Popeye is a 1980 major motion picture directed by Robert Altman, starring Robin Williams, Shelley Duvall, and Ray 'My Favorite Martian' Walson. Which Williams shot in between seasons 2 and 3 of Mork & Mindy.
About[]
Dustin Hoffman had previously been pegged for the part of the spinach swilling sailorman, but had dropped out in 1977 due to creative differences with the scriptwriter. Robin Williams emergence as a star at the end of 1978 with Mork & Mindy, his ability with mimicry, cartoonish energy and stocky build brought him immediately into the frame. By the latter part of 1979 he had been confirmed as signing on for the titular role, alongside Shelley Duvall as Olive Oyl, under Robert Altman, who had directed Pam Dawber in her screen debut in The Wedding, and for whom the musical comedy was a big departure.
The vehicle was touted to do for Robin Williams on the big screen what Mork had done for him on the small screen, and launch him into the A list of movie actors. However, things did not quite go to plan.
The production was plagued with production and budgetary problems, including the building of the massive set of Sweethaven in Malta, which still exists today as a tourist attraction . The script went through near constant re-writes, the screenwriter and the songwriter disagreed on the latter's content being ill fitted for the story. There were mobility problems with the silicone arms that Williams had to wear, and production had to be rescheduled while they were remodeled. Further production delays occurred due to unexpectedly bad weather. The final battle involving the octopus led to more problems when the mechanical beast failed to work properly. After the production cost rose beyond $20 million, Paramount ordered Altman to wrap filming and return to California with what he had.
Altman's insistence that his actors sing live as they filmed, rather than mimicking to pre-recorded songs done in a studio, also resulted in poor quality sound, due to difficulties in accurately capturing the voices.
Williams also had to re-record his dialogue after running into trouble with his character's mumbling style, a by-product of talking with a pipe in his mouth, and Altman was not as appreciative of William's improvisational style of acting as the Mork & Mindy crew, his affinity for ad-libs leading to clashes with the director. Williams ultimately dubbing Altman's set on the small island as 'Stalag Altman'
Pam Dawber who kept in touch with him while he was there, noted the changes the pressure of the shoot seemed to be having on Robin at the time. "He really is a free spirit who needs to roam around, but now he has more pressure and commitments." she said during the summer hiatus of 1980 while she was in London and filming of Popeye was still going on, "I've spoken to him a few times while he's been in Malta and you know he sounds like he's changed a lot. I just hope he's alright!"[1]
The experience and the reception of the movie, in his own words brought Williams down to earth with a bump, giving him a healthy dose of reality as to what it took to make it in the movies. A byproduct of this however was that Popeye became a running gag for Williams himself in Mork & Mindy, poking fun at himself and the movie through both the 3rd and 4th seasons.
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The film was referenced numerous times by Mork, in episodes such as:
Mindy Gets Her Job when Mork tells Lola and Stephanie from the Day Care that if they're good he'll take them to see the movie again, and wondered how they managed to get 'his' arms so big before making the sound of a deflating balloon.
Pajama Game II - When Mindy is getting exasperated with his parenting style with Mearth, and reminding him that consistency is key, he tells her not to worry, he's seen the (Oscar Winning) 'Ordinary People' twice...and Popeye...once.
Metamorphosis the TV Show:- When attending the KTNS evening party/announcement, Mork/Mearth tells Mindy's new boss, Daniel Pierson that he's seen Popeye 14 times, and if you run it backwards it has an ending.
References[]
- ↑ Martine Branford (Photoplay, August 1980) "Mindy - Pam's Heartbreak" - Accessed 04 April 2021.