What do we do on a movie set besides the acting bit? We sit around and wait for the acting bit. Wardrobe and makeup folks often come up and snap pictures for continuity’s sake. Nowadays, the pros use their smart phones like the rest of us, but Polaroid once ruled the continuity kingdom and “take another one for me, please” was a common request. I wound up with a bunch of them.
Wanna see?
My first location shoot. Robert Zemeckis & Bob Gale wrote it, Mr. Z directed. This is a closeup of my expertly installed Radio Shack pacemaker.
Garry Marshall directed this silly-ass medical soap. I played Dr. Simon August, straight man to a movie full of lunatics.
Entrepreneur Fred Ritter taking it easy in the crib.
Woody the pool guy. Too tan, too high, and too much chlorine.
Original script by Chris Guest and Michael Varhol; I joined them for the rewrite. Chris’ first feature as director. The Dutch angle is a wardrobe pros’ technique for getting the whole actor in that little bitty frame.
My character has been Gary Busey-ed, i.e. kicked in the groin and thrown face first through a glass coffee table. The makeup people and I had fun imagining the damage above, but the queasy director demurred and cleaned it up a little. Tender tummies…
Andy Lauer and I were dumped from the low-rated NBC show before its second abbreviated season. Obviously, we sensed something in the air. By the way, this is from Grand‘s title sequence shot by Storm Thorgerson, AKA Hipgnosis of album cover fame.
I swear this is me, masquerading as our title character (Chevy Chase) to create a diversion. Fooled you, right?
The shoot that wouldn’t wrap: we were shooting 24 hour days at the finish, Mel Smith directing first unit, George Lucas doing reshoots on the adjoining stage.
I have very little from my SNL year, but I’m glad I came across this Stern shot. Howard liked the sketch, I’m happy to say.
Michael O’Keefe and I were no ‘count cowboys in Reno. I floated my per diem in the casino for three days. Broke even. Life’s like that.
The Reverend Shillerman, harkening to the angel feathers (a flaw in the photo, but clearly a sign). A memorable shoot with Clint Eastwod, inside the walls of San Quentin.
Yeah, I’m not sure what or where. If someone can identify the city where one would find this beautiful clock, we can narrow it down. Tweet me @MJMcKean.
UPDATE: This is Manhattan, 53 and Madison. Which makes it Classified Love, a TV movie for CBS, 1985. Thanks to my eagle-eyed New York readers for spotting this.
flotation device 