Between the Lines (1977)

Anyone who has ever worked for a small company full of artistic types know that there is never a shortage of love/hate relationships.  It's like working in a restaurant without food. Everyone is drinking too much, screwing each other, lying about relationships to the boss, and eventually fearful that their bad habits are going to get them fired.  In this star studded 1977 comedy/drama Between the Lines, we follow the cast of characters employed at an independent newspaper in Boston.  The paper itself is geared more towards the young college students in the college town, with write-ups on the music scene, radical politics, experimental artists and their galleries around town.  Well, it WAS geared towards the youth in Boston, until the staff finds out that they are about to be bought out by a large corporation who is likely going to clean house and reformat everything into some sort of Barry Goldwater fan club, man!  Each one of these journalists/photographers/writers have different feelings about the future of the paper, but more importantly they all have different feelings about one another.  Harry (John Heard) is screwing Michael's girlfriend, Laura (Gwen Welles), but he's leaving anyway as he just got his book published, and he's also screwing photographer Abbie (Lindsay Crouse).  Max (Jeff Goldblum) wants to borrow money from everyone, and David (Bruno Kirby) seems to be on board with the corporate take over.  Can this ensemble of artistic types keep it in their pants enough to survive a corporate takeover or are they going to get lost Between the Lines? Lucky for us though, a young John Heard shows us his ass in grand fashion while almost getting into a fight for his Nude-Comer debut in this one!