The Buddy Holly Story
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''The Buddy Holly Story'' is a 1978 American
biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...
musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...
film directed by
Steve Rash Steve Rash is an American film director and producer best known for directing such films as '' Son in Law'', '' The Buddy Holly Story'', ''Can't Buy Me Love "Can't Buy Me Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released i ...
which tells the life and career of rock and roll musician
Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texa ...
. It features an
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
-winning musical score, adapted by
Joe Renzetti Joseph Renzetti is an American film composer and session musician. He scores for films and television, currently active in scoring indie films, he composes works for orchestra, chamber groups, and solo artists. Career Born in Philadelphia, Renz ...
and
Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
-nominated lead performance by
Gary Busey William Gary Busey (; born June 29, 1944) is an American actor. He portrayed Buddy Holly in ''The Buddy Holly Story'' (1978), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won the National Society of Film Critics Award fo ...
. The film also stars
Don Stroud Donald Lee Stroud (born September 1, 1943) is an American actor, musician, and surfer. Stroud has appeared in over 100 films and 200 television shows. Early years Stroud is the son of vaudeville actor Clarence Stroud (of "The Stroud Twins" team) ...
,
Charles Martin Smith Charles Martin Smith (born October 30, 1953) is an American actor, director and writer based in British Columbia, Canada. His breakout role was as Terry "The Toad" Fields in George Lucas' film ''American Graffiti'' (1973), which he reprised ...
,
Conrad Janis Conrad Janis (February 11, 1928 – March 1, 2022) was an American jazz trombonist and actor who starred in film and television during the Golden Age Era in the 1950s and 1960s, and continued acting right up until 2012. He played the role of Mi ...
, William Jordan, and Maria Richwine, who plays
María Elena Holly María Elena Holly (née Santiago; born December 20, 1932) is the widow of American rock and roll pioneer Buddy Holly. As a receptionist at Peermusic, she met with Holly and his band the Crickets on June 19, 1958, and Holly proposed to her after ...
. It was adapted by Robert Gittler from ''Buddy Holly: His Life and Music'', the 1975 biography of Holly by John Goldrosen, and was directed by
Steve Rash Steve Rash is an American film director and producer best known for directing such films as '' Son in Law'', '' The Buddy Holly Story'', ''Can't Buy Me Love "Can't Buy Me Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released i ...
.


Plot

In 1956, Buddy Holly and his friends, drummer Jesse Charles and bass player Ray Bob Simmons, regularly performed at a local roller rink in
Lubbock, Texas Lubbock ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 272,086 in 2024, Lubbock is the 10th-most populous city in Texas and the 84th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the ...
, as
The Crickets The Crickets were an American rock and roll band from Lubbock, Texas, formed by singer-songwriter Buddy Holly in January 1957. Their first hit record, "That'll Be the Day", released in May 1957, peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Top ...
. A local radio station broadcasts the show. Holly plays a country song, then switches to a rock and roll song, exciting the teens much to the annoyance of the radio station's sponsor. Station manager Riley tells Holly that
Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head ...
vice president wants the band to make a recording in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
. At the recording studio, Holly walks out when his rock-and-roll vision clashes with the producers, who want
The Crickets The Crickets were an American rock and roll band from Lubbock, Texas, formed by singer-songwriter Buddy Holly in January 1957. Their first hit record, "That'll Be the Day", released in May 1957, peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Top ...
to play country music. Later, Riley says he sent a tape of the Cricket's roller rink performance to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
music producer Ross Turner. Believing the demo tape is a master copy, Turner releases it without realizing the band has no contract. The record is a hit and Holly can now pursue music full time. In New York City, the Crickets meet with Turner; after initial resistance, he agrees that Holly can make music how he wants. Sol Gittler books the Crickets for the famous
Apollo Theater The Apollo Theater (formerly the Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre; also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre) is a multi-use Theater (structure), theater at 253 125th Street (Manhattan), West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of U ...
in
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...
, assuming they are a black band. He is stunned when three white Texans show up and he refuses to let them perform, fearing the audience's reaction. Holly points out that Gittler's telegram specifies that they only have to be in New York City for a week to be paid $1,000, so Gittler nervously allows them to perform, the first white act to perform at the Apollo. After an uncomfortable start, Holly's music soon wins over the audience and the Crickets are a hit. Turner's secretary, Maria Elena Santiago, catches Holly's eye but their budding romance is nearly ended when her strict aunt refuses to allow them to date. Holly convinces her to change her mind and on their first date, Holly proposes to Maria. She accepts and they are soon married. After two years of success, Ray Bob and Jesse, feeling overshadowed by Holly and wanting to return to Texas, decide to quit while Holly believes it is necessary to remain in New York to stay popular. After appearing on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
TV on ''
The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the ''CB ...
'', Jesse and Ray Bob return to Lubbock with the agreement that they will retain the Crickets name. Though saddened by their departure, Holly carries on writing. He initially fears performing without them despite his manager emphasizing that touring is necessary to chart success. Holly is delighted when Maria becomes pregnant, though she sees he is frustrated professionally and urges him to go on tour. On February 2, 1959, preparing for a concert at
Clear Lake, Iowa Clear Lake is a city in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 7,687 at the 2020 census. The city is named for the large lake on which it is located. It is the home of a number of marinas, state parks and tourism-related ...
, Holly charters a private plane to fly to
Moorhead, Minnesota Moorhead ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Minnesota, Clay County, Minnesota, United States, on the banks of the Red River of the North. Located in the Red River Valley, an extremely fertile and active agricultural region, Moo ...
for the next concert after the tour bus has broken down.
The Big Bopper Jiles Perry Richardson Jr. (October 24, 1930 – February 3, 1959), better known by his stage name The Big Bopper, was an American musician and disc jockey. His best-known compositions include " Chantilly Lace," " Running Bear", and " White Ligh ...
and
Ritchie Valens Richard Steven Valenzuela (May 13, 1941 – February 3, 1959), better known by his stage name Ritchie Valens, was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rock and roll pioneer and a forefather of the Chicano rock movement, Valens died i ...
join him on the flight. The Crickets, feeling nostalgic and wanting to revive the band, plan to join Holly at his next tour stop. After playing his final song, " Not Fade Away", Holly bids the crowd farewell. A caption reveals that Holly, Valens and the Bopper died in a plane crash
that night ''That Night'' (originally titled ''One Hot Summer'') is a 1992 American coming-of-age romantic drama film written and directed by Craig Bolotin and starring C. Thomas Howell and Juliette Lewis. It is based on the 1987 novel of the same name ...
"... and the rest is Rock 'n Roll".


Cast


Production

The actors did their own singing and played their own instruments, with guitarist Jerry Zaremba overdubbing the guitar parts. Busey, in particular, was noted for recording the soundtrack music live and for losing a considerable amount of weight in order to portray the skinny Holly. According to Busey's biography, he lost 32 pounds to look more like Holly, who weighed 146 pounds at the time of his death. The actor's accurate portrayal was aided by knowledge gained from a previous attempt to film part of the Holly life story, the ill-fated ''Three-Sided Coin'', in which he played Crickets drummer Jerry Allison. The film was cancelled by
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
due to pressure from Fred Bauer and his company, who had made deals with the Holly
estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...
. The screenplay of ''Three-Sided Coin'' (by Allison and Tom Drake) revealed many personal details about Holly, and Busey picked up more during off-set conversations with Allison. While the story follows Buddy Holly from age 20 to 22 (1956 to February 1959), Busey was 33 when he played the role. Charles Martin Smith auditioned for the role of Buddy, but since Busey already had been cast, the producers cast Smith to play Ray Bob Simmons because they liked his audition. Simmons and Jesse Charles were character names used in place of Joe B. Mauldin and
Jerry Allison Jerry Ivan Allison (August 31, 1939 – August 22, 2022) was an American musician. He was best known as the drummer for the Crickets and co-writer of their hits "That'll Be the Day" and "Peggy Sue", recorded with Buddy Holly. His only solo cha ...
, two of the actual Crickets (1956 to early 1958 Cricket
Niki Sullivan Niki Sullivan (June 23, 1937 – April 6, 2004) was an American rock and roll guitarist, born in South Gate, California. He was one of the three original members of Buddy Holly's backing band, the Crickets. Though he lost interest within a few ...
, performing on 27 of the 32 songs Holly recorded, is not shown). The incident in which a
Buffalo Buffalo most commonly refers to: * True buffalo or Bubalina, a subtribe of wild cattle, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, a genus of wild cattle, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York, a city in the n ...
disc jockey locked himself in a studio and repeatedly played the same song over and over was loosely based on real-life stunts orchestrated by disc jockey
Tom Clay Tom Clay (born Thomas Clague; August 20, 1929 – November 22, 1995) was an American radio personality and disc jockey. Clay was born in New York, and in the 1950s he was popular in the Detroit area on WJBK-AM both as a DJ, and for his on ...
(and repeated a few years later by
Danny Neaverth Daniel J. "Danny" Neaverth Sr. ( ; born May 11, 1938) is an American disc jockey and television personality from Buffalo, New York. He is best known for a run of over 40 years as a morning disc jockey in Buffalo, including 25 years at heritage top ...
), who held up Buffalo's Shelton Square by playing
Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band formed in 1947 and continuing until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...
' "
Rock Around the Clock "Rock Around the Clock" is a rock and roll song in the 12-bar blues format written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers (the latter being under the pseudonym "Jimmy De Knight") in 1952. The best-known and most successful rendition was reco ...
" repeatedly from the top of a billboard, and by
Joey Reynolds Joseph Pinto, better known as Joey Reynolds, is a long-time radio show host and disc jockey. Reynolds' broadcasting career started on TV in Buffalo at WGR TV 2 and he worked at various stations, including at WNBC. Career His first radio job wa ...
, who locked himself in a studio playing "
Sherry Sherry ( ) is a fortified wine produced from white grapes grown around the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is a drink produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versio ...
" by The Four Seasons for several hours; those incidents, however, had no relation to Buddy Holly or his music.


Release

The film had a special premiere in nine different Texas and Oklahoma cities on May 18, 1978, including Holly's hometown of
Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Lubbock County. With a population of 272,086 in 2024, Lubbock is the 10th-most populous city in Texas and the 84th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the ...
and Busey's hometown of
Tulsa Tulsa ( ) is the second-most-populous city in the state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tul ...
, before opening in Los Angeles on June 14.


Reception


Box office

The film earned $14.3 million on a $1.2 million budget.


Critical response

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
gave the film three and a half stars out of four and praised Busey's "remarkable performance as Buddy Holly. If you're a fan of Holly and his music, you'll be quietly amazed at how completely Busey gets into the character."
Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who was the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in 2000. ...
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 ...
'' wrote, "There are a lot of actors in 'The Buddy Holly Story' — some of them very nice — but the movie is really a one-man show. It's Gary Busey's galvanizing solo performance that gives meaning to an otherwise shapeless and bland feature-length film about the American rock-and-roll star who was killed in a plane crash in 1959."
Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune'' who co-hosted a movie review television series alongside colleague Roger Ebert. Siskel started writing for the '' ...
gave the film four stars out of four and wrote, "In a year in which we are inundated with films featuring rock music, 'The Buddy Holly Story' probably will turn out to be the best. That is because of Busey's galvanizing performance."
Charles Champlin Charles Davenport Champlin (March 23, 1926 – November 16, 2014) was an American film critic and writer. Life and career Champlin was born in Hammondsport, New York. He attended high school in Camden, New York, working as a columnist for the ...
of the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' wrote, "The heart and soul and power of 'The Buddy Holly Story' is the uncanny, marrow-deep, robust, exhilarating, likable, superlative, overwhelmingly convincing portrayal by Gary Busey ... For once there is no lip-synching to someone else's voice, no feigning with the fingers to somebody else's strumming. Busey does it all himself, and it is one of those rare and stunning performances in which the person of the actor himself is totally lost to sight in his creation of someone else." Gary Arnold of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' wrote, "Gary Busey invests the title role with a personal charm so original and an emotional dedication so exhilarating that he seems to lift the material off its somewhat pedestrian feet." ''The Buddy Holly Story'' holds a 100% rating on
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
based on 30 reviews, with a
weighted average The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...
of 7.3/10. ''The New York Times'' placed the film on its ''Best 1000 Movies Ever'' list. Peggy Sue Gerrow Allison Rackham, to whom the song "Peggy Sue" was written, called the film "typical Hollywood, gobbledygook fantasy". Ex-Beatle
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...
wasn't positive about the film either. Being interviewed and involved in the production of director Richard Spence's documentary 'The Real Story of Buddy Holly', McCartney decided after seeing the film to make a more accurate account of what happened. In a ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' interview, executive producer Ed Cohen, director Steve Rash and producer Freddy Bauer defended inaccuracies in the movie, pointing out the budget of the movie was only two million dollars. "Whatever we put up there on the screen will be the truth", commented Bauer. "Ask moviegoers who invented the telephone. They'll tell you that
Don Ameche Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, repertory theatre, and vaudeville, he became a major radio star in the early 19 ...
did." According to ''Rolling Stone'', the three major complaints concerned the portrayal of Holly's family, the treatment of the Crickets and the omission of
Norman Petty Norman Petty (May 25, 1927 – August 15, 1984) was an American musician, record producer, publisher, and radio station owner. He is considered to be one of the founding fathers of early rock & roll. With Vi Ann Petty—his wife and vocalist—he ...
, Holly's producer.


Awards

The film won the
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
for Best Adaptation Score by
Joe Renzetti Joseph Renzetti is an American film composer and session musician. He scores for films and television, currently active in scoring indie films, he composes works for orchestra, chamber groups, and solo artists. Career Born in Philadelphia, Renz ...
. Busey was nominated for
Best Actor in a Leading Role The Academy Award for Best Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading ro ...
(losing to Jon Voigt for '' Coming Home''), and Tex Rudloff, Joel Fein, Curly Thirlwell and Willie D. Burton for
Best Sound The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...
(losing to
Richard Portman Richard Portman (April 2, 1934 – January 28, 2017) was an American sound engineer. He won an Academy Award for Best Sound and was nominated for ten more in the same category. He worked on more than 160 films between 1963 and 2004. Portman ...
, William McCaughey,
Aaron Rochin Aaron Rochin is an American audio engineering, sound engineer. He won an Academy Awards, Oscar for Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound and was nominated for eight more in the same category. Rochin's Oscar statuette was blemished, so ...
and Darin Knight for ''
The Deer Hunter ''The Deer Hunter'' is a 1978 American epic war drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino about a trio of Slavic-American steelworkers whose lives are upended by fighting in the Vietnam War. The soldiers are played by Robert De Niro ...
'').


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Buddy Holly Story, The 1970s biographical drama films 1978 films 1978 directorial debut films 1978 drama films American biographical drama films American rock music films Biographical films about musicians Columbia Pictures films Cultural depictions of Buddy Holly Films directed by Steve Rash Films that won the Best Original Score Academy Award Films set in Manhattan Films set in New York (state) Films set in Texas Films set in the 1950s Films scored by Joe Renzetti Musical films based on actual events 1970s English-language films 1970s American films English-language biographical drama films