Tootsie - wikipedia Tootsie Not to be confused with Tootsi or Tutsi. For the candy, see Tootsie Rolls. For the American candy manufacturer, see Tootsie Roll Industries. Tootsie Theatrical release poster Directed by Sydney Pollack Produced by Charles Evans Sydney Pollack Dick Richards Ronald L. Schwary Screenplay by Larry Gelbart Murray Schisgal Barry Levinson ( uncredited ) Elaine May ( uncredited ) Story by Don McGuire Larry Gelbart Starring Dustin Hoffman Jessica Lange Teri Garr Dabney Coleman Charles Durning Music by Dave Grusin Cinematography Owen Roizman Edited by Fredric Steinkamp William Steinkamp Production company Mirage Enterprises Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release date December 17, 1982 ( 1982 - 12 - 17 ) Running time 116 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $21 million Box office $177.2 million Tootsie is a 1982 American comedy film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Dustin Hoffman, with a supporting cast that includes Bill Murray, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, Charles Durning, Geena Davis ( in her acting debut ), and Doris Belack. The film tells the story of a talented but volatile actor whose reputation for being difficult forces him to adopt a new identity as a woman in order to land a job. The film was adapted by Larry Gelbart, Barry Levinson ( uncredited ), Elaine May ( uncredited ) and Murray Schisgal from the story by Gelbart and Don McGuire. The film was a major critical and financial success, the second most profitable film of 1982, and was nominated for ten Academy Awards including Best Picture ; Lange was the only winner, for Best Supporting Actress. In 1998, the Library of Congress deemed the film `` culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant '' and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry. The theme song, `` It Might Be You '', was performed by Stephen Bishop, with music by Dave Grusin and lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman. It was a Top 40 hit in the U.S. and hit No. 1 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 4 Reception 4.1 Box office 4.2 Critical response 4.3 Accolades 5 Musical adaptation 6 Home media 7 See also 8 References 9 External links Plot Michael Dorsey is a respected but perfectionist, pedantic actor. Nobody in New York wants to hire him because he is difficult to work with. According to his long - suffering agent George Fields, Michael 's attention to detail and difficult reputation led a commercial he worked on to run significantly over-schedule, because the idea of a tomato sitting down was `` illogical '' to him. After many months without a job, Michael hears of an opening on the popular daytime soap opera Southwest General from his friend and acting student Sandy Lester, who tries out for the role of hospital administrator Emily Kimberly, but does n't get it. In desperation, and as a result of his agent telling him that `` no one will hire you '', he dresses as a woman, auditions as `` Dorothy Michaels '' and gets the part. Michael takes the job as a way to raise $8,000 to produce a play, written by his roommate Jeff Slater, and to star Sandy, titled Return to Love Canal. Michael plays his character as a feisty, feminist administrator, which surprises the other actors and crew who expected Emily to be ( as written ) another swooning female in the plot. His character quickly becomes a television sensation. When Sandy catches Michael in her bedroom half undressed because he wanted to try on her clothes in order to get more ideas for Dorothy 's outfits, he covers up by professing he wants to have sex with her. They have sex despite his better judgment about her self - esteem issues. Michael believes Sandy is too emotionally fragile to handle the truth about him winning the part, especially after noticing her strong resentment of Dorothy. Their relationship, combined with his deception, complicates his now - busy schedule. Exacerbating matters further, he is attracted to one of his co-stars, Julie Nichols, a single mother in an unhealthy relationship with the show 's amoral, sexist director, Ron Carlisle. At a party, when Michael ( as himself ) approaches Julie with a pick - up line that she had previously told Dorothy she would be receptive towards, she throws a drink in his face. Later, as Dorothy, when he makes tentative advances, Julie -- having just ended her relationship with Ron per Dorothy 's advice -- confesses that she has feelings about her which confuse her, but is not emotionally ready to be in a romantic relationship with a woman and she is worried that she might have led Dorothy on. Meanwhile, Dorothy has her own admirers to contend with : older cast member John Van Horn and Julie 's widowed father Les. Les proposes marriage, insisting Michael / Dorothy `` think about it '' before answering ; he leaves immediately and returns home to find co-star John, who almost forces himself on Dorothy until Jeff walks in on them. John apologizes for intruding and leaves. The tipping point comes when, due to Dorothy 's popularity, the show 's producers want to extend her contract for another year. Michael finds a clever way to extricate himself. When the cast is forced to perform the show live, he improvises a grand speech on camera, pulls off his wig and reveals that he is actually the character 's twin brother who took her place to avenge her. Sandy and Les, who are all watching at home, react with the same level of shock as the cast and crew of the show. The one exception is Jeff, who was aware of his roommate 's `` dual role '' and remarks, `` That is one nutty hospital ! '' The revelation allows everybody a more - or-less graceful way out. Julie, however, is so outraged that she slugs him in the stomach in front of the cast once the cameras have stopped rolling before storming off. Some weeks later, Michael is moving forward with producing Jeff 's play. He awkwardly makes peace with Les in a bar, and Les shows tentative support for Michael 's attraction to Julie. Later, Michael waits for Julie outside the studio. Julie resists talking but finally admits she misses Dorothy. Michael confesses, `` I was a better man with you as a woman than I ever was with a woman as a man. '' At that, she forgives him and they walk off, Julie asking him to lend her a dress. Cast Dustin Hoffman as Michael Dorsey / Dorothy Michaels Jessica Lange as Julie Nichols / Nurse Charles Teri Garr as Sandra `` Sandy '' Lester Dabney Coleman as Ron Carlisle, The Soap Opera Director Bill Murray as Jeff Slater, Michael 's Roommate Charles Durning as Leslie `` Les '' Nichols, Julie 's Father Sydney Pollack as George Fields, Michael 's Talent Agent George Gaynes as John Van - Horn / Dr. Medford Brewster Geena Davis as April Page Doris Belack as Rita Marshall Lynne Thigpen as Jo Estelle Getty as The Middle Aged Woman Willy Switkes as The Man at the Taxi - Cab Tobin Bell as The Waiter ( uncredited ) Production In the 1970s, fashion company executive Charles Evans decided to get into movie - making. It was an industry which his brother, Robert Evans, was successful in as an actor, producer, and studio executive. Evans told the Los Angeles Times in 1995 that he got into producing `` because I enjoy movies very much. I have the time to do it. And I believe if done wisely, it can be a profitable business. '' His first foray into film production was a massive success. Playwright Don McGuire had written a play in the early 1970s about an unemployed male actor who cross-dresses in order to get jobs. Titled Would I Lie to You ?, the play was shopped around Hollywood for several years until it came to the attention of comedian and actor Buddy Hackett in 1978. Hackett, interested in playing the role of the talent agent, showed the script to Evans. Evans purchased an option on the play. ( Delays in the film 's production forced Evans to renew the option once or twice. ) During 1979, Evans co-wrote a screenplay based on the play with director Dick Richards and screenwriter Bob Kaufman. A few months into the writing process, Richards showed it to actor Dustin Hoffman, his partner in a company which bought and developed properties for development into films, but Hoffman wanted complete creative control, and Evans agreed to remove himself from screenwriting tasks. Instead, Evans became a producer on the film, which was renamed Tootsie. Before Hoffman officially got involved, his role was previously offered to Peter Sellers and Michael Caine. The film remained in development for an additional year as producers waited on a revised script. As pre-production began, the film ran into additional delays when Richards left the role of director due to `` creative differences ''. He assumed the role of producer instead, being replaced as director by Hal Ashby. Ashby was subsequently forced to leave the project by Columbia Pictures because of the threat of legal action if his post-production commitments on Lookin ' to Get Out were not fulfilled. In November 1981, Sydney Pollack signed on to the film as both director and producer as per the suggestion of Columbia. The idea of having director Sydney Pollack play Hoffman 's agent, George Fields, was Hoffman 's. Originally the role was written for, and to be played by, Dabney Coleman. Pollack initially resisted the idea, but Hoffman eventually convinced him to take the role ; it was Pollack 's first acting work in years. Afterwards, Pollack still wanted to keep Coleman on board, and recast him, as the sexist, arrogant soap opera director Ron Carlisle. To prepare for his role, Hoffman watched the film La Cage aux Folles several times. He also visited the set of General Hospital for research, and conducted extensive make - up tests. In an interview for the American Film Institute, Hoffman said that he was shocked that although he could be made - up to appear as a credible woman, he would never be a beautiful one. He said that he had an epiphany when he realized that although he found this woman interesting, he would not have spoken to her at a party because she was not beautiful and that as a result he had missed out on many conversations with interesting women. He concluded that he had never regarded Tootsie as a comedy. Scenes set in the New York City Russian Tea Room were filmed in the actual restaurant, with additional scenes shot at Central Park and in front of Bloomingdale 's. Scenes were also filmed in Hurley, New York as well as at the National Video Studios in New York City. Reception Box Office Its opening weekend gross in the United States was $5,540,470. Its final gross in the United States was $177,200,000, making it the second - highest - grossing movie of 1982 after E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Box Office Mojo estimates that the film sold over 56.9 million tickets in the US. Critical response Roger Ebert praised the film, giving it 4 out of 4 stars and observing : Tootsie is the kind of Movie with a capital M that they used to make in the 1940s, when they were n't afraid to mix up absurdity with seriousness, social comment with farce, and a little heartfelt tenderness right in there with the laughs. This movie gets you coming and going... The movie also manages to make some lighthearted but well - aimed observations about sexism. It also pokes satirical fun at soap operas, New York show business agents and the Manhattan social pecking order. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an 89 % approval rating, based on 46 reviews, with the consensus ; `` Tootsie does n't squander its high - concept comedy premise with fine dialogue and sympathetic treatment of the characters ''. Accolades The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards ; Jessica Lange was the only winner, for Best Supporting Actress. The other nominations were : Best Picture : Sydney Pollack and Dick Richards Best Actor : Dustin Hoffman Best Supporting Actress : Teri Garr Best Director : Sydney Pollack Best Original Screenplay : Larry Gelbart, Murray Schisgal and Don McGuire Best Original Song : Dave Grusin, Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman for `` It Might Be You '' Best Sound : Arthur Piantadosi, Les Fresholtz, Dick Alexander and Les Lazarowitz Best Cinematography : Owen Roizman Best Film Editing : Fredric Steinkamp and William Steinkamp Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture -- Musical or Comedy ( won ) Best Director : Sydney Pollack Best Actor -- Motion Picture Musical or Comedy : Dustin Hoffman ( won ) Best Supporting Actress -- Motion Picture : Jessica Lange ( won ) Best Screenplay : Larry Gelbart & Murray Schisgal In 2011, ABC aired a primetime special, Best in Film : The Greatest Movies of Our Time, that counted down the best movies chosen by fans based on results of a poll conducted by both ABC and People Weekly Magazine. Tootsie was selected as the No. 5 Best Comedy. The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists : 1998 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movies -- # 62 2000 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Laughs -- # 2 2004 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Songs : `` It Might Be You '' -- Nominated 2005 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes : Rita : `` I 'd like to make her look a little more attractive. How far can you pull back ? '' Cameraman : `` How do you feel about Cleveland ? '' -- Nominated 2007 : AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movies ( 10th Anniversary Edition ) -- # 69 A 2016 Indian Tamil - language film, Remo was inspired by Tootsie. Musical adaptation Main article : Tootsie ( musical ) A stage musical of the movie is expected to premiere at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago from September 11 to October 14, 2018 before opening on Broadway in the spring of 2019. The musical will have music and lyrics by David Yazbek ; Robert Horn will write the book ; Denis Jones will choreograph and Scott Ellis will direct. Santino Fontana will star as Michael Dorsey. He will be joined by Lilli Cooper as Julie Nichols, Sarah Stiles as Sandy Lester, John Behlmann as Max Van Horn, Andy Grotelueschen as Jeff Slater, Julie Halston as Rita Mallory, Tony winner Michael McGrath as Stan Fields and Tony nominee Reg Rogers as Ron Carlisle. Home Media This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( July 2018 ) The film was first released on CED Videodisc in 1983, on VHS and Betamax videocassettes by RCA / Columbia Pictures Home Video in 1985, and on DVD in 2001. These releases were distributed by Columbia Tristar Home Video. The film was also released by The Criterion Collection in a LaserDisc edition in 1992. A special 25th Anniversary edition DVD, released by Sony Pictures, arrived in 2008. In the high - definition era, the film was released on the visually superior Blu - ray Disc format in 2013, albeit at this point in time it was only distributed in selected international territories such as Germany and Japan. The film was released on Blu - ray and DVD as part of The Criterion Collection on December 16, 2014. See also Cross-dressing in film and television List of highest - grossing films in Canada and the United States References ^ Jump up to : `` Tootsie ( 1982 ) > Summary > Production Budget > Domestic Total Gross ''. Box Office Mojo. IMDb. boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 2012 - 08 - 31. Jump up ^ `` Willy Switkes, character actor, dies at 83 ''. Entertainment Weekly. 2013 - 03 - 11. Retrieved 2013 - 03 - 22. Jump up ^ Eller, Claudia. `` Real Key Is How Goldwyn Is Treated. '' Los Angeles Times. July 28, 1995. ^ Jump up to : Cook, Philip S. ; Gomery, Douglas ; and Lichty, Lawrence Wilson ( 1989 ) American Media : The Wilson Quarterly Reader. Washington, D.C. : Wilson Center Press, p. 95, ISBN 0943875102. Jump up ^ Thompson, Kristin ( 2001 ) Storytelling in the New Hollywood : Understanding Classical Narrative Technique. 2nd ed. Cambridge, Massachusetts : Harvard University Press, p. 75, ISBN 0674010639. Jump up ^ Evans, Bradford ( 31 January 2013 ). `` The Lost Roles of Peter Sellers ''. Splitsider. Retrieved 15 August 2015. Jump up ^ `` Marilyn Beck 's Hollywood : Angie Dickinson bares all for ' Dressed to Kill role ''. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. July 25, 1980. p. 3. Retrieved September 30, 2013. Jump up ^ Blowen, Michael ( December 12, 1982 ). `` Dustin Hoffman tells why he was tough about ' Tootsie ' ''. The Boston Globe. Retrieved September 30, 2013. Jump up ^ Dawson, Nick ( 2011 ). Being Hal Ashby : Life of a Hollywood Rebel. Lexington, Kentucky : University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0813134633. Jump up ^ Dworkin, Susan ( 2012 ). Making Tootsie : A Film Study with Dustin Hoffman and Sydney Pollack. Newmarket Press. ISBN 1557049661. Jump up ^ `` How Conflict Gave Shape to ' Tootsie '. '' New York Times. December 19, 1982. p. 1, 16. Jump up ^ Joe Morgenstern ( February 8, 2008 ). `` Sketches of Sydney Pollack ''. wsj.net. Retrieved 2008 - 02 - 15. Jump up ^ Beck, Marilyn ( 1980 - 04 - 03 ). `` Marilyn Beck 's Hollywood : Producers Finding Financing Rough ''. The Victoria Advocate. Victoria, Texas. p. 11D. Retrieved 2010 - 09 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Dustin Hoffman on TOOTSIE and his character Dorothy Michaels ''. American Film Institute on YouTube. 2012 - 12 - 17. Retrieved 2013 - 07 - 10. Jump up ^ Maslin, Janet. `` ' Tootsie ' : A Woman Who Is Dustin Hoffman. '' New York Times. July 13, 1982. Jump up ^ `` Tootsie ( 1982 ) ''. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 31, 2016. Jump up ^ Roger Ebert ( December 17, 1982 ). `` Tootsie ''. Chicago Sun - Times. Retrieved 2007 - 12 - 22. Jump up ^ `` Tootsie ( 1982 ) ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2007 - 12 - 22. Jump up ^ `` The 55th Academy Awards ( 1983 ) Nominees and Winners ''. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 2011 - 10 - 09. Jump up ^ `` Best in Film : The Greatest Movies of Our Time ''. March 22, 2011. ABC News. Missing or empty series = ( help ) Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movies '' ( PDF ). American Film Institute. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Laughs '' ( PDF ). American Film Institute. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Songs Nominees '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes Nominees '' ( PDF ). Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ `` AFI 's 100 Years... 100 Movies ( 10th Anniversary Edition ) '' ( PDF ). American Film Institute. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 16. Jump up ^ ( http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/Is-Sivakarthikeyans-Remo-copy-of-Hollywood-film-Tootsie/articleshow/54440918.cms > ) Jump up ^ McPhee, Ryan. `` ' Tootsie ' Musical, Starring Santino Fontana, Will Play Chicago Before 2019 Broadway Premiere '' Playbill, January 24, 2018 Jump up ^ `` Tootsie - 25th Anniversary Edition ''. dvdtalk.com. 5 February 2008. Retrieved 19 July 2018. Jump up ^ `` Tootsie ( The Criterion Collection ) ( Blu - ray ) ( 2016 ) ''. Retrieved 19 July 2018. External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : Tootsie Tootsie on IMDb Tootsie at the TCM Movie Database Tootsie at Box Office Mojo Tootsie at Rotten Tomatoes The 25th Anniversary Tootsie by Billy Mernit Films directed by Sydney Pollack The Slender Thread ( 1965 ) This Property Is Condemned ( 1966 ) The Scalphunters ( 1968 ) Castle Keep ( 1969 ) They Shoot Horses, Do n't They ? ( 1969 ) Jeremiah Johnson ( 1972 ) The Way We Were ( 1973 ) The Yakuza ( 1974 ) Three Days of the Condor ( 1975 ) Bobby Deerfield ( 1977 ) The Electric Horseman ( 1979 ) Absence of Malice ( 1981 ) Tootsie ( 1982 ) Out of Africa ( 1985 ) Havana ( 1990 ) The Firm ( 1993 ) Sabrina ( 1995 ) Random Hearts ( 1999 ) The Interpreter ( 2005 ) Sketches of Frank Gehry ( 2006 ) Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture -- Musical or Comedy An American in Paris ( 1951 ) With a Song in My Heart ( 1952 ) Carmen Jones ( 1954 ) Guys and Dolls ( 1955 ) The King and I ( 1956 ) Les Girls ( 1957 ) Gigi / Auntie Mame ( 1958 ) Porgy and Bess / Some Like It Hot ( 1959 ) Song Without End / The Apartment ( 1960 ) West Side Story / A Majority of One ( 1961 ) The Music Man / That Touch of Mink ( 1962 ) Tom Jones ( 1963 ) My Fair Lady ( 1964 ) The Sound of Music ( 1965 ) The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming ( 1966 ) The Graduate ( 1967 ) Oliver ! ( 1968 ) The Secret of Santa Vittoria ( 1969 ) MASH ( 1970 ) Fiddler on the Roof ( 1971 ) Cabaret ( 1972 ) American Graffiti ( 1973 ) The Longest Yard ( 1974 ) The Sunshine Boys ( 1975 ) A Star Is Born ( 1976 ) The Goodbye Girl ( 1977 ) Heaven Can Wait ( 1978 ) Breaking Away ( 1979 ) Coal Miner 's Daughter ( 1980 ) Arthur ( 1981 ) Tootsie ( 1982 ) Yentl ( 1983 ) Romancing the Stone ( 1984 ) Prizzi 's Honor ( 1985 ) Hannah and Her Sisters ( 1986 ) Hope and Glory ( 1987 ) Working Girl ( 1988 ) Driving Miss Daisy ( 1989 ) Green Card ( 1990 ) Beauty and the Beast ( 1991 ) The Player ( 1992 ) Mrs. Doubtfire ( 1993 ) The Lion King ( 1994 ) Babe ( 1995 ) Evita ( 1996 ) As Good as It Gets ( 1997 ) Shakespeare in Love ( 1998 ) Toy Story 2 ( 1999 ) Almost Famous ( 2000 ) Moulin Rouge ! ( 2001 ) Chicago ( 2002 ) Lost in Translation ( 2003 ) Sideways ( 2004 ) Walk the Line ( 2005 ) Dreamgirls ( 2006 ) Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber of Fleet Street ( 2007 ) Vicky Cristina Barcelona ( 2008 ) The Hangover ( 2009 ) The Kids Are All Right ( 2010 ) The Artist ( 2011 ) Les Misérables ( 2012 ) American Hustle ( 2013 ) The Grand Budapest Hotel ( 2014 ) The Martian ( 2015 ) La La Land ( 2016 ) Lady Bird ( 2017 ) GND : 1027597742 VIAF : 316751611 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tootsie&oldid=854247461 '' Categories : 1982 films English - language films 1980s comedy films 1980s romantic comedy films American comedy films American films American romantic comedy films Best Musical or Comedy Picture Golden Globe winners Columbia Pictures films Dustin Hoffman Cross-dressing in American films Films scored by Dave Grusin Films about actors Films about television Films directed by Sydney Pollack Films featuring a Best Musical or Comedy Actor Golden Globe winning performance Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award - winning performance Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe - winning performance Films set in New York City Films shot in New York City United States National Film Registry films Screenplays by Larry Gelbart Hidden categories : Pages with citations lacking titles All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from July 2018 Articles with permanently dead external links Articles needing additional references from July 2018 All articles needing additional references Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Български Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Hrvatski Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית ქართული Latina Magyar Македонски მარგალური Bahasa Melayu Монгол Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Simple English Slovenčina Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska ไทย Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt 中文 32 more Edit links This page was last edited on 9 August 2018, at 23 : 41 ( UTC ). 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Question: who played the lead role in 1982 tootsie
Answer: Dustin Hoffman