Sparkle
Directed by	Sam O'Steen
Produced by	Howard Rosenman
Written by	Joel Schumacher Howard Rosenman
Starring	Philip M. Thomas Irene Cara Lonette McKee Dwan Smith Mary Alice Dorian Harewood Tony King
Music by	Curtis Mayfield
Cinematography	Bruce Surtees
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s)	April 7, 1976
Running time	98 min. Samuel Alexander O'Steen ( November 6, 1923 &ndash October 11, 2000) was an American Film editor and director Joel Schumacher (born August 29, 1939 in New York City) is an American Film director, Screenwriter and producer Philip Michael Thomas (born May 26 1949) is an American Actor. Irene Cara Escalera ( March 18, 1959) is an American singer and actress Lonette McKee (born July 22, 1954) is an American film and television actress music composer/producer/songwriter screenwriter and director Mary Alice (born December 3, 1941) is an American Emmy Award - and Tony Award -winning Actress. Dorian Harewood (born August 6 1950) is an American actor known for playing Jesse Owens Curtis Lee Mayfield ( June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American soul, R&B, and Funk Bruce Surtees ( 27 July 1937, Los Angeles, California USA is an Academy Award and Emmy Award nominated American Warner Bros Entertainment Inc (or Warner Bros, Warner Bros Pictures) is one of the world's largest producers of Film and Events 529 - First draft of Corpus Juris Civilis (a fundamental work in Jurisprudence) is issued by Eastern Roman Emperor Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
Language	English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Sparkle is a 1976 American film directed by Sam O'Steen and released by Warner Bros. Pictures. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States The year 1976 in film involved some significant events Events March 22 - Filming begins on George Lucas ' Samuel Alexander O'Steen ( November 6, 1923 &ndash October 11, 2000) was an American Film editor and director Warner Bros Entertainment Inc (or Warner Bros, Warner Bros Pictures) is one of the world's largest producers of Film and Inspired by The Supremes, Sparkle is a period film set in Harlem, New York during the late 1950s and early 1960s which follows the rough lives and careers of singer Sparkle Williams and her family and friends. The Supremes were an American female singing group that first formed as a quartet called The Primettes " Period piece " is phrase that is used to describe creative works Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, long known as a major African American cultural and business center New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous

The film stars Philip Michael Thomas (later of Miami Vice fame), Irene Cara, Lonette McKee, Dwan Smith, Mary Alice, Dorian Harewood, and Tony King. Philip Michael Thomas (born May 26 1949) is an American Actor. Miami Vice is an American Television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. Irene Cara Escalera ( March 18, 1959) is an American singer and actress Lonette McKee (born July 22, 1954) is an American film and television actress music composer/producer/songwriter screenwriter and director Mary Alice (born December 3, 1941) is an American Emmy Award - and Tony Award -winning Actress. Dorian Harewood (born August 6 1950) is an American actor known for playing Jesse Owens Curtis Mayfield served as the composer and producer of Sparkle's songs and score. Curtis Lee Mayfield ( June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American soul, R&B, and Funk

Contents 1 Plot synopsis 2 History 3 See also 4 Notes 5 External links

Plot synopsis

The film begins in Harlem, New York in 1958. The Williams sisters - Sister (Lonette McKee), Dolores (Dwan Smith), and Sparkle (Irene Cara) - are singers in their local church's teenagers' choir along with their friends Stix (Philip Michael Thomas) and Levi (Dorian Harewood). Lonette McKee (born July 22, 1954) is an American film and television actress music composer/producer/songwriter screenwriter and director Irene Cara Escalera ( March 18, 1959) is an American singer and actress Philip Michael Thomas (born May 26 1949) is an American Actor. Dorian Harewood (born August 6 1950) is an American actor known for playing Jesse Owens The girls' mother Effie (Mary Alice), works hard as a maid for the Waters family in Long Island, and struggles to keep her girls, especially the "high-spirited" Sister, safe. Mary Alice (born December 3, 1941) is an American Emmy Award - and Tony Award -winning Actress. Long Island is an island located in southeastern New York, USA, its western shores directly across from Manhattan, from which the island stretches Stix, a buddling songwriter in love with Sparkle, wants to start a group, and arranges the five of them into a quintet called "The Hearts". The Hearts enter a local rock and roll talent contest, which they win with the help of Sister's stage appeal. Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African Shortly afterwards, however, Levi drops out of the group so that he can become an important man in the operations of local gangster Satin (Tony King).

Stix decides to repackage the group as an all-girl trio, appointing Sister lead singer and reducing his role in the act to manager and songwriter. The girls, now known as "Sister & the Sisters", debut at the seedy Shan-Doo Club; their immediate success gains them a position as regular performers there. Satin, invited to the show by Levi, takes up with Sister, who leaves home to move in with him. Sister begins showing up at the Shan-Doo with bruises from Satin's abuse, and begins taking cocaine. Cocaine ( benzoylmethyl ecgonine) is a Crystalline Tropane Alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the Coca plant When Dolores learns that Satin has gotten Sister hooked on drugs, she plots revenge, coming on to one of Satin's flunkies in order to set the kingpin up. Dolores calls the police to let them know when and where Satin's next drug pick-up will be, but Levi is the one caught in the sting. Regretful and weary of life in Harlem, Dolores packs up and leaves home in order to pursue her dreams of racial equality.

Satin pulls Sister out of The Sisters without telling the others, and a frustrated Stix gives up on music. He leaves Harlem to work in construction upstate, breaking Sparkle's heart in the process. Several months later, Sister dies of a drug overdose, and Stix reconciles with Sparkle after her funeral. By this time, Stix has moved back to New York and gained employment with a record label, and offers to produce Sparkle as a solo star. In the Music industry, a record label can be a Brand and a Trademark associated with the Marketing of music recordings and Music He borrows money from Effie's employer Max Gerber (Paul Lambert), to fund a recording session, and Sparkle's first single becomes a smash hit. Paul Lambert (born 7 August 1969) is a Scottish football manager and former player currently in charge of Colchester United Stix lands Sparkle a gig at Carnegie Hall as Ray Charles' opening act, but finds himself kidnapped by Gerber's partners in the Mafia for merely Gerber's back instead of accepting a profit-sharing agreement. Carnegie Hall (generally ˌkɑrnɨgi ˈhɔːl is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east Ray Charles Robinson ( September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) known by his Stage name Ray Charles, was an American The Mafia (also known as Cosa Nostra) is a Sicilian Criminal Secret society which is believed to have first developed in the mid-19th century Despite being threatened with death, however, Stix refuses to give in, and the impressed Gerber lets Stix go free. Stix arrives at Carnegie Hall just in time to see Sparkle finish her set.

History

Sparkle was a successful film, and is something of a cult classic among African-American audiences. African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa Its success was inspirational in the creation of the musical that would eventually debut on Broadway in 1981 as Dreamgirls. Dreamgirls is a Broadway musical, which opened on December 20, 1981 at the Imperial Theatre. In fact, one of Dreamgirls' central characters is named "Effie", the name of the Mary Alice character in Sparkle. The film's soundtrack album, featuring Aretha Franklin in place of the actresses in the film, was also a success. A soundtrack album is any Album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular Feature film. Aretha Louise Franklin (born March 25 1942 Franklin has had a total of twenty number-one singles on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart, two of which became #1 hits on the Two of Sparkle's stars, Dorian Harewood and Irene Cara, portray Alex Haley's parents in the 1979 miniseries Roots: The Next Generations. Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (August 11 1921–February 10 1992 was an American Writer. Roots The Next Generations is a 1979 television miniseries that continues the story of the family of Alex Haley from the time of Reconstruction

Warner Bros. and Whitney Houston's BrownHouse Productions had planned a modernized remake of Sparkle at the turn of the 20th/21st century. Whitney Elizabeth Houston' (born August 9 1963 is an American Singer-songwriter, Actress, Film producer, Arranger and former Aaliyah was signed to star as Sparkle, but died in August 2001 before production began. Aaliyah Dana Haughton (January 16 1979 – August 25 2001 better known as Aaliyah (əˈliːə was a Grammy -nominated American Singer ^[1] Although the film was put on hold following the singer's death, Ashanti was later attached to star as Sparkle in a remake. Ashanti Shequoiya Douglas (born October 13 1980 is an American Singer-songwriter, Record producer, actress, Dancer and ^[2] In 2003, Warner Bros. announced plans to go forward with the production with Raven-Symoné in the lead. Raven-Symoné Christina Pearman (born December 10 1985 known professionally as Raven-Symoné or Raven, is an American actress and R&B ^[3] With the release of a film version of Dreamgirls in 2006, development on Sparkle was shut down. Dreamgirls is a 2006 American Musical film, directed by Bill Condon and jointly produced and released by DreamWorks Pictures Until 2008 when it was suggested to Warner Bros. that the movie should be remade with Jordin Sparks as Sparkle and Chris Brown as Stix. Jordin Brianna Sparks (born December 22 1989 Sparks is an Evangelical Christian and attends Calvary Community Church in Phoenix Arizona Now the remake is in the beginning process. Sparkle was released on VHS in the early 1990s. After being long out of print and unavailable save for television broadcasts, Sparkle was released on DVD on January 2, 2007. Events 366 - The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers invading the Roman Empire. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. An abbreviated edition of the accompanying Aretha Franklin album was included on a bonus disc.

See also

• Sparkle (Aretha Franklin album) (soundtrack for the film)

Notes

External links

• Sparkle at the Internet Movie Database

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