Michael Ritchie

Michael Ritchie (born November 28, 1938, Waukesha, Wisconsin, U.S.—died April 16, 2001, New York, New York) was an American film director who was best known for his comedies, notably The Candidate (1972), The Bad News Bears (1976), and Fletch (1985).

Early theatrical and television work

While attending Harvard University, Ritchie began directing plays, including the first production (1960) of Arthur Kopit’s Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mama’s Hung You in the Closet and I’m Feelin’ So Sad; the play later became a hit on Broadway. In 1965 he directed two episodes of Profiles in Courage, and his later TV credits include The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Dr. Kildare, and Run for Your Life. In 1967 Ritchie directed the TV film The Outsider, which starred Darren McGavin as a private eye; it later was adapted into a television series.

Films

Ritchie’s first feature was Downhill Racer (1969), with Robert Redford as an arrogant, talented star of an Olympic ski team; Gene Hackman played his coach. Competition became a common theme in the director’s later films, a number of which were set in the world of sports. Prime Cut (1972) was a neo-noir with Lee Marvin as Nick Devlin, a mob enforcer who is tasked with collecting a debt from a Kansas cattle rancher (played by Hackman) who also is involved in enforced prostitution; Sissy Spacek (in her film debut) portrayed one of the girls Devlin rescues. Far less lurid was The Candidate (1972), a pseudo-documentary satire on political campaigns, with Redford as an idealistic candidate for the U.S. Senate who turns out to be as seduced by power as his opponents. The film earned critical praise, and the screenplay by Jeremy Larner won an Academy Award. Ritchie continued to explore the downside of competition with Smile (1975), a broad satire on another facet of American life, the teenage beauty pageant. Bruce Dern played a smarmy pageant judge, Barbara Feldon was a megalomaniacal director, and Michael Kidd was cast as an over-the-hill choreographer; Joan Prather, Melanie Griffith, and Annette O’Toole were notable as the contestants. Although the film initially failed to draw an audience, it later found a cult following.

Ritchie scored his first box-office hit with his next picture, The Bad News Bears (1976). The comedy centres on a hapless Little League baseball team that learns how to overcome its limitations, thanks to a beer-swigging coach (Walter Matthau), a juvenile delinquent turned star player (Jackie Earle Haley), and a foul-mouthed ace pitcher (Tatum O’Neal). The film proved hugely popular with both children and adults, and it inspired two sequels. Semi-Tough (1977) followed, a genial adaptation of Dan Jenkins’s humorous novel about the world of professional football. Burt Reynolds and Kris Kristofferson starred as teammates who both love the owner’s daughter (Jill Clayburgh). It was only a modest hit, with much criticism directed at the meandering screenplay. Ritchie next made the romantic comedy An Almost Perfect Affair (1979), which was set at the Cannes film festival and offered an inside look at the film industry. Widely panned, it received a limited release.

The 1980s

Ritchie turned to more-commercial fare with The Island (1980), a disliked version of the best-selling thriller by Peter Benchley, who also wrote the screenplay; it starred Michael Caine as a journalist investigating the Bermuda Triangle. Better received was Divine Madness (1980), a Bette Midler concert film. Ritchie reteamed with Matthau on The Survivors (1983), but the comedy failed to find an audience, despite the presence of Robin Williams.

After nearly a decade without a major hit, Ritchie found box-office success with Fletch (1985). Adapted from a humorous mystery novel by Gregory Mcdonald, it became a vehicle for comedian Chevy Chase, who starred as an investigative journalist. Less popular was Wildcats (1986), a formulaic but efficient comedy that had Goldie Hawn as a teacher who quits her job in the suburbs to coach football at an inner-city high school; Wesley Snipes, LL Cool J, and Woody Harrelson—all of whom were appearing in their first credited roles—were part of the lively supporting cast. The Golden Child was one of 1986’s top-grossing films, thanks largely to the charisma of star Eddie Murphy. After the disappointing The Couch Trip (1988), Ritchie reteamed with Chase on Fletch Lives (1989), but it failed to match the success of the 1985 original.

Later work

Ritchie returned to sports with Diggstown (1992), a little-seen but clever boxing drama in which James Woods played a con man who teams up with a fighter (Louis Gossett, Jr.) to fleece a Georgia millionaire (Dern). Ritchie fared better with the well-received black comedy The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom (1993), a TV movie made for HBO. Holly Hunter portrayed a homicidally overprotective mother, and Beau Bridges and Swoosie Kurtz also submitted strong performances.

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Ritchie’s later films, however, were not as memorable. Cops and Robbersons (1994) was another disappointing Chase vehicle, while the baseball comedy The Scout (1994), which starred Albert Brooks and Brendan Fraser, was also a commercial failure. The Fantasticks (1995), an adaptation of the hugely popular Off-Broadway musical, did not find a theatrical release until 2000. After the little-seen fantasy A Simple Wish (1997), Ritchie helmed Comfort, Texas (1997), a made-for-TV movie. His final directing credits were two episodes (1999) of the television series Beggars and Choosers.

In 1994 Ritchie wrote Please Stand By: A Prehistory of Television. He also had a cowriting credit on the sleeper hit Cool Runnings (1993), a comedy inspired by the Jamaican bobsled team.