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Heaven Can Wait ()

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A Los Angeles Rams quarterback, accidentally taken away from his body by an overanxious angel before he was meant to die, returns to life in the body of a recently murdered millionaire.
Directors:
Writers:
Stars:
Awards:
  • Won 1 Oscar. Another 8 wins & 14 nominations.
  • See more »
Reviews:

Photos and Videos

66 photos | 1 video

Cast verified as complete

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Joe Pendleton
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Betty Logan
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Mr. Jordan
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Max Corkle
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Tony Abbott
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Julia Farnsworth
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The Escort
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Krim
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Sisk
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Bentley
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Everett
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Corinne
Jeannie Linero ...
Lavinia
Harry D.K. Wong ...
Gardener
George J. Manos ...
Security Guard
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Peters
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Conway
Bill Sorrells ...
Tomarken
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TV Interviewer
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Head Coach
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General Manager
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Trainer (as Ed V. Peck)
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Former Owner
Richard O'Brien ...
Advisor to Former Owner
Joseph F. Makel ...
Haitian Ambassador
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Team Doctor
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Way Station Attendant
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Newspaperman
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Oppenheim
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Renfield
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Middleton
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Lawson
Robert E. Leonard ...
Board Member
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Board Member
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Board Member
Robert C. Stevens ...
Board Member
Bernie Massa ...
Coliseum Security Guard
Peter Tomarken ...
Reporter
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Nuclear Reporter
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Woman Reporter
Charlie Charles ...
Highwire Performer
Nick Outin ...
Chauffeur
Jerry Scanlan ...
Hodges
Jim Boeke ...
Kowalsky
Marvin Fleming ...
Gudnitz
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Gorman
Les Josephson ...
Owens
Jack Snow ...
Cassidy (as Jack T. Snow)
Curt Gowdy ...
TV Commentator
Al DeRogatis ...
TV Color Analyst
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Benjie Bancroft ...
Reporter (uncredited)
Arline Bletcher ...
Woman in Line (uncredited)
Joe Corolla ...
Football Player (uncredited)
Charlie Cowan ...
Football Player (uncredited)
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Swimmer (uncredited)
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Swimmer's Friend (uncredited)
Robert Fortier ...
Wealthy Man in Restaurant (uncredited)
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Football player (uncredited)
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TV Sportscaster (uncredited)
Jim Healy ...
TV Sportscaster (uncredited)
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Radio Announcer (uncredited)
Ray Pourchot ...
Board Member (uncredited)
Nick Raymond ...
Reporter (uncredited)
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Waiter (uncredited)
Roberto Rodriguez ...
Reporter (uncredited)
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Waiter (uncredited)

Directed by

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Warren Beatty
Buck Henry

Written by

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Elaine May ... (screenplay) and
Warren Beatty ... (screenplay)
 
Harry Segall ... (based upon a play by)
 
Robert Towne ... () (uncredited)

Produced by

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Warren Beatty ... producer
Hawk Koch ... executive producer (as Howard W. Koch Jr.)
Charles H. Maguire ... executive producer

Music by

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Dave Grusin

Cinematography by

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William A. Fraker ... director of photography

Editing by

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Robert C. Jones ... film editor
Don Zimmerman

Editorial Department

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Elyane Bretherton ... assistant editor
Battle Davis ... assistant editor (as T. Battle Davis)

Casting By

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Patricia Mock ... (as Pat Mock)

Production Design by

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Paul Sylbert

Art Direction by

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Edwin O'Donovan

Set Decoration by

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George Gaines

Costume Design by

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Richard Bruno

Makeup Department

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Lynda Gurasich ... hair stylist
Lee Harman ... makeup artist (as Lee Harmon)

Production Management

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Charles H. Maguire ... unit production manager
Lindsley Parsons Jr. ... executive production manager: Paramount (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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Craig Huston ... second assistant director
Hawk Koch ... assistant director (as Howard W. Koch Jr.)
Craig R. Baxley ... second unit director (uncredited)
Richard H. Prince ... dga trainee (uncredited)

Art Department

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Birney Lettick ... poster artist
Alan Levine ... property master (as Allan Levine)
Robby Vandermark ... painter (uncredited)
Ralph Votaw ... labor foreman (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Richard Oswald ... sound effects editor (as Dick Oswald)
Tom Overton ... sound mixer (as Tommy Overton)
John Wilkinson ... re-recording mixer (as John K. Wilkinson)
Ken Dufva ... foley artist (uncredited)

Special Effects by

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R.A. MacDonald ... special effects (as Robert MacDonald)
Ted Koerner ... special effects (uncredited)
Ken Speed ... special effects assistant (uncredited)

Stunts

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Craig R. Baxley ... stunt coordinator (uncredited) / stunt double: Warren Beatty (uncredited)
David Sharpe ... stunts: van driver (uncredited)
Dick Ziker ... stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department

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Arthur Brooker ... key grip (as Art Brooker)
Nick McLean ... camera operator
Doug Pentek ... gaffer
Peter Sorel ... still photographer
Norman Lang ... electrician (uncredited)
John Reynolds ... lighting technician (uncredited)
Robert Samuels ... second assistant camera (uncredited)
Richard Walden ... additional first assistant camera (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Arlene Encell ... costumer: women
Michael W. Hoffman ... costumer: men (as Mike Hoffman)
Theadora Van Runkle ... costumes: Julie Christie and Dyan Cannon
Joan Joseff ... costume jeweller (uncredited)
Tina Joseff ... costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department

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Michael Boddicker ... musician: synthesizer (uncredited)
Milton Lustig ... music editor
John Adams ... score mixer (uncredited)
Israel Baker ... musician: violin (uncredited)
Arnold Belnick ... musician: violin (uncredited)
James Decker ... musician: french horn (uncredited)
Dominick Fera ... musician: clarinet (uncredited)
Norman Forrest ... musician: viola (uncredited)
Dave Grusin ... conductor (uncredited)
Mitch Holder ... musician: guitar (uncredited)
Tommy Johnson ... musician: tuba (uncredited)
Milton Kestenbaum ... musician: bass (uncredited)
Michael Lang ... musician: keyboards (uncredited)
Virginia Majewski ... musician: viola (uncredited)
Malcolm McNab ... musician: trumpet (uncredited)
Peter Mercurio ... musician: bass (uncredited)
Brian O'Connor ... musician: french horn (uncredited)
Richard Perissi ... musician: french horn (uncredited)
Emil Richards ... musician: percussion (uncredited)
Steve Schaeffer ... musician: drums (uncredited)
Linn Subotnick ... musician: viola (uncredited)
Robert Sushel ... musician: violin (uncredited)
Louise Di Tullio ... musician: flute (uncredited)
Ian Underwood ... musician: keyboards (uncredited)
John Wittenberg ... musician: violin (uncredited)
Tibor Zelig ... musician: violin (uncredited)

Script and Continuity Department

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Karen Hale Wookey ... script supervisor (as Karen Wookey)

Transportation Department

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James Davis ... transportation (as Jim Davis)
Charles Wholton ... transportation

Additional Crew

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Sam Bernstein ... production accountant
Helen Feibelmann ... assistant: Mr. Beatty
Wayne Fitzgerald ... title
Les Josephson ... technical consultant
David Leigh MacLeod ... administrative associate (as David L. MacLeod)
Frank O'Neill ... technical consultant
Mamie Mitchell ... office production assistant (uncredited)
Mark Tabashnick ... additional crew (uncredited)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

Joe Pendleton is a football quarterback preparing to lead his team to the Superbowl when he is almost killed in an accident. An overanxious angel plucks him to heaven only to discover that he was not ready to die, and that his body has been cremated. Another body must be found without his death being discovered, and that of a recently murdered millionaire is chosen. His wife and accountant, the murderers, are confused by this development, as he buys the Los Angeles Rams in order to once again quarterback them into the Superbowl. At the same time, he falls in love with an English environmental activist who disapproves of his policies and actions. Written by John Vogel

Plot Keywords
Taglines Joe Pendleton...the only guy who ever raised Hell about going to Heaven. See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • Le ciel peut attendre (France)
  • Der Himmel kann warten (Germany)
  • Der Himmel soll warten (Germany)
  • El cielo puede esperar (Spain)
  • Il paradiso può attendere (Italy)
  • See more »
Runtime
  • 101 min
Country
Language
Color
Aspect Ratio
Sound Mix
Filming Locations

Box Office

Budget $6,000,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend United States $4,192,799, 02 Jul 1978

Did You Know?

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Trivia Bruce Kimmel has clarified confusion regarding the film's source stage play and the various cinema movies associated with it in some way: "Once upon a time there was a play by Harry Segall called 'Heaven Can Wait', written in 1938 and not produced on Broadway. Nevertheless, the film rights were bought and the resulting 1941 film, retitled Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), was a hit. This was followed by a 1943 Ernst Lubitsch film called Heaven Can Wait (1943) that had nothing to do with Mr. Segall, his play or Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941). Then came Down to Earth (1947), starring Rita Hayworth, which was a sort of sequel to Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), bringing back the characters played by Edward Everett Horton and James Gleason, but not the central characters. That same year [actually late 1946], the Segall play finally made it to Broadway but under a different title, 'Wonderful Journey' - a production that ran only nine performances. Flash forward to 1978 - Paramount Pictures and Warren Beatty remake Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) but change the title back to Segall's original title, 'Heaven Can Wait'. Two years later comes Xanadu (1980), starring Olivia Newton-John, which was a sort of remake of Down to Earth (1947), the sequel to Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941). Now jump to 2001 when Segall's 'Heaven Can Wait' is remade again, this time as Down to Earth (2001) starring Chris Rock - and having nothing to do with Down to Earth (1947), the sort of sequel to Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941)". See more »
Goofs When Joe takes over the body of quarterback Tom Jarrett, the Super Bowl game is in sudden death overtime. However, all the players are wearing spotlessly clean uniforms. See more »
Movie Connections Featured in Special Edition: Grease, Jaws 2, Animal House, Heaven Can Wait & The Best and Worst of 1978 (1979). See more »
Soundtracks Sonata No 3, Movement 4 See more »
Quotes Former owner: He got my team. The son of a bitch got my team.
Advisor to former owner: What kind of pressure did he use, Milt?
Former owner: Well, I asked for sixty-seven million, and he said "okay."
Advisor to former owner: Ruthless bastard.
See more »
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