Robert Butler’s NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER is not what the title makes it sound like.
It sounds like some kind of bizarro New York neo-noir fairytale, like STREETS OF FIRE (1984) or AFTER HOURS (1985), but it’s far more grounded than that: An ex-cop (James Brolin)’s daughter (Abby Bluestone) is kidnapped by a troubled New Yorker with a grudge against the developers who razed the Bronx neighborhood where he grew up. Problem is, that guy? The Juggler (Cliff Gorman)? He went and grabbed the wrong guy’s little girl!
Anyway, absolutely zero juggling takes place in its 100-odd minutes. Instead, it’s a fascinating display of the Big Apple at the end of the ‘70s — an odyssey from Central Park to the South Bronx — replete with mouthy cabbies (Mandy Patinkin), roving gangs in flamboyant fits, Dan Hedaya with a shotgun, porno peep shows, harried lieutenants, violent gentrification, and virulent racism.
Join us on our journey across DA GREATEST CITY ON OITH as we discuss the simple joys of a simple protagonist, how much sympathy we can really have for someone like The Juggler, and then end up talking about juggalos (of course).
References:
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Show art by Emily Csuy. Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Outro music by Seawind from the NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER end credits.
Timestamps
0:00 - Episode 355: NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER (1980)
4:22 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary
11:38 - James Brolin as Sean Boyd
16:57 - Mostly a movie about New York
35:11 - The NYC on display in the frenetic chase scene
43:23 - Sympathy for the Juggler
1:08:15 - The Junk Drawer
1:16:00 - To All the Loves We’ve Tried Before: 1980
1:22:34 - Cody’s Noteys: Night of the Juggalo (juggalo-adjacent trivia)
