They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
They Shoot Horses, Don't They? is a 1969 American psychological drama film directed by Sydney Pollack, from a screenplay written by Robert E. Thompson and James Poe, based on Horace McCoy's 1935 novel. It stars Jane Fonda, Michael Sarrazin, Susannah York, Gig Young, Bonnie Bedelia, and Red Buttons. It focuses on a disparate group of individuals desperate to win a Depression-era dance marathon and an opportunistic emcee who urges them on.
Plot
Robert Syverton, a homeless man, recalls the events leading to an unstated crime. As a boy, he witnessed a horse who had broken its leg shot and put out of its misery. Years later, during the Great Depression, he wanders into a dance marathon that is about to begin in a shabby ballroom on the Santa Monica Pier. Couples are competing for a $1,500 cash prize and hoping to be spotted by Hollywood celebrities and talent scouts in the audience. Robert is recruited by Rocky, the contest's promoter and emcee, to be the partner of a world-weary, bitter young woman named Gloria Beatty after her previous partner is disqualified for bronchitis. Other contestants include retired sailor Harry Kline, emotionally fragile aspiring London actress Alice, her partner and aspiring actor Joel, impoverished farmer James, and James' pregnant wife Ruby.
Awards
Cast
- Al Lewis
- Allyn Ann McLerie
- Art Metrano
- Bonnie Bedelia
- Bruce Dern
- Cynthia Myers
- Felice Orlandi
- Gig Young
- Jacquelyn Hyde
- Jane Fonda
- Madge Kennedy
- Marilyn Hassett
- Mary Gregory
- Michael Conrad
- Michael Sarrazin
- Paul Mantee
- Philo McCullough
- Red Buttons
- Robert Fields
- Severn Darden
- Susannah York
- Tom McFadden