The Gong Show Movie
Encyclopedia
The Gong Show Movie is a 1980
1980 in film
- Events :* May 21 - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is released and is the biggest grosser of the year ....

 film that shows how Chuck Barris
Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch "Chuck" Barris is an American game show producer, film director and presenter best known for hosting The Gong Show and creating The Dating Game. Barris, a survivor of lung cancer, is also an author and claims to have worked for the CIA.-Early career:Barris was born in Oakland, New...

 lives through a week of being the host and creator of The Gong Show
The Gong Show
The Gong Show is an amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976 through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976–1980 and 1988–1989. The show was produced by Chuck Barris, who also served...

, through a series of outrageous competitors, stressful situations, a nervous breakdown (which compels him to run away and hide in the desert) and other comic hijinks in his life and work on the TV show. It was rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America
Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...

, which allowed it to be even more outrageous than the TV version. Among the highlights included a group of men dressed as ministers singing Tom Lehrer
Tom Lehrer
Thomas Andrew "Tom" Lehrer is an American singer-songwriter, satirist, pianist, mathematician and polymath. He has lectured on mathematics and musical theater...

's song "The Vatican Rag" and the uncensored version of Jaye P. Morgan
Jaye P. Morgan
Mary Margaret Morgan , known professionally as Jaye P. Morgan, is a retired popular music American singer, actress and game show panelist.-Early life:...

's infamous breast-baring incident.

Reception

The film failed at the box office, with many critics considering it one of the worst movies ever made. Among the bad reviews at the time, George Burns
George Burns
George Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...

, after seeing the movie, went on the record and said, "For the first time in 65 years, I wanted to get out of show business".

The film was never released by Universal's MCA Home Video (Beta, VHS, or LaserDisc), although it has occasionally turned up on specialty cable movie services such as The Sundance Channel.
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