Sally Kellerman

Thorton Melon (Rodney Dangerfield) is a successful and wealthy businessman who owns a nationwide chain of clothing stores for overweight people. Melon himself came from humble beginnings where his father pushed him to succeed in school; however Melon himself, despite his sharp business skills, never attended college. At a meeting of his top staff, he accepts a few new investment ventures and suggests modifying a few more when his son, Jason (Keith Gordon), calls him. Jason is a student at a prestigious school, Grand Lakes University. His father asks him how he's doing with his studies, if he's enjoying being in a fraternity and if he's doing well as part of the diving team. Jason tells him all is fine, but is actually lying to his father; he isn't in a frat, and he's only the towel boy for the diving team. Melon's snooty, mean, spendthrift 2nd wife, Vanessa (Adrienne Barbeau), holds a dinner party for her rich friends at their luxurious house. Thorton mentions that nearly all the people who attend are only there for free food and drink and want to schmooze her for donations. While he raids the fridge for a beer, he catches Vanessa in a tryst with another man, Giorgio (Robert Picardo). Thorton has known about the affair for some time, and when Vanessa demands a divorce, he presents her with papers and shows her several Polaroids of her having sex with Giorgio. After the party, while he practices diving in his pool, Thorton talks to his personal aide and bodyguard, Lou (Burt Young), about how he's let Vanessa weaken his relationship with Jason. He decides he's going to make a surprise visit to Grand Lakes to see his son. When they arrive, Thorton goes to the wrong Greek house - it's a sorority house - and finds out that Jason isn't in a frat or on the diving team. Jason tells him that he's unhappy at the university because he hasn't made very many friends and the frats & diving team don't want him as a member. Thorton tells him that he needs to stay in college so he can be successful in life. He also tells Jason that he'll join him for a semester at the university, enrolling as a freshman. Thorton has no record of his academic achievement to qualify as a student, so he persuades the school's academic dean, Dean Martin (Ned Beatty), by donating money to construct a new building that will house the Thorton Melon School of Business. The school's dean of the business department, Philip Barbay (Paxton Whitehead), is appalled that Thorton is able to bribe his way into Grand Lakes. Thorton counters by saying that he has real-world business experience that trumps Barbay's academic credentials. Thorton and Jason register for classes and both take Barbay's business course. In the first class, Thorton counters nearly every point Barbay makes about his lesson plan for the semester where they will learn about theory by building a fictional company that will make and sell a product. Later, Thorton and Jason attend a literature class taught by Diane Turner (Sally Kellerman), whom Thorton embarrassingly falls for immediately. Though she's seeing Barbay, she seems to enjoy Thorton's freewheeling personality and dates him as well. When Thorton forgets that he's supposed to meet Jason for a study session, Jason instead meets with a young woman who he's smitten with, Valerie (Terry Farrell), and they bond, despite Valerie's attachment to a snobby student, Chas (William Zabka). Meanwhile, Thorton, while partying at a local bar, comes to the aid of Jason's roommate, Derek (Robert Downey Jr.), a politically radical troublemaker who'd earlier disrupted a pep rally for the football team. The team's captain threatens to beat Derek when Thorton has Lou intervene, prompting a huge brawl. Thorton later comments that the football team isn't nearly as tough as his high school team was. Thorton also connects with the school's diving coach (M. Emmet Walsh); the man knew Thorton when he was an entertainment diver on a pier in Atlantic City. The coach tells him that Jason tried out for the team but didn't do well. Thorton has Jason execute a difficult dive for the coach on the spot. Thorton soon finds that he likes the fun aspects of college; hanging out in bars, throwing parties, schmoozing with female coeds, but he doesn't like the academic work involved. He brings in his senior staff and hires people from scientific corporations to do his classwork for him. Jason is angered when his father presents him with an astronomy paper that Jason wants to do himself. Jason becomes further disillusioned with his father when, after he makes the diving team, that his father might have persuaded the coach to let him join. One night during a wild party thrown by Thorton in the dorm room he had luxuriously renovated, Thorton is caught in the hot tub by Diane with several young women. His relationship with her is further hurt when she reads the paper he'd turned in on Kurt Vonnegut, saying that he couldn't possibly have written it himself and that the person who wrote it for him didn't know anything about Vonnegut. (Thorton had called in Vonnegut (Kurt Vonnegut Jr.) himself (who appears in a cameo) for assistance.) Barbay soon goes to Dean Martin with charges leveled against Thorton of academic fraud. Thorton lies and insists the work he did was his own, but Barbay trumps his claim by suggesting that Thorton's final exams be given to him in oral format so he can't cheat. Thorton begins to pack, wanting to leave. Jason convinces him to stay and that he and his roommate, Derek, and Lou will all help him cram for his finals. When Thorton's big day arrives, he's exhausted. Barbay starts the proceedings, giving Thorton a grueling single question composed of 27 sections. Thorton persists and answers all the parts correctly. When he wants to give up, Diane asks him to recite Dylan Thomas' "Do not go gentle into that good night". Thorton gets a boost and finishes his exams. The Grand Lakes diving team has a match the same day. Jason does very well, earning high points while Thorton watches and waits for his exam results. When the team begins to fall behind their rivals, the diving coach calls Thorton poolside to execute his famous Triple Lindy dive from his Atlantic City days. Thorton is reluctant, but Lou talks him into it. Thorton executes the dive, involving bouncing on several diving boards on 3 different levels of the platform, and the team wins the match. Diane finds him after, telling him he earned all D's in his classes and one A from her. Thorton is allowed to give a humorous address to the graduating class. He tells them to stay in college and become successful, drawing laughter from the crowd.

It's the end of the seventies. Hippies are assimilating, women are becoming aware and men are becoming confused and ineffective. Don't expect to be able to keep track of all the names. It's the end of the 1970s. Hippies are assimilating, women are raising their consciousness, and men are becoming confused and ineffectual. Don't expect to be able to keep track of all the names, or who's sleeping with whom. This movie very skillfully conveys the hopeless muddle through which the many characters move as they try to find themselves. —Molly Malloy <mailcall@kiva.net>

A restaurant owner explores his wanderlust by visiting his mother's empty apartment weekly, discovering that his attempts at romantic pursuits are far more challenging than anticipated. A middle aged restaurateur begins to feel the desire to roam and realizes that one day each week, his mother's apartment will be empty all afternoon. He makes several attempts at seduction, only to learn that it is much more complicated and difficult than he could have imagined. —John Vogel <jlvogel@comcast.net>

Movie opens at a swanky Wall Street Party hosted By Ted, Howard's Boss, and CEO of big Wall Street firm. It turns out the party is a gathering of wealthy Wall Street traders employees and big wigs looking to hook up with women. Ted encourages Howard, and teaches him how to land a one of the various women and then bed them. Howard is uncomfortable as he makes his rounds at the party and is unable to get the attraction from any of the multitude of intoxicated, attractive, but vulgar women. Another party-goer, Catherine, also seems put off by the entire party and all of its patrons, but like Howard she moves around the party, entertained by the vulgar, highfalutin, grandiose, vain, pretentious, garish, and gaudy people and the shenanigans they engage in. Catherine and Howard meet, the two are instantaneously attracted to each other, and decide to leave the party for more civilized gathering. As Catherine gather her coat, Ted give Howard the key to a particular night club, The Safari Club, he consider a "second home". The two grab a cab and head to the Safari club, which turn out to be another absurd scene with scantily clad women in cages acting like animalistic cave women. To grab the attention of the cave women waitresses male club goers are given pop guns and shoot the women in the tuchus. Howard has not yet learned that Catherine is his new boss' wife. The two agree that the Safari club is no better then the party they just left and decide to leave. Catherine recommends dancing and the two go to a hipster club with real music and dance their tuchus's off and have a great time. Catherine meets a an astrologist at the party who tell her that Ted is not a good love match for her but that Howard is a perfect match. Catherine seems to agree. Catherine reveals to Howard that she plans on leaving Ted the next day and grabbing a one way flight back to her home town of Paris. Howard follows suit and decides to leave his wife and grab the same flight with Catherine to start a new life with her in Paris. Howard has no problem leaving his uncaring wife behind and his young boy who doesn't seem to care if his father is alive or dead. The rest of the movie dedicated to the road blocks Howard must overcome to get on the plane with Catherine to Paris. Ted tries everything he can to win back Catherine. Eventually Howard wins out and is able to board the plane at the last minute. The movie ends with the two holding hands on the plane.