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The Fortune Cookie Overview:

The Fortune Cookie (1966) was a Comedy - Romance Film directed by Billy Wilder and produced by Billy Wilder, I.A.L. Diamond and Doane Harrison.

SYNOPSIS

A TV cameraman (Lemmon) hatches an insurance fraud scheme with his brother-in-law (Matthau), a larcenous lawyer, when he's injured while working a football game. While wrestling with his conscience, the cameraman must also wrestle with the difficulties of masquerading as a wheelchair-bound invalid and with his greedy ex-wife, who returns to the fold in anticipation of a large settlement. Typically cynical Wilder comedy with the unbeatable team of Lemmon and Matthau in good form.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

Academy Awards 1966 --- Ceremony Number 39 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best Supporting ActorWalter MatthauWon
Best Art DirectionArt Direction: Robert Luthardt; Set Decoration: Edward G. BoyleNominated
Best CinematographyJoseph LaShelleNominated
Best WritingBilly Wilder, I. A. L. DiamondNominated
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The Fortune Cookie BlogHub Articles:

The Fortune Cookie (196 6)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Mar 17, 2018 From 4 Star Films

“You can fool all of the people some of the time, you can even fool some of the people all the time, but you can’t fool all the people all the time.” ~ Inscription in the Fortune Cookie For some inexplicable reason, I expected The Fortune Cookie to be in color. Maybe in some sublim... Read full article

Billy Wilder's The Fortune Cookie

By Rick29 on Apr 20, 2017 From Classic Film & TV Cafe

Like Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder found his career at the crossroads in the 1960s. Successes such as The Apartment and Irma la Douce were offset by flops like Kiss Me, Stupid and the under-appreciated One, Two, Three. It's almost as if he couldn't quite grasp what appealed to the public. I'm not s... Read full article

Billy Wilder's The Fortune Cookie

By Rick29 on Apr 20, 2017 From Classic Film & TV Cafe

Like Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder found his career at the crossroads in the 1960s. Successes such as The Apartment and Irma la Douce were offset by flops like Kiss Me, Stupid and the under-appreciated One, Two, Three. It's almost as if he couldn't quite grasp what appealed to the public. I'm not s... Read full article

The Fortune Cookie

By Michael on Feb 5, 2014 From Le Mot du Cinephiliaque

The Fortune Cookie (Billy Wilder, 1966) CBS cameraman Harry Hinkle (Jack Lemmon) gets injured when football player Luther "Boom Boom" Jackson (Ron Rich) runs into him while he is covering a Browns game at Cleveland Stadium. Harry's injuries are minor, but his conniving lawyer brother-in-law Willi... Read full article

Quel Interprétation: The Fortune Cookie (1966)

By Google profile on Jan 4, 2009 From Out of the Past - A Classic Film Blog

About MeBlogger, Out of the Past - A Classic Film Blog and more. Please add my Google profile to your circles. I've decided to expand the concept of "Quel Interprétation" into general interpretations inspired by classic films and not just limit it to dress-up. My latest (and tasty) installment is ... Read full article

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The Fortune Cookie Quotes:

[about Willie Gingrich, his shyster lawyer brother-in-law]
Harry Hinkle: He's so full of twists. He starts to describe a donut and it comes out a pretzel.
Willie Gingrich: Unwed mothers? I'm for that!
[repeated line]
Harry Hinkle: You can fool all of the people some of the time, you can even fool some of the people all of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time!
Willie Gingrich: I'm his brother-in-law, Sister. And this is his mother, Sister, and this is my wife, his sister, Sister.
Doc Schindler: I'm looking for a freckle!
See More Quotes from The Fortune Cookie
The Fortune Cookie Facts
This is the first film on which Billy Wilder and Walter Matthau worked together, though Matthau was Wilder's first choice for the part in The Seven Year Itch that was eventually played by Tom Ewell.
Production was halted for weeks after Walter Matthau had a heart attack. He had slimmed from 190 to 160 pounds by the time filming was completed, and had to wear a heavy black coat to conceal the weight loss.
Billy Wilder came up with the idea for this film when he saw a player run into a cameraman on the sidelines while watching a football game.
For the scene in which he motors through the city searching for Ron Rich (aka "Boom Boom"), Jack Lemmon also served as a driver, cinematographer and gaffer.
Jack Lemmon originally had two other actors proposed to star with him, Frank Sinatra and Jackie Gleason, but he insisted that he do the picture with Walter Matthau.
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