appearance at the MTV Music Video Awards as his alter-ego Fartman, Howard Stern boards a flight home and finds himself seated next to Gloria, a woman who is visibly repulsed by him. He begins to tell his life story from his childhood, explaining the verbal abuse he received from his father, Ben. Stern dreams of being on the radio after going to work with his father, a recording engineer, and grows up to be a quiet, socially awkward teenager. He decides to work in radio and studies communications at Boston University. He becomes a DJ at WTBU, the college station, and meets his girlfriend Alison.

After graduating from university, Howard works at WRNW in Briarcliff Manor, New York and is promoted to program director, which allows him to marry Alison. He leaves after being asked to fire a fellow DJ. Howard moves to WCCC in Hartford, Connecticut and befriends DJ Fred Norris and adopts a more casual attitude on the air by becoming honest and upfront. The two are invited to the premiere of actress Brittany Fairchild's (Melanie Good) new film. The three leave early for Fairchild's hotel room where she strips for a bath and convinces Howard and Fred to join in. Brittany's behavior becomes more sexual, and an embarrassed Howard leaves. Alison later finds his wet underwear in their car, and deducing that he has been unfaithful, she leaves him. Howard leaves Hartford for WWWW in Detroit, Michigan and is miserable without Alison, but Alison goes to Detroit where she forgives Howard and takes him back. WWWW then switches to country music, and Howard quits.

It is 1981, and Howard starts at WWDC in Washington, D.C. and meets his news anchor Robin Quivers, whom Howard encourages to contribute on the air. The two refuse orders from their boss Dee Dee for constantly breaking format. One of their antics, in which Howard assists a female caller to reach orgasm, almost gets him fired until a ratings boost forces Dee Dee to keep him and hire Fred to the team. Meanwhile, Alison announces her pregnancy, but it ends in miscarriage. Although they cheer each other up by joking about it, Howard makes light of the situation on the air, which greatly upsets Alison.

With Alison pregnant again, Howard gets his dream offer to work in New York City at WNBC, where he has the chance to become a nationwide success. However, upper management at NBC hired Howard not realizing what his show was like until they see a news report about him. Program director Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton offers to keep Howard in line or he will force him to quit. Howard, Fred, and Robin ignore Kenny’s restrictions on content until a risque Match Game with comedian Jackie Martling causes Rushton to fire Robin. The show fails in her absence and her replacement quits after Howard’s interview with an actress who swallows a kielbasa sausage. Robin is eventually brought back, but Howard's antics continue with a naked woman in the studio, resulting in Kenny cutting off the broadcast. Howard gets the show back on the air and gets into a physical altercation with Kenny in his office.

By 1985, Howard becomes number one in the ratings and Kenny tries to regain Howard's friendship but is turned down flat. Howard thanks his fans with an outdoor concert by AC/DC. During the performance, Alison is rushed to hospital and gives birth to a daughter. Back on the flight, it is revealed that Howard has told his story to Gloria and believes he could get her, but stays loyal to Alison. He meets Alison at the airport and his three daughters run to greet him.

During the end credits, Stuttering John rants about his absence in the film. Mia Farrow then presents a Best Actor award for Howard at an Academy Awards ceremony, who appears as Fartman once again, but Howard falls in mid-air to which the audience applauds. Finally is a clip of Kenny, exiled from show business completely and now the manager of a shopping mall, who blames Howard for his downfall. During his outbursts, his swearing is blocked out by jackhammer noises. He storms off with the closing remark, "Howard Stern can kiss my ass in Hell!"

Cast

As themselves
Cameos
  • Ozzy Osbourne appears during the opening scene, commenting on Stern saying: "What a f***ing jerk "
  • Dee Snider appears during the opening scene
  • Tiny Tim appears during the opening scene
  • John Stamos appears during the opening scene, filling in for Luke Perry, who introduced Stern at the real MTV Video Music Awards
  • Flavor Flav appears during the opening scene
  • John Popper appears during the opening scene
  • Slash appears during the opening scene
  • Ted Nugent appears during the opening scene
  • MC Hammer appears during the opening scene
Other characters
  • Alison Stern (Stern's then real-life wife) plays one of the receptionists at WNBC during the "Lance Eluction" segment
  • Nancy Sirianni, (Martiling's then real-life wife) appears in the college film festival scene, seated in front of Stern.
  • Allison Furman-Norris (Norris' real life wife) appears as a receptionist at WRNW.

Production

Development

In the early 1990s, Stern originally was set to make a film based on his satirical alter-ego Fartman. Stern first revealed his intentions to make a Fartman movie in 1992. On November 25, 1992, Variety reported that J. F. Lawton, writer of Pretty Woman and Under Siege, was planning to write and direct New Line Cinema's Stern film project, titled The Adventures of Fartman. The film, which would be budgeted at $8–11 million, was expected to go into production the following May in New York. David Permut would produce the film under his Permut Presentations Banner, which has a first-look deal at New Line. According to Lawton, The Adventures of Fartman would revolve around the superhero and his alter ego, a magazine publisher in the mold of Screw magazine's Al Goldstein.[3] On June 28, 1993, Lawton told Time, "There's a lot of nudity, some harsh language, a lesbian love scene, and the main character works for an underground sex magazine. We told New Line Cinema the plot, and they said, 'Yeah, it sounds great. But can't we make it PG-13?' "[4]

Due to Stern's displeasure with making a PG film and his dissatisfaction with several scripts that were sent to him, the movie was never put into production and Stern decided to look into adaptations of his best-selling first book instead. Stern rejected countless scripts before deciding to make the movie, some he claimed involved scenes beginning the movie with "Richard Simmons chasing me around the house in a tutu". Ivan Reitman, a friend of Howard's agreed that the scripts were unsatisfactory and became attached to the movie as the producer. Betty Thomas, who had previously directed The Brady Bunch Movie and The Late Shift, was chosen to direct. David Letterman agreed to play himself in a brief re-enactment of one of Stern's early appearances on Late Night. Originally, producers considered Jeff Goldblum to play Stern, as well as Julia Louis-Dreyfus being Stern's wife, Alison. Stern decided he should play himself; in the film, he acknowledges looking too old to play a teenager, but insists the viewer has to suspend disbelief. Louis-Dreyfus later backed out because she wanted to spend time with her family.

Filming

Stern, Quivers, and the rest of the cast from The Howard Stern Show were still broadcasting five days a week during the production of the film. At the end of every show, they would immediately drive to the film's set. A few scenes during Stern's college years were filmed at CUNY Lehman College in The Bronx, New York City. For the scenes that featured Stern in high school, filming was done at Union High School (from which comedian Artie Lange, who would join the radio show in late 2001, graduated in 1985). The concert scene featuring AC/DC was filmed at Bryant Park in New York City in July 1996.

Soundtrack

Release

Theatrical run

The film premiered at the top of the box-office in its opening weekend with a gross of $14,616,333.[5] It went on to gross $41,230,799 at the end of its domestic run. Based on a $28 million budget, the film was a box office success.[2]

Cable television

A substantially different version of Private Parts appeared on Internet fan sites devoted to Stern sometime in May 2006. The newly found version is an early rough cut of the film with substantially different dialogue and music, several deleted scenes, and a very different ending. Some of the deleted scenes, such as Howard being fired and escorted out of WNBC, appeared in the film's original trailer and publicity materials before being cut. The picture quality of the Internet version is very poor with compression artifacts, VHS artifacts, and visible dust on the print.

The USA Network agreed to pay $7 million for the rights to air the film for nine years from 1999.[6] The editing featured on-air explanations from Stern for the pixelization and bleep censors required to air the R-rated film.[7] Stern appeared in new taped segments in which he occasionally pauses the film to comment on it. USA premiered the film even though no alternate scenes had been filmed to replace the nudity nor had any alternate dialogue been recorded to replace the profanity for television broadcasts. The nudity was simply pixelized and the profanity bleeped. In 2007, VH-1 began airing this version.

The film premiered in 1080 High Definition on Universal HD on March 11, 2008. It is the uncut feature-film version with minor commercial interruptions.

Home media

When the film was released on video, some store customers objected to the original cover featuring Stern with no clothes on. An alternative version of the cover was produced featuring Stern fully clothed.

Reception

Critical response

Private Parts received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an 80% "Certified Fresh" rating, based on 49 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "A surprisingly endearing biopic about the controversial shock-jock Howard Stern that is equally funny and raunchy."[8] Metacritic reports a score of 67 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[9]

Accolades

For his performance, Stern won the Blockbuster Entertainment Award for "Favorite Male Newcomer". The awards are given by the result of write-in votes from fans and Stern won by a wide margin. Stern was nominated for a Golden Satellite Award for "Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy". He was also nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for "Worst New Star".

For her directing work, Thomas won the audience award at Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (1997). She was also nominated for Crystal Globe in Karlovy Vary which went, at the end, to Ma Vie en Rose by Alain Berliner.

American Film Institute recognition:

References

  1. ↑ "PRIVATE PARTS (18)". British Board of Film Classification. March 24, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 "Private Parts (1997)". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved March 20, 1997. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  3. ↑ Lawton directs Stern in wind-breaking film variety.com, November 25, 1992
  4. ↑ Hollywood's Summer: Just Kidding Time Magazine, June 28, 1993
  5. ↑ "Weekend Box Office Results for March 7-9, 1997". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. March 10, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
  6. ↑ "ABC & NBC At Odds Over Use Of Peru Hostae-Rescue Tape". The New York Times. April 23, 1997. Retrieved August 20, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Let the Battle Begin! Tuesday is Shaping Up Nets' Fight Night". The New York Times. August 27, 1999. Retrieved August 20, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Private Parts (1997)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved August 8, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Private Parts reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  10. ↑ AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs Nominees

External links

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