| Can I Do It... 'Til I Need Glasses? | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | I. Robert Levy |
| Written by | Mike Callie Mike Price I. Robert Levy |
| Produced by | Mike Callie |
| Starring | Jeff Doucette |
| Cinematography | Craig Greene |
| Music by | Bob Jung |
Production company | Dauntless Productions[1] |
| Distributed by | National American Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 73 minutes |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $750,000[3] |
| Box office | $3.5 million[3] |
Can I Do It... 'Til I Need Glasses? is a 1977 American anthology comedy film and the sequel of If You Don't Stop It... You'll Go Blind!!!, directed by I. Robert Levy and starring Angelyne. It was Robin Williams' film debut.[4][5]
Plot
A sex comedy of various raunchy comedy sketches.
Cast
- Angelyne as Little Red Riding Hood
- I. Robert Levy as man on Bus
- Thelma Pelish as Angry Lady
- Ron Jeremy as Promoter
- Robin Williams as Lawyer / Man with Toothache
- Ina Gould as Randy Old Lady
- Rod Haase as Omar
- Roger Behr as himself
- Joey Camen as himself
- Jeff Doucette as himself
Re-release and court case
Robin Williams, an unknown comedian at the time, was paid $150 to appear in two short skits (as an attorney and a hillbilly with a toothache) which did not make it into the original cut of the film.[3][6] The movie failed to turn a profit during its initial release, but after Williams became a star on the hit TV show Mork & Mindy, producer Mike Callie spent two weeks in December 1978 sorting through the deleted footage until he located the "lost" Robin Williams scenes, then edited them back in and re-released the film with Williams being given top billing.[3] Williams and his management took legal action against Callie and the film distributor for "false and misleading advertising," and during a court hearing Callie agreed to modify the newspaper and TV ads so they would no longer imply that Williams was the star of the film.[3] The revised credits show the film's original cast, and a still photo of Williams is inserted afterward, with the caption "And of course... Robin Williams."
Reception
Variety called it "a juvenile, unfunny screen version of some of the oldest and worst sex jokes in comedy history."[7] Linda Gross of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the film was "lamely directed" and had something that "will insult almost everyone."[1] Despite the negative reviews, the film played many of the same venues that had shown If You Don't Stop It... You'll Go Blind!, and the same audiences turned out for it, resulting in the new film earning almost four million dollars.
References
- 1 2 Gross, Linda (November 7, 1979). "Montage of Old Jokes in 'Glasses'". Los Angeles Times. Part IV, p. 22.
- ↑ "National-American Opens 'Can I Do It' in Buffalo". BoxOffice. August 15, 1977. 10.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Knoedelseder, Jr., William K. (November 2, 1979). "Robin Williams' 'First' Film Role". Los Angeles Times. Part IV, p. 20.
- ↑ Leonard Maltin. Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide. Plume, 1995.
- ↑ James Robert Parish (11 January 2006). Fiasco: A History of Hollywood's Iconic Flops. Wiley, 2006. ISBN 0471691593.
- ↑ "Can I Do It...Til I Need Glasses? - History". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
- ↑ "Film Reviews: Can I Do It ... Til I Need Glasses?" Variety. November 14, 1979. 22.
External links