The Nutty Professor

Movie Details:

Cast & Characters:

• Jerry Lewis as Professor Julius F. Kelp/Buddy Love/Baby Kelp
  • Lewis also voices Jennifer, Kelp’s pet parakeet
• Stella Stevens as Stella Purdy
• Del Moore as Dr. Mortimer S. Warfield
• Kathleen Freeman as Millie Lemmon
• Howard Morris as Mr. Elmer Kelp
• Elvia Allman as Mrs. Edwina Kelp
• Norman Alden as football player #1/student #1
• Marvin Kaplan as English student
• Julie Parrish as college student #2
• Henry Gibson as college student #3
• Milton Frome as Dr. M. Sheppard Leevee
• Buddy Lester as bartender #1
• Med Flory as Warzewski, the football player
• George DeNormand as faculty member #3 (uncredited)
• Robert Donner as college student #6 (uncredited)
• Stuart Holmes as faculty member #5 (uncredited)
• Richard Kiel as Bodybuilder #1 (uncredited)
• Caryl Lincoln as faculty member #7 (uncredited)
• Mickey Manners as college student #11 (uncredited)
• Judi Thor as college student #13 (uncredited)
• Celeste Yarnall as college student #14 (uncredited)
• Francine York as college student #15 (uncredited)
• Billy Bletcher as a plumber (uncredited)

Storyline:

The film is a parody of Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It follows the story of Julius Kelp, a weak-willed scientist who creates a serum that transforms him into a charismatic but narcissistic ladies’ man named Buddy Love. This transformation leads to various comedic situations as Kelp navigates his dual identity.

About Movie:

The Nutty Professor is an American science fiction comedy film directed by and starring Jerry Lewis, who co-wrote the screenplay with Bill Richmond. The film features a supporting cast that includes Stella Stevens, Del Moore, Kathleen Freeman, Howard Morris, and Elvia Allman. The musical score was composed by Walter Scharf.

The Nutty Professor has been described as one of the finest and most memorable films of Jerry Lewis’s career. In 2004, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

A remake of The Nutty Professor was released in 1996, directed by Tom Shadyac and starring Eddie Murphy and Jada Pinkett-Smith. This version also spawned a sequel, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, in 2000. Additionally, an animated sequel to the original film was released in 2008. In 2012, Lewis directed a musical theatre version of the story, which was later adapted into a new musical featuring a score by Marvin Hamlisch, a book and lyrics by Rupert Holmes, staged at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Maine from July 1 to August 6, 2022.

Overall, The Nutty Professor remains a significant cultural touchstone, celebrated for its humor and innovative take on the classic Jekyll and Hyde narrative.