The Secret Of My Success (1987)

 

Brantley Foster arrives in New York City, fresh off the bus from Kansas and with dreams of making it big in business.  After discovering the Pemrose Corporation is making really bad decisions, he occupies a vacant office, adopts a fake name and carries out his mailroom responsibilities while making boardroom decisions.  Hilarity ensues as Brantley also juggles two women, one that he's related to through marriage.  Things look bleak when Brantley is exposed but in the end he succeeds both professionally and personally. 

I'm a sucker for late 80s New York corporate jungle films like Baby Boom (1987), Wall Street (1987) and Working Girl (1988).  The Secret of My Success earns its place among them.  While it may be a little uneven in tone, Brantley Foster is likeable enough to route for.  It may not have done as well as that other movie Michael J. Fox made in the 1980s, but The Secret of My Success did see success at the box office, grossing over 67 million dollars.  The film ranked above other blockbusters from that year such as Dirty Dancing (1987) and RoboCop (1987).  It also featured a soundtrack with 80s staples Pat Benatar and Bananarama.

The Secret of My Success was filmed in Katonah and New York, NY

Location: The Foster Farm

Address: 51 NY 100, Katonah, NY  Muscoot Farm

Location: Port Authority Bus Terminal

Address: 625 8th Avenue, New York, NY

Location: The Fountain

Address: 375 Park Avenue, New York, NY

The fountain is located outside JC Wyatt's Building from Baby Boom (1987).

Location: Brantley's Apartment 

Address: 325 W 46th Street, New York, NY

If I had a dollar for every NYC location that was covered in scaffolding when I visited...

Location: Brantley's First Job

Address: 101 Park Avenue, New York, NY

This was also The Clamp Building in Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990).

Location: The Shootout

Address: 8th Avenue & W 46th Street, New York, NY

Location: The Pemrose Corporation Building

Address: 599 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY

Location: The Prescott Mansion

Address: 2610 NY-35, Katonah, NY  Lasdon Park Arboretum

Location: Lox Around The Clock

Address: 676 6th Avenue, New York, NY

Location: The Peking Ship

Address: South Street Seaport Pier 16, New York, NY

Location: Lincoln Center

Address: Columbus Avenue & W 63rd Street, New York, NY

Lincoln Center was also seen in Ghostbusters (1984) among many other film.

Locations Visited: December 2020

Locations Master List