---
title: 'Heart Beat (1980)'
type: 'film'
director: 'John Byrum'
released: '1980-01-01'
runtime_minutes: 109
genres:
  - 'Drama'
  - 'History'
countries:
  - 'United States'
canonical: 'https://cinepixo.com/movies/heart-beat-1980'
review_count: 0
imdb: 'https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080854/'
publisher: 'CinePixo'
---

# Heart Beat (1980)

1980 · 109 min · Drama, History · United States


## Synopsis

Heart Beat is a 1980 American romantic drama film written and directed by John Byrum, based on the autobiography by Carolyn Cassady. The film is about seminal figures in the Beat Generation. The character of Ira, played by Ray Sharkey, is based on Allen Ginsberg. The film stars Nick Nolte, Sissy Spacek, and John Heard.

## Credits

- **Director:** [John Byrum](https://cinepixo.com/people/john-byrum)
- **Screenplay:** [John Byrum](https://cinepixo.com/people/john-byrum)
- **Original Music Composer:** [Jack Nitzsche](https://cinepixo.com/people/jack-nitzsche)
- **Producer:** [Edward R. Pressman](https://cinepixo.com/people/edward-r-pressman), [David Axelrod](https://cinepixo.com/people/david-axelrod), [William Tepper](https://cinepixo.com/people/william-tepper), [Michael Shamberg](https://cinepixo.com/people/michael-shamberg)
- **Director of Photography:** [László Kovács](https://cinepixo.com/people/laszlo-kovacs)

## Cast

- [Nick Nolte](https://cinepixo.com/people/nick-nolte) as Neal Cassady
- [Sissy Spacek](https://cinepixo.com/people/sissy-spacek) as Carolyn Cassady
- [John Heard](https://cinepixo.com/people/john-heard) as Jack Kerouac
- [Ray Sharkey](https://cinepixo.com/people/ray-sharkey) as Ira
- [Ann Dusenberry](https://cinepixo.com/people/ann-dusenberry) as Stevie
- [Tony Bill](https://cinepixo.com/people/tony-bill) as Dick
- [Kent Williams](https://cinepixo.com/people/kent-williams) as Ogden
- [Susan Niven](https://cinepixo.com/people/susan-niven) as Ogden's Secretary
- [Marcia Nasatir](https://cinepixo.com/people/marcia-nasatir) as First Receptionist
- [Luis Contreras](https://cinepixo.com/people/luis-contreras) as Mexican Junkie
- [Stephen Davies](https://cinepixo.com/people/stephen-davies) as Bob Bendix
- [David Lynch](https://cinepixo.com/people/david-lynch)
- [Jenny O'Hara](https://cinepixo.com/people/jenny-o-hara) as Betty Bendix
- [Sunshine Parker](https://cinepixo.com/people/sunshine-parker)
- [Don Brodie](https://cinepixo.com/people/don-brodie) as Dispatcher

## Criticism on CinePixo

No reviews published yet.

Source: https://cinepixo.com/movies/heart-beat-1980
Film facts: Wikidata (Q5691893); synopsis from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Reviews, themes and notes are the work of this site's members.