48 Fun Facts About When Harry Met Sally

Which classic film's ending do Harry and Sally argue about on their first drive and later watch together by phone?

Casablanca: Sally insists Ingrid Bergman's Ilsa is right to board the plane rather than stay with a man who runs a bar; years later the pair watch it from separate beds, talking by phone.

Which cinematographer shot When Harry Met Sally before becoming a hit director himself?

Barry Sonnenfeld had been the Coen brothers' cameraman; on this set he also introduced Rob Reiner to his future wife, and he turned director with The Addams Family in 1991.

When Harry Met Sally opened in the same summer as which blockbuster?

Batman and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ruled the summer of 1989, while Reiner's film opened in just a few cities and grew into a $93 million hit.

What are the full names of the title characters in When Harry Met Sally?

Harry Burns and Sally Albright meet as new graduates sharing a long drive east after commencement, and part at the end of it never expecting to see each other again.

Harry and Sally meet as new graduates of which university before sharing a drive to New York?

The University of Chicago: Sally gives Harry a lift east after graduation in 1977 because he is dating her friend Amanda, and the two argue most of the way to New York.

What question drives When Harry Met Sally?

Can men and women ever just be friends? On the first drive Harry says no, because 'the sex part always gets in the way', and the next twelve years put his theory to the test.

At which real New York deli does Sally fake an orgasm?

Katz's Delicatessen on East Houston Street hung a sign over the table reading 'Where Harry met Sally... hope you have what she had!'

Who delivers the line 'I'll have what she's having' in the deli scene?

Rob Reiner's mother, Estelle Reiner, was a jazz singer; the line became so famous that Leonard Feather wrote her a song called 'I'll Have What She's Having' for her nightclub act.

Who came up with the punchline 'I'll have what she's having'?

Billy Crystal came up with the punchline during script meetings; it was the last piece added to a deli scene that had been built up in stages.

What is Harry snacking on when he spits a seed at Sally's closed car window at the start of their drive?

Grapes: he assumes the window is rolled down, and the seed hits the glass; Sally turns down his offer of one, explaining that she doesn't like to eat between meals.

Which traditional song's meaning does Harry puzzle over in the final scene of When Harry Met Sally?

Auld Lang Syne: moments after their kiss, Harry wonders whether the lyric tells us to forget old acquaintances or to remember ones we already forgot; Sally decides it is about old friends.

Who plays Marie, Sally's best friend?

Carrie Fisher plays Marie, who is brought along as Harry's blind date but leaves the restaurant in a cab with his friend Jess, and ends up marrying him.

Who plays Jess, Harry's best friend?

Bruno Kirby teamed up with the film's leading man again two years later in City Slickers, once more playing his character's opinionated best friend.

The actor who plays Sally's ex-boyfriend Joe is the son of which US President?

Gerald Ford's youngest son, Steven Ford, plays Joe; it is the news that Joe is getting married that sends a tearful Sally to the phone and Harry round to her apartment.

Where do Harry and Sally meet for the second time?

An airport: in 1982 Harry spots Sally kissing her boyfriend goodbye, then talks his way into the seat beside her on the flight; another five years pass before they meet again.

Where do Harry and Sally run into each other for the third time, in 1987?

A bookstore: Marie notices him staring at them from the Personal Growth section; Sally has split from Joe and Harry's wife has left him, so this time they try being friends.

What is Harry watching at home on the last night of 1988 before running to find Sally?

Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve special is on as Harry tells himself the night is fine, with tradition and Mallomars, 'the greatest cookie of all time'; then he walks the city and runs to the party.

The older couples who recall their courtships between scenes of When Harry Met Sally were originally based on what?

Real interviews Ephron conducted with people around the production, on days she didn't feel like writing, supplied the stories; they were then rewritten and filmed with actors.

Which real-life friendship supplied much of Harry and Sally's dialogue?

Rob Reiner and Billy Crystal really did phone each other every night to watch television and channel-surf together, which became the split-screen scene of Harry and Sally in their separate beds.

What was Nora Ephron's original working title for When Harry Met Sally?

How They Met was Ephron's first choice; the script went through several working titles, Boy Meets Girl among them, before the final one stuck.

How did the script of When Harry Met Sally originally end?

The script originally had Harry and Sally stay friends, which Ephron and Reiner felt was truer; Reiner changed his mind after meeting his future wife, Michele Singer, during production.

Which of these actors turned down the role of Harry Burns?

Tom Hanks was offered Harry first and passed; when the part finally went to the director's close friend, he said yes without even consulting his agents, a first for him.

Which actress had the film's director divorced a few years before he began developing When Harry Met Sally?

Reiner's marriage to Penny Marshall, the Laverne & Shirley star, ended in 1981; his awkward return to single life fed directly into Harry.

At which New York restaurant did the director, producer and writer hold the lunch that led to When Harry Met Sally?

The Russian Tea Room hosted the lunch; Ephron turned down the idea Reiner pitched there, and only a later talk about his life as a single man gave them the film.

Which singer performs the standards on the When Harry Met Sally soundtrack?

Harry Connick Jr., then 21, sang the standards; Reiner thought he sounded like a young Sinatra, and the album became his breakthrough.

What did the soundtrack's singer win for his work on it?

The soundtrack won its singer his first Grammy Award, Best Jazz Male Vocal Performance, in 1990; the album also went double platinum.

Which 1924 standard heard in When Harry Met Sally made AFI's list of the 100 greatest movie songs?

'It Had to Be You' is heard in Frank Sinatra's recording, but the soundtrack album carries another singer's version, because putting Sinatra on the record would have doubled the fee.

Who arranged the big band and orchestra on the When Harry Met Sally soundtrack?

Marc Shaiman had met the film's star while arranging for Saturday Night Live; he went on to score City Slickers and A Few Good Men and to co-write the songs for the musical Hairspray.

What do Jess and Marie argue about keeping when they move in together?

A wagon wheel coffee table: Jess is fond of it and Marie wants it out; Harry, rattled from bumping into his ex-wife, snaps that one day they will fight over who gets it.

How did Columbia roll out When Harry Met Sally, opening it in just 41 theaters at first?

Columbia used a platform release, opening in just 41 theaters in ten cities in mid-July 1989 and expanding to about 800 a week later, once word of mouth had built.

Which award did Nora Ephron's screenplay for When Harry Met Sally win?

The BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay was the script's one major win; it was also nominated for the Oscar, the Golden Globe and the Writers Guild award.

Which dessert does Sally order with a string of special conditions at the diner on the 1977 drive?

Apple pie à la mode: she wants the pie heated and the ice cream on the side, strawberry rather than vanilla, or else whipped cream, but only if it is real.

Which two actors starred in the 2004 London stage adaptation of When Harry Met Sally?

Luke Perry and Alyson Hannigan opened the play at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in February 2004; after lukewarm reviews, Michael Landes and Molly Ringwald took over that summer.

What flavor is Harry and Sally's wedding cake, served Sally's way with the chocolate sauce on the side?

Coconut: at the end the couple recall the huge tiered cake and its very rich chocolate sauce, kept on the side because not everybody likes it on the cake.

Which Woody Allen film beats When Harry Met Sally on AFI's romantic comedy list?

Annie Hall is second on AFI's 2008 list, behind only City Lights, with Reiner's film sixth; in 1989 some reviewers had faulted it for mimicking Woody Allen's style.

Which brand's 2025 Super Bowl ad reunited Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal at the deli, with Sydney Sweeney saying the famous line?

Hellmann's mayonnaise ran the ad during Super Bowl LIX in February 2025, 36 years after the film, with Sweeney ordering what Ryan was having.

Which relationship terms did When Harry Met Sally help popularize?

'High-maintenance' and 'transitional person' are both credited to the film: Harry tells Sally she is 'the worst kind', high-maintenance but convinced she is low-maintenance.

Which 1970s sitcom made the director of When Harry Met Sally famous as an actor?

All in the Family made Rob Reiner a star as Michael 'Meathead' Stivic, Archie Bunker's liberal son-in-law, and the role won him two Emmys before he turned to directing.

Which two Ryan–Hanks comedies did Nora Ephron later direct?

Ephron directed Sleepless in Seattle (1993) and You've Got Mail (1998), both pairing Ryan with Hanks; Joe Versus the Volcano, their first film together, was not hers.

The actor who plays Harry had earlier played Jodie Dallas on which sitcom?

Soap cast him as Jodie Dallas from 1977 to 1981; one of the first regular gay characters on American television, Jodie drew objections from religious groups and worries from gay rights groups alike.

Which soap opera gave Meg Ryan her early break in 1982?

As the World Turns cast her as Betsy Stewart from 1982 to 1984; she was a journalism student taking daytime-drama and commercial work to earn money, and left college as the acting took over.

What is Meg Ryan's birth name?

Margaret Hyra was born Margaret Mary Emily Anne Hyra in Fairfield, Connecticut; she took Ryan, her grandmother's maiden name, when she joined the Screen Actors Guild.

Sally's famous deli scene was filmed in which neighborhood?

Lower East Side: the deli on Houston Street hung a sign above the table where the scene was shot, wishing diners what she had.

Nora Ephron's semi-autobiographical novel Heartburn was about her marriage to which journalist?

Heartburn fictionalized Ephron's marriage to Carl Bernstein, the Watergate reporter, which ended in 1980; she adapted the 1986 film starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson.

Which actor passed on the role of Harry, feeling the film was too reminiscent of Woody Allen?

Albert Brooks was among the first actors offered Harry and passed, wary of the echoes of Woody Allen that some critics went on to hear in the finished film.

What prize did Rob Reiner offer the crew for finding a title for When Harry Met Sally during the shoot?

A case of champagne was Reiner's prize in a title contest among the crew during filming, after the script had already been through several working names.

Where is Harry when he tells Jess that his wife Helen has left him for another man?

At a football game: in the stands he tells Jess how, while Helen was still explaining, the movers she had booked a week earlier rang the bell.

Which company, co-founded by Rob Reiner, produced When Harry Met Sally?

Castle Rock Entertainment took its name from the fictional Maine town in Stephen King's stories; Reiner had filmed King's Stand by Me and would direct Misery next.