The Agency's Posts

Tom Hanks says he felt burden making 'Captain Phillips': NEW YORK --Tom Hankshas played a lot of real people lately. In the spring he took to Broadway....
Read More>

Review And Box Office Outlook: 'Gravity' Is The Movie Experience Of The Year: Alfonso Cuarón’sGravityis incontestable evidence for the worth if not outright....
Read More>

Review: Joseph Gordon-Levitt's 'Don Jon' is a smart R-rated comedy: 'Don Jon' lays bare a naked truth: A romantic comedy built around porn can be insightful,....
Read More>

Dumb and Dumber To' begins production, but will audiences care?: It's been almost 20 years sinceJim Carreyand Jeff Daniels took their ill-fated road trip to....
Read More>

'Gravity' takes Alfonso Cuaron and crew on a tricky joy ride: The Filmmakers: Simulating space conditions in the Sandra Bullock-George Clooney drama 'Gravity'....
Read More>

'Fatal Attraction' to become a stage play, will debut in London: It is the West End play that will not beignored. A stage version of the 1987 movie "Fatal
Read More>

Breaking Bad' tops Emmys amid many upsets: The AMC series about a teacher-turned-meth dealer wins best drama series prize, and Anna Gunn won....
Read More>

Auto-racing film 'Rush' takes another route with Niki Lauda's help: Unlike other films in the genre, the auto-racing film about Niki Lauda and James Hunt is as....
Read More>

Review: 'Enough Said' says just enough: Nicole Holofcener has done it again. She's made a funny, honest film about everyday, fallible....
Read More>

Pharrell says 'Blurred Lines' 'different' from Marvin Gaye song: Does Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines" sound too much like one of its disco-funk....
Read More>

Katherine Heigl: Is new NBC show her last chance to stay a star?: In Hollywood, if your career cools but the insiders like you, you wind up doing the cha-cha on&q
Read More>

Andy Samberg adds the goofiness to his detective role on 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine': Andy Sambergis having trouble keeping his toothy grin in check. There's no studio....
Read More>
Oscars Outdoors goes back to the drive-in with 'American Graffiti'
Posted on: 08/09/13
Share/Save/Bookmark

George Lucas' 1973 ode to youth and rock marks its 40th year with an Oscars Outdoors screening that includes star Cindy Williams.

 

Where were you in the summer of '73?

Like a lot of Americans, you might have been in a theater or drive-in movie basking in the nostalgic glow of "American Graffiti."

George Lucas' enduring and endearing coming-of-age-story set during the course of one night in a small California town in 1962 features several stars — and Oscar winners — in the making, including Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Harrison FordCindy Williams, Candy Clark, Suzanne Somers, Paul Le MatCharles Martin Smith, Mackenzie Phillips and Bo Hopkins. Not to mention vintage cars, a landmark rock soundtrack and maverick rock disc jockey Wolfman Jack.

Even the film's hangout, Mel's Drive-In, became a chain of popular restaurants.

Williams, who played Laurie, and Smith, who portrayed nerdy Terry the Toad, went to Westwood to see the low-budget ($750,000) comedy shortly after it opened. The plot revolved around high school grads Steve (Howard) and Curt (Dreyfuss), who spend one final evening cruising the streets with their friends before they head to college

"There were lines around the block," recalled Williams. "I called Richard Dreyfuss, who was doing 'The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz' in Canada, and I told him. He didn't believe me. He thought I was making it up. They let Charlie and me in, and we had to sit on the floor in the back. It played a year in Westwood!"

Williams, Clark, Phillips and Hopkins are reuniting Friday evening for the 40th-anniversary screening of "American Graffiti" at Oscars Outdoors in Hollywood. The screening is sold out, but there will be a standby line. Also joining the reunion are Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck, who earned a screenplay Oscar nomination with Lucas; visual consultantHaskell Wexler; production sound designer Art Rochester; and actress Lynne Stewart. And two of the film's famous cars, the white Thunderbird and the yellow coupe, will also be making an appearance.

"American Graffiti" was a huge hit — grossing $115 million according to Box Office Mojo, the equivalent of more than $500 million in today's dollars when adjusted for inflation — going up against such competition as "Paper Moon," "A Touch of Class," "High Plains Drifter" and "Jesus Christ, Superstar." The film was released two years before Steven Spielberg's"Jaws" ushered in the era of the summer blockbuster.

"American Graffiti," which earned five Oscar nominations, including best film, was Lucas' second feature. It was shot over 28 nights in Petaluma and San Rafael, Calif.

"He was very quiet and kind of introverted," recalled Clark, who received a supporting actress Oscar nomination for her role as the flirtatious blond Debbie who hooks up with Terry. "We were shooting at night and George was editing during the day. He wasn't getting any sleep, and at the end he just looked like a zombie."

"I remember very few words coming out of his mouth," said Phillips, who was just 12 when she made her film debut as Carol Morrison, a precocious girl who drives drag race king John Milner (Le Mat) crazy when she becomes a passenger in his deuce coupe. "He would give the thumbs-up sign or the OK sign after a take and say 'terrific,'" she said of Lucas.

"I grew up in Fort Worth and there were two popular drive-ins," said Clark. "We would inch along like the 405 Freeway at rush hour. We would yell out the window like 'American Graffiti.'"

Hopkins said that his hometown of Greenville, S.C., even had its own Mel's Drive-In. "It was called the Ranch," he said. "Mr. Wilson ran it, and they had the best steak and baked potatoes you ever had. We were beginning to drink beer. It was a great time."

Phillips admitted she didn't know exactly that "American Graffiti" was a feature film.

"I thought we were doing maybe an after-school special," she said. "But it was the greatest experience. Everyone was really nice to me. I remember sort of being the mascot, the little kid hanging around with these cool older people."

"It was like being in summer stock, which I had been in," said Hopkins of the shoot. "We all dressed in the same trailer and every now and then guys would peek over [to look at the actresses]. I took Ronny Howard up to the pool hall with the boys. We made sure nobody bothered him."

The pulsating soundtrack of wall-to-wall classic rock tunes of the 1950s and early '60s, including Bill Haley & His Comets' "Rock Around the Clock" and the Del-Vikings' "Come Go With Me," was integral to the film's success.

"When George described 'American Graffiti' to me and Ron, he described it as a musical because the music will never stop during the entire movie unless the source of the music is gone, when the cars are stolen or they are out in the woods," noted Williams.

"It is the other character in the movie. I remember after that meeting Ron and I looked at each other and said this is genius."

 
COMMENTS
Be the first to post a comment!


Post A Comment:




  • It's 2020! Start booking roles in commercials, fashion, films, theater and more with The Agency Online!

  • NEW WORKSHOP with Barbara Barna & Sean De Simone!

    Hi Everyone and Happy Summer! Sean at Sean De Simone casting and Barbara Barna are teaming up for a super informative and fun Hosting for Home Shopping workshop. A great opportunity for established or experienced TV Hosts and Experts interested in learning how to get noticed and how to get in....
  • MASTERCLASS W. Robin Carus & David John Madore

    A Special Offer for the Agency Community, from one of our favorite NYC Casting Directors! EMAIL FacetheMusicWithUs@gmail.com Or Eventbrite To Sign Up! Class Size is Limited.
  • Don't Fall Into The Comparison Trap

    Hi Everyone! As the second installment in an ongoing series of features by the Agency's amazing community, here's some sage advice from our own Regina Rockensies; a humble (& awesome)veteran we've had the pleasure of working with for a long time. Have an excellent week! : ) - The Agency....
  • One Model's Agreement

    Hi Everyone! As the first piece in an ongoing series of original articles by the Agency community, here's a short reflection on some of the values of professional acting & modeling that we can all keep in mind for our next casting. Good luck on your castings &shoots this week! : ) -....




 
home       castings&news       privacy policy       terms and conditions      contact us      browser tips
Official PayPal Seal