John Uhler “Jack” Lemmon III, was born on February 8, 1925. An only child, he was raised in Boston, Massachusetts, and was that rarity among Hollywood stars, a man with affectionate memories of his parents.
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LENGTH: 51 Minutes – Total Content: 93 Minutes
MSRP: $24.95
CATALOG #: 20357
UPC #: 6-4603203579-7
ISBN #: 1-56839-245-1
RELEASE YEAR: 2008
PRODUCER: Wombat Productions
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Graduating from Harvard, Jack headed for New York City to become a professional actor. A job playing piano to silent movies gave him the chance to study comics like Keaton and Chaplin up close. His first acting was on soap opera and live TV drama. But it was his appearance in a Broadway revival of Room Service that led to a co-starring role with Judy Holliday in his first movie, It Should Happen To You (1954). However, Jack had no intention of “going Hollywood” and he adamantly refused to change his name. His unmistakable intellect and his boyish but average looks played against him becoming a romantic leading man.
But his live TV and comedy training gave him the perfect timing, the precise emotional balance and the total believability that showed in films as diverse as Mister Roberts (1955), Some Like It Hot (1959), The Apartment (1960), Days of Wine and Roses (1962), and The Odd Couple (1968). In his later films, Save the Tiger (1973), The China Syndrome (1979), and Glengarry Glenn Ross (1992), Jack exposed some of the darker side of the American Way of Life. Jack Lemmon made over sixty films and received numerous awards, including eight Academy Award Nominations and two Oscars.
Later in life, his achievement was enriched by new challenges in which he exposed the vulnerability and emotion of the later years as few had dared. He reveled in his ongoing screen partnerships with directors like Billy Wilder and stars like Walter Matthau. Narrated on-camera by Jack Lemmon, this profile includes interviews with Lemmon’s son, the actor Chris Lemmon. Also appearing are such legends as Jack’s life-long friend, the writer and director Billy Wilder, writer-director Garson Kanin, drama teacher Uta Hagen, and actor Gregory Peck. Actors Charles Durning, Maureen Stapleton, Betty Garrett, and Kevin Spacey, writer Neil Simon, director Delbert Mann, and other Hollywood luminaries help complete the profile. Clips from some of Lemmon’s major films as well as archival footage add to this portrait of one of our most illustrious and productive stars.
Extra Features:
• Jack Lemmon: Photo Gallery
• Meet the Producers slideshow
• The Hollywood Collection Preview
• Trailers: Robert Mitchum • Ingrid • Michael Caine • Gregory Peck
Reviews
“Jack Lemmon has mastered both stage and screen in his career with such hits as “The Odd Couple,” “The Days of Wine and Roses,” “The China Syndrome,” “Save the Tiger” (for which he received an Oscar) and “Grumpy Old Men.” He and Walter Matthau starred in numerous films together that were nearly always a hit. Lemmon has displayed a wide range of acting talents. He knows just how to make a character appear funny, sympathetic or absolutely driven. His ability to act in both solid dramas and lighthearted comedies has always served him well. Few can watch “The Days of Wine and Roses” without shedding a tear or laughing almost uncontrollably at his performances in both “The Odd Couple” or the original “The Out of Towners.” Lemmon himself hosts this biography that includes interviews with many of his costars and colleagues such as playwright Neil Simon.” ~ Elizabeth Smith, All Movie Guide
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