''Worth Winning'' is a 1989 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...

film directed by

Will Mackenzie Will Mackenzie (born July 24, 1938) is an American television director and actor. Life Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Mackenzie began his professional career as an actor, making his Broadway theatre, Broadway debut in 1965 in the original p ...

and starring

Mark Harmon Thomas Mark Harmon (born September 2, 1951) is an American actor, writer, producer, television director and former American football, football player. He is best known for playing the lead role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs on ''NCIS (TV series), NCIS'' ...

Madeleine Stowe Madeleine Stowe (born August 18, 1958) is an American actress. She appeared mostly on television before her role in the 1987 crime-comedy film '' Stakeout''. She went on to star in the films ''Revenge'' (1990), ''Unlawful Entry'' (1992), ''The L ...

and

Lesley Ann Warren Lesley Ann Warren (born August 16, 1946) is an American actress, singer and dancer. She made her Broadway debut in '' 110 in the Shade'' in 1963. In 1965 she received wide recognition for playing the title role in the television musical product ...

. It was written by

Josann McGibbon Josann McGibbon is an American screenwriter who previously teamed with Sara Parriott in one of the longest writing partnerships in Hollywood; they were a team for 33 years from 1986 to 2019. Biography The team's first major success as screenw ...

and Sara Parriott, based on the novel by Dan Lewandowski.

Plot

Taylor Worth is a devastatingly handsome and charming weatherman for a

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

television station. A confirmed bachelor, he sees a lot of women and gains the envy of his closest friends. One of them, Ned Broudy, offers Taylor a wager, that he cannot get three randomly chosen women to fall in love with him over a three-month period of time and accept a proposal of marriage. Taylor takes the bet, putting up his weekend cabin against a valuable painting that Ned and Clair Broudy own. Clair knows nothing of the bet, so she is pleased when her husband fixes up Taylor with her friend Veronica Briskow, a concert pianist. Ned is sure that the haughty Veronica will have nothing in common with a shallow TV weatherman, but Taylor does find a way to attract her interest. The remaining two women Taylor must persuade to fall in love with him are Erin Cooper, a sexy

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

receptionist, and Eleanor Larimore, an attractive older woman. The choice of Eleanor is a dirty trick on Ned's part, inasmuch as she is already married. Eager to teach Ned a lesson, Taylor quickly seduces Erin, then proposes marriage to her in front of a hidden TV camera. This causes jealousy in her protective friend Tarry Childs, who plays for the football team, but he wants Erin to be happy. And although Taylor doesn't have many scruples, he refuses to sleep with Erin after learning she is still a virgin. His next mission is Eleanor. It turns out she is unsatisfied at home and a willing participant when Taylor flirts with her while posing as a shoe salesman, engaging him in dangerous sex in public places. She, too, accepts Taylor's secretly filmed marriage proposal—two down and one to go. Veronica won't be easy. She is career-minded and not eager for marriage. Plus the sex between her and Taylor is surprisingly disappointing so far. The more time they spend together, though, Taylor realizes he doesn't want to lose Veronica after the wager is won. He proposes at his cabin and she accepts. Clair is delighted, Ned devastated. Then the real trouble begins. Taylor first needs to break it off with Erin, disappointing her desire to start a family, which he does by pretending to be impotent. Eleanor, alas, is enjoying her improved sex life and brags about it to Clair and Veronica. It becomes clear that three women are seeing the same man. Taylor is dumped by his fiancées. Erin finds solace in the arms of her football player while Eleanor takes pleasure in Taylor's humiliation at being exposed for what he really is, but Veronica is genuinely heartbroken. A broken man, Taylor tells his friend Ned to forget the bet. As a grand gesture, he makes a public apology to Veronica at a benefit auction in a giant hall, expressing his love and his desire to be with her for everybody to hear.

Cast

as Taylor Worth *

as Veronica Briskow *

as Eleanor Larimore *Maria Holvöe as Erin Cooper *

Mark Blum Mark Blum (May 14, 1950 – March 25, 2020) was an American actor who worked in theater, film, and television. He found success with a lead role in the 1985 film '' Desperately Seeking Susan,'' which he followed up the next year with a supporting ...

as Ned Broudy *

Andrea Martin Andrea Louise Martin (born January 15, 1947) is an American and Canadian actress, best known for her work in the television series '' SCTV'' and '' Great News''. She has appeared in films such as '' Black Christmas'' (1974), '' Wag the Dog'' (1 ...

as Clair Broudy *

Tony Longo Anthony Longo (August 19, 1961 – June 20, 2015) was an American actor who appeared in seventy films and nearly ninety television shows. Early life and education Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, Longo attended Marist High School in Bayonn ...

as Terry Childs *

Alan Blumenfeld Alan Blumenfeld (born September 4, 1952) is an American character actor, best known for his role in NBC's TV series ''Heroes (U.S. TV series), Heroes'' as Maury Parkman, the telepathy, telepath father of Matt Parkman played by Greg Grunberg, and ...

as Howard Larimore *

Brad Hall William Bradford Hall (born March 21, 1958) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He appeared on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1982 to 1984. He was also known for manning the ''Weekend Update'' (then rebranded as ''Saturday Night News'') ...

as Eric *

Jon Korkes Jon Korkes (born December 4, 1945) is an American film, stage, and television actor. Korkes was born in Manhattan, New York Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five bor ...

as Sam *

Arthur Malet Arthur Malet (24 September 1927 – 18 May 2013) was an English actor. He was known for his films '' Mary Poppins'' (1964), ''Halloween'' (1978), '' The Secret of NIMH'' (1982), and ''Hook'' (1991). His last film role was '' The Secret of NIM ...

as Ticket Taker *

Joan Severance Joan Marie Severance (born December 23, 1958) is an American actress and former fashion model. Early life Severance was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Martha and John C. Severance. Her father was an IBM systems manager who had to move ...

as Lizbette *

David Brenner David Norris Brenner (February 4, 1936 – March 15, 2014) was an American stand-up comedian, actor and author. The most frequent guest on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' in the 1970s and 1980s, Brenner "was a pioneer of observ ...

as Charity Ball Auctioneer *

Devin Ratray Devin D. Ratray (born January 11, 1977) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor, making his film debut in '' Where Are the Children?'' (1986) before a main role as Gus Stafford on the CBS sitcom '' Heartland'' (1989). Ratray h ...

as Howard Larimore, Jr.

Critical reception

Janet Maslin Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, who served as a film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1977 to 1999, serving as chief critic for the last six years, and then a literary critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000, M ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' does not write negatively about the acting but closes her review with the following about the direction and writing:

References

External links

* * *{{mojo title, worthwinning 1989 films American romantic comedy films 1989 romantic comedy films 20th Century Fox films Films scored by Patrick Williams (composer) Films based on American novels Films set in Philadelphia Films shot in Pennsylvania 1980s English-language films 1980s American films English-language romantic comedy films