00:07Thanks for being with me tonight here on TCM.
00:10I'm Dave Karger.
00:11In 1988, performance artist and LGBTQ activist Sandra Bernhard
00:15debuted a one-woman off-Broadway show at the Orpheum Theater in New York City
00:20called Without You, I'm Nothing,
00:21which was written by Bernhard and John Boscovich and directed by Boscovich.
00:26It was part monologue, part cabaret, semi-autobiographical for Bernhard,
00:31but with a wholly take-no-prisoners attitude,
00:33skewering everything from religion to homophobia,
00:37various name brands, musical artists, even her own career.
00:40Up next in our 24-hour Pride salute today is a film with Bernhard
00:45that's something of a continuation of that show,
00:47with John Boscovich taking over the directing reins here as well.
00:51From New Line Cinema in 1990, it's also called Without You,
00:56I'm Nothing.
00:56Instead of just Sandra Bernhard and four musicians from the stage version,
01:00the film features a cast of characters.
01:03Bernhard's manager in the film, played by Lou Leonard,
01:06feels her client has let the success of that off-Broadway show go to her head,
01:10so she books Bernhard in predominantly black clubs with indifferent audiences
01:15in an attempt to bring her back down to earth.
01:18The film was shot over the course of 10 days,
01:20not in New York, but at the Coconut Grove in Los Angeles.
01:24Bernhard appears as multiple celebrity personas,
01:27clad in couture costumes and extravagant wigs,
01:30and doing various musical impersonations along the way.
01:33It's a great showcase for her many talents, as you're about to see.
01:37The movie was something of a flop when it was first released,
01:41but it eventually found its audience in subsequent theater bookings,
01:44and it's been something of a cult favorite ever since.
01:47From 1990, also featuring future two-time Oscar nominee Jaiman Hunsu
01:53in his film debut in a small role,
01:55here is Without You, I'm Nothing.
01:57I'll be here for you next time.
01:59Have a good day.
02:00Bye-bye.
02:01I'll be here for you next time.
02:03Bye-bye.
02:04Like-bye.
02:05Bye-bye.
02:06Bye-bye.
02:07Bye-bye.
