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Thursday's Game (1974)

Name: Thursday's Game
Genre: Comedy, Drama, TV Movie
Released: 1974-04-14
Duration: 100 min
Rating: 6.5
Cast: Gene Wilder, Bob Newhart, Ellen Burstyn, Cloris Leachman, Martha Scott

Thursday's Game (1974), directed by Robert Moore, starring Gene Wilder and Bob Newhart.

04/14/1974 BR Comedy, Drama and TV Movie 1h 40m

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Synopsis

Harry Evers and Marvin Ellison have been playing poker Thursday nights with their friends for years. When a disagreement breaks up the game, they decide to continue meeting and doing different things together, instead of staying home with their wives. When the wives find out that the games stopped some time ago, they are a quite upset. Just what have they been doing on Thursday nights?

Joseph F. BirocCinematography
Robert MooreDirector
Diane AdlerEditing
Fredric SteinkampEditing

About the film

Thursday's Game (also known as The Berk) is a 1974 American made-for-television comedy film starring Gene Wilder and Bob Newhart, written by James L. Brooks and directed by Robert Moore. Though filmed in 1971, it was originally broadcast April 14, 1974, on ABC.

In addition to Wilder and Newhart, Thursday's Game starred many actors familiar to 1970s television viewers including John Archer, Ellen Burstyn, Norman Fell, Cloris Leachman, Valerie Harper, Rob Reiner, Richard Schaal, Martha Scott and Nancy Walker. The film was lauded by critics for its perceptive look at adult relationships, and furthered James L. Brooks's reputation as a writer and producer.

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Plot

Harry Evers and Marvin Ellison are long time friends who meet each Thursday to play poker and get away from their wives Lynn and Lois. After the weekly game breaks up over a disagreement, the two men decide to continue meeting for other activities, which leads to friendship and rivalry as the men's lives take on very different paths.

Cast

Gene Wilder as Harry Evers

Bob Newhart as Marvin Ellison

Ellen Burstyn as Lynn Evers

Cloris Leachman as Lois Ellison

Martha Scott as Mrs. Reynolds

Nancy Walker as Mrs. Bender

Valerie Harper as Ann Menzente

Rob Reiner as Joel Forester

Norman Fell as Melvin Leonard

Ric Mancini as Bartender

External links

Thursday's Game at IMDb

Thursday's Game at the TCM Movie Database (archived)

Text from Thursday's Game on Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thursday's_Game

Trivia

It premiered on April 14, 1974, a Sunday.
It runs 1h40 — a typical feature length.
As of September 20, 2026, it is available in Brazil by subscription on Artiflix.
This film's quiz has 10 questions — enough to play more than once without repeats.

Production

StudiosABC Circle Films
CountriesUnited States
LanguagesSpanish, English
StatusReleased

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Set in

New York City

Where to watch

Artiflix Streaming

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Crew

Joseph F. Biroc Cinematography
Robert Moore Director
Diane Adler Editing
Fredric Steinkamp Editing
James L. Brooks Producer
Billy Goldenberg Original music
James L. Brooks Writer

Questions about this film

What is Thursday's Game about?

Thursday's Game: Harry Evers and Marvin Ellison have been playing poker Thursday nights with their friends for years. When a disagreement breaks up the game, they decide to continue meeting and doing different things together, instead of staying home with their wives. When the wives find out that the games stopped some time ago, they …

Who directed Thursday's Game?

Thursday's Game was directed by Robert Moore in 1974.

Who stars in Thursday's Game?

The cast of Thursday's Game includes Gene Wilder, Bob Newhart, Ellen Burstyn, Cloris Leachman and Martha Scott.

How long is Thursday's Game?

Thursday's Game runs for 100 minutes, or 1h40.

Where can I watch Thursday's Game?

Thursday's Game is available on Artiflix. Availability changes often: the list on this page is the most recent we received.