Man on the Moon is a 1999 American biographical film about the American entertainer Andy Kaufman. The story traces Kaufman's steps from childhood through the comedy clubs, and television appearances that made him famous, including his memorable appearances on Saturday Night Live, Late Night with David Letterman, Fridays, and his role as "Latka Gravas" on the television sitcom Taxi. The film pays particular attention to the various inside jokes, scams, put-ons, and happenings for which Kaufman was famous, most significantly his long-running "feud" with wrestler Jerry "The King" Lawler and his portrayal of the bawdy lounge singer Tony Clifton.
Short storyline
Man on the Moon is a biographical movie on the late comedian Andy Kaufman. Kaufman, along with his role on "Taxi," was famous for being the self-declared Intergender Wrestling Champion of the world. After beating women time and time again, Jerry Lawler (who plays himself in the movie), a professional wrestler, got tired of seeing all of this and decided to challenge Kaufman to a match. In most of the matches the two had, Lawler prevailed with the piledriver, which is a move by spiking a guy head-first into the mat. In one of the most famous moments in this feud was in the early 80s when Kaufman threw coffee on Lawler on "Late Night with David Letterman," got into fisticuffs with Lawler, and proceeded to sue NBC.
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Runtime: 118 min
Release Date: 22 December 1999 (USA)
Country: UK, Germany, Japan, USA
Box office: Budget: $52,000,000 (estimated). Opening Weekend: $7,515,585 (USA) (26 December 1999) (2079 Screens). Gross: $34,580,635 (USA) (20 February 2000)
Soundtrack: I Will Survive