The Entertainer (1960)
On the far side of middle age, Archie Rice lives in a British seaside resort with his father, retired successful vaudevillian Billy Rice, second wife Phoebe Rice, and doting son Frank Rice. Following in retired Billy’s footsteps, Archie is a song-and-dance music hall headliner, with Frank supporting his dad as his shows’ stage manager. The waning popularity of Archie’s type of shows, a dying form of entertainment, is not helped by Archie’s stale second rate material, which brings in small unappreciative crowds. Archie clings to his long held lifestyle, including heavy drinking and chronic infidelity, of which Phoebe is aware. What Archie has not told his offspring is that Phoebe was his mistress while he was still married to their now deceased mother. His want to be a music hall headliner is despite his financial problems, he an undischarged bankrupt who now signs Phoebe’s name to everything. Phoebe wants them to escape this life to something more stable, such as the offer from her …
Books with substantial mentioning of The Entertainer
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Jerry Vermilye The Complete Films of Laurence Olivier Secaucus, NJ, 1992 |
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| Jerry Vermilye The Great British Films Secaucus, N.J., 1978 |
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Books with an entry on The Entertainer
| Ivan Butler Cinema in Britain, An illustrated Survey South Brunswick and New York - London, 1973 |
