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members of that select cinematic breed of
American independent professionals. Ezra Sacks' attenuated script, which alternates between episodes of jovial high jinks and moments of melancholy self-indulgence, fails to acknowledge the practical implications of this premise (namely that, without advertising, these 'creative' broadcasters would be out of work) and instead makes the army salesman a ludicrously over-drawn figure of fun and Regis Lamar a sycophantic yes-man."
284:
specified in the advertising contract. Rather than comply, Jeff quits his job. All of the remaining DJs decide to take control of the station in a lock-in/sit-in/protest. They get listeners to gather in the street outside the station as a sort of protest while the DJs play music without any commercials.
529:
gave the film 1.5 stars out of 4 and found "little reason to care" about the plot, as the sales manager "is a caricature that belongs on a TV variety show" and the "miserable deejays... do their best to make you want to switch stations. Unfortunately, you can't switch stations in a movie theater. All
507:
wrote that the film "turns into a preposterously self-serving variation on 1960s' themes" and that the central problem in the plot "is certainly a real one, for rock radio stations everywhere. But Ezra Sacks's screenplay manages, by taking this crisis so very, very seriously, not to take it seriously
291:
The battle is resolved when Dugan finds himself fighting a policeman outside on an overhang. Jeff saves the policeman from falling off and decides that fighting is the wrong thing to do. He calms the crowd and announces that the DJs are coming out. Unknown to him, company owner Carl
Billings has been
287:
Jeff wakes up the next morning to hear the DJs take control of the station. The crowd is already present when he arrives at the station. The DJs lift him up to the second storey with a fire hose as they have already barricaded the front doors. The lock-in lasts only until the police get an injunction
279:
Q-SKY program director and morning DJ Jeff Dugan builds a large fanbase by assembling a group of charismatic on-air personalities playing popular rock and roll. He soon finds that corporate management expects Jeff to use the station's position atop the ratings to sell more advertising time, and does
552:
wrote that the movie's central premise rests on the idea "that commercial, pop-music radio stations were not primarily created to generate advertising revenue, and that the people who put on the records and ad-lib between the jingles are folk heroes, free from the exigencies of the business world,
489:
participated in the making of the film as executive producer, but he disowned it before release and asked that his name be removed from the credits, a request which
Universal granted. Azoff said the film was "not an authentic representation of the music business" and that the studio reneged on its
405:
The story unfolds across a background of concerts, broadcast music, appearances by various rock stars, and public appearances by the station's DJs. A minor sub-theme to the film is the competition between QSKY and another area radio station, KLAX. The major event of that sub-theme occurs when Jeff
283:
The new sales manager, Regis Lamar, presents him with the chance to advertise for the U.S. Army using a series of cheesy radio ads. When Jeff refuses to endorse the contract, Regis takes the issue to upper management. Jeff is then ordered to run the ads as provided by the Army and on the schedule
609:
asserts that the sitcom was already in development when the film came out. He also states that he was "scared to death" when the film came out, afraid that it would eclipse the CBS sitcom, which made its debut in
September 1978. Wilson was relieved when
29:
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watching from the crowd as the events unfolded. Billings steps forward and insists that the DJs stay in the station, fires his management staff responsible for the advertising conflict, and then joins the DJs inside the station.
514:
called the film "the modern equivalent of the 1930s newspaper film, all break-neck dialog, quirky happenstances and behind-the-scenes drama transposed to a 1970s rock radio station. Unlike such classics as the original
288:
to remove the staff. A tow truck rips off the front doors and the police enter the building. The DJs battle back by using a firehose and throwing tapes and other office stationery at the police.
846:
482:
were featured on the
Platinum-plus soundtrack album. It was the first film to feature Queen's music on its soundtrack; as of 2020 their songs had since appeared in nearly 100 other movies.
438:
as Laura Coe, who takes over Doc's midday slot; and Tom Tarpey as new sales manager Regis Lamar, the bane of the disc jockeys' existence. In addition, the film includes live appearances by
652:
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that is being sponsored by a competing radio station. Another minor sub-theme is the ongoing task of massaging egos of the various DJs to keep them happy and on the air.
561:
magazine considered the music heavily biased towards musicians who had been managed by Irving Azoff, who would become the head of the studio's then-corporate sibling
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panned the film as "a shallow attempt at rabble-rousing comedy" which "flounders in smarmy virtue" and "tries to be hip in all the worst ways." John Pym of
672:
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declared it "Fairly
Mediocre" and "such claptrap silliness that only the tender in years and soft in mind are apt to be enraptured." Gary Arnold of
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and originally released to theaters in the spring of 1978. The film performed poorly at the box office, but its soundtrack was a
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as "Doc
Holiday", the midday DJ with the lowest ratings on the station who is eventually let go after the survey period;
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Despite the poor performance of the film at the box office, the soundtrack sold over 1 million records.
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519:,' however, this Universal release goes nowhere with a potentially-fascinating set of plot elements."
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appears in his feature film debut as libidinous, egotistical DJ Eric Swan. Rounding out the cast are
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promise to allow him creative control over it, particularly regarding selections of music.
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808:(May 22, 1978). "'FM' is radio that should be heard, but probably not seen".
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Knoedelseder Jr., William K. "A Rock/Film
Honeymoon in Splitsville".
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in his feature film debut. The screenplay was written by Ezra Sacks.
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and the fact that their respective characters were both based upon
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based on 10 reviews and was not successful at the box office.
708:"Once 'Secondary' Income Now 'Primary' In Production".
585:. The physical resemblance between Michael Brandon and
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performed the title theme, which became a sizable hit.
601:may have contributed to this speculation. However,
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828:(April 28, 1978). "Turning the Tables on 'FM'".
280:so with the aid of a newly-hired sales manager.
847:"Rabble-Rousing Disc Jockeys on the 'FM' Dial"
726:"Movies featuring Queen in their soundtracks"
8:
430:as "Mother", the 40-something nighttime DJ;
575:Some reference books claim that the sitcom
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928:"Deaths", Billboard (December 6, 1997):64.
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18:
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653:Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical
406:arranges to broadcast a live concert by
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220:film about internal conflicts at an FM
891:. New York: Random House. p. 590.
614:came and went from theaters quickly.
565:five years after the film's release.
7:
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701:
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271:, selling over one million records.
1079:English-language comedy-drama films
889:The New Rolling Stone Record Guide
14:
568:The film holds a score of 20% on
1049:Films directed by John A. Alonzo
866:Pym, John (October 1978). "FM".
787:"Screen: Mr. Smith Goes to L.A."
446:along with live performances by
845:Arnold, Gary (April 29, 1978).
1:
344:Jay Fenichel as Bobby Douglas
1059:1978 directorial debut films
1034:1970s English-language films
960:AFI Catalog of Feature Films
771:. pp. 1, 65 (Calendar).
678:AFI Catalog of Feature Films
252:with special appearances by
1024:American comedy-drama films
16:1978 film by John A. Alonzo
1095:
754:. May 3, 1978. p. 27.
714:. May 31, 1978. p. 4.
621:
1029:American rock music films
869:The Monthly Film Bulletin
549:The Monthly Film Bulletin
485:Record company executive
365:Tom Tarpey as Regis Lamar
263:The film was produced by
26:
1074:Universal Pictures films
1054:Films set in Los Angeles
1044:Films about radio people
814:. p. 4 (Section 4).
161:April 28, 1978
1019:1978 comedy-drama films
683:American Film Institute
269:Platinum-certified disc
1064:Workplace comedy films
834:. p. 1 (Part IV).
530:you can do is leave."
634:FM (No Static at All)
597:programming director
323:as Prince of Darkness
33:Original movie poster
1069:1970s American films
887:Marsh, Dave (1982).
748:"Film Reviews: FM".
852:The Washington Post
543:The Washington Post
216:is a 1978 American
972:TCM Movie Database
791:The New York Times
785:(April 28, 1978).
578:WKRP in Cincinnati
504:The New York Times
362:as Albert Driscoll
265:Universal Pictures
147:Universal Pictures
1039:Films about radio
831:Los Angeles Times
826:Champlin, Charles
768:Los Angeles Times
537:Los Angeles Times
350:as Dolores Deluxe
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794:. p. C12.
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673:"FM - Details"
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622:Main article:
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448:Linda Ronstadt
444:REO Speedwagon
428:Eileen Brennan
418:Cleavon Little
408:Linda Ronstadt
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242:Cleavon Little
234:Eileen Brennan
226:John A. Alonzo
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395:as Themselves
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686:. Retrieved
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649:Grammy Award
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499:Janet Maslin
497:
487:Irving Azoff
484:
464:James Taylor
436:Cassie Yates
421:
412:
404:
371:as Jack Rapp
356:as Lt. Reach
348:Brenda Venus
339:Norman Lloyd
335:as Laura Coe
333:Cassie Yates
329:as Eric Swan
290:
286:
282:
278:
262:
250:Cassie Yates
224:directed by
218:comedy drama
212:
211:
210:
177:Running time
154:Release date
134:Jeff Gourson
97:Cassie Yates
60:Rand Holston
607:Hugh Wilson
589:lead actor
563:MCA Records
521:Gene Siskel
432:Alex Karras
414:Martin Mull
354:James Keach
327:Martin Mull
315:Alex Karras
246:Martin Mull
238:Alex Karras
205:$ 2 million
181:104 minutes
119:David Myers
92:Martin Mull
82:Alex Karras
57:Produced by
39:Directed by
1014:1978 films
1008:Categories
983:Letterboxd
659:References
638:Al Schmitt
630:Steely Dan
618:Soundtrack
591:Gary Sandy
517:Front Page
476:Billy Joel
460:The Eagles
456:Steely Dan
426:in 1971);
401:Production
389:as himself
383:as himself
377:as herself
165:1978-04-28
52:Ezra Sacks
49:Written by
508:at all."
494:Reception
468:Bob Seger
440:Tom Petty
387:Tom Petty
360:Joe Smith
311:as Mother
124:Edited by
999:AllMovie
194:Language
65:Starring
970:at the
957:at the
914:May 10,
751:Variety
711:Variety
688:May 10,
534:of the
523:of the
511:Variety
197:English
186:Country
163: (
478:, and
202:Budget
480:Queen
948:IMDb
916:2019
903:"FM"
731:IMDb
690:2019
651:for
646:1979
644:the
640:and
632:'s "
603:WKRP
595:KMET
587:WKRP
450:and
442:and
296:Cast
275:Plot
256:and
248:and
997:at
981:at
946:at
501:of
1010::
994:FM
978:FM
967:FM
954:FM
943:FM
905:.
874:45
872:.
849:.
740:^
728:.
698:^
681:.
675:.
655:.
612:FM
583:FM
474:,
470:,
466:,
462:,
454:.
244:,
240:,
236:,
232:,
213:FM
22:FM
918:.
734:.
692:.
515:'
167:)
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