 Elvis Presley's thirty-first and last film as an actor was
Change of Habit.
The film was part of the deal that Colonel Parker
worked out with NBC for the 1968 NBC TV Special entitled
"Elvis". It was co-produced by NBC and Universal
Pictures. The film was shot in the Los Angeles area and
at the Universal Studios during March and April of 1969.
It was released nationwide on November 10, 1969 and
spent four weeks on the Variety Box Office Survey,
peaking at #17.
Elvis' character, Dr. John
Carpenter, works closely with three social
workers who have arrived to assist him in his inner-city
neighborhood clinic. He is unaware until late in the
film that the ladies are, in fact, nuns. They are part
of an experimental program, working in the community
without revealing their identities as nuns, wearing
regular clothes instead of their nun's habit
(traditional robe and headdress) - thus the title of the
film, "Change of Habit". The point of the program is to
see if they could, perhaps, be more effective in
connecting with inner-city citizens and serving their
needs by blending into their community.
 Sister Michelle Gallagher was played by
Mary Tyler Moore. The writers based her
character loosely on a real nun, Sister Mary Olivia
Gibson, who was in charge of the speech clinic at Maria
Regina College in Syracuse, New York. This Catholic
College opened in 1934 and closed in 1990. While there,
Sister Mary used some of the same techniques as depicted
in the film in her work with handicapped children. Mary
Tyler Moore started out as a dancer before becoming an
actress. Her first TV appearance was in 1955 as the
dancing elf 'Happy Hotpoint' in Hotpoint brand appliance
commercials for the TV series "The Ozzie and Harriet
Show". She also played the answering service worker,
Sam, in the 1959 CBS show 'Richard Diamond, Private
Detective'. In that role, her voice was heard, but only
her legs were seen.
She won stardom and the hearts of TV
viewers in her long running roles in the 'Dick Van Dyke
Show' and the 'Mary Tyler Moore Show', both of which she
won Emmy and Golden Globe Awards for. She also starred
in a number of films for the big screen as well as for
TV. She was nominated for an Academy Award in 1981 for
her work in 'Ordinary People'. She was nominated for an
Emmy for 1979's 'First, You Cry', 1985's "Heartsounds",
and 1988's "Lincoln". She won an Emmy for the 1993's
"Stolen Babies". She and former husband Grant Tinker
formed MTM Enterprises in 1969 and, in addition to "The
Mary Tyler Moore Show", co-produced such TV series as
"Lou Grant", "Hill Street Blues", "St. Elsewhere", "The
Bob Newhart Show", and "WKRP In Cincinnati". They sold
MTM in 1990. As a longtime sufferer of type 1 diabetes,
Ms. Moore has been an activist for diabetes research and
its funding. On May 8, 2002, a bronze statue of her
famous hat-toss in opening titles of "The Mary Tyler
Moore Show" was dedicated. It is displayed at the same
Minneapolis intersection where the scene was filmed for
the show.
 One of the nuns, Sister Irene Hawkins, was played by
singer/actress
Barbara McNair.
Born in Chicago and raised in Wisconsin, Ms. McNair is a
formally trained musician. She moved to New York and
worked as a secretary until she established herself as a
talented singer, performing in such notable nightclubs
as The Purple Onion, The Persian Room of the The Plaza
Hotel and, in Los Angeles, The Coconut Grove. She made
her Broadway debut in a musical called "The Body
Beautiful". She starred in her own TV series "The
Barbara McNair Show" and has had many acting roles in
film and television. In 1972, she co-authored a beauty
book called "The Complete Book of Beauty For the Black
Woman". Recently, she has been on stage in Europe
appearing in "Sophisticated Ladies", a celebration of
the music of Duke Ellington.
Sister Barbara
Bennett, was played by Jane Elliot. You
might recognize Ms. Elliot from her many roles in
television, most notably her long-running role of the
villainous Tracy Quartermaine in the popular soap opera
"General Hospital". She has been nominated three times
for a Daytime Emmy Award for her work in that role,
winning in 1981. She has been nominated five times for
Soap Opera Digest Awards, winning twice.
The
late Leora Dana played Mother Joseph. She was a
character actress who was often seen in the 1950's on
programs such as "Kraft Television Theatre", "The Philco
Television Playhouse" and "Masterpiece Playhouse". She
had roles in such films as "Some Came Running",
"Pollyanna" and "The Boston Strangler".
Longtime
character actor Regis Toomey played Father Gibbons. His
career in films reaches back to 1929. He had many roles
in ffilm and television. Among them was a recurring role
as Dr. Barton Stuart on both the "Green Acres" and
"Petticoat Junction" television series.
 Edward Asner has a small part in this film as
police officer Lt. Moretti. Very early in his career,
Mr. Asner played an unaccredited role in the Elvis film
"Kid Galahad". In 1970, he assumed the role that would
make him famous - the character of Lou Grant on the
now-classic television series "The Mary Tyler Moore
Show". When that long-running show ended, he reprised
the role on his own "Lou Grant" TV series. Asner had
powerful roles in the TV mini-series "Rich Man, Poor
Man" and "Roots". He has been nominated fifteen times
for Emmy Awards, winning seven, and he has been
nominated eleven times for Golden Globe Awards, winning
five. He received the Screen Actors Guild Life
Achievement Award in 2002. Recently, he has been working
on projects not yet released, including "The Commission"
and "Elf".
Robert Emhardt was an actor known for
playing the villain. 'Change of Habit' of was no
different. In it, his character is identified as "The
Banker", a merciless loan shark wielding his evil
influence over the community. However, in the Elvis
movie "Kid Galahad" he played the likable cook Maynard,
connoisseur of corned beef.
The female vocal
group The Blossoms had appeared with Elvis in his 1968 TV special
"Elvis". The group also performed with him on musical numbers in
"Change of Habit". Among the members for both gigs was Darlene Love,
who later made a name for herself as a solo performer and an
actress. One of her better known acting roles is that of the wife of
Danny Glover's character in the series of "Lethal Weapon" movies
starring Glover and Mel Gibson.
Several other actors in
"Change of Habit" had roles in other Elvis films. David Renard
played Colum in this film and was an unaccredited photographer in "Fun
In Acapulco". Troy Melton was an unaccredited "2nd. underling"
in this film and an unaccredited poker player in "It
Happened At The World's Fair". Stella Garcia played Maria in
this film and an unaccredited senorita at Torito's in "Fun In
Acapulco". Caitlin Wyles played an unaccredited "2nd. stiletto deb" in
this film and Marlene Standing Rattle in "Stay
Away Joe". John Macaluso played an unaccredited teenager in
this film while 11 years earlier in 1958 he was an unaccredited
teenager in "King Creole".
Look carefully and you'll see actor
A. Martinez in a small unaccredited role
as a teenager. Mr. Martinez is known today for his Emmy Award
winning role as Cruz in the television soap opera "Santa Barbara",
as well as his recent roles on "For The People", "General Hospital",
"Profiler", and "L.A. Law". Also a singer, Martinez, made his public
singing debut in a talent competition. But, singing took a back seat
to acting. His debut album was released this year.
The film was directed by William A. Graham who has
directed a number of television movies and series
including "Dr. Killdare", "The Fugitive" and "Get
Christie Love". He was nominated in 1980 for an Emmy
Award for his work in "Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim
Jones".
The writing was done by several
acclaimed writers - Eric Bercovici, James Lee, Richard
Morris, John Joseph and S. S. Schweitzer. Bercovici
received an Emmy Award in 1981 for his work in "Shogun".
He was also nominated for an Emmy in 1978 for
"Washington Behind Closed Doors" and in 1973 he was
nominated for a Writer's Guild Award for "The Culpepper
Cattle Company". Lee was nominated for an Emmy Award in
1963, 1977, and 1980 for his work in "The Invincible Mr.
Disraeli", "Roots", and "This Year's Blonde"
respectively. Morris won a Writer's Guild Award in 1968
for "Thoroughly Modern Millie". Joseph worked on the TV
series "Bonanza". Schweitzer wrote for TV series such as
"Cannon" and "Police Woman" among others.
The cinematographer was the award-winning Russel
Metty, whose work can also be seen in "Imitation of
Life", "That Touch of Mink", "Bus Riley's Back In Town",
"Madame X", and "Thoroughly Modern Millie". He was
nominated for an Academy Award for "Flower Drum Song"
and won one for "Spartacus".
The film editor was
Douglas Stewart, who won an Academy Award for "The Right
Stuff" and was nominated for Emmy Awards for "Rich Man,
Poor Man" and "The Bold Ones".
Makeup was done
by Bud Westmore of the famous Westmore family of makeup
artists.
Hair styles were done by Larry Germain,
who was nominated five times for Emmy Awards, winning
one for his work in the 1979 version of "The Miracle
Worker".
Soundtrack
Have A happy
Let's Be Friends
Change Of Habit
Let
Us Prey
Rubberneckin'
Recorded at: Decca Recording
Studios, Universal City, Los Angeles. March 1969 (Except
"Rubberneckin'" recorded at American Sound Studios, 827,
Danny Thomas Boulevard, Memphis. January 1969).
Musicians :
Elvis Presley (vocals), Dennis
Budimer, Mike Deasy, Howard Roberts, Robert Bain
(guitars), Joe Mondragon (bass), Carl O'Brien (drums),
Roger Kellaway (piano), the Mello Men (vocals)
Change of Habit - Universal 1969
Director William Graham
Producer Joe Connelly
Technicolor
Cast Overview
Elvis Presley .... Dr. John
Carpenter,
Mary
Tyler Moore.... Sister Michelle Gallagher,
Barbara McNair .... Sister Irene Hawkins, Jane
Elliot .... Sister Barbara, Leora Dana .... Mother
Joseph, Edward Asner .... Lieutenant Moretti, Robert
Emhardt .... The Banker, Regis Toomey .... Father
Gibbons, Doro Merande .... Rose, Ruth McDevitt ....
Lily, Richard Carlson .... Bishop Finley, Nefti Millet
.... Julio Hernandez, Laura Figueroa .... Desiree,
Lorena Kirk .... Amanda, Virginia Vincent.... Miss
Parker.
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