Nickelodeon still

Nickelodeon (1976)

What editions are available?

  • Theatrical Cut (121 min.)
  • Director’s Cut (125 min.)

Peter Bogdanovich’s show business comedy Nickelodeon tells a tale of a rocky motion picture production in Hollywood in the early 1910s. The actual production of Nickelodeon was quite bumpy as writer-director Bogdanovich set out to make a black and white homage to Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin with actors Jeff Bridges, John Ritter, Cybill Shepherd and Orson Welles. But instead the theatrical cut was in color starring Burt Reynolds, Ryan O’Neal, Stella Stevens and Brian Keith.

While in production Bogdanovich classed with actors, co-writer W.D. Richter and the studio and was never happy with the theatrical cut. In 2009 Nickelodeon was released on DVD that included the theatrical cut and a newly cut director’s cut. Bogdanovich provides a commentary track for the director’s cut where he states early on:

“…so there were compromises before we started but, we also wanted to make it in black and white, but that was a problem. But now, many years later we have it at least in black and white and four minutes longer than the released version. So, I’m happier with this version than I was with the released version.”

Source: Peter Bogdanovich’s commentary on the Nickelodeon Director’s Cut DVD

The director’s preferred edition: Director’s Cut

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