The Straight Story (1999) - Turner Classic Movies

Brief Synopsis

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Alvin Straight was 73 when he got the call about his brother. Alvin couldn't see well enough to hold a driver's license. He walked only with the support of two canes. He didn't much care for anybody else helping him out. But when he got the call that his brother Lyle--separated from him by hundreds

Cast & Crew

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David Lynch

Sissy Spacek

Jane Galloway Heitz

Joseph A Carpenter

Donald Wiegert

Richard Farnsworth

Film Details

Also Known As

Straight Story, Una historia verdadera, Une Histoire Vraie, histoire vraie

MPAA Rating

Genre

Drama

Medical

Release Date

1999

Production Company

Asymmetrical Studio; Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment, Inc.; City of Clermont; City of Lansing; City of Laurens; Digital Sound & Pictures; Film4 Productions; Filmfour; Great Northern/ Reiff & Associates (Ny); Hanna Brothers Extreme Motion Picture Catering; Hollywood Rentals Production Services; Le Studio Canal Plus; Le Studio Canal Plus; Les Films Alain Sarde; Pacific Title & Art Studio; Panavision, Ltd.; Picture Factory; Shotmaker Company; StudioCanal; StudioCanal

Distribution Company

Walt Disney Studios Distribution; Bac Films Distribution; Central Film Verleih Gmbh; Constantin Film Development, Inc.; Cts; Eurocine; Film4 Productions; Filmfour; Frenetic Films; Paradiso Entertainment; Sam Film; Senator Film Verleih; Videocine; Walt Disney Studios Distribution; Walt Disney Studios Distribution; Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International; Warner Bros. Pictures International; Wild Bunch AG

Location

Wisconsin, USA; Iowa, USA

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 51m

Synopsis

Alvin Straight was 73 when he got the call about his brother. Alvin couldn't see well enough to hold a driver's license. He walked only with the support of two canes. He didn't much care for anybody else helping him out. But when he got the call that his brother Lyle--separated from him by hundreds of miles and a decade a proud silence--had suffered a stroke, Alvin knew he had to reach him. With little money, there begins a one man's real journey across America's Heartland. Filmed along the 260-mile rout that the actual Alvin Straight traversed in 1994 from Laurens, Iowa to Mt. Zion, Wisconsin, the piece chronicles Alvin's patient odyssey and those he meets along the way. When not rolling around at five miles an hour aboard his '66 John Deere, Alvin encounters a number of strangers, from a teenage runaway to a fellow World War II veteran. By sharing his life's earned wisdom with simple stories, Alvin has a profound impact on the characters that color his pilgrimage.

Director

David Lynch

Cast

Sissy Spacek

Jane Galloway Heitz

Joseph A Carpenter

Donald Wiegert

Richard Farnsworth

Tracey Maloney

Dan Flannery

Jennifer Edwards-hughes

Ed Grennan

Jack Walsh

Max--the Wonder Dog

Gil Pearson

Barbara June Patterson

Everett Mcgill

Tom--The John Deere Dealer

Anastasia Webb

Max Guidry

Bill Mccallum

Barbara Robertson

James Cada

Sally Wingert

Barbara Kingsley

Jim Haun

Wiley Harker

Randy Wiedenhoff

Jerry E Anderson

Kevin Farley

John Farley

John Lordan

Garrett Sweeney

Peter Sweeney

Tommy Fahey

Matt Fahey

Dan Fahey

Russ Reed

Mount Zion Bartender

Ralph Feldhacker

Farmer On Tractor

Harry Dean Stanton

David Hack

Crew

Kent Abbott

Set Production Assistant

Amy Alarian

Electrical Lighting Technician

Richard Alarian

Chief Lighting Technician

Jane Alderman

Pedro Amaya

Giovanni Arcangeli

Bryan Arenas

Angelo Badalamenti

Music; Music Composer & Conductor

Angelo Badalamenti

Crist Ballas

Special Makeup Effects

Angela Barton

2nd Assistant Editor

Lynn Blumenthal

Chamonix Bosch

Set Production Assistant

Kevin P. Boyd

Nancy Briggs

Casting Associates

Anita Brongill

Alex Bulkley

Set Production Assistant

Keith Bunting

Ron L Burchfield

Gary Burritt

Negative Cutter

Brendan David Butler

Aerial 1st Assistant Camera

David L Butler

Aerial Director Of Photography

Rudy Calzavara

Scott Cameron

1st Assistant Director

Mary Lu Cerny

Assistant (To Richard Farnsworth)

Don Cerrone

Bill Chaffee

Darlene Chaffee

Calvin Chin

Transportation Captain

John Churchill

On-Set Assistant (To David Lynch)

Sean Coffey

Asymmetrical Office Production Assistant

Spade Cooley

Song ("Y' Ready")

Johnny Culley

Assistant Property Master

Gary D'amico

Special Effects

Richard De Angelo

Transportation Coordinator

Richard Deangelo

Transportation Coordinator

Deborah Dee

Hair (For Harry Dean Stanton)

Lisa Di Quollo

Assistant Catering (Hanna Bros Enterprises)

Michael Dunn

Assistant Caterer (Hanna Bros Enterprises)

Pierre Edelman

Executive Producer

Neal Edelstein

Ronald Eng

Ronald Eng

Superving Sound Editor

Mary Erstad

Foley Recordist

Floyd Erwin

Simone Farber

2nd Assistant Director

Michael Fedack

David Fein

Ralph Feldhacker

James Fierro

Stunt Coordinator

Geri Paige Filister

Production Assistant

S Fine

Song ("Happy Times")

Jack Fisk

Production Designer

Freddie Francis

Director Of Photography

Will Gatlin

Cheryl Gibson

Assistant Accountant

Patrick Giraudi

Additional Re-Recording Mixer

George Gowing

Joni Dee Gowing

Barbara Haberecht

Tony Halsrud

Roy Hancock

Joe Hanna

Mark Har

Assistant Location Manager

Bob Harper

Makeup (For Sissy Spacek)

Sally J Harper

Hair (For Sissy Spacek)

Gordon Hayman

Camera Operator

Catherine Head

Casting Associates

Vicki Jo Hertz

Extras Casting Assistant

Billy Higgins

Unit Production Manager

Sarah Jane Hill

Casting Associates

Spike Allison Hooper

Post-Production Supervisor

Doug Jackson

Anne Johns

Production Coordinator

Brian Justus

Chris Kennedy

Assistant Art Director

Steven J. Kerlagon

Gracie Klein

Paul Klein

Scott Klug

Kristi Lake

Post-Production Accountant

Nancy Lampe

Rick Lefevour

Stunt Coordinator

Susan Lichtman

Tim Lobdell

Ann Luster

Assistant (To Michael Polaire)

David Lynch

Sean E. Markland

Property Master

Diane Marshall

Patti Marshall

Payroll Accountant

Edgar Martin

Mato

Dick Mccartney

William C. Mcconnell Jr.

2nd Camera Assistant

William M. Mcconnell

1st Camera Assistant

Julia Mcferrin

Production Assistant

Dennis Mcnamara

Bob Medcraft

Location Manager

Jerry Meyers

Steven R Morales

Assistant Chief Lighting Technician

Kathryn Mueller

Hitomi Nakase

Asymmetrical Office Production Assistant

John Neff

Re-Recording Mixer

John Neff

Song ("The Most Requested Song (From 'Strange Tales Of The Late West')")

John Neff

Score Engineer & Mixer

Howard Neiman

Howard Neiman

Foley Supervisor

Cheryl Nelson

Production Counsel

Patricia Norris

Costume Designer

David Nowell

Aerial Director Of Photography

David Oberholtzer

Assistant Caterer (Hanna Bros Enterprises)

Shane Patrick

Andrew Peterson

Assistant Location Manager

Joan Philo

Michael Polaire

Executive Producer

Gaye Pope

Gaye Pope

Executive Assistant (To David Lynch)

Luis Racer Rangel

Set Production Assistant

Carla Rear

Denis Rear

Ressetar

Scott Ressler

"B" Camera Assistant

Eric Ritter

John Roach

Hugh Ross

Editing Apprentice

Peggy Ann Rosson

Production Accountant

Earl Sampson

Hilary Schroeder

1st Assistant Editor

Richard Schwartz

Assistant (To Mary Sweeney)

Billy Scoles

Eric Sherman

Second 2nd Assistant Director

Joshua E Smith

Lighting Technician

Scott Smith

Aerial 1st Assistant Camera

Walter Spencer

Walter Spencer

Dialogue Editor

Jo Stafford

Song Performer ("Happy Times")

Jules Stewart

Script Supervisor

Alvin Straight

Lucy Sustar

Foley Recordist

Mary Sweeney

Mary Sweeney

Mary Sweeney

Nick Swiatek

Mark Togni

Key Set Production Assistant

Susumu Tokunow

Location Sound Mixer

Thomas A Traugott

Paul Vecchio

Mickey Vendafreddo

Bruce Ventura

John N. Ward

Assistant Production Coordinator

Wilson Webb

Electrical Lighting Technician

Mike Weesner

Assistant Special Effects

John Wentworth

Becky Whitehorse

Location Assistant

Ronald Wilson

Tim Wilson

2nd Assistant Editor

Dave Wilt

Construction Coordinator

Trini Wilt

Art Department Assistant

John David Wolfe

Production Assistant

William T. Zacha

Costume Supervisor

Robert Zajonc

Helicopter Pilot

Gary Zarris

Film Details

Also Known As

Straight Story, Una historia verdadera, Une Histoire Vraie, histoire vraie

MPAA Rating

Genre

Drama

Medical

Release Date

1999

Production Company

Asymmetrical Studio; Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment, Inc.; City of Clermont; City of Lansing; City of Laurens; Digital Sound & Pictures; Film4 Productions; Filmfour; Great Northern/ Reiff & Associates (Ny); Hanna Brothers Extreme Motion Picture Catering; Hollywood Rentals Production Services; Le Studio Canal Plus; Le Studio Canal Plus; Les Films Alain Sarde; Pacific Title & Art Studio; Panavision, Ltd.; Picture Factory; Shotmaker Company; StudioCanal; StudioCanal

Distribution Company

Walt Disney Studios Distribution; Bac Films Distribution; Central Film Verleih Gmbh; Constantin Film Development, Inc.; Cts; Eurocine; Film4 Productions; Filmfour; Frenetic Films; Paradiso Entertainment; Sam Film; Senator Film Verleih; Videocine; Walt Disney Studios Distribution; Walt Disney Studios Distribution; Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures International; Warner Bros. Pictures International; Wild Bunch AG

Location

Wisconsin, USA; Iowa, USA

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 51m

Award Nominations

Best Actor

1999

Richard Farnsworth

Quotes

Trivia

Miscellaneous Notes

Winner of Best Actor (Richard Farnsworth) at the 1999 Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival.

Winner of two 1999 awards, including Best Actor (Richard Farnsworth) and Best Cinematography (Freddie Francis) from the New York Film Critics Circle.

Expanded Release in United States October 29, 1999

Limited Release in United States October 15, 1999

Released in United States 1999

Released in United States Fall October 15, 1999

Released in United States November 1999

Released in United States on Video May 9, 2000

Released in United States September 1999

Wide Release in United States November 5, 1999

Shown at Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (in competition) October 20 - November 15, 1999.

Shown at London Film Festival November 3-18, 1999.

Began shooting September 14, 1998.

Released in United States 1999 (Shown at Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (in competition) October 20 - November 15, 1999.)

Released in United States on Video May 9, 2000

Released in United States September 1999 (Shown at Telluride Film Festival September 3-6, 1999.)

Limited Release in United States October 15, 1999

Released in United States Fall October 15, 1999

Expanded Release in United States October 29, 1999

Released in United States November 1999 (Shown at London Film Festival November 3-18, 1999.)

Wide Release in United States November 5, 1999

Completed shooting October 23, 1998.

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