Toots (2008)

100% of critics liked it
(12 reviews)
66% of users liked it
(250 ratings)

"Toots Shor is many things to many people," said Edward R. Murrow of the legendary Manhattan saloonkeeper in 1955. A friend to the famous, a crook to the feds, father, brother, gambler, bum, but most of all Toots Shor was the owner of America's greatest saloon. Directed by his granddaughter, "Toots"… More "Toots Shor is many things to many people," said Edward R. Murrow of the legendary Manhattan saloonkeeper in 1955. A friend to the famous, a crook to the feds, father, brother, gambler, bum, but most of all Toots Shor was the owner of America's greatest saloon. Directed by his granddaughter, "Toots" is a provocative, loving and unmistakably authentic portrait of the self-made, unapologetic and quintessentially American man who became the unlikely den-mother to the heroes of America's golden age. Politicians and gangsters, sports heroes and movie stars--Sinatra, Gleason, Dimaggio, Ruth, Costello, Eisenhower, Nixon, Warren--for 30 years, they all found their way to Toots' eponymous saloon on New York's West 51st Street for food and drink, served up with a heaping side of insults and put downs. From its post-WW II heyday to its devastating decline in the 1970s, this film reveals as much about the city Toots loved as it does about the man and his enduring legacy.

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 25 min.
Directed By: Kristi Jacobson
Genres: Documentary, Special Interest

In Theaters: Nov 21, 2008 Wide
On DVD: Oct 21, 2008

Critic Reviews

Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times
Restaurateur Toots Shor gets an overdue documentary close-up courtesy of his granddaughter, director Kristi Jacobson, in the enjoyable, well-assembled Toots.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
You see Toots, and you wish you had been there.
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
Affectionately and vividly recalls a bygone New York era.
Laura Kern, New York Times
Cheers to Ms. Jacobson for keeping alive the memory of New York nightlife's golden era, and a man who embodied it.
David Edelstein, New York Magazine
Toots leaves you longing for a more public culture, for places where the palship isn't just the upshot of intoxication. It's a cinematic happy hour.
Eddie Cockrell, Variety
A nostalgic, meticulously researched full course meal from granddaughter Kristi Jacobson that will whet appetites of fest, specialty and tube diners.
Matthew Nestel, Boxoffice Magazine
Toots is a euphoric rewind to a bygone era when the speakeasies and the saloon congregations drew a faithful patronage that rivaled the Catholic Church.
Doris Toumarkine, Film Journal International
A real treat and a booster shot of sweet nostalgia.
Nick Schager, Slant Magazine
Charts with unabashed affection its subject's rise from Jewish discrimination as a kid in South Philly to magnetic celebrity and close friend to Jackie Gleason, Frank Sinatra, Joe Dimagio, and Frank Gifford.