The Right Stuff (1983)
| Release Date | 21 October 1983 |
| Budget | $27,000,000 |
| US Box Office | $22,000,000 |
| Tagline | They were ordinary men and women who shared a common ambition and what they achieved together captured the imagination of the world [UK Theatrical] |
| Genre | Adventure, Drama, History |
| Country | USA |
| Filming Locations | California & Montgomery, Financial District, San Francisco, California, USA |
| Language | English |
| Sound Mix | 70 mm 6-Track, Dolby |
| Color | Color |
| Film Type | Feature |
| Film Class | Docudrama |
| Themes | Space Travel, Military Life, Underdogs |
| Tones | Irreverent, Sweeping, Quirky, Wry, Nostalgic, Intimate, Rousing |
| Tags | Astronaut, Aviation, Competition, Courage, Family, Media, Mission [quest], Nasa, Politician, Publicity, Space Exploration, Test Pilot, Training, Wife |
The Right Stuff is a 1983 American film adapted from Tom Wolfe's 1979 book The Right Stuff about the test pilots who were involved in high-speed aeronautical research at Edwards Air Force Base as well as those selected to be astronauts for Project Mercury, the United States' first attempt at manned spaceflight. The story contrasts the "Mercury Seven" and their families with pilots like Chuck Yeager, who was considered by many test pilots to be the best of them all, but was never selected as an astronaut. The Mercury Seven were Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, and Deke Slayton. In some aspects of the film, its makers undertook great efforts to make it historically accurate. In others, they took some artistic license, downplaying and sometimes even ridiculing the collective scientific and technical effort of the Mercury program, emphasizing instead the individual adventure and heroism of the test pilots and astronauts.
Cast and Crew
Cast
Charles Frank
Scott Carpenter
Mickey Crocker
Marge Slayton
Susan Kase
Rene Carpenter
Mittie Smith
Jo Schirra
Scott Beach
Chief Scientist
Jane Dornacker
Nurse Murch
Darryl Henriques
Life Reporter
Drew Letchworth
The Permanent Press Corps
Christopher P. Beale
The Permanent Press Corps
Richard Dupell
The Permanent Press Corps
William Hall
The Permanent Press Corps
John X. Heart
The Permanent Press Corps
Ed Holmes
The Permanent Press Corps
Jack Bruno Tate
The Permanent Press Corps
Edward Anhalt
Grand Designer
Mary Apick
Woman Reporter
Robert Beer
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Erik Bergmann
Eddie Hodges
Katherine Conklin
Woman TV Reporter
Maureen Coyne
Waitress
Tom Dahlgren
Bell Aircraft Executive
John Lion
Bell Aircraft Executive
Peggy Davis
Sally Rand
Robert Elross
Review Board President
Drew Eshelman
Assistant Scientist
Robert J. Geary
Game Show M.C.
Royce Grones
1st X-1 Pilot
Anthony Wallis
Australian Driver
Kaaren Lee
Young Widow
Sandy Kronemeyer
Cocoa Beach Girl
Frankie Di
Cocoa Beach Girl
Michael Pritchard
Texan
Ed Corbett
Texan
O-Lan Jones
Girl at Pancho's
Mark Todd
Astronaut Trainee
Allen Gebhardt
Astronaut Trainee
Gilbert Bazan
Spectator
Nikolai Bulganin
Himself - Viewing Parade for Gagarin
Nikita Khrushchev
Himself - Embracing Gagarin
Georgi Malenkov
Himself - Viewing Parade for Gagarin
James Mathers
Capt. Mills
Anastas Mikoyan
Himself - Viewing Parade for Gagarin
Mimi Sarkisian
New Mexico Nurse in Lobby
Tony Toscano
Reporter
Kliment Voroshilov
Himself - Viewing Parade for Gagarin
Director
Writer
Producer
James D. Brubaker
executive producer
Robert Chartoff
producer
Original Music
Cinematographer
Editor
Glenn Farr
-
Lisa Fruchtman
-
Tom Rolf
-
Stephen A. Rotter
-
Douglas Stewart
-
Casting Director
Lynn Stalmaster
-
Production Designer
Geoffrey Kirkland
-
Art Director
W. Stewart Campbell
-
Richard Lawrence
Peter R. Romero
Set Decorator
George R. Nelson
-
Jim Poynter
Makeup Department
Karen Bradley
makeup artist
Catherine Childers
hair stylist
Yvonne Curry
makeup artist
Bruce Geller
hair stylist
Pat Grover
hair stylist
Production Manager
James D. Brubaker
production manager
Ned Kopp
production manager: additional photography
Larry Powell
unit production manager: desert and aerial unit
David Whorf
unit production manager
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Nancy Giebink
second assistant director: additional unit
L. Dean Jones Jr.
second assistant director
Michael Looney
additional second assistant director
Sharon Mann
additional second assistant director
Ed Milkovich
first assistant director: desert and aerial unit
Charles Myers
first assistant director: additional unit, first assistant director
Art Department
James R. Allen
assistant property master
Thomas Anderson
labor foreman
Peter Bankins
lead set dresser
Steve Banks
additional set dresser
Tim Boxell
storyboard artist
Alan Covey Jr.
greensman
Dale Edward Cowart
drapery foreman
Paul Dal Porto
property master
Bruce Di Valerio
construction foreman
Cal DiValerio
supervising construction coordinator
Craig Edgar
set designer
Robert Evans
stand-by painter
Emily Ferry
supervising property master
Tom J. Furginson
lead set dresser
Gary Gutierrez
storyboard artist
Elizabeth Hamilton
paint coordinator
Dale Haugo
paint foreman
Donald E. Kerns
additional set dresser
Rich Larson
storyboard artist
Joel David Lawrence
set designer
Leo Loverro
construction foreman
Rick Moore
artist
Nick Navarro
set designer
Gene Rudolf
visual consultant
James D. Schwalm
construction foreman
Don Watson
drapery supervisor
Dwight Williams
construction coordinator
George Zimninsky
lead set dresser
William Boyd
construction foreman
Scott H. Campbell
assistant art director
Gerald Gates Jr.
paint foreman
Sound Department
C.J. Appel
adr editor
Sandina Bailo-Lape
dialogue and adr assistant
Tom Bellfort
adr assistant
Danny Benson
cable person
John Benson
sound effects editor
Mark Berger
supervising re-recording mixer
Jay Boekelheide
supervising sound editor
Todd Boekelheide
sound re-recording mixer
Karen Brocco
sound technician
Valerie Bryce
sound recordist
T.M. Christopher
sound effects assistant
Sukey Fontelieu
sound effects assistant
Vivien Hillgrove Gilliam
dialogue editor
Cynthia Haagens
assistant foley editor
Tim Holland
sound effects editor
Richard Hymns
supervising dialogue editor
Pat Jackson
sound effects editor
Mary Helen Leasman
changes assistant
David MacMillan
production sound mixer
Michael Magill
sound effects assistant
Robert Marty
sound recordist
Barbara McBane
dialogue editor
Marilyn McCoppen
dialogue assistant
David Parker
location and sound effects mixer
Diana Pellegrini
foley editor
Steve Powell
boom operator
E. Jeane Putnam
sound apprentice
Fred Runner
sound apprentice
Paige Sartorius
sound apprentice
Thomas Scott
sound re-recording mixer
Michael Silvers
dialogue assistant
Karen Spangenberg
dialogue assistant
Stephen Sutter
sound re-recording mix assistant
Randy Thom
sound re-recording mixer
Dennie Thorpe
foley artist
Christopher Weir
sound effects assistant
Karen G. Wilson
sound effects editor
Andy Wiskes
sound re-recording mixer
J. Michael Davis
sound sampler
Donald C. Rogers
technical director of sound
Ewa Sztompke
sound technician
Clive Taylor
sound recordist
Special Effects
Stan Parks
special effects foreman
Ken Pepiot
special effects supervisor
David Pier
special effects foreman
Rod P. Sharpe
technical engineering advisor
Visual Effects
Terry Lynn Allen
editorial coordinator: USFX
Peter Amundson
editorial coordinator: USFX
Stewart Barbee
effects cameraman: USFX
Jordan Belson
special visual creations
Leigh Blicher
editorial coordinator: USFX
Zac Bogart
motion control systems designer: USFX
Michael Bottero
key grip: USFX
Kris Boxell
art assistant: USFX
Bill Buttfield
modelmaker: USFX
David Carothers
modelmaker: USFX
Peter Daulton
first assistant cameraman: USFX
Don Dow
effects cameraman: USFX
John V. Fante
effects cameraman: USFX
Rick Fichter
effects cameraman: USFX
Whitney Green
production manager: USFX
William Groshelle
second assistant cameraman: USFX
Gary Gutierrez
supervisor special visual effects: USFX
Peter Hadres
key grip: USFX
Toby Heindel
second assistant cameraman: USFX
H. Kent Hendricks
photographic printer: USFX
Karl Herrmann
effects cameraman: USFX
Jan M. Heyneker
chief stage technician: USFX
Jena Holman
art supervisor: USFX
Jay Ignaszewski
chief stage technician: USFX
Rick Kerrigan
production administator: USFX
Greg Kimble
second assistant cameraman: USFX
Pete Kleinow
modelmaker: USFX
Dan Kuhn
key grip: USFX
Michael Lawler
effects cameraman: USFX
Frank Morelli
chief model designer: USFX
Deborah Morgan
second assistant cameraman: USFX
Thaine Morris
pyrotechnician: USFX
Earle Murphy
model shop supervisor: USFX
Bill Neil
effects cameraman: USFX
Jenny Oznowicz
editorial apprentice: USFX
Diana Pellegrini
editorial coordinator: USFX
Rick Perkins
mechanical designer: USFX
Gary Platek
technical researcher: USFX
Bruce Richardson
modelmaker: USFX
Martin Rosenberg
first assistant cameraman: USFX
Tom Rudduck
modelmaker: USFX
John Rynn
computer programmer: USFX
David Shwartz
modelmaker: USFX
Mark Stetson
chief model designer: USFX
Gordon Stout
engineering consultant: USFX
Chris Strohmeyer
key grip: USFX
Zuzana Swansea
modelmaker: USFX
Pat Turner
first assistant cameraman: USFX
Christine Whitney
assistant production administrator: USFX
Thomas Baker
main title graphics
Stunts
Rande DeLuca
parachute stunts
Buddy Joe Hooker
stunt coordinator
Clay Lacy
stunt pilot
Phil Pastuhov
parachute stunts
Art Scholl
stunt pilot
Joseph Leonard Svec
parachute stunts
B.J. Worth
parachute stunts
Camera and Electrical Department
Elizabeth Bailey
video assistant
Jim Beebe
aerial photographer
Maurice Beesley
electrician
Gary M. Brickley
grip
Hugh Byrne
best boy grip
Steve Cardellini
grip
Dave Childers
electrician
Ted Churchill
Steadicam operator
Ray De La Motte
additional camera operator
Craig Denault
camera operator
Alan R. Disler
first assistant camera
Stephen J. Gardner
best boy
Jeff Gershman
assistant camera: desert
Jeff Gilliam
gaffer
Girard A. Gill Jr.
grip
Ron Grover
still photographer
Jon Guterres
key grip
Gary Holt
supervising gaffer
Brad Jerrell
electrician
Louis Mahler
video technician
Harry Mathias
Steadicam operator
Stan McClain
assistant camera: aerial unit
Ned McClean
additional camera operator
Paul Murphey
video operator
Hiro Narita
additional camera operator
Dennis Pope
best boy grip
Medel Ramos
electrician
Art Scholl
aerial photographer
Tom Sindicich
grip
Christopher Squires
second assistant camera
Bill Bennett
aerial camera operator
Mark Ludwig
second assistant camera
Michael Maley
electrician
Casting Department
Ann Brebner
additional casting: San Francisco
Patricia De Oliveira
casting assistant
Gail Eisenstadt
casting assistant
Costume and Wardrobe Department
William Browder
costumer
Winnie D. Brown
costumer: women
Jill Maley
costumer
Monique Montgomery
promotion wardrobe coordinator
John Napolitano
costumer
James W. Tyson
costume supervisor
Editorial Department
Donah Bassett
negative cutter
Louis Benioff
first assistant editor
Susanna Blaustein
apprentice editor
Nicole Boris
editorial assistant
David Dresher
apprentice editor
Jack Garsha
color timer
Cliff Latimer
apprentice editor
Victor Livingston
first assistant editor
John Morris
apprentice editor
Sara Roberts
assistant editor
Bob Sarles
apprentice editor
Frank Simeone
apprentice editor
John Teton
editorial consultant
Jeff Watts
assistant editor
Jenny Weyman-Cockle
assistant editor
Robert Yano
apprentice editor
William Chartoff
apprentice editor
Music Department
Todd Boekelheide
composer: additional music
Susan R. Crutcher
source music editor
Vivien Hillgrove Gilliam
source music editor
Stephen A. Hope
music editor
Garth Hudson
composer: additional music
Forrest Patten
music researcher
Dan Wallin
scoring mixer
Angela Morley
orchestrator
Celia Weiner
music editor
Transportation Department
Ed Arter
transportation co-captain
Russell McEntyre
transportation coordinator
Bruce Richardson
transportation captain
Dan Riportella
transportation captain
Ed Wirth
transportation co-captain
Other Crew
Don Aites
military liaison officer: USCG
Joey Bacow
production assistant
Ted Bear
historical research
Steph Benseman
additional locations
Dale Benson
promotion consultant
Karen Bergman
stock footage researcher
Lynne Birdt
assistant production accountant
Gloria S. Borders
stock footage researcher
Kevin Breslin
production assistant
Dell Byrne
stock footage researcher
Christine Claycombe-Brooks
crowd promotion coordinator
Martha Cohen
production assistant
Janet Crosby
assistant: Mr. Winkler
Dan Curry
title designer
Patricia De Oliveira
assistant: Mr. Kaufman
Rory Enke
additional locations
Robert Evans Lowy
production assistant
Jonathan Fairbanks
production assistant
Karen Frerichs
assistant: Mr. Kaufman
Tom Gray
unit publicist
Royce Grones
military liaison officer: USAF
Richard P. Hallion
historical research
Bill Hansard Jr.
process coordinator
Donald Hansard Sr.
process coordinator
Larry Heflin
stock footage researcher
Diane Jackson
production secretary
Peter Kaufman
assistant: Mr. Kaufman
Howard Kosters
military liaison officer: USAF
Major Nancy Laluntas
military liaison officer: USMC
Pixie Larson
military liaison officer: USN
JoAnn May-Pavey
production coordinator
Michael O'Donnell
craft service
Nancy Oleko
historical research
Barbara Parker
assistant: Mr. Kaufman
Michael Polaire
location manager
Patrick Ranahan
additional locations
Lawrence G. Robinson
process supervisor
Susan Roether
production secretary
Art Schaeffer
production accountant
Lori Sussman
assistant: Mr. Chartoff
Heinrich Thueringer
military liaison officer: German Air Force
Alice Tompkins
script supervisor
Dave Wagner
military liaison officer: USA
Diana Wells
production secretary
Duncan Wilmore
technical advisor
Peter Greenwood
australian footage consultant
Wayne Klein
security officer
Bill McCamey
stage set constructor
Thanks
Arthur Baliantz
special thanks
Wallis Nicita
special thanks
Production Company
Ladd Company, The
-
Distributor
Ladd Company, The
Warner Bros. Pictures
American Broadcasting Company (ABC)
Steward
Varus Video
Warner Bros.
-
Warner Home Video
, ,
Warner Home Vídeo
,
Special Effects
Colossal Pictures
USFX
Miscellaneous
Cinematic Company
additional opticals
Clay Lacy Aviation
aerial photography
Du Art Film Laboratories
additional opticals
Modern Film Effects
titles and opticals
Northern California Casting
extras casting
Pacific Title
additional opticals
Rockwell International Corporation
technical assistance
Tallmantz Aviation
aerial photography
Dolby Laboratories
sound post-production
NORCAL Casting
extras casting
Saul Zaentz Film Center
sound post-production services, sound re-recording, re-recording facilities
Toni Howard & Associates
casting
Related Lists
Navigation Boxes
Films directed by Philip Kaufman
Fearless Frank (1967)
Henry & June (1990)
Quills (2000)
Rising Sun (1993)
The Right Stuff
The Wanderers (1979)
The White Dawn (1974)
Twisted (2004)
Works by Tom Wolfe
The Bonfire of the Vanities (1990)
The Last American Hero (1973)
The Right Stuff
