The Entertainer is a 1957 play by John Osborne, made into a film in 1960, which told the story of a failing third-rate music hall stage performer who tried to keep his career going even as his personal life fell apart.
The story is set against the backdrop of the dying music hall tradition, and this has usually been seen as symbolic of Britain's general post-war decline, its loss of its Empire, its power, and its cultural confidence and identity.
The film starred Laurence Olivier, Brenda De Banzie, Roger Livesey, Joan Plowright, Alan Bates, Daniel Massey, Thora Hird and Albert Finney. The movie was adapted by Nigel Kneale and John Osborne from Osborne's play, and was directed by Tony Richardson. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Laurence Olivier). It was filmed on location in the Lancashire seaside town of Morecambe.
Archie Rice, a pathetic music hall comic, plagued by debts, manipulates those around him in a defiant and selfish attempt to survive against improbable odds. He drinks, makes crude philosophical jokes about sex and politics and humiliates his lamenting, gin-soaked wife. Archie lures his father, Billy Rice, out of retirement for a benefit performance which will ultimately bring financial aid to Archie and his impractical investments. Written by alfiehitchie
Needing extras with short haircuts to reflect the period, the producers recruited from nearby military bases.
