Fat City (1972)
1972 film by John Huston
- Released
- 1972
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Genre
- Boxing film
- Director
- John Huston
- Screenplay
- Leonard Gardner
- Producer
- Ray Stark, John Huston
- Music
- Marvin Hamlisch
- Editing
- Walter A. Thompson
- Starring
- Stacy Keach, Jeff Bridges, Susan Tyrrell, Candy Clark, Nicholas Colasanto, Curtis Cokes, Sixto Rodriguez, Billy Walker
- Running time
- 100 minutes
- Production company
- Columbia Pictures
- Distributor
- Columbia Pictures, Netflix
- Based on
- Fat City
- Set in
- California
Fat City is a 1972 American sports drama film directed and produced by John Huston, and adapted by Leonard Gardner from his 1969 novel. It stars Stacy Keach, Jeff Bridges, Susan Tyrrell, and Candy Clark in her film debut.
The plot follows former boxing contender Billy Tully (Keach), who crosses paths with younger fighter Ernie Munger (Bridges). Tully convinces Munger to train with his former trainer, Ruben (Nicholas Colasanto). The supporting cast features real-life boxers Art Aragon, Curtis Cokes, and Sixto Rodriguez Noriega, along with trainer Al Silvani.
The film's title refers to the city of Stockton, California, the main setting. According to Gardner, the title is meant to be ironic, "Fat City is a crazy goal no one is ever going to reach."
Released by Columbia Pictures on July 26, 1972, Fat City was a critical success. Susan Tyrell was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.
Cast
- Stacy Keach
- Jeff Bridges
- Susan Tyrrell
- Candy Clark
- Nicholas Colasanto
- Curtis Cokes
- Sixto Rodriguez
- Billy Walker
- Rubén Marino Navarro
Nominations
- Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
External links
Facts from Wikidata Q2362333 (CC0); quoted introduction from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Data retrieved 2026-10-22.
Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.