Philip Kaufman’s film The Right Stuff is widely regarded as one of the best movies of the 1980s, one of the most quintessentially American, and a gold mine of quotable moments (cue “Hey, Ridley, got any Beemans?”). But like John Glenn orbiting the planet, Kaufman’s epic had to circle the pantheon many times before splashdown. It was adapted from a bestseller by Tom Wolfe, a rare rockstar-famous writer, and produced by Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff, who oversaw the Rocky series and Raging Bull; however, Kaufman’s opus about test pilots, astronauts, and their partners came and went from theaters, receiving mixed reviews from critics and earning $21 million in ticket sales against a $27 million budget. Read Philip Kaufman’s thoughts on the film fibs, demons, and labia that made The Right Stuff just right. |
