More "Red Dawn" trivia

me | 12-17-03 | me

[jim_trent]

More “Red Dawn” trivia

After reading about the capture of Saddam Hussein and the ties to the movie “Red Dawn”, I remembered something I had read about it something like 10 years ago. I thought at the time that it was humorous. I did some digging and here it is.

Back in 1991, Julia Phillips wrote a tell-all, trash-everyone book called “You’ll Never Eat Lunch in this Town Again”. Julia was the producer of Taxi Driver, The Sting, and part of Close Encounters of the Third Kind (she was fired from that one for drug use). Throughout the book Julia wrote about how smart she is and how stupid people around her were.

One of the people she wrote of as being stupid was John Milius, the director and co-writer of Red Dawn. What she wrote is that she heard he did not take money for that project. He insisted in being paid with antique and collectable firearms. Boy, she said, how stupid can a person get?

What I thought was humorous about it is that in the book, Julia tells in great detail how she earned $25 million dollars through the successful pictures she produced – and then snorted all of it up her nose. By the time of Close Encounters, she was so erratic from drug use that she was fired. And this is in Hollywood where drug use is tolerated.

She went through the remaining money very quickly afterward and was broke until she made a small amount (much less than in her film days) on this book. The book was successful enough that she wrote a sequel that was less successful. Perhaps some of that money also went for drugs. Who knows. Anyway, it was obvious from the writing, that Julia had not learned anything. Anyway, Julia would never admit it and probably could not even see it, but John Milius was not the stupid one.

[Nick Thimmesch]

Always loved Red Dawn: helped me to become a conservative. Any true American (American being a state of mind) would embrace this wonderful movie: it actually made me cry at times.

[2banana]

He insisted in being paid with antique and collectable firearms.

Which always go up in value.

[new cruelty]

He insisted in being paid with antique and collectable firearms. Boy, she said, how stupid can a person get?

Interesting bit of trivia.

[new cruelty]

Always loved Red Dawn: helped me to become a conservative.

lol. I suppose the same could be said for me. I remember as a kid that movie made me want to suit up, ship out, and fight the gotdam commies. I chose to go to college instead. Go figure.

[Mr. Buzzcut]

"Boys ... avenge me ... AVENGE ME!"

"Make it turn ... make it turn!"

Right up there with Swayze's "Roadhouse" and "Point Break" on my list of cheesy classics! ;)

[JohnGalt]

It's bigger than just an American movie. It really hits on resistance movements everywhere, captured best with the respect Jeb shows towards the mountain men and the warrior Indians whose land his family settled.

While it is a conservative film in many respects in regards to family, the importance of the armed Christian patriot and mans desire to live in liberty, it was truly an anti-government, militia movie. Witness the town mayor who quickly becomes a turn coat, the use of records at the sporting goods store to track down gun owners, and the tried and true Western theme of vengeance, in light of the firing squad the dad's receive.

[FRMAG]

I live quite near to Las Vegas, New Mexico where much, if not all of the move Red Dawn was filmed. You can still see the cowgirl and welcome to Calumet on one of the buildings downtown.

Some of the buildings still have scorch marks from the special effects used in the movie. The local Masonic Lodge was the location for the briefing scene where the Cuban Commander briefed on the Wolverine sports cooperative.

Prison camp scene was filmed at the local drive in (which is still in business) the railyard scenes were filmed infront of a local hotel which is on the national register of historic sites having been a Harvey Hotel in the past.

Yes, we know the movie well. Actually some of the scenes from EAsy Rider were filmed here as well.

[Hatteras]

"It's bigger than just an American movie. It really hits on resistance movements everywhere, captured best with the respect Jeb shows towards the mountain men and the warrior Indians whose land his family settled."

Not only that, they pee in the radiator! That's American ingenuity at it's finest! Thinking on the run, outside the box even, never give up, never say die!

[Hanging Chad]

if this ain't in "chat" it sure outta be...

[whattajoke]

I'm sure it's been mentioned, but Red Dawn was the first PG-13 movie too. Just some more useless trivia for ya...

[Jim Cane]

antique and collectable firearms.

Which always go up in value.

Not to mention difficult to snort!

[Mad Dawgg]

"Witness the town mayor who quickly becomes a turn coat, the use of records at the sporting goods store to track down gun owners,"

That part scared the livin begeezus out of me.

To this day I do not own a firearm that has paperwork.

[Space Wrangler]

Another interesting bit of trivia is that Red Dawn was the first movie to ever sport the 'PG-13' rating. Excellent movie, and definitely one of my all time favorites.

[bethelgrad]

Great movie that should be remade in today's context. However, I will always think C. Thomas Howell was stupid for not taking cover while firing on the Soviet chopper, which eventually won the duel.

[ken5050]

It's obvious that someone in an intelligence unit was having a bit of fun naming the operation..but I always thought the military had a computer to generate random code names for ops..

[1ofmanyfree]

>if this ain't in "chat" it sure outta be...


Hang in there Chad, I'm sure it will be soon... now about that second cup of joe...

Still a good movie, I show it to the grandkids when they are older.

[section9]

Red Dawn was actually a good war movie. The war itself consumed all the warriors. The Brothers died, the Spetznaz Colonel died, the American pilot died. Everybody gets killed in the end. Though the "war" was won, it was not without cost. This also tells me that a lot of American officers cut their teeth on Red Dawn as kids.

The money shot of the film is when Milius shows the Mi-24 "Hind" helicopter pair coming over a ridgeline. Very well done.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[raybbr]

Sort of like these Americans:

"Never give up! Never surrender!!!

[Core_Conservative]

Maybe she should have taken the same way of receiving pay. If she would have shoved one of those up her nose (and pulled the trigger) she would have saved everyone else time and money!