49 Fun Facts About American Graffiti

Who directed American Graffiti?

George Lucas directed it as his second feature; the 1973 film was Lucasfilm's first production and earned him a Best Director Oscar nomination.

The film is set over one night in which California city?

Modesto, Lucas's home town, whose early-sixties cruising scene the film recreates; he judged the real town too changed a decade later and filmed elsewhere.

In what year is American Graffiti set?

1962: the tagline asks 'Where were you in '62?', and the story plays out on the last night of summer before two of the friends are due to fly east to college.

Which burger joint is the friends' meeting place at the start of the film?

The scenes were shot at the real Mel's in San Francisco, which was demolished soon after filming.

Who plays Curt Henderson, the graduate having second thoughts about leaving for college?

Richard Dreyfuss: Lucas liked his audition so much he let him choose between Curt and Terry, and Dreyfuss picked Curt.

Ron Howard plays which character?

Steve Bolander, the graduate who lends Terry his '58 Impala for the year, is Ron Howard's role; Howard took it hoping to shed his child-star image.

What is the nickname of Terry Fields, played by Charles Martin Smith?

The Toad is Terry's nickname, which he hates; Charles Martin Smith's character tells Debbie people call him 'Terry the Tiger' instead.

The blonde who mouths 'I love you' to Curt is driving what car?

A white Ford Thunderbird, a 1956 model driven by Suzanne Somers; Curt spends the night chasing the mystery blonde and never catches her.

What is the greaser gang called that makes Curt hook a chain to a police car?

The Pharaohs grab Curt after he sits on their car and make him prove himself with the police-car prank before letting him go.

Which vehicle does Terry actually own, as he finally admits to Debbie?

A Vespa scooter: Terry's opening arrival, bumping it into a wall as he pulls up, was a real mishap by Charles Martin Smith that Lucas kept in the film.

How old is Carol, the girl who talks her way into John Milner's car for the night?

12: Carol is the bratty twelve-year-old Milner gets stuck with after she hops into his car; Mackenzie Phillips, who plays her, was the same age during the shoot.

What did Harrison Ford insist on before taking the part of Bob Falfa?

Not cutting his hair: the script wanted Falfa in a flattop and Ford refused; he was mainly working as a carpenter when he took the part.

Where does the climactic drag race between Milner and Falfa take place?

Paradise Road, the open strip outside town where Milner and Falfa race at dawn; Falfa's car leaves the road and burns while Milner's coupe survives.

Where does Curt drive to late at night, hoping to reach the mystery blonde?

The radio station: Curt drives out to the lonely station building, where the man who claims the Wolfman's shows are taped turns out to be the Wolfman himself.

According to the epilogue, what became of Curt Henderson?

A writer living in Canada is Curt's fate in the closing title cards; Lucas based Curt on his own college-age self.

Near which place does the epilogue say Terry Fields went missing in action in 1965?

An Loc, South Vietnam: the closing title card reports Terry missing in action there in December 1965, the only one of the four fates tied to the war.

Which producer challenged Lucas to write a mainstream coming-of-age film during the making of THX 1138?

Coppola's name went on the film after The Godfather so Universal could sell it as 'from the man who gave you The Godfather'.

Which Fellini film did Lucas cite as an inspiration for the story?

I Vitelloni, Fellini's 1953 film about young men drifting through a provincial town, was the model Lucas cited for his own cruising friends.

Which husband-and-wife team shares the screenplay credit with Lucas?

Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz share the screenplay credit with Lucas; they paused mid-project to direct their own horror film, Messiah of Evil, then returned to rewrite.

Which studio gave Lucas $10,000 to develop the treatment into a screenplay, then rejected the script?

United Artists advanced Lucas $10,000 for the script, then rejected it, as it also rejected his space-opera pitch; Universal picked the film up instead.

How much did Universal add to the $600,000 budget when a famous director became producer?

$175,000: the producer's name persuaded Universal to lift the $600,000 budget to roughly $775,000, on a film that went on to gross over $100 million worldwide.

Filming began in San Rafael, but the city withdrew permission after how many days?

Two: a local business complaint led San Rafael to pull its permit after the second night, and Lucas moved the unit to a town further north.

Most of the film was shot in which small town north of San Rafael?

Petaluma, whose downtown stood in for the cruising strip; the town adopted the film, staging an annual Salute to American Graffiti car show.

Which cast member ended up in hospital after an allergic reaction to walnuts?

Paul Le Mat was hospitalised after an allergic reaction to walnuts; the hard-living actor also threw a co-star into a motel pool, gashing his forehead before close-ups.

Le Mat, Ford and Bo Hopkins were said to hold nightly climbing competitions up which structure?

The Holiday Inn sign at the cast's motel; the same trio's late-night drinking also got Ford thrown out of his room.

Lucas shot the film in which inexpensive widescreen format that uses only half of each 35mm frame?

Techniscope, a two-perforation process that halves film costs, gave the grainy documentary look Lucas wanted; Haskell Wexler came in as 'visual consultant' to solve its lighting problems.

Which editor did Universal insist on hiring for the first rough cut?

Verna Fields: Universal wanted an experienced hand over Marcia Lucas, so Fields assembled the first cut; Marcia Lucas finished the edit, and Fields went on to cut Jaws.

How long was the first cut of the film?

Three and a half hours: the first assembly had to be trimmed to under two hours, which broke Lucas's strict 'ABCD' rotation between the four storylines.

Which sound designer created the film's layered 'worldized' radio soundtrack from Wolfman Jack's show?

Walter Murch, credited for sound montage, re-recorded the music through speakers in real spaces so the radio seemed to drift between cars, a technique he called worldizing.

Which major star is absent from the soundtrack because his label refused Universal's flat-fee deal?

Elvis Presley: his label RCA refused the flat per-song fee every other rights holder accepted, so none of his hits appear; the cleared oldies serve as the film's entire score.

MCA's soundtrack album was titled how many 'Original Hits from the Soundtrack of American Graffiti'?

41: MCA's double LP '41 Original Hits from the Soundtrack of American Graffiti' gathered the film's rock-and-roll oldies and became a top-ten album in 1973.

Universal initially planned to release American Graffiti in what form?

As a television film: Universal doubted it had a theatrical audience, but strong previews changed minds and it opened in select cinemas on its way to a sleeper hit.

When Universal wanted to re-edit Lucas's cut, what did his producer offer to do?

Buy the film from the studio: its producer offered to write Universal a cheque on the spot after the preview rather than let it be recut.

Which of these scenes was among the three Universal cut before the 1973 release?

Bob Falfa serenading Laurie with 'Some Enchanted Evening' was cut, along with Terry's car-salesman scene and a run-in with an old teacher; all three returned in 1978.

The film premiered in August 1973 at a festival in Locarno, which is in which country?

Switzerland: Locarno sits on Lake Maggiore in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, and its festival hosted the film's premiere in August 1973.

Bob Falfa's '55 Chevy had already starred in which 1971 road movie?

Two-Lane Blacktop: Falfa's black 1955 Chevrolet was one of the cars built for Monte Hellman's 1971 film, reused by Lucas's crew a year later.

How many Academy Award nominations did the film receive?

Five: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing and Best Supporting Actress for Candy Clark as Debbie, though it won none.

The film was added to the National Film Registry in which year?

1995: the Library of Congress added American Graffiti to the National Film Registry that year, in the seventh annual class since the registry began in 1989.

Why was John Milner's epilogue death date moved from June to December 1964 for the 1978 reissue?

To fit the timeline of the sequel: More American Graffiti (1979) opens with Milner racing on New Year's Eve 1964, so his death had to move to December.

The airliner in the final airfield scene had earlier been leased by which rock band?

Grand Funk Railroad leased the Magic Carpet Airlines DC-7C for its 1971 tour; the plane was filmed at Buchanan Field in Concord for Curt's departure.

Which band appears as 'Herby and the Heartbeats' at the high-school hop?

Flash Cadillac and the Continental Kids, a Colorado retro-rock act, play the dance band Herby and the Heartbeats, performing 'At the Hop' and 'Louie Louie' live.

The film's success is credited with inspiring which long-running TV sitcom starring Ron Howard?

Happy Days: ABC ordered the series after the film proved a 1950s-nostalgia audience existed; it ran from 1974 to 1984 with Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham.

Which casting director, a Godfather veteran and ex-Andy Griffith Show hand, suggested Ron Howard?

Fred Roos, who had cast The Godfather and worked on The Andy Griffith Show, recommended Ron Howard to Lucas for the part.

What brand of whiskey does Terry try to get someone to buy for him?

Old Harper: too young to buy liquor, Terry begs passers-by for a pint of it, and the stranger who finally agrees turns out to be robbing the store.

Who plays Joe, the gang leader who makes Curt hook a chain to a police car?

Bo Hopkins plays Joe; the actor, a Peckinpah regular from The Wild Bunch, leads the greasers who haul Curt along for the night.

Which producer had to become Mackenzie Phillips's legal guardian during filming under California law?

Gary Kurtz, the film's co-producer, took legal guardianship of the under-age Mackenzie Phillips for the night shoots; he went on to produce Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back.

Who wrote and directed the 1979 sequel More American Graffiti?

Bill L. Norton wrote and directed More American Graffiti, the 1979 sequel produced by Lucasfilm, with Lucas involved only as executive producer.

What licence plate does John Milner's yellow deuce coupe carry?

THX 138: the coupe's plate nods to Lucas's first feature, THX 1138, with one digit dropped; that 1971 film also gave its name to the THX sound system.

Which 1974 Golden Globe did American Graffiti win?

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy: the film took that Golden Globe at the January 1974 ceremony, a win it could not repeat at the Oscars, where it went home empty-handed.