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How To Beat The High Cost Of Living
''How to Beat the High Cost of Living'' is a 1980 American comedy heist film directed by Robert Scheerer and starring Susan Saint James, Jane Curtin, and Jessica Lange. Set in the aftermath of the economic recession of the 1970s, the film follows three women in Eugene, Oregon who, each facing personal and financial crises and desperate for money, devise a plan to steal a large amount of cash from a giveaway event in Valley River Center, Eugene's real-life shopping mall. The film features supporting performances by Dabney Coleman, Fred Willard, Richard Benjamin, Eddie Albert, Scott Elliott, Cathryn Damon, Sybil Danning, and a cameo by Curtin's fellow ''Saturday Night Live'' co-star Garrett Morris. The film was produced by American International Pictures (AIP) but released under Filmways in the summer of 1980, as AIP had merged with the latter following the film's completion. It is considered the final AIP production, before its revival by MGM in 2020. Plot Jane, Elaine, a ...
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Robert Scheerer
Robert Scheerer (December 28, 1929 – March 3, 2018) was an American film and television director, actor, and producer. Scheerer was born in Santa Barbara, California, on December 28, 1929. Scheerer's work in films began with his dancing, including ''Mister Big 1943 film, Mister Big'' (1943) and other films with the tap group The Jivin' Jacks and Jills. He also performed on television programs, including ''Dagmar's Canteen (TV series), Dagmar's Canteen'', ''Cavalcade of Stars'', and ''Four Star Revue''. On Broadway, he performed in ''The Boy Friend'' (1954), ''Top Banana'' (1951), ''Dance Me a Song'' (1950), and ''Lend an Ear'' (1948). He also was assistant to the choreographer for ''Tickets, Please!'' (1950). Scheerer's more notable work includes directing ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' and ''Star Trek: Voyager''. He received three Emmy Award nominations for directing ''Fame (1982 TV series), Fame''. He received an Emmy Award for Best Dire ...
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Eugene, Oregon
Eugene ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie River (Oregon), McKenzie and Willamette River, Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. The List of cities in Oregon, second-most populous city in Oregon, Eugene had a population of 176,654 as of the 2020 United States census and it covers city area of . The Eugene-Springfield, OR MSA, Eugene-Springfield metropolitan statistical area is the second largest in Oregon after Portland, Oregon, Portland. In 2022, Eugene's population was estimated to have reached 179,887. Eugene is home to the University of Oregon, Bushnell University, and Lane Community College. The city is noted for its natural environment, recreational opportunities (especially Cycling, bicycling, running/jogging, rafting, and kayaking), and focus on the arts, along with its history of civil unrest, riots, and green activism. Eug ...
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Art Metrano
Arthur Metrano (September 22, 1936 – September 8, 2021) was an American actor. He was noted for his role as Lt./Capt./Cmdt. Mauser in '' Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment'' and '' Police Academy 3: Back in Training''. Career Metrano's film debut was as a truck driver in the 1961 Cold War thriller '' Rocket Attack U.S.A.''. Among Metrano's TV appearances were a 1968 episode of ''Ironside'', a 1970 episode of ''Bewitched'', a 1976 episode of ''The Practice'', and ''The Streets of San Francisco''. In 1977, he was a regular in the cast of the short-lived CBS situation comedy '' Loves Me, Loves Me Not''. He also frequently appeared on talk and variety shows in the early 1970s, especially ''The Tonight Show'', as ''The Great Metrano'', a "magician" who performed absurd tricks, such as making his fingers "jump" from one hand to another, while constantly humming an inane theme song – " Fine and Dandy", an early 1930s composition by Kay Swift. His best-known role came in ...
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Susan Tolsky
Susan Gaye Tolsky (April 6, 1943 – October 9, 2022) was an American actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Tolsky began acting in high school and later studied nursing at the University of Texas at Austin before switching her major to theater. In 1967, she relocated to Hollywood and made her television debut on the sitcom '' The Second Hundred Years''. Within a year, she earned a main role on the ABC comedy Western series ''Here Come the Brides'' (1968–1970) as Biddie Cloom. A self-described character actress, Tolsky made her film debut in '' Pretty Maids All in a Row'' (1971) and gained wider recognition as a regular on the variety series ''The New Bill Cosby Show'' (1972–1973) on CBS. Following several guest roles on television throughout the 1970s, Tolsky was part of the main cast on the syndicated sitcom ''Madame's Place'' (1982–1983) in the role of Bernadette Van Gilder. Her film credits include supporting roles in '' Charley and the Angel'' (1973), '' Record ...
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Al Checco
Al Checco (July 21, 1921 – July 19, 2015) was an American film, television and theatre actor. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was known for playing the role of Bernard Stein in the 1968 film '' The Party''. Checco was the partner of actor, Don Knotts, in which they were performing entertainers in Special Services to soldiers during World War II. He died on July 19, 2015 of natural causes at his home in Studio City, California, at the age of 93. Selected filmography * ''The Incredible Mr. Limpet'' (1964) - Sailor (uncredited) * '' The Ghost and Mr. Chicken'' (1966) - Gaylord Patie (uncredited) * ''Hotel'' (1967) - Herbie Chandler * '' The Reluctant Astronaut'' (1967) - Man at Console (uncredited) * '' P.J.'' (1968) - Cab Driver (uncredited) * '' The Party'' (1968) - Bernard Stein * ''Bullitt'' (1968) - Desk Clerk * ''Angel in My Pocket'' (1969) - Byron * '' There Was a Crooked Man...'' (1970) - Wheatley (uncredited) * '' Adam at 6 A.M.'' (1970) - (uncredited) * ''I Lov ...
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Michael Bell (actor)
Michael Bell (born July 30, 1938) is an American actor who is most active in voice over roles. He has acted in video games and animated series, including '' Legacy of Kain'', '' The Transformers'', '' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'', '' The Houndcats'', '' Rugrats'', '' The Smurfs'', '' The Incredible Hulk'', and '' Snorks'' and appeared on-screen in film and television, including the TV programs ''Dallas'' and ''Star Trek''. Early life Michael Bell was born on July 30, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York, to a Jewish family. Career Live-action roles His live action film career has included roles in films such as '' Thunder Alley'' (1967), ''Blue'' (1968), '' The Proud Rider'' (1971) '' Brother John'' (1971), '' Rollercoaster'' (1977), ''Fast Company'' (1979), '' How to Beat the High Cost of Living'' (1980) and '' C.H.U.D. II: Bud the C.H.U.D.'' (1989). Bell also appeared in live-action exploitation shorts and PSAs - scare films made in California during the early 1960s, ranging in co ...
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Ronnie Schell
Ronald Ralph Schell (born December 23, 1931) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared on the May 28, 1959, episode of the TV quiz show '' You Bet Your Life'', hosted by Groucho Marx. Schell demonstrated a comic barrage of beatnik jive talk. As a stand-up comedian, he first developed his act at the hungry i nightclub in San Francisco, California, and is heard (presumably as the opening act) introducing the Kingston Trio at the start of the group's 1962 College Concert album. Schell is probably best known for his 1960s television role as Duke Slater in '' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' Early life Schell was born in Richmond, California, on December 23, 1931. Upon graduation from high school, he served four years in the United States Air Force, where he became an airman first class. Career In his role as Duke Slater on '' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'', Schell's character was cast for three seasons as a Marine private and best friend of Gomer Pyle. Schell left for a season to ...
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Safeway Inc
Safeway, Inc. is an American supermarket chain. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, delicatessen, floral and pharmacy, as well as Starbucks coffee shops, and vehicle fuel centers. It is a subsidiary of Albertsons after being acquired by private equity investors led by Cerberus Capital Management in January 2015. Safeway's primary base of operations is in the Western United States, with some stores located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the Eastern Seaboard. The subsidiary is headquartered in Pleasanton, California. History Marion Barton Skaggs, who already had experience in the grocery business, moved to Portland, Oregon in 1921, and established four grocery stores. This chain of stores grew quickly, and Skaggs enlisted the help of his five brothers to grow the network of stores. By 1926, he had opened 428 Skaggs stores in 10 states. He then almost doubled the size of his business that year whe ...
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Medford, Oregon
Medford is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census on April 1, 2020, the city had a total population of 85,824, making it the List of cities in Oregon, eighth-most populous city in Oregon, and a metropolitan area population of 223,259, making the Medford MSA the fourth largest metro area in Oregon. The city was named in 1883 by David Loring, civil engineer and right-of-way agent for the Oregon and California Railroad, after Medford, Massachusetts, which was near Loring's hometown of Concord, Massachusetts. Medford is near the middle fork of Bear Creek (Rogue River tributary), Bear Creek. History In 1883, a group of railroad surveyors headed by S.L. Dolson and David Loring arrived in Rock Point, near present-day Gold Hill, Oregon, Gold Hill. They were charged with finding the best route through the Rogue Valley for the Oregon and California Railroad. Citizens of neighboring Jacksonville, Oregon, Jacksonvi ...
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Inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduction in the purchasing power of money. The opposite of CPI inflation is deflation, a decrease in the general price level of goods and services. The common measure of inflation is the inflation rate, the annualized percentage change in a general price index. Changes in inflation are widely attributed to fluctuations in Real versus nominal value (economics), real demand for goods and services (also known as demand shocks, including changes in fiscal policy, fiscal or monetary policy), changes in available supplies such as during energy crisis, energy crises (also known as supply shocks), or changes in inflation expectations, which may be self-fulfilling. Moderat ...
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Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer was founded on April 17, 1924, and has been owned by the Amazon MGM Studios subsidiary of Amazon (company), Amazon since 2022. MGM was formed by Marcus Loew by combining Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures and Louis B. Mayer Pictures into one company. It hired a number of well-known actors as contract players—its slogan was "more stars than there are in heaven"—and soon became Hollywood's most prestigious filmmaking company, producing popular musical films and winning many Academy Awards. MGM also owned film studios, movie lots, movie theaters and technical production facilities. Its most prosperous era, from 1926 to 1959, was bracketed by two productions of ''Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ ...
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American International Pictures
American International Pictures, LLC (AIP or American International Productions) is an American film production company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, AIP was an independent film production and distribution company known for producing and releasing films from 1955 until 1980, a year after its acquisition by Filmways in 1979. It was formed on April 2, 1954, as American Releasing Corporation (ARC) by former Realart Pictures Inc. sales manager James H. Nicholson and entertainment lawyer Samuel Z. Arkoff and their first release was the 1953 UK documentary film '' Operation Malaya''. It was dedicated to releasing low-budget films packaged as double features, primarily of interest to the teenagers of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The company eventually became a part of Orion Pictures, which in turn, became a division of Amazon MGM Studios. On October 7, 2020, four decades after the original closure, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer revived AIP as a label ...
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