The Rewatchables: ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel

Published 2021-12-07; 1:31:46 by the feed.

As extracted (engineer-sonnet-2026-10-13)

The extraction calls the show “The Rewatchables (The Ringer)” and the episode “'Saturday Night Fever' With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel”.

Hosts: Bill Simmons. Guests: Jimmy Kimmel.

Subject films: Saturday Night Fever (1977).

On the transcript: No speaker labels; Simmons and Kimmel overlap with little signposting. Some stat lines read aloud are mid-sentence fragments and a few exchanges (the Brooklyn Bridge, apex mountain) are hard to attribute.

Awards and segments (56)

Most rewatchable scene

pick The opening credits, Tony walking the Brooklyn streets with the paint can and two slices of pizza.
“Well, I mean, I don't... opening scene of the movie.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:43:36
pick Tony takes over the dance floor to You Should Be Dancing, the two-minute heat check.
“All right, so I'm going, I'm going the disco that you should be dancing scene as most rewatchable.”
Bill Simmons · 0:43:29
floated The first dance club sequence to Disco Inferno, Annette pulling Tony onto the floor.
“The 1st dance club sequence where they show up, Disco Inferno was playing.”
unknown · 0:34:47
floated Tony in his underwear doing Al Pacino in front of his grandmother.
“Another scene that I think is very rewatchable is when he, that's related to that, that scene is when he is in his underwear and he pops out of his bedroom and there's his grandmother.”
unknown · 0:35:47
floated The first coffee scene between Tony and Stephanie (you're a cliche, you're nowhere).
“Next rewatchable scene, the 1st coffee scene with him and Stephanie.”
unknown · 0:36:35
floated The first Brooklyn Bridge scene where the guys jump off and pretend.
“The 1st Brooklyn Bridge scene.”
unknown · 0:41:34
floated The dance contest, rewatchable because it makes him mad that Tony and Stephanie's dancing isn't better.
“But, and then uh, the dance contest, which I enjoy more because it makes me mad.”
Bill Simmons · 0:41:57

Best Actor snub (Oscars) · Who should have won or been nominated at the Oscars.

pick John Travolta as Tony Manero: Takes the best actor category over Richard Dreyfuss's win.
“Give that to Travolta.”
Bill Simmons · 0:23:24
pick Woody Allen as Alvy Singer: Says comedians are at a disadvantage, cites the lobster scene.
“I think comedians in general are, are, um, for whatever reason, you're you're at a disadvantage, and I don't think that should be the case, because Woody Allen is great in that movie.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:24:18
pick The Bee Gees songs, left out of the best original song nominees: Calls the omission of the Bee Gees from best original song a bigger snub.
“Any of the Bee Gees songs that are still being played 45 years later.”
Bill Simmons · 0:25:10

Ebert review · Reading Roger Ebert's review of the film.

pick Saturday Night Fever: Three and a half stars; Ebert ties the characters to Mean Streets. Siskel loved it more.
“3.5 stars.”
Bill Simmons · 0:27:57

Memorabilia · The piece of the movie they would want to own.

pick Tony's white suit: Three suits were made; Gene Siskel bought the surviving one.
“It has to be the suit.”
Bill Simmons · 1:19:48
pick The paint can, the hairbrush, the 2001 Odyssey disco ball, and Annette's rubbers: Names several props but agrees the white suit is the thing.
“Like the paint can would be a cool thing to have.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:20:14

What's aged the best · What about the movie has held up best.

pick The Bee Gees soundtrack: Still great 45 years on.
“Soundtrack is great.”
Bill Simmons · 0:44:17
pick Tony's bedroom and its posters: Serpico, Bruce Lee, Wonder Woman, Rocky and Farrah Fawcett on the walls.
“Tony's room, which if you look closely, there's posters of Serpico, Bruce Lee, Wonder Woman, Linda Carter, Rocky and Farrah Fawcett.”
Bill Simmons · 0:45:36
pick Donna Pescow as Annette: Great performance.
“Donna Pescal, great performance.”
Bill Simmons · 0:46:21
pick The Annette and Tony dynamic: Small moments make it feel like a realistic relationship.
“Like, there's little moments like that with that where it's, it's actually a realistic relationship.”
Bill Simmons · 0:46:52
pick Tony's meathead friends: You believe they have known each other for years.
“I, you really believe that those guys have known each other for 12 years or 15 years or whatever, there's like a comfort with all of them.”
Bill Simmons · 0:47:27
pick Mid-70s distressed New York as a movie location: Lists Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Dog Day Afternoon and others made in six years.
“Mid 90s, mid 70s, distressed New York, as a movie location, where we had Mean streets, taxi driver, Death Wish, the Warriors, taking a Pelma, 123, Dog Day afternoon, Annie Hall in Manhattan, the good version, Saturday Night Fever, and cruising.”
Bill Simmons · 0:47:58
pick The Airplane! parody of the movie's love scene: Airplane copies the movie three years later.
“The airplane parody scene.”
Bill Simmons · 0:50:19
pick Mad magazine's parody of the movie: Probably read the parody before seeing the film.
“For me, Mad Magazine's parody of Saturday Night Field.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:50:43
pick Denny Terrio's Dance Fever show: Throws it in as a TV echo of the movie.
“I was going to throw in Denny Terrio's Dance Fever show, which I watched in the late 70s, which was like that syndicated.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:51:04
pick The pork chop dinner fight: Tony takes a second pork chop and the fighting starts.
“When his mother buys all the pork chops and the father who's out of work is upset.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:51:30

What's aged the worst · What about the movie has aged poorly.

pick The treatment of women, the sexual assaults, racism, homophobia and misogyny: Lists the assaults, racism and random homophobia as aged poorly.
“Oh, well, I think the relationship with the various women in the in the movie has aged poorly.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:52:15
pick Nik Cohn admitting he fabricated his New York magazine article: The article behind the film was largely made up.
“Nick Cohn in the mid 90s acknowledged that he fabricated most of his article that he wrote about this guy who was based on Tony.”
Bill Simmons · 0:53:17
pick The Barracuda fight scene: Wanted a better fight scene by 70s standards; grades it a B minus.
“It's like a B minus.”
Bill Simmons · 0:54:17
pick Karen Lynn Gorney as Stephanie: Below-average dancer, weak accent, older than Travolta; baffled by her casting.
“I'm so confused why she got cast for this movie that I actually spent like a half hour Googling it because I was like, there had to be a story.”
Bill Simmons · 0:55:09
pick The edited PG version shown on TV: Dubbed-in lines made watching it painful.
“The PG version you mentioned, nothing was worse than seeing this movie on TV with all the edits.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:56:46

Casting what-ifs · Who else was considered for the roles.

pick Carrie Fisher as Stephanie: Reportedly auditioned; Bill reads the list of actresses considered.
“Carrie Fisher.”
Bill Simmons · 0:58:10
pick Carrie Fisher as Stephanie: Thinks she would have figured out the dance and beaten Gorney.
“And you think about it, like, I actually think that would have been amazing if she had done that because I think she's a good actress.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:58:19
pick Fran Drescher as Stephanie: Would also accept Fran Drescher as the lead.
“I got excited for it, but you could have also talked me into Fran Dresher.”
Bill Simmons · 1:02:43
pick Cher as Stephanie: Floats Cher as an older actress for the part.
“What about like Cher?”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:03:04

Joey Pants Award · The person in the movie who is most 'that guy'.

nominee Barry Miller as Bobby: The guy who dies at the end, also in Fame; 'that guy from Saturday Night Fever and Fame'.
“I think he's the winner because you'd see him.”
Bill Simmons · 1:00:37
winner Robert Costanzo as the paint store customer: Bill agrees this is the better choice.
“I'm going to say the guy from the paint store, the customer at the beginning of the movie, whose name I looked up was Robert Costanzo.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:00:49

Vincent Hanna Award · Best overacting.

winner Barry Miller as Bobby: Bobby's phone-call rant; speaker attribution inferred from the handoff.
“Well, that's got to go to Bobby, right?”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:01:10

Dion Waiters Award · Someone not in the movie much who makes a huge impact when they appear.

nominee Tony's dad (transcribed "Tony's dead"): Listed as the first nominee.
“Tony's dead.”
unknown · 1:01:40
winner Fran Drescher as Connie: Both hosts say Fran Drescher; the first speaker is unclear.
“But I would say, I think I have to say Fran Drescher made. Me too.”
unknown · 1:02:18
nominee Monty, the 2001 Odyssey DJ: Seems to be a real dance club DJ who also dials it up.
“Or Monty, the 2001 Odyssey DJ.”
unknown · 1:01:47

Apex Mountain · When a person or thing was at the peak of its powers.

winner John Travolta as Grease era: Says the apex is just after Grease opens, not Saturday Night Fever itself.
“I would actually say Greece was probably his apex mountain because Greece follows Saturday Fever.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:09:20
winner Karen Lynn Gorney as Stephanie: Joke: she never acted again for 14 years and never got better.
“Karen Lingourney, Apex Mountain.”
Bill Simmons · 1:11:12
winner Disco, which peaks around this movie: Disco was dying when the movie came out and it revived it.
“But, um, but yeah, I think disco peaks right around here.”
unknown · 1:12:25
winner The Brooklyn Bridge in the movies: Woody Allen is the only competitor, but his movies were made at the same time.
“Well, Woody Allen's making his movies right at the same time as this, so I would say this is Apex Mountain for the Brooklyn Bridge.”
unknown · 1:11:56
winner Barry Miller, Paul Pape and Joseph Cali as Tony's friends: The friends were at their career apex in this movie.
“Barry Miller, Paul Pape, and Joseph Callie.”
unknown · 1:13:06

Picking Nits · Nitpicks of a film they love.

pick Tony hands over the winning check but the second-place couple already got one: He should have swapped the checks.
“Shouldn't he have swapped the checks? Like, okay, I'll take the 2nd place.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 0:20:26
pick The underwhelming dance contest: It should have been the best scene; no Rocky moment.
“I wanted more from the dance contest.”
Bill Simmons · 1:13:12
pick The Barracuda revenge fight is dropped: They should have lost the fight; the revenge plot just goes away.
“They should have lost that fight.”
Bill Simmons · 1:14:07
pick The cops barely question Tony about his friend's fall: No follow-up questions after the death.
“Don't they have more questions?”
Bill Simmons · 1:14:38
pick The $500 dance contest prize: Argues it is too small given the $4 raise joke.
“And then, uh, my last one is just, I don't know if $500 is too much for the dance contest or not enough.”
Bill Simmons · 1:14:59

What if it were made today · Could it be remade, for instance as a Netflix series.

pick Saturday Night Fever as a 10-episode Netflix show: Says no; two hours with these people is enough.
“I think we're good with spending 2 hours with these people.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:16:24

Unanswered questions · Open questions about the movie and its aftermath.

pick Staying Alive: Glad the sequel exists; the first five minutes are hilarious.
“I'm glad it exists.”
Bill Simmons · 1:17:52
pick Staying Alive: Also glad; it did not ruin the original.
“And I feel also like it's just so different from Saturday Night Fever that it didn't ruin it in the same way most sequels would.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:18:06
pick Donna Pescow as Annette: Asks why she did not become a bigger actress.
“Uh, the, whatever happened to Donna Pescow as, why didn't she become a bigger thing as an actress?”
Bill Simmons · 1:18:33
pick No one wears a seatbelt in the movie: Riffs on the three-seat front benches.
“Um, no one wears a seatbelt ever in this movie.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:19:13

Who won the movie · Who came out ahead from the movie.

winner John Travolta as Tony Manero: Also floats the Bee Gees and Robert Stigwood as cases.
“Travolta wins. going away.”
Bill Simmons · 1:21:21
winner John Travolta as Tony Manero: Agrees; the role was written as if for him.
“Yeah, Travolta's the winner.”
Jimmy Kimmel · 1:22:50
nominee Robert Stigwood: Made roughly a billion dollars from the properties.
“You could also make a Robert Stickwood won the movie case because over the course of like 5 years he makes basically a $1000000000 from all these properties.”
Bill Simmons · 1:21:30

Films that came up

Claims (69)

career (career): Karen Lynn Gorney → All My Children. She came from All My Children and could not get back on it after the film.
“She was on all my children, right?”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:06:55 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Jaws. Jaws, Rocky, Star Wars and this film mark the 70s run where pop culture and the business changed direction.
“75, we have Jaws, which creates the summer blockbuster.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:07:23 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Rocky. Rocky modernized the sports movie in the 1976 slot just before this film's 1977.
“76 we have Rocky, which basically modernizes the sports movie.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:07:28 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. Star Wars and this film arrive in 1977 and each creates a piece of pop culture.
“We have Star Wars and Saturday Night Fever, which for different reasons, kind of create at least a piece of pop culture.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:07:34 · Bill Simmons (0.75 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Annie Hall. Annie Hall added to the loaded 1977 movie year.
“And Annie Hall, yeah, it was a loaded movie year.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:07:45 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → Mean Streets. 70s and 80s films tried to capture a city or group; Scorsese did it in Mean Streets with people who are not great either.
“like, you know, mean streets, Scorsese does that.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:10:57 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
contrast (contrast): Saturday Night Fever → The Sopranos. Simmons wonders whether the producers knew these men were bad guys, unlike David Chase on The Sopranos.
“I know for the Sopranos, for instance, you know that David Chase knows that these are bad guys”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:11:32 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
career (career): John Travolta → The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. Simmons traces Travolta's path from the TV movie to Kotter to this film.
“Boy in the plastic bubble.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:14:03 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
career (career): John Travolta → Welcome Back, Kotter. Before the movie Travolta was a TV star; Welcome Back Kotter was the show everybody watched.
“everybody wanted to be Vinnie Barbarino”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:15:07 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)
career (career): Robert Stigwood → John Travolta. Stigwood spotted Travolta and signed him to a three-film deal.
“Stigwood's like, that guy's a movie star signs him to a 3 film deal.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:17:18 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
lineage (lineage): Saturday Night Fever → Nik Cohn. The film comes from a 1976 New York magazine article, later admitted to be mostly fabricated.
“this article written by Nick Cohen”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:17:23 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Robert Stigwood → Bee Gees. Stigwood assembled the movie, Travolta and the Bee Gees songs into one property.
“And then the final pieces, the Bee Gees, and he takes all of these things, and puts them all together”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:17:47 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
career (career): John Travolta → Burt Reynolds. Simmons argues Travolta was a bigger star than Burt Reynolds because of better movies.
“Burt Reynolds also felt huge.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:18:24 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
career (career): Donna Pescow → Angie. Pescow went on to Angie with Robert Hays, which did not take off.
“would go on to star in Angie with Robert Hayes”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:21:29 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Equus. Best Actor field that year included Richard Burton in Equus, which Kimmel says is unfair for plays adapted to film.
“Richard Burton in Eckus.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:22:53 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → The Goodbye Girl. Richard Dreyfuss won the Best Actor Oscar over Travolta for The Goodbye Girl; Simmons calls it a do-over.
“And then our winner, Richard Dreyfus and the Goodbye Girl.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:23:17 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Stephen Bishop → The Goodbye Girl. Kimmel says he was thinking about The Goodbye Girl because he heard its Stephen Bishop song on yacht rock.
“I heard the song on, on yacht rock or something in the Stephen Bishop song.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:23:30 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): John Travolta → Annie Hall. Kimmel would have given the Oscar to Travolta; Kimmel says Woody Allen deserved it for Annie Hall.
“Woody Allen should have won”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:23:54 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.70 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Bee Gees → Pete's Dragon. The Bee Gees were not nominated for Best Original Song while Pete's Dragon and others were.
“Candle on the water from Pete's Dragon.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:24:56 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Thriller. The soundtrack album was the top seller in history for six years until Thriller.
“was the top selling album in history for 6 years until thrillers showed up.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:25:24 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → The Bodyguard. The soundtrack was the biggest of all time until The Bodyguard, 16 years later.
“until the bodyguard with Whitney Houston popped it out like 16 years later.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:25:29 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Robert Stigwood → Michael Eisner. Stigwood negotiated with Paramount's Eisner over screens and a bigger soundtrack cut.
“And it's paramount, it's Michael Asner.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:27:34 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
verdict (verdict): Roger Ebert → Saturday Night Fever. Ebert gave it 3.5 stars and called the dance sequences dazzling.
“Roger Ebert.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:27:55 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
lineage (lineage): Saturday Night Fever → Mean Streets. Ebert, read aloud, ties the film to Little Italy as Scorsese saw it in Mean Streets: characters with few aims and no way out.
“it reminds him of New York's Little Italy, as Martin Scorsese saw it”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:28:04 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
verdict (verdict): Gene Siskel → Saturday Night Fever. Siskel loved it more than Ebert, saw it more than any other movie and bought the suit.
“This is his favorite movie of all time.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:28:40 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): John Travolta → Al Pacino. Simmons wonders whether a very young Pacino could have done the opening walk.
“maybe Al Pacino, as a very young man, could, but he's not even that...”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:31:05 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
contrast (contrast): John Travolta → Channing Tatum. Magic Mike is the closest modern equivalent to the frenzy Travolta caused: an unknown whose dancing drove women crazy.
“the closest thing to it from like the current era is Magic Mike.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:31:19 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.55 sure it was them)
unmapped (anecdote): Sanford and Son → Redd Foxx. Kimmel's radio fundraiser for Redd Foxx's IRS troubles, vetoed because the station was a classic rock station.
“maybe if it was like the Beatles or something, we'd do it.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:34:21 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.85 sure it was them)
verdict (verdict): Saturday Night Fever → Chinatown. Simmons ranks the dance floor takeover among the five most iconic scenes of the 70s next to Chinatown and The Godfather.
“I actually think this is one of the 5 most iconic scenes of the 70s.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:40:36 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Tom Cruise → The Color of Money. Cruise trained in billiards for The Color of Money like Travolta trained for the dance floor.
“he like really has trained in billiards, so he's actually good at it.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:41:20 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Saturday Night Fever → Serpico. Tony's bedroom has Serpico, Bruce Lee, Wonder Woman, Rocky and Farrah Fawcett posters.
“there's posters of Serpico, Bruce Lee, Wonder Woman, Linda Carter, Rocky and Farrah Fawcett.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:45:36 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → Taxi Driver. A list of distressed-New-York movies made in about six years, with this film among them.
“Mean streets, taxi driver, Death Wish, the Warriors”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:47:58 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
contrast (contrast): Saturday Night Fever → Manhattan. Woody Allen's Manhattan is the polished version of New York against Brooklyn in this film.
“Annie Hall in Manhattan, the good version”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:47:58 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
lineage (lineage): Airplane! → Saturday Night Fever. Airplane! parodies this film's romance scene three years later with Robert Hays and Julie Hagerty.
“The airplane parody scene.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:50:19 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.50 sure it was them)
lineage (lineage): Saturday Night Fever → Mad Magazine's Saturday Night Fever parody. Kimmel says he read the Mad parody before he saw the movie.
“I think maybe I probably read the parody of the movie before I saw the movie.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:50:52 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)
programming (programming): Saturday Night Fever → Dance Fever. Kimmel adds Dance Fever, the syndicated dance show, as a thing that aged well from the film's influence.
“I was going to throw in Denny Terrio's Dance Fever show”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:51:04 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.70 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Saturday Night Fever → The Warriors. The Barracudas fight should have been better compared with The Warriors and other great 70s fight scenes.
“if you're comparing it to movies like the Warriors and some of the great 70s fight scene movies.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:54:01 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Midnight Run. Network edits of R-rated films were painful; Midnight Run was the worst with 200 swears to remove.
“Midnight Run's the worst one because Bendet Run has like 200 swears in it”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:57:09 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
career (career): John Avildsen → Rocky. The fired director was the man who did Rocky.
“he was the guy who did Rocky.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:57:27 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
industry (industry): John Badham → John Avildsen. Stigwood replaced Avildsen with Badham and the film put Badham on the map.
“replace him with John Badam, and this becomes the movie that puts John Badam on the map.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:57:33 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Karen Lynn Gorney → Jessica Lange. Jessica Lange was reportedly considered for Stephanie.
“Jessica Lang keeps getting mentioned”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:57:53 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
career (career): Amy Irving → Carrie. Simmons doubts Amy Irving was considered because she was in Carrie with Travolta and too famous.
“she was in Carrie with Travolta.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:58:04 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Karen Lynn Gorney → Carrie Fisher. Carrie Fisher reportedly auditioned for Stephanie before Star Wars came out.
“Carrie Fisher.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:58:10 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Donna Pescow → Michael Eisner. Eisner and Katzenberg held Pescow out of the role at first as too pretty.
“considered too pretty by Michael Eisner, Jeffrey Katzenberg”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:59:21 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
industry (industry): Saturday Night Fever → Boz Scaggs. Columbia Records refused to clear Lowdown, so another song went into the rehearsal scene.
“Columbia Records would not grant legal clearance.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:00:04 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
career (career): Barry Miller → Fame. Barry Miller is the Joey Pants Award winner: that guy from Saturday Night Fever and Fame.
“oh, that guy from Saturday Night Fever and Fame.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:00:39 · Bill Simmons (0.60 sure it was them)
verdict (verdict): Fran Drescher → Saturday Night Fever. Fran Drescher wins the Dion Waiters heat-check award for a short, big impact.
“I have to say Fran Drescher made.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:02:18 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Karen Lynn Gorney → Fran Drescher. Simmons says anyone would be better than Gorney, though he could be talked into Fran Drescher.
“you could have also talked me into Fran Dresher.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:02:43 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Karen Lynn Gorney → Cher. Kimmel floats Cher as an older Stephanie.
“What about like Cher?”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:03:04 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.60 sure it was them)
craft (craft): Saturday Night Fever → Stevie Wonder. Scenes were shot to Stevie Wonder and Boz Scaggs, not the Bee Gees; the Bee Gees songs came after.
“It was Stevie Wonder and Boz Skaggs, which was what he was dancing.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:06:33 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
career (career): Bee Gees → Saturday Night Fever. The Bee Gees were dead in the water in 1975 and the film revived their career.
“This movie revives their career.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:07:07 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
career (career): John Travolta → Grease. Simmons names Grease, not Saturday Night Fever, as Travolta's apex mountain.
“I would actually say Greece was probably his apex mountain because Greece follows Saturday Fever.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:09:21 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
career (career): Saturday Night Fever → Grease. Grease follows this film and Travolta filmed the two back to back; Simmons argues Grease was his apex.
“He's in 2 of them back to back.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:09:59 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
what-if (what-if): Olivia Newton-John → Saturday Night Fever. Imagining an Olivia Newton-John-caliber partner for Tony in this film, since she was Travolta's equal in Grease.
“Imagine if he had someone of the caliber of an Olivia Newton-John in Saturday night.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:10:28 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.55 sure it was them)
people (people): Robert Stigwood → Grease. Stigwood also produced Grease.
“Stigwood also produced grease.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:11:07 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → Welcome Back, Kotter. Old Brooklyn as a pop-culture location: Kimmel picks Welcome Back Kotter over this film and The Warriors.
“Well, I'm going to have to go with Welcome back Cotter”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:11:35 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.55 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → Annie Hall. The Brooklyn Bridge is used by Woody Allen as well, but Simmons says this film is apex Brooklyn Bridge.
“Woody Allen's making his movies right at the same time as this”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:11:56 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.60 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → Goodfellas. Italian family dinners recur in mafia movies; Goodfellas has the visit to mother after the body scene.
“every mafia movie's got one.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:12:40 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → Rocky. Kimmel notes the film never gives Tony a Rocky-style triumphant moment.
“there's no like, you know, there's no rocky moment.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:13:44 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.55 sure it was them)
theme (theme): Saturday Night Fever → All the Right Moves. All the Right Moves runs the same formula: a kid trapped in a dead-end town might get out.
“It's basically the same formula, right?”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:17:07 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
lineage (lineage): Saturday Night Fever → Staying Alive. The sequel; the hosts agree it is a bad one but Simmons is glad it exists and thinks it did not ruin the original.
“I'm glad it exists.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:17:52 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
contrast (contrast): Staying Alive → Saturday Night Fever. Staying Alive is so different that it did not ruin the original the way most sequels would.
“it's just so different from Saturday Night Fever that it didn't ruin it in the same way most sequels would.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:18:06 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
people (people): Sylvester Stallone → Staying Alive. Stallone directed Staying Alive and put himself in the redone opening credits.
“because he's directing the movie.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:18:18 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
career (career): Donna Pescow → The Sopranos. Pescow eventually landed a recurring Sopranos role as a character actress.
“eventually landed on the Sopranos in a recurring role”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:18:54 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
career (career): Saturday Night Fever → Welcome Back, Kotter. Travolta went from the TV goof Barbarino to this part, a surprise that he was a real actor.
“Going from Barbarino to this part, I think was surprising in a good way”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:22:15 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
unmapped (anecdote): John Travolta → Good Times. Kimmel gave Travolta the other piece of original Good Times artwork on Travolta's first appearance on his show.
“I gave him the other piece of artwork.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:23:16 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.85 sure it was them)
people (people): Good Times → Eddie Murphy. Eddie Murphy owns the Ernie Barnes Good Times original painting.
“Oh Eddie Murphy has it?”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:25:19 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
contrast (contrast): What's Happening!! → Good Times. Simmons offers What's Happening!! opening credits; Kimmel stays partial to Good Times.
“I'm still partial to Good Times.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:26:16 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.70 sure it was them)
programming (programming): Saturday Night Fever → Good Times. Kimmel's live ABC recreation specials led to the Good Times mention.
“Oh, since we're talking about good times.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:26:36 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)

Fun items (25)

fun, about Tony Manero: The movie in a nutshell: Tony's line that he has been told he was good twice in his life, once for a raise and once for dancing at the disco.
“This raised today and dancing, dancing at the disco.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:05:12 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Jimmy Kimmel: Growing up in Las Vegas, Sammy Davis Jr. gave his friend Clito's dad a Betamax and projection TV, and Sammy left movies behind.
“Sammy Davis Jr. gave Clito's dad a beta”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:08:56 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Re-released as a PG in 1979, heavily dubbed, with the dialogue changed from a vulgar word to 'pig'.
“And they re-released this movie as a PG movie in 1979.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:09:29 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: The dance contest is rigged for Tony; he hands the trophy to the Puerto Rican couple, who were better.
“Tony Minero takes his check and hands it to the Puerto Rican couple and the trophy too.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:20:03 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Joke: the Puerto Rican couple got a second-place check as well, so Tony should have swapped checks.
“So they got a double dip.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:20:24 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.55 sure it was them)
fun, about You Light Up My Life: Kimmel had the single, and the flip side was 'Asta Manana' by Debby Boone, which he says would have cost her the Oscar.
“They probably would have taken the Oscar away if they'd flipped that record over”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:26:20 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Gene Siskel bought the white suit at a 1979 charity auction for $2,000 and sold it in 1995 at Christie's for $145,000.
“Cisco bought the fucking suit.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:28:25 · Bill Simmons (0.50 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Opening credits: Tony walks the street with a paint can and stacks two pizza slices; Kimmel says his wife has seen just the first minute.
“I bet you've seen the 1st minute of it and that's it.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:29:35 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Red Foxx: Kimmel's Seattle radio crew called Red Foxx's hotel 60 days running to organize a telethon fundraiser for his IRS debt; the program director refused.
“Red Fox's fundraiser for himself to pay off his IRS.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:34:10 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Stephanie: See the coffee scene: Stephanie tells Tony he is a cliche on his way to no place, and he has no comeback.
“You're nowhere, on your way to no place.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:36:56 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Kimmel and Clito named a body part Father Frank Jr. after the Father Frank scene.
“called our penis's Father Frank Jr.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:38:25 · Jimmy Kimmel (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Travolta dance solo: Travolta threatened to quit unless the director shot the solo wide; with the Steadicam they let him cook for two minutes.
“I'm quitting the film unless you go wide, and you kind of let me cook.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:39:47 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Tony's room posters include Serpico, Bruce Lee, Wonder Woman, Rocky and Farrah Fawcett.
“there's posters of Serpico, Bruce Lee, Wonder Woman, Linda Carter, Rocky and Farrah Fawcett.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:45:36 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: The famous pose on the poster was a joke at the end of a long photo shoot, and it became one of the great posters.
“he kind of did that at the end as a joke”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:46:33 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Nik Cohn: Cohn admitted in the mid 90s that he fabricated most of the article, after the real Tony sued for profits.
“he fabricated most of his article that he wrote”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:53:17 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Karen Lynn Gorney: Simmons spent half an hour searching for why she was cast and found nothing; she is also about nine years older than Travolta and a weak dancer.
“I'm so confused why she got cast for this movie that I actually spent like a half hour Googling it”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:55:09 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Bee Gees: They had no Bee Gees music during the shoot; scenes were danced to Stevie Wonder and others, and it lined up anyway.
“they didn't have any of the Bee Gees music when they made the movie.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 0:59:42 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Boz Scaggs: Lowdown was meant for the rehearsal scene but Columbia Records would not clear it, so Boz missed the biggest soundtrack.
“He could ended up on the greatest soundtrack of all time.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:00:15 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Production was harassed by gangs and fire bombings, forcing fake call sheets; Kimmel says it still goes on.
“They had to like put out fake call sheets”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:03:39 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Donna Pescow: During the bridge scene Badham did not tell Pescow the guys would fall, so her anger in the next line was real.
“she was actually mad when she found out that they were dead.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:04:14 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Tony's father: Tony's father hit him; the line about his hair was an ad-lib because the actor was really mad.
“he ad-libs, the line that we like was not scripted”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:04:26 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: The first mainstream Hollywood movie to use the word blowjob, confirmed by the hosts.
“It'd never been said in a movie before.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:04:55 · Bill Simmons (0.70 sure it was them)
fun, about John Badham: Director kept the bridge fall from Donna Pescow and used a Steadicam, among the first films to do so.
“this was one of the 1st films to utilize a steady cam.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:05:22 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Saturday Night Fever: Paramount execs wanted more Farrah Fawcett footage after the mirror scene; hence the nipple close-up of the poster.
“asked for more Farrah Fawcett footage, which is why we ended up with the close-up of the poster and then the nipple.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:07:26 · Bill Simmons (0.85 sure it was them)
fun, about Karen Lynn Gorney: Her take on why her career stalled: people thought she was Stephanie; she turned down a Saturday Night Fever TV series.
“people didn't know what to do with Stephanie Mangano.”
The Rewatchables · ‘Saturday Night Fever’ With Bill Simmons and Jimmy Kimmel · 1:08:01 · Bill Simmons (0.80 sure it was them)

Who's talking

Bill Simmons (host): Loves films that capture a time and place and treats the Bee Gees soundtrack as untouchable. Cares about the production mechanics and the behind-the-scenes deals (Stigwood, Paramount, the Steadicam). Can't stand weak casting and unfinished payoffs such as the dance contest and the hollow Rocky-style moment. A sucker for dance-floor takeover scenes.
Jimmy Kimmel (guest): Grew up on the soundtrack and loves Travolta, the TV era and 70s TV icons (Good Times, Kotter). Defends comedians for awards and Woody Allen. Is a sucker for family anecdotes (his Italian Brooklyn-adjacent roots, Aunt Chippy) and cannot stand fake New York accents.

The show's recurring bits

Apex Mountain: The moment a star peaks; where on the mountain a performance sits.
Who Won the Movie: The hosts name the person who came out of the film best off.
The Ebert review: Roger Ebert's original review and star rating read aloud. Ebert is cited, never on the show.
Casting what-ifs: Who was almost cast, or who should have been.
Most rewatchable scene: The scene each host would stop on while flipping channels.
Aged best / aged worst: What holds up and what does not.
Picking Nits: The little things in a film the hosts love that they don't think totally work: the nits.
Double feature: The film each host would pair it with; a programming pick.

Names the transcriber got wrong

Karen Linkourney / Lingourney / Carolyn Gurney = Karen Lynn Gorney
John Avletson = John Avildsen
John Badam = John Badham
Greece = Grease
Donna Pescal = Donna Pescow
Pauline Kale = Pauline Kael
Roger Ebird = Roger Ebert
Nick Cohen / Nick Khan = Nik Cohn
Cisco = Gene Siskel
Stickwood = Robert Stigwood
Barry Gibbs = Barry Gibb
Fran Dresher = Fran Drescher
Welcome back Cotter = Welcome Back, Kotter
Cruz = Tom Cruise
Eckus = Equus
Marcella Mastriani = Marcello Mastroianni
Yvonne Elleman = Yvonne Elliman
Michael Asner = Michael Eisner
Jessica Lang = Jessica Lange
Red Fox = Redd Foxx
Fando = FanDuel
Joey Pants = Joe Pantoliano
Tramps = The Trammps
Robert Hayes / Julie Agerty = Robert Hays / Julie Hagerty
Linda Carter = Lynda Carter
Dance Templar / Dance Fever show = unclear
Craig Horlback = Craig Horlbeck
Where's Kim West Barbarino = unclear (likely 'Where's Vinnie Barbarino')
Bendet Run = Midnight Run (garbled)
Joseph Callie = Joseph Cali
Alan Travolta = Ellen Travolta