Nourish the Beast

Baba Goya is a loudmouth mother who goes through husbands and orphans like the Turkish coffee she makes in a dirty old soup pan. In Queens she presides over a household comprised of a childish orphan who happens to be a cop, an elderly gentleman who explodes every time somebody calls him grandpa, a dying husband and an errant daughter who cries all night. The husband, Baba's fifth, is already submitting an ad for her sixth. The cop catches a Japanese stealing cameras and chains him to a radiator, the daughter guiltily confesses she voted for Nixon and runs off, and the husband-who may not die after all-insists they must wait out Watergate for a Democrat.

Directed by Norman Lloyd, Nourish the Beast leans on a strong ensemble — Eileen Brennan, John Randolph, Pamela Bellwood — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about comedy titles of 1974.