Movies - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

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	Movies - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 Western film which tells the story of two lighthearted outlaws who seem more inclined to trade quips than shots. It stars Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Katharine Ross, Strother Martin, Henry Jones, Jeff Corey, Cloris Leachman, Ted Cassidy, Kenneth Mars and Donnelly Rhodes. The film bore only limited resemblance to the actual Cassidy and partner, but popularized their legends nonetheless.

The movie was written by William Goldman and directed by George Roy Hill.

It won Academy Awards for Best Cinematography, Best Music, Original Score for a Motion Picture (not a Musical), Best Music, Song (Burt Bacharach and Hal David for "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head") and Best Writing, Story and Screenplay Based on Material Not Previously Published or Produced. It was nominated for Best Director, Best Picture and Best Sound. It was one of the top grossing films when it came out and, partly due to subsequent re-releases, is, adjusted for inflation, among the top 100 grossing movies. The film grossed about $102.3 million domestically through 1974, making it one of the most successful films of all time in adjusted for inflation terms. Although no data on the film's worldwide gross is readily available, the film is listed as having grossed more money worldwide than Goldfinger (1964), which grossed $124.9 million worldwide, and less money worldwide than Thunderball (1965), which grossed $141.2 million worldwide. This makes Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid one of the top 10 grossing films of the decade of the 1960's.

The two starring roles were originally offered to Warren Beatty and Steve McQueen. Even Marlon Brando was considered at one point, who at the time had minimal box-office draw, but had made an intriguing western years before, One-Eyed Jacks
. At one point, McQueen and Newman were expected to make the film together and they discussed using the new "staggered but equal billing" they later introduced in The Towering Inferno. When Newman and Redford came aboard, originally their roles were reversed, with Newman as Sundance and Redford as Cassidy. Fox did not want Redford to play the part, but director George Roy Hill persisted. Redford has noted that this film catapulted him to stardom and changed his career forever.

The Sundance Film Festival, begun by Robert Redford, is named for his role in this film, as is his Utah ski resort, Sundance.

In 2003 the United States Library of Congress deemed the film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.

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