Disco Comedy

RECORD CITY-1977-Stupid comedy relic from the '70's about an amateur music contest revolving around the local characters working and hanging out at the title place, a discount record store run by arrogant, disco look manager Eddie (Michael Callan). 

A young clerk named Danny (Dennis Bowen) plans to enter the contest. He's sweet on Lorraine (Wendy Schaal) another employee. Tim Thomerson (who gets kicked in the groin several times) and Ted Lange also work there but there are a whole bunch of smaller roles by people like Alice Ghostley and Leonard Barr as an old couple. Larry Storch as a deaf guy. Sorrell Brooks is a cop who gets his foot stuck in a toilet bowl. Ed Begley Jr. is a robber. Ruth Buzzi is a washerwoman. Alan Oppenhiemer is a blind man in a scene obviously “inspired” by IT'S A GIFT while other slapstick stunts seem to be based on the 3 Stooges! Jack Carter is the owner of the whole store (he winds up wearing female underwear) who owes money to a mobster who's bodyguard is played Harold Sakata (dressed like Oddjob)! To top it all off Rick Dees (who had the number # 1 hit “Disco Duck” in '76) shows up as a DJ called “Gorilla Man”. The song he does shows why Disco died. Prop comedian Gallagher is there too being unfunny. 

And then Frank Gorshin shows up as a criminal called “The Chameleon” who dresses as a nun in the dumb finale! This seems to be the only feature film directed by Dennis Steinmetz who previous to this directed episodes of THE LAND OF THE LOST. It was written by someone named Ron Friedman that may explain the appearance of Kinky Friedman playing himself.

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Because

BECAUSE THEY'RE YOUNG-1960-American Bandstand's Dick Clark (who died in April 2012 at 82)  is a new high school teacher. His students include a loving couple (Doug McClure & Roberta Shore; 5 years later they would both co-star on TV's THE VIRGINIAN) who want to get married, skinny Warren Beringer (who later became a pudgy TV character actor) who doesn't know his mom's a floozy, bad boy Riff Rimer (Michael Callan) and his ex-girl friend Anne (Tuesday Weld) who has a nagging mother. Chris Robinson (later the lead role in STANLEY) is a toughie who tries to cause trouble at a dance where James Darren and Duane Eddy (who also does the theme song) perform! 


Riff gets involved in a hold up staged by his butcher shop boss. Lying and misunderstandings (and a knife fight) follow but the man who made lip-synching fashionable on music shows straightens out everything in the end. 


Also with Victoria Shaw (who was Maria Van Braun in I AIM FOR THE STARS the same year) as Clark's love interest, Phillip Coolidge, Bess Flowers and John Zaremba. It's based on a novel called "Harrison High". 


The year before BTY director Paul Wendkos had directed the original GIDGET (and would also make its two sequels) but later devoted himself mostly to TV. 


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