Dirty Dancing (1987)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Emile Ardolino

Writer:

Eleanor Bergstein (written by)

Release Date:

21 August 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Have The Time Of Your Life

Plot:

Spending the summer in a holiday camp with her family, Frances ('Baby') falls in love with the camp's dancing teacher.

Plot Keywords:

Dance | Love | Abortion | Doctor | Resort

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 9 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Jennifer Grey	...	Frances 'Baby' Houseman
Patrick Swayze	...	Johnny Castle
Jerry Orbach	...	Dr. Jake Houseman
Cynthia Rhodes	...	Penny Johnson
Jack Weston	...	Max Kellerman
Jane Brucker	...	Lisa Houseman
Kelly Bishop	...	Marjorie Houseman
Lonny Price	...	Neil Kellerman
Max Cantor	...	Robbie Gould
Charles 'Honi' Coles	...	Tito Suarez (as Charles Honi Coles)
Neal Jones	...	Billy Kostecki
'Cousin Brucie' Morrow	...	Magician
Wayne Knight	...	Stan
Paula Trueman	...	Mrs. Schumacher
Alvin Myerovich	...	Mr. Schumacher
Miranda Garrison	...	Vivian Pressman
Garry Goodrow	...	Moe Pressman
Antone Pagan	...	Staff kid
Thomas Cannold	...	Bus boy (as Tom Cannold)
M.R. Fletcher	...	Dirty dancer
Jesus Fuentes	...	Dirty dancer
Heather Lea Gerdes	...	Dirty dancer
Karen Getz	...	Dirty dancer
Andrew Charles Koch	...	Dirty dancer
D.A. Pauley	...	Dirty dancer
Dorian Sanchez	...	Dirty dancer
Jennifer Stahl	...	Dirty dancer
Jonathan Barnes	...	Tito's band
Dwyght Bryan	...	Tito's band
Tom Drake	...	Tito's band
John Gotz	...	Tito's band
Dwayne Malphus	...	Tito's band
Dr. Clifford Watkins	...	Tito's band
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Emile Ardolino	...	Cameo (uncredited)
Lori Janney	...	Young Woman Walking Lake (uncredited)
Karen Kaster	...	Dancer (uncredited)

Directed by
Emile Ardolino

Writing credits
Eleanor Bergstein		(written by)

Produced by
Doro Bachrach	....	associate producer
Eleanor Bergstein	....	co-producer
Mitchell Cannold	....	executive producer
Linda Gottlieb	....	producer
Steven Reuther	....	executive producer

Original Music by
John Morris

Cinematography by
Jeff Jur

Film Editing by
Peter C. Frank

Casting by
Bonnie Timmermann

Production Design by
David Chapman

Art Direction by
Mark Haack
Stephen J. Lineweaver		(as Stephen Lineweaver)

Set Decoration by
Clay A. Griffith		(as Clay Griffith)

Costume Design by
Hilary Rosenfeld

Makeup Department
Fríða Aradóttir	....	hair stylist (as Frida Aradottir)
David Forrest	....	makeup artist
Gilbert La Chapelle	....	makeup artist (as Gilbert LaChapelle)
Marlies Vallant	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Eileen Eichenstein	....	production supervisor
Tammy J. Green	....	post-production supervisor
Jeffrey L. Hayes	....	production manager (as Jeffrey Hayes)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Herb Gains	....	first assistant director
Nathalie Vadim	....	second assistant director

Art Department
David H. Allen	....	property master (as David Allen)
Kevin Allen	....	assistant art director
Tommy Allen	....	assistant art director (as Tom Allen)
Bill Ballou	....	construction coordinator
Jennifer Gilbert	....	set dresser
Wayne Shepherd	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Douglas Axtell	....	sound recordist (as Doug Axtell)
George Baetz	....	sound recordist
Michael DiCosimo	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Rick Dior	....	sound re-recording mixer
John Pritchett	....	sound mixer
Mark Rathaus	....	sound editor
Dan Sable	....	supervising sound editor
Ann Stein	....	adr editor (as Anne Stein)
Douglas Axtell	....	boom operator (uncredited)
Bob Olari	....	sound recordist (uncredited)
Lynn Sable	....	assistant sound editor (uncredited)
Mel Zelniker	....	adr mixer (uncredited)

Stunts
Denise Amirante	....	stunts
Bill Anagnos	....	stunts
Norman Douglass	....	stunts
Jim Lovelett	....	stunt coordinator (as James Lovlett)

Camera and Electrical Department
Tom Barrett	....	grip
Michael F. Barrow	....	gaffer (as Michael Barrow)
Michael F. Barrow	....	provider: lighting and grip equipment (as Michael Barrow)
Robert L. Blatman	....	first assistant camera (as Rob Blatman)
Ted Churchill	....	Steadicam operator
Adger W. Cowans	....	special still photographer (as Adger Cowans)
Donne Daniels	....	key grip
Ric Delgado	....	electrician (as Richard Delgado)
Bill Flick	....	grip (as William Flick)
Neil Holcomb	....	grip
David Knox	....	Steadicam operator
Kelly Elder McGowen	....	second assistant camera (as Kelly McGowan)
John Merriman	....	best boy
Randy Nolen	....	Steadicam operator (as Randy Nolan)
Curtis Pepper	....	electrician
Robert Spencer	....	electrician
Peter Van Eynde	....	dolly grip
Greg White-Wiegand	....	generator operator
Quintin Woo	....	electrician
Scott Zigler	....	electrician
Edward Cohen	....	electrician (uncredited)
Gábor Kövér	....	Steadicam assistant (uncredited)

Casting Department
Jeff Block	....	casting assistant (as Jeffrey Block)
David Cady	....	casting assistant
Isabelle Kramer	....	extras casting (as Isabelle Cramer)
Sabrina Padwa	....	extras casting
Greg Smith	....	dance casting

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Mark Burchard	....	wardrobe
Lisa Grace Erndt	....	wardrobe (as Lisa G. Erndt)
Elizabeth Feldbauer	....	wardrobe
Claudia Stephens	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Guy Barresi	....	assistant editor
Girish Bhargava	....	editor: additional dance editing
Farrel Levy	....	associate editor (as Farrel Levy Duffy)
Andrew Marcus	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Joseph S. DeBeasi	....	music editor
Danny Goldberg	....	music supervisor
Michael Lloyd	....	music supervisor
'Cousin Brucie' Morrow	....	period music consultant
Roger Rhodes	....	scoring engineer
Jimmy Ienner	....	music supervisor (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Tutt Esquerre	....	provider: picture cars
Jerry Jackson	....	transportation coordinator (as Jerry W. Jackson)
David Milchen	....	transportation captain (as Dave Milchen)

Other crew
Marilyn Bailey	....	script supervisor
Steven Baker	....	caterer
Keith Bunting	....	production assistant
Russell Burrell	....	production assistant
Dean Byrd	....	location coordinator
Parnes Cartwright	....	set production assistant
Jacob F. Conrad	....	location manager (as Jacob Conrad)
Julia Cort	....	set production assistant
Jeff Fender	....	production assistant
Adam Lee Freeman	....	production assistant (as Adam Freeman)
Michael Gallagher	....	production assistant
Miranda Garrison	....	assistant choreographer
Sam Goldrich	....	financial consultant
Alan Grabelsky	....	production executive
Tony Hardmon	....	production assistant
Jim Helein	....	production assistant
George Howell	....	production assistant
Melania Kang	....	caterer
Alice Katz	....	set production assistant
Christine M. Kiolbassa	....	location secretary (as Christine Kiolbassa)
Lisa Manshel	....	assistant to producers
Marina Marit	....	production assistant (as Marina Merit)
John Marston	....	production assistant
Heather McGrath	....	production assistant
Scott Mednick	....	logo designer
Eric Milchen	....	craft service
Christopher Northup	....	production assistant (as Chris Northup)
Kenny Ortega	....	choreographer
Susan Pickett	....	set production assistant
Brian Robertson	....	production assistant
Dana Robin	....	location coordinator
Eric P. Steckler	....	assistant auditor (as Eric Steckler)
Jonathan Wolf	....	production auditor (as Jonathan D. Wolf)
Dori Berinstein	....	production executive (uncredited)
Bundy Chanock	....	set medic (uncredited)
John Marston	....	location projectionist (uncredited)
Christopher Northup	....	assistant to director (uncredited)

Thanks
Michael Goldman	....	special thanks
Jackie Horner	....	special thanks
Jimmy Ienner	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Great American Films Limited Partnership
• Vestron Pictures

Distributors

• Finnkino (1987) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Norstar Releasing (198?) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Vestron Pictures (1987) (USA) (theatrical)
• Alliance Atlantis Home Video (Canada) (DVD)
• Artisan Entertainment (video)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1990) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Flashstar Home Vídeo (Brazil) (DVD)
• Flashstar Home Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS)
• Laurus Entertainment (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD) (VHS) (rental)
• Lions Gate Films (2007) (UK) (DVD)
• Live Distributing Inc. (video)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1996) (Finland) (TV)
• Maple Pictures (2007) (Canada) (DVD)
• Nelonen (1998) (Finland) (TV)
• Nordisk Film Theatrical Distribution (2003) (Finland) (DVD)
• Nordisk Film Theatrical Distribution (2003) (Finland) (VHS)
• Oy Europa Vision AB (19??) (Finland) (VHS)
• Vestron Video International (1988) (Belgium) (VHS)
• Vestron Video International (1988) (Sweden) (VHS)
• Video Film Express (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD) (VHS) (retail)
• Video Film Express (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Video Omega (Argentina) (video)

Other Companies

• Clein & Feldman Associates  publicity
• Hastings Sound Editorial  sound editing
• J. Dolan Projection Units  projection equipment
• J.G. Films  negative cutting
• Location Lighting  grip and lighting equipment
• R/Greenberg Associates  title design: main and end titles
• RCA Records  soundtrack published by
• The Clearing House Ltd.  music clearances

Also Known As:

Dirty Dancing (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
Dança Comigo (Portugal) [pt]
Danse lascive (Canada: French title) [fr]
Dirty Dancing (Greece) [el]
Dirty Dancing (France) [fr]
Dirty Dancing (Finland) (DVD title) [fi]
Dirty Dancing - Ritmo Quente (Brazil) [pt]
Dirty dancing, balli proibiti (Italy) [it]
Het dans (Sweden) [sv]
Ilk dans, ilk ask (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Kuuma tanssi (Finland) [fi]
Piszkos tánc (Hungary) [hu]
Wirujacy seks (Poland) [pl]

Runtime:

USA:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS (re-release) | Dolby Digital (re-release) | Dolby (original release) | SDDS (re-release)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Ireland:12A | Belgium:KT (original rating) | South Korea:15 | UK:15 (original rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-10 | France:U | Norway:12 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:7 | UK:12A (re-rating) (2004) | USA:PG-13 | West Germany:12 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Canada:14A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Appalachian region, Virginia, USA

Company:

Great American Films Limited Partnership

Trivia:

Lynn Lipton, the actress originally cast as Marjorie Houseman (Baby's mother) was replaced early in the filming with Kelly Bishop, who had originally been cast as Vivian Pressman (the "Bungalow Bunny"). Left without an actress to play Vivian, the producers cast Miranda Garrison, the film's assistant choreographer, in that role.

Goofs:

Continuity: Lisa decides to lose her virginity to Robbie. She walks to his cabin that night and when she knocks on the door, there is a white towel on the door knob, a warning that Robbie is "busy". Lisa opens the door and when she closes it, the white towel is gone.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Radio disc jockey: [on radio] Hi, everybody, this is your Cousin Brucie. Whoa! Our summer romances are in full bloom, and everybody, but everybody's in love. So cousins, here's a great song from The Four Seasons.
Baby: [voiceover] That was the summer of 1963 - when everybody called me Baby, and it didn't occur to me to mind. That was before President Kennedy was shot, before the Beatles came, when I couldn't wait to join the Peace Corps, and I thought I'd never find a guy as great as my dad. That was the summer we went to Kellerman's.

Movie Connections:

Featured in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Passions (2002) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Do You Love Me

Repeated viewings reveal a well crafted story

When this film was released I dismissed as being lightweight pop nonsense. That was a mistake.

After repeated viewings and seeing a documentary of the making of DIRTY DANCING, discovering the depth of this film certainly increases its appeal.

DIRTY DANCING is a film about change. The evolving nature of relationships within the family, the changes in one's view of the world during their coming of age, etc. The story takes place during August of 1963, the final weeks of the last summer of innocence for the American people. The many personal changes experienced by the characters reflect the many changes in American society that would be marked by the Kennedy assassinations and Vietnam.

Female movie go'ers adored this film and repeated trips to the movie houses made it the world's most successful dance movie. As a male I find the romantic pairing of ultimate stud Patrick Swayze with very plain Jennifer Grey very hard to accept. This would be fatal for most romantic dramas, and it also may have create the intense dislike expressed by most male reviewers.

The film's soundtrack found #1 status before the release of the movie. To this day it is nearly impossible to attend a wedding reception without hearing a DIRTY DANCING song.

Near the midpoint of the film Baby's mother wakes up and asks Baby's father, "Is anything wrong?"

Baby's father, the anti-change family member, attempts to keep all that is happening a secret. He tells his wife to go back to sleep. However, resist as one can, change is unstopable. DIRTY DANCING is the story of one person waking up just at the final moments of our country's last sleep in innocence.