The Cotton Club


2h 8m 1984

Brief Synopsis

Multiple tales of the loves and lives of musicians, tap dancers, singers, gangsters and their molls at Harlem's legendary jazz joint, "The Cotton Club."

Film Details

Also Known As
Cotton Club
MPAA Rating
Genre
Crime
Drama
Music
Musical
Period
Release Date
1984
Location
New York City, New York, USA

Technical Specs

Duration
2h 8m

Synopsis

Multiple tales of the loves and lives of musicians, tap dancers, singers, gangsters and their molls at Harlem's legendary jazz joint, "The Cotton Club."

Cast

Tom Signorelli

Bubba Gaines

Gregory Hines

Rima Vetter

Benny Clory

Rosalind Harris

Luther Fontaine

Julian Beck

Janet L Powell

Vody Najac

David Mcharris

Robin Harmon

Jackée Harry

Jennifer Grey

Cisco Drayton

George Hillman

Shirley Black-brown

Ralph Browne

Charles Young

Joe Dallesandro

Skip Cunningham

Tracey Bass

Sonya Hensley

Wendy Edmead

John Cafiso

Christopher Lewis

Tucker Smallwood

Gay Thomas Wilson

Joe Breedlove

Ed O'ross

Jacquelyn Bird

Zane Mark

Robert Earl Jones

Wynonna Smith

Jan Mickens

Damien Leake

Ninon Digiorgio

Henry Roberts

Ivery Wheeler

Giancarlo Esposito

Steve Cafiso

Steve Vignari

Charles Honi Coles

Leonard Termo

Bob Hoskins

Laurence Fishburne

Lydia Abarca

Ruthanna Graves

Thelma Carpenter

Jason Papalardo

Glen Witherow

Maurice Hines

Susan Meschner

Ruddy L Garner

Bruce Hubbard

Viewma Negromonte

Danielle Osborne

Gwen Verdon

Rick Washburn

James Brown

Lisa Jane Persky

Daria Hines

Julie Pars

Marc Coppola

Glenn Withrow

Ethel Beatty

Joe Lynn

Norma Jean Darden

Sandra Beall

John Ryan

Edward Rowan

Karen Wadkins

Sarita Allen

Paula Lynn

Anne Duquesnay

Henry Letang

Bill Graham

Bruce Macvittie

Susan Mechsner

Antonia Pettiford

Mario Van Peebles

Dayton Allen

Allen Garfield

Woody Strode

Mary Beth Durdock

James Russo

Tracey Ross

Kim Chan

Novella Nelson

Lonette Mckee

Kiki Shepard

Frederic Downs

Larry Marshall

Alexis Wilson

Sherry Cowart

Donald Williams

Dave Jackson

Diane Venora

Diane Lane

Bernard Manners

Gail Kendricks

Tom Waits

Nicolas Cage

Lester Brown

Valarie Pettiford

Richard Gere

Performer

Howard Sims

Karen Dibianco

Oscar Barnes

Jimmy Slide

Carla Earle

Renee Rodriquez

Demetrius Pena

Alice Anne Oakes

Christina Kumi Kimball

Terri Griffin

Sofia Coppola

Leslie Caldwell

Debbie Fitts

Harold Cromer

Ron Karabatsos

Alde Lewis

Patricia Letang

Brian Tarantina

James Remar

Edward Zang

Bill Cobbs

Vincent Jerosa

Gregory Rozakis

Bernard Marsh

Fred Gwynne

Delores Mcharris

Anne Palmer

George Cantero

Rony Clanton

Crew

Harry Akst

Song

Harold Arlen

Song

Louis Armstrong

Song

Claudia Asbury

Choreographer

Gene Austin

Song

James Austin

Sound

Nat D. Ayer

Song

Debra Bard

Assistant Editor

John Barry

Music

Priscilla Baskerville

Song Performer

Ethel Beatty

Song Performer

Richard Beggs

Sound

Tom Bellfort

Adr Editor

Roy Bergere

Song

Edward Beyer

Sound Editor

Albany Bigard

Song

Grace Blake

Production Supervisor

Leslie Bloom

Set Designer

Rube Bloom

Song

Gregory Bolton

Art Director

Al Brackman

Song

Conrad V Brink

Special Effects

Henry Bronchtein

Assistant Director

Harry Brooks

Song

A Seymour Brown

Song

Mark Burchard

Wardrobe

Jeanne Burns

Song

Bill Burton

Stunt Coordinator

Irving Caesar

Song

John Caglione Jr.

Makeup

Cab Calloway

Song

Milena Canonero

Costume Designer

Harry Carney

Song

David Carroll

Sound

David Chapman

Art Director

Sunny Clapp

Song

Grant Clarke

Song

Anthony Clavet

Consultant

Arlene Coffey

Wardrobe

Joe Coffey

Camera Operator

John Coles

Assistant Editor

Con Conrad

Song

Ralph Cooper

Consultant

Ralph Cooper

Consultant

J. Fred Coots

Song

Francis Ford Coppola

From Story

Francis Ford Coppola

Screenplay

Francis Ford Coppola

Story By

Celia D. Costas

Location Manager

Adgar Cowans

Photography

Alfred Craine

Wardrobe

Christopher Cronyn

Unit Production Manager

Joseph Cuervo

Makeup

Joseph Cusumano

Line Producer

Beverly Cycon

Wardrobe

Louis D'esposito

Assistant Director

Norma Jean Darden

Research And Content Consultant

Benny Davis

Song

Richard Dean

Makeup

Ed Dessisso

Location Manager

Lee Dichter

Sound

David Dumais

Wardrobe

Ann Egbert

Assistant Director

Duke Ellington

Song

Ernie Erdman

Song

Robert Evans

Producer

George Faison

Choreographer

Harriet Fidlow

Adr Editor

Dorothy Fields

Song

Paul Fitzmaurice

Assistant Director

C Romania Ford

Makeup

Milton Forman

Production Consultant

Dave Franklin

Song

George Gaines

Set Designer

Clarence Gaskill

Song

H Eugene Gifford

Song

Robert Girolami

Assistant Director

Stephen Goldblatt

Director Of Photography

Stephen Goldblatt

Dp/Cinematographer

David Golden

Unit Production Manager

Sydney Goldsmith

Song Performer

Irving Gordon

Song

Ken Goss

Key Grip

Lewis Gould

Assistant Director

Arlette Greenfield

Makeup

Michael Haley

Assistant Director

James F. Hanley

Song

Barry Harris

Camera Operator

Dorian Harris

Assistant Editor

James Haskins

From Story

James Haskins

Story By

Gregory Hines

Choreographer

Maurice Hines

Research And Content Consultant

Janet Hirshenson

Casting

John Hodge

Song

Norman Hollyn

Music Editor

Julie Hughes

Music

Julie Hughes

Casting

Meg Hunnewell

Unit Production Manager

Jack C. Jacobsen

Sound

Gordon Jacoby

Dialogue Coach

Jane Jenkins

Casting

Howard E. Johnson

Research And Content Consultant

Sy Johnson

Original Music

Sy Johnson

Music

Sy Johnson

Music Arranger

Tom Jung

Music

Gus Kahn

Song

Roger Wolfe Kahn

Song

Harriette Kanew

Production Coordinator

William J Kennedy

Story By

William J Kennedy

Screenplay

William J Kennedy

From Story

Nick Kenny

Song

Michael Kirchberger

Sound Editor

Ray Klages

Song

Ted Koehler

Song

Frances Kolar

Makeup

Helmy Kresa

Song

Kevin Lee

Sound Editor

Henry Letang

Choreographer

Sam Lewis

Song

Gaetano Lisi

Location Manager

Carroll Loveday

Song

Dyson Lovell

Executive Producer

Lynn Lewis Lovett

Script Supervisor

Robert Q. Lovett

Editor

Craig Lyman

Makeup

Ballard Macdonald

Song

Vic Magnotta

Stunt Coordinator

Barry Malkin

Executive Editor

Larry Marshall

Song Performer

Jimmy Mchugh

Song

Michael Meacham

Choreographer

Jack Meskill

Song

Joseph Meyer

Song

Billy Meyers

Song

Harold Michelson

Production

Bub Miley

Song

Charles Miller

Location Manager

Irving Mills

Song

Michael Minkler

Sound

Arthur Mitchell

Choreographer

Ronnie Mitchell

Assistant Director

Barry Moss

Casting

Barry Moss

Music

Kerry Orent

Post-Production Supervisor

Barrie M. Osborne

Line Producer

Edward V Padula

Production Consultant

Mitchell Parish

Song

Stan Parks

Special Effects Coordinator

Maceo Pinkard

Song

Lois Planco

Casting

Melissa Prophet

Associate Producer

Mario Puzo

Story By

Mario Puzo

From Story

Lillian Pyles

Production Supervisor

Lillian Pyles

Production Coordinator

Lyndell Quiyou

Hair

Jimmy Raitt

Props

Mark Rathaus

Sound Editor

Michael Rauch

Unit Production Manager

Andy Razaf

Song

Joseph Reidy

Assistant Director

Gretchen Rennell

Casting

Aletha Robinson

Song

J. Russel Robinson

Song

Fred Roos

Coproducer

Vincent Rose

Song

Barbara Rosenthal

Wardrobe

Amy Sayers

Assistant Director

Maurice Schell

Sound Editor

Elmer Scoebel

Song

Harry B. Smith

Song

Michael Smuin

Choreographer

Ted Snyder

Song

Sylvester Sprigato

Song

Melissa Stanton

Wardrobe

Sam Stept

Song

Michael L Stone

Camera Operator

Daniel R Suhart

Dialogue Coach

Ed Swayze

Song

Don Sweeney

Camera Operator

Richard Sylbert

Production Designer

Sylvio Tabet

Coproducer

Guy Tanno

Wardrobe

Doris Tauber

Song

Juan Tizol

Song

William Tracey

Song

Paul Trejo

Sound Editor

Warren Vache

Advisor

Percy Venable

Song

Fats Waller

Song

Frank Warshauer

Song

Ned Washington

Song

Zane Weiner

Music

Francis Wheeler

Song

Bob Wilber

Music

J Mayo Williams

Song

Al Woodbury

Original Music

Film Details

Also Known As
Cotton Club
MPAA Rating
Genre
Crime
Drama
Music
Musical
Period
Release Date
1984
Location
New York City, New York, USA

Technical Specs

Duration
2h 8m

Award Nominations

Best Art Direction

1984
George Gaines

Best Art Direction

1984
Richard Sylbert

Best Editing

1984

Articles

Gregory Hines, 1946-2003


Gregory Hines, the lithe, elegant entertainer who trilled audiences on stage, film and television, died of cancer on August 9 in Los Angeles. He was 57.

Born Gregory Oliver Hines on February 14, 1946, in New York City, he began taking dance lessons at age three and by the time he was six he and his brother Maurice were performing jazz tap at Harlem's Apollo Theater. By 1954, Hines was already on Broadway when he joined the cast of the Broadway musical The Girl in Pink Tights. He then spent the next 20 years perfecting the craft and art of tap dancing as he toured with his brother and father Maurice Sr. in a nightclub circuit act called "Hines, Hines and Dad", before he left in 1973 to form a rock band called Severance in Southern California.

Itching to put his dancing shoes on again, Hines made it back to New York a few years later and in 1978, scored his first Broadway success with Eubie, and earned a Tony nomination. With his vitality, charm and grace, Hines became one of the leading lights on Broadway for the next few years, as exemplified by two more Broadway hits in Comin' Uptown (1980) and Sophisticated Ladies (1981), for which he received two more Tony nominations for his performances.

His charismatic presence made him natural for films, and he notched his first film role as a last minute replacement for Richard Pryor in Mel Brooks' History of the World, Part I (1981), where he immediately displayed his sharp comic abilities. Other solid roles followed over the next decade: an unorthodox coroner in Michael Wadleigh's urban thriller Wolfen (1981); a nightclub dancer in Francis Ford Coppola's The Cotton Club (1984); an American defector to the Soviet Union in Taylor Hackford's overheated melodrama White Nights (1985); a wise-cracking cop in Peter Hyam's Running Scared (1986), and as the fast-talking con artist Goldy in Bill Duke's underrated A Rage in Harlem (1991).

He returned to Broadway in 1992 for his biggest triumph, a portrayal of Jelly Roll Morton, the famed jazz composer, in Jelly's Last Jam and earned a Tony Award in the process. A few more film appearances came in the '90's, most memorably in Forest Whitaker's Waiting to Exhale (1995), but Hines found a new lease on his career when he appeared on the small screen. He played a single father in a fine, if short-lived sitcom The Gregory Hines Show (1997-98); was popular as Ben Doucette, a love interest for Grace in the hugely popular show Will & Grace for two seasons (1999-2001); and received strong critical notice for his moving take as Bill "Bojangles" Robinson in the television film Bojangles (2001) that he also produced. His last televised appearance was in June 2002, when he co-hosted the Tony Awards with Bernadette Peters. In addition to his father and brother, he is survived by his fiancee Negrita Jayde; a daughter, Daria Hines; a son, Zach; a stepdaughter, Jessica Koslow; and a grandson.

by Michael T. Toole
Gregory Hines, 1946-2003

Gregory Hines, 1946-2003

Gregory Hines, the lithe, elegant entertainer who trilled audiences on stage, film and television, died of cancer on August 9 in Los Angeles. He was 57. Born Gregory Oliver Hines on February 14, 1946, in New York City, he began taking dance lessons at age three and by the time he was six he and his brother Maurice were performing jazz tap at Harlem's Apollo Theater. By 1954, Hines was already on Broadway when he joined the cast of the Broadway musical The Girl in Pink Tights. He then spent the next 20 years perfecting the craft and art of tap dancing as he toured with his brother and father Maurice Sr. in a nightclub circuit act called "Hines, Hines and Dad", before he left in 1973 to form a rock band called Severance in Southern California. Itching to put his dancing shoes on again, Hines made it back to New York a few years later and in 1978, scored his first Broadway success with Eubie, and earned a Tony nomination. With his vitality, charm and grace, Hines became one of the leading lights on Broadway for the next few years, as exemplified by two more Broadway hits in Comin' Uptown (1980) and Sophisticated Ladies (1981), for which he received two more Tony nominations for his performances. His charismatic presence made him natural for films, and he notched his first film role as a last minute replacement for Richard Pryor in Mel Brooks' History of the World, Part I (1981), where he immediately displayed his sharp comic abilities. Other solid roles followed over the next decade: an unorthodox coroner in Michael Wadleigh's urban thriller Wolfen (1981); a nightclub dancer in Francis Ford Coppola's The Cotton Club (1984); an American defector to the Soviet Union in Taylor Hackford's overheated melodrama White Nights (1985); a wise-cracking cop in Peter Hyam's Running Scared (1986), and as the fast-talking con artist Goldy in Bill Duke's underrated A Rage in Harlem (1991). He returned to Broadway in 1992 for his biggest triumph, a portrayal of Jelly Roll Morton, the famed jazz composer, in Jelly's Last Jam and earned a Tony Award in the process. A few more film appearances came in the '90's, most memorably in Forest Whitaker's Waiting to Exhale (1995), but Hines found a new lease on his career when he appeared on the small screen. He played a single father in a fine, if short-lived sitcom The Gregory Hines Show (1997-98); was popular as Ben Doucette, a love interest for Grace in the hugely popular show Will & Grace for two seasons (1999-2001); and received strong critical notice for his moving take as Bill "Bojangles" Robinson in the television film Bojangles (2001) that he also produced. His last televised appearance was in June 2002, when he co-hosted the Tony Awards with Bernadette Peters. In addition to his father and brother, he is survived by his fiancee Negrita Jayde; a daughter, Daria Hines; a son, Zach; a stepdaughter, Jessica Koslow; and a grandson. by Michael T. Toole

Quotes

Trivia

Miscellaneous Notes

Released in United States December 1984

Released in United States Winter December 1, 1984

Released in USA on video.

Completed shooting November 1984.

Released in United States December 1984

Released in United States Winter December 1, 1984