American Graffiti (1973) | FIRST TIME WATCHING | MOVIE REACTION
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 มี.ค. 2023
- American Graffiti (1973) | FIRST TIME WATCHING | MOVIE REACTION
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*Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. All rights belong to their respective owners. - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
I was expecting this one to show up to honor actress *Cindy Williams* who we lost this past January. Turns out it was more high request than memorial, but I'm happy to see it show up either way. R.I.P. Cindy Williams!
I'm guessing they didn't know who she was prior to seeing this movie.
Too many interruptions the movie was made in the 70s this is a homage to George Lucas hometown memories.
@@ocogorecki True. I would be genuinely surprised if they'd heard of her prior to the movie. But since their recommendations come from the viewers and many of *them* are old enough to have heard of Cindy... see where I'm going here? 😉
Wolf man Jack was a icon he had his studio in Del Rio Texas with the radio antenna across the border in Mexico he put out so much power you could hear him all over the country at night
I remember having such a crush on her when I was a young boy when this movie came out.
The girl who was with Milner, Carol, was played by MacKenzie Phillips, the daughter of John Phillips and the stepdaughter of Michelle Phillips of The Mamas and The Papas. She later starred in the sitcom One Day at a Time. Her TV sister was played by Valerie Bertinelli who later married Eddie Van Halen.
And the blonde in the T-Bird was Suzanne Somers!
MacKenzie's early life was a very sad story. John Phillips was an asshole.
Didnt her dad used to molest her? I know shes had a hard life.
@@paulgallacher5384 Yeah, not when she was a child (but he did give her hard drugs as a child) but he did force himself on her, got her pregnant when she was older.
This movie was filmed in 1973 about a cruise night in 1962! It is rumored it inspired the TV series Happy Days and the movie Grease! It is a landmark film that is beyond magical and entertaining!
The Wolfman passed on a long time ago, and God Bless Cindy Williams who we lost recently!
This movie will never get old!
Inspired Happy Days? Yes. Grease? No. Grease was already a play on Broadway when this movie was in production
Actually there was a short skit on Love American style (I think the show was called) that was the actual happy days show pilot. You can find it on TH-cam.
@@monty4336 .... You're right! Love And The Happy Days! I totally forgot about that! Ron Howard and Anson Williams played the same parts they would on the show.. It also aired in February 1972, well over a year before American Graffiti and 2 years before the series started.
@@PlumbPitiful I just rewatched it and forgot that the pilot was more 'adult' making the two main characters shall we say, hound dogs over women. 😄
More like Rebel without a Cause!
One of my mom's favorite movies. She graduated from high school in 1962, which was the year this movie took place. My dad got her the soundtrack record for her birthday back in the 70s. I listened to it constantly as a kid. She passed in 1986 at 44 years old, and this movie makes me think of her. It's an American classic.
Sorry for your loss. You will be together again one day.
That "line dancing" where you moved through both lines with your partner was called "The Stroll". It was a thing in the 50's.
I LOVE watching the stroll.. they used to do it a lot on Soul Train!
It was in grease I guess they forgot.
Wolfman Jack was a real DJ. He got famous broadcasting from a pirate station in Mexico, which broadcast at 250,000 Watts - five times what an American station would ever put out. The signal could be picked up almost everywhere in North America.
I heard it on the X....
I didn’t know he was out of Mexico. I started hearing him on the radio in 1970 after we came back from being stationed in Alaska. No wonder he was not on the radio in Alaska!
@@secolerice He started in Louisiana, but it was the show from Mexico that could be heard in many places that made him famous. That would have been in the early 1960s.
In typical 1980s fashion, Wolfman Jack had a Saturday morning cartoon series in 1984.
Well, it made it all the way to ky. I'd stay up late at night just to listen to him...
The red head kid Steve was played by Ron Howard. We all knew him as a child actor on the "Andy Griffith Show/Mayberry RFD", and later as the main lead of the long-running "Happy Days". He has since established himself as one of the most important directors in Hollywood, including films you should react including "Splash", "Cocoon", "The Paper", "Apollo 13" and so many others.
The girl who mentioned "Joe College strikes out" to Steve was Kathleen Quinlan who played Tom Hanks wife in Apollo 13.
Richard Dreyfus went on to have a very successful movie career (like most of the other then unknown actors in this), and one in particular you should add to your viewing list is Mr. Holland's Opus. As teacher's yourselves, you will greatly appreciate this story of an unintentional high school music teacher.
Wolfman Jack played himself in this movie. He also hosted The Midnight Special every week. And yes, life was much better without cell phones IMO.
Amen on the life without cellphones! Hate those things, and I don't own one. So many people running red lights with children in the car and one of those dang things stuck to their ear.
Thankfully gas prices were so low that we could afford to drive across town to see what our friends were up to.
Loved midnight special with Wolfman jack. Also Don Kirschner's rock concert I remember seeing Black oak Arkansas on there. Great! Original southern rock band no one seems to know about today.
Thanks for watching this, guys. It is one of my all-time favorites. It was filmed, for the most part, in Petaluma, California about twenty miles from where I live. The Mel’s Drive-In sequence was filmed in San Francisco. Unfortunately, that restaurant no longer exists. Wolfman Jack was a living legend, the Voice in the Night for my generation. I’m glad you liked it.
Mel's is alive and kicking in Visalia, CA. New owners of course and it sat empty for years but now it's been totally remodeled and the last time I visited (pre covid) it was doing great business.
Super
Terry, totally agree, it's my Favorite movie also. I did the cruising stuff when I was a teenager. such good memories and great music.
Movie was set in Modesto, California where Lucas grew up. At the time, he said Petaluma still had the look downtown Modesto once had, so he used it for filming. Throughout high school, my friends and I would head to McHenry Ave to cruise and meet kids from other towns such as Turlock, Manteca, Oakdale, Escalon and Ripon. Cruising was still popular well into the 70s through the 90s; in part popularized by American Graffiti. Not sure if it's still what teens do in the Central Valley, but from post-WWII through 2000, cruising McHenry was a blast for all the "cow-town" teens.
Mel's Drive-in was rebuilt at the same Geary Street location - same layout. It's there now.
I was one of your many fans who recommended American Graffiti! Thanks for showing it! So many in this movie became famous: Ron Howard, George Lucas, Harrison Ford, Suzanne Somers, Cindy Williams, Wolfman Jack, Richard Dreyfus, Mackenzie Phillips, Harrison Ford. What a lineup for a first movie for many of these actors!
The movie is so good that it makes you feel nostalgic for that era even if you didn’t grow up then. Such a classic, thanks for the reaction!
I can back up that claim
The list of people in this movie who were to become stars is simply amazing. No less than 10 became household names including Harrison Ford(Indiana Jones and Star Wars) and Richard Dreyfuss (Jaws), Susan Summers (the Thunderbird driver) and so many others. Spielberg and George Lucas knew how to find talent.
This was filmed near me and it was part of my upbringing as well. Grew up hearing Wolfman Jack on pirate radio stations out of Mexico.
I'm only assuming you didn't mention Ron Howard because he was already a household name well before this movie came out. This movie is just so good. So much young talent.
Cindy Williams (Laverne & SHirley), Mackenzie Phillips (One Day at a Time), Suzanne Somers (Threes Company) and others. All young and mostly unknown.
I wish I had that upbringing… so much
Paul Le Mat did a few good films after this one but I think has been underappreciated.
@@JeffKelly03 I was thinking the same thing! Ron Howard was not only famous since he was a kid but has directed so many amazing films!
The movie was made in 1973 but it takes place on the "last day of summer" of 1962. The time was intentional, because the movie is capturing the symbolic end of an era. The end of the doo-wop era (roughly 1955-1962-3) Before the cultural 1960s (Beatles, Vietnam, psychedelic, etc). One of my all-time favorite movies
Totally agree, this night in 1962 marks the end of my generation's innocence. Fun times on your last days in high school. Next would our loss of innocence and idealism: JFK, MLK and RK assassinations, escalation of war in Vietnam, burning of our inner cities, Watergate, and ultimately the loss of trust in our government and of our neighbors. Much more than just a fun nostalgic movie which is why its one of my favorites. And of course the music!
The crazy thing about this is it was released only a decade after it takes place (1962, not the '50s). But everything changed so much in that time that they saw it as ancient history almost as much as a modern audience does.
I remember seeing Rock n Roll High School (from '79) in 1982 and it felt like ancient history
Very true graduated in 72. And we tried singing the oldies driving around. Oldies in 1972? 😂😂😂
@@Himlee335 The definition of "oldies" seems to keep expanding. It was only 5 years deep when the term started. Last time I listened to an oldies channel, they were mixing doo-wop with grunge and nu metal.
This film has been preserved in the National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." My dad said it perfectly captured his teenage years in the sixties. RIP to the late Cindy Williams - funny and talented and great in this movie. Ron Howard shared some lovely memories of her.
Sooo many huge stars in this, so early in their careers!! Ron Howard, Harrison Ford, and Richard Dreyfus, huge future tv stars Suzanne Somers, Cindy Williams, and MacKenzie Phillips (daughter of two of The Mamas and The Papas), and the great character actor Charles Martin Smith, all with the inimitable voice of Wolfman Jack on the airwaves. He was a DJ with worldwide fame in the 1960s due to working for a border blaster station across the border in Mexico, where they broadcast at 250,000 watts, heard all over the continent and even in Europe and Russia on some evenings. He then spent the ‘70s and ‘80s as one of the first syndicated radio show hosts heard in stations across the country.
Nope, Mackenzie is not Michelle's daughter, she is from John's first marriage.
If I'm not mistaken, John and Michelle's only child is Chyna Phillips Baldwin of Wilson Phillips
@@michaellockhart554 You are right. I watch Chyna's youtube channel.. she's since found Jesus and I can only take it in small quantities but I love to see Mama Michelle make a cameo every once in awhile. You get to see her in her natural state but I have to say that when she gussies herself up, she still looks pretty good for an old dame!
@@connieb4372 I rewatched one the other day where Chyna and Owen Elliott talked about their childhood and the history of The Mamas and The Papas
My favorite movie!! What I find so interesting is that this was made 10 or 11 years after the time when the film takes place, and our culture had so thoroughly changed over that period. Imagine making a movie today about 2012 with such nostalgia…no way.
Very good point it seems like things move so much faster now but there would be no night and day comparisons with 2012.
yeah.. that's what trips me out. Most nostalgia movies are made from the perspective of the person that writes it.. if you grew up in the 60s then you get shows like The Wonder Years, etc.. This was ten years earlier, but before the era of long hair, free love and progressive rock. So much had changed.. 1982 would be the same way, after Vietnam, recession and disco music.. 2012 feels like not so long ago and aside from some technology and social media sites, not much has changed in our daily lives. Sure the world has changed politically, but I'm not as nostalgic about those years and especially not about the music that was being played.
So true
A short nostalgic period is also between "The Big Chill" and the college years on which the cast was reflecting, something like 13 years. Maybe to younger people things have changed a lot between now and 2012 but I can't imagine it in any way. It is all post-9/11, all within the world of Facebook and Twitter and TH-cam so lifestyles are the same. It used to be that there were distinct differences between generations.
I was born in 1954. So much of this movie touched my heart. The place to go, we called the square. 1972 Parking spots, 3 lanes and turn lane around the Capital. Madison Wisconsin. The place to meet and show off your car. Oh the stories I could tell you when I was young. And at 69 I still have that in me. Now with a 2018 Focus RS. If I lose it.......Then I will be old !
If I can say 1 thing no mater what it is. Keep some of best of your childhood in you when you get older.
The text updates at the end were there to show that after this carefree time the turbulent sixties were about to happen and the characters were going to all grow up.
American Graffiti was made in 1973, but it absolutely captured the late fifties and early sixties. Even as a Canadian that was my life in my teens, cruising on the weekends, getting someone older to get you the booze, always a party or a favourite hangout. I’ve lived a lot since ( I’m 77 ) and without a doubt the 50’s and 60’s were the best decades to grow up in!
Disagree unless you love pollution, more bigotry and racism, plus Vietnam War.
@@larryzigler6812 Give it a rest!!!!!!!!!!! Vietnam didn't come about until after 1963. Racism was eradicated because of the youth of that period and started and advanced by Martin Luther King who embraced all races. And pollution was brought about by civilization advancing at a more rapid pace, like propeller driven flight to jet, communication like radio to Tv to the computer and internet that now exist. Every year or decade brings new challenges for mankind to address which you obviously don't recognize!! There is an old saying YOU remind me of; If you're not a cure for the problem--you're part of the problem, and my guess is you are part of the problem!! Lets see, an issue that is not political; oh, I know!! You actually believe that "green house gasses" cause "global warming"!!
@@brgilbert2 WOW !!!!!! What drivel !!!!!! COGRATS 🤡
@@larryzigler6812 CAN YOU SPELL "HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE" ???
@@coinneachmaclellan3121 NO !!!!!!! BECAUSE I WAS INJURED BY POLLUTION, A BIGOTED ATTTACK AND AGENT ORANGE IN VIETNAM !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This movie is like the “Dazed & Confused” for the 60s. It spawned a lot of careers. Jay was correct: that was Harrison Ford in first big movie role! Also, the popularity of this movie spawned “Happy Days” sitcom starring Ron Howard-the main character in this movie (but of course he was already famous). His girlfriend in this movie is Cindy Williams who played Shirley from “Laverne & Shirley,” (RIP). The girl in the Thunderbird is Suzanne Somers who later starred in the 70s sitcom “Three’s Company.”
Richard Dreyfuss also became a famous figure in Hollywood after this movie, including Jaws & more
Not to mention, Ron Howard is now a huge movie director with hits like Apollo 13, Grand Theft Auto, and The Da Vinci Code.
@@KenOtwell don't forget he was Opie Taylor in The Andy Griffith Show and in the 1963 movie The Courtship Of Eddie's Father .
Happy Days came from an episode of Love American Style "Love and Happy Days".
The girl at the hop who mocks Ron Howard ("Joe College strikes out") was Kathleen Quinlan who years later played Jim Lovell's (Tom Hanks) wife in APOLLO 13 which, of course, was directed by Ron.
When I visited Petaluma, California in the late 1970s, the kids were still cruising/dragging the strip on Saturday nights, to see and be seen, more than fifteen years after the time period depicted in the movie. No wonder George Lucas chose it as his shooting locale. I wonder if it still happens. A great way to socialize!
I live 15 minutes north of Petaluma. We all criused Petaluma Blvd in the late 70's early 80's. Good times!
Sadly, cruising ended.
This movie started the nostalgia craze and inspired the creation of the TV show "Happy Days", which begat "Laverne & Shirley" (which begat "Mork & Mindy") and added to the craze! The Fonz, "ehh", hoola hoops, the saying "Sit on it!"
You see Harrison Ford in his first big roll, Richard Dreyfuss, and Ron Howard who would become the great director we have today!
That's actually a urban myth, American Graffiti inspired ABC to pick up the unsold pilot for Happy Days but didn't inspire the creation of Happy Days. Happy Days was actually inspired from a segment of Love American Style in 1972.
I'm so glad you guys gave this movie a chance and I was happy to see the Wolfman Jack surprise still works. This was the movie that made Star Wars possible. Because of its critical and box office success of American Graffiti, the studio gave George the green light for his next project. The story was inspired by George Lucas's high school years in Modesto, CA and, much like Dazed and Confused, was about the filmmakers nostalgia for an earlier, simpler time and a prelude to a loss of innocence. It's specifically set before the Cuban Missile crisis, the assassination of JFK and the escalation of the Vietnam war. George Lucas loved cars and racing and use to be a speedster like his character John Millner. In fact, Lucas actually had a near death experience in a car accident just 3 days before his high school graduation. John's yellow car is referenced in Star Wars episode 1 the Phantom Menace and the license plate THX 1138 is the name of his first film, as well as Princess Leia's prison cell. American Graffiti has been referenced on The Simpsons (Homer tries to buy a bottle of Ol' Harper) and Kevin Smith was inspired by the Wolfman Jack scene in his 1995 comedy MallRats. It's also worth noting that Francis Ford Coppola (the director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now) produced American Graffiti, and Marcia Lucas (George's wife) edited the movie. It was nominated for Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director Best Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress for Candy Clark (Debbie.)
crazy to think that today the movie would take place in 2013 lol
Thanks so much for the history of this. Appreciated.
Great information! Thanks so much!
Wolfman Jack was fabulous!! Everyone was blaring him on their radio!! We had the greatest teenage years ever, my generation knew how to have fun!!
That dance “line dance” was called The Stroll…and they were doing it to the song about it.
They’re in Modesto…George Lucas’ hometown in central California.
Wolfman Jack was a real radio legend.
A car coat is exactly what it sounds like….The Pharaoh’s car coats have the club name on the back.
Such a great movie, wasn’t it? And presented in such a unique way!
And all the future stars that were in it!
So many future stars in this movie including Richard Dreyfuss (Jaws), Harrison Ford (Star Wars, Indiana Jones), Cindy Williams (Shirley Feeney of Laverne and Shirley), Ron Howard (Opie on The Andy Griffith Show, Richie Cunningham on Happy Days), Suzanne Somers (Chrissy Snow on Three's Company) Mackenzie Phillips (Julie Cooper on One Day At A Time)
Wolf Man Jack was a real radio DJ during that time period. As a matter of fact, he was the most famous DJ of all time. He plays himself in this movie.
I graduated in ‘93. From the 50s to the late 90s riding the town, hanging out w friends and just all out having fun was great. There was so much to do but nothing at the same time. Didn’t need phones, texts or anything like that. We made plans during the week and on Friday & Saturday nights we knew where we’d all be and what time & met up.
Been out of school a long time & still have very fond memories of my high school days. These type movies bring me back even the mischievous things we did. We didn’t have to worry about being shot or anything like that.
We even had a stretch of road out in the sticks where we drag raced on Saturday nights. There’d be hundreds of us either racing or watching. We had 2 lookouts a mile from the spot each way w CB radios on police watch. Great memories!
When my daughter turned 16 we talked to her about riding the town etc. She said that sounded so boring and no one did that anymore. They missed out on a lot of fun. Lol
Since it's Women's History Month, a good old flick for the theme would be the 1980 comedy "9 to 5" if you haven't seen it. It stars Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, & Dolly Parton. The three women became good friends, Fonda and Tomlin just recently finished a series on Netflix that was really good and the two of them are currently out promoting a film with Rita Moreno & Sally Fields... they became very good friends with the making of "9 to 5."
Wolfman Jack was HUGE in the 70's. Even had a song written about him by The Guess Who.
I loved this movie because the radio station played in the background the whole night and became the soundtrack, just as it was when we were growing up. You also picked up on the fact that there was a lot of activity jammed into one night, but that’s the way it was. We were up and moving, and met up with friends, and went to dances, and went cruising around the neighborhood, and hung out at diners and socialized in person. We didn’t sit around inside. Such a great time to grow up.
You're absolutely right. Funny that we never ran into one another!
The only kids in the 60s to listen to the radio all night and not hear a single song by Elvis.
@@leroylowe5921 RCA wouldn’t allow Elvis recordings to be used in the movie or soundtrack album. 🤷🏻♀️
@@joannwoodworth8920 true
One of the most important cinematic influences of our lifetime is a "cute little movie". I love it, I would be the same way if I weren't familiar.
This movie takes me back to my childhood, not the early 60s of course when the movie was set, but the early 70s when it came out. I grew up watching all these stars in this movie who were all big stars in the 1970s. The 1970s was big on nostalgia. Not only did you have this movie, but you had Grease, Happy Days, The Sting, Bugsy Malone, Paper Moon, Laverne & Shirley, The Waltons, and so many other hit TV shows and movies that were set in the past. I didn't get it back then of course because I was experiencing my childhood and everything else was new to me. Once I hit my 30s I got it. I loved watching shows like The Wonder Years, That 70s Show, and Stranger Things, because it took me back to times that I actually experienced. One day maybe you guys will see a show or movie set in the early 2000s that shows kids doing things like playing online video games and having their cell phones taken away by parents so you can have some nostalgia too. LOL
LOVED Paper Moon with Tatum O'Neil.
Fun Fact: When Charles Martin Smith pulls up on the Vespa in the beginning, his crash into the building wasn't scripted. He genuinely lost control of the bike and George Lucas kept the cameras rolling. Fortunately, the accident and the actor's reaction to it was in keeping with his character. Furthermore, the incident got the first big laugh from the audience in its first public premiere which George Lucas and friends took as a very good sign for the film.
Also, when Wolfman Jack makes an on-air prank call to Pinky's Pizza, the voice on the other end belongs to George Lucas.
Smith directed the Buffy The Vampire Slayer pilot, BTW.
@@Madbandit77 I also like him in The Buddy Holly Story with Gary Busey
Always loved CMSmith in Never Cry Wolf.
@@janecrow1122 an excellent film!
cool trivia about pinky's pizza, thanks!
That was actually the real Wolfman Jack in this movie. Everybody listened to him back in the day! One of my favs!!!!!
This movie was an instant classic hit.The soundtrack, the storylinee the actors all came together perfectly
I think this movie was the inspiration for the long-running TV series "Happy Days" which also starred Ron Howard (formerly Opie of "The Andy Griffith Show"). (Plus Mel's Drive-In, which was also in "Happy Days.")
Dragging Main Street was a HUGE thing all across the country-- Wolfman Jack did a radio show on the weekends... if you didn't have a date, you were likely to be out in cars. So much fun, and so realistic!!
Cruising was awesome, my high school time was in the 80's and we would all drive to Nashville to cruise loops around the ol' Rivergate Mall, good times
My highschool boyfriend and I went to see this movie when it came out. He drove a '57 Chevy at the time which nobody paid attention to because most guys were into muscle cars in the '70s. When we came out of the movie we were surrounded by people admiring the car.
A bit of trivia for the car guys. The '55 Chevy that Han Solo drives in the film was a proper, purpose built car which was tuned for drag racing. It was a genuinely fast car that could do everything the film implied it could do and reality, would have absolutely destroyed the '32 Deuce Coup they used for Milner's car. The Ford will always be the poster boy of the film, but the car guys watching the film will have instantly picked up on a couple of little clues that Indy's Chevy was way more serious than just a movie prop car and was indeed a very wicked '55 Chevy. It doesn't surprise me at all that they all wanted a look at your boyfriend's '57 when you came out... I'd have done the same.
Ford's Chevy in this film wasn't just a one hit wonder either. Shot with grey primer, stripped out and running its full race configuration, it'd already starred a couple of years earlier in Two-Lane Blacktop, with footage of it actually racing at the strip filmed for the movie. Sure, it wasn't going to win any nationals, but if you found yourself next to it at the lights in your showroom fresh muscle car back then, on the street that Chevy would've been no joke and more than capable of blowing the doors off most things it rolled up next to.
Lucas had a filming technique to let the cameras role even after a scene would usually cut. At the very beginning of this Terry the Toad, played by Charles Martin Smith, enters the scene riding the Vespa Scooter and runs into the building. That was totally unscripted. He really did lose control of the scooter but because Lucas kept rolling they got a great shot they kept in the movie. One of the best soundtracks and movies of the era. Another good one is the sequel More American Graffiti and also The Hollywood Nights. Suzanne Somers was the blonde TBird driver.
More American Graffiti was unloved by the critics, but I thought it was a better movie. I loved how it picked up each story line from this movie, and took them to a logical conclusion Toad's story was the best.
Yeah, Smith (Toad) said he wanted to do a cool, smooth dismount, but he let out on the clutch while it was still in gear (he thought it was in neutral) and it lurched forward and crashed into the cigarette machine. His and Ron Howard's reactions to the crash were real. Smith said he though Lucas was going to yell "Cut!", but he didn't, so they just kept going and went with it. In the scene you can see Smith hesitate and look toward the camera like he was thinking "Oh, crap!" and was expecting the "cut", but he didn't get it, and after a couple of seconds he just kept walking toward Ron Howard. The more natural, semi-awkward, ad-libbed feel is one of the great things about that movie.
@@TS-ef2gv There were so many original and really cool moments in this movie! I cannot understand why it flopped with the critcs and audience. Maybe because it was so real and less pure comedy? I was really rooting for Toad.
@@RutlandRick It didn't flop with critics and audiences at all. All most all of the critics praised it, and it earned Per Wikipedia, it cost less than $1.5m and earned $55m.
@@jackal59 My "flop" comment was confusing, and unclear. I meant that the sequel "More.." was an unfortunate flop with the industry.. . I rate it as a "Must See", if you can find it.
I used to be obsessed with this movie! What a great surprise to see it again. The added pleasure was to watch it with you guys. "Coolie High" was considered the black version of American Graffiti based in the sixties also. That had a phenomenal soundtrack also. Anyway, thank you for this great choice to react to. I had fun watching it with you. 👍
This movie is a treasure. When AG came out, we were only 10 or 12 years past when the movie was set. The cars, the music, sock hops, cruising - it all was captured perfectly by Lucas. As the old saying goes, "You had to be there". American Graffiti was, is, the next best thing. (Wolfman Jack was still with us at the time. You might see him introducing a band now and then on The Midnight Special.)
A sock hop was a dance held in the gym. You couldn’t wear shoes on the court so everyone just wore their socks. Hence the sock hop. I’ve heard you mention it in a couple of videos.
The Hop was short for a Sock Hop ..A High School dance where everybody takes their shoes off and dances in their socks . Because the shoes back then would scuff up the finish on the Gym floor , where ALL school dances were held . .. A Cherry bomb is a firecracker .. Also known as an M80 .. They had waterproof fuses and would be lit and flushed down the toilet and blow up in the pipe causing water to shoot back up all the toilets ... Sometimes destroying some of them AND the pipe inside the wall .. .. The guy trying to find the girl in the White car is Richard Dreyfuss ( he was also in Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind and several other movies )
One of my favorites is mr. holland’s opus you would love the music this one
@@davidgarabrandt9316 Excellent movie .. He did so many movies that it is hard to remember them all ..
You may recognize Richard Dreyfuss who played "Hooper"in "Jaws". He did a lot of great movies like "Close Encouters of the Third Kind", and "The Competition".
I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for reviewing this movie. My parents took us to see this at the drive in in 1973 it was one of my favorite memories as a child. We lost my father to dementia a few months ago, towards the end my brothers and I would play his favorite oldies to help with his memory many of those songs were from this movie. Bless you both
Wolfman Jack was a famous disc jockey (he plays himself in the movie). There are at least two songs about him. There's Todd Rundgren's "Wolfman Jack" and "Clap for the Wolfman" by the Guess Who. Wolfman Jack lends his voice to both songs. But there are two versions of Rundgren's song. The original is just Todd and another version features Wolfman Jack.
He also lent his voice to The Stampeders' version of Hit The Road Jack.
Clap for the Wolfman 😍 Loved it ! I was 11 when the movie came out and was living in Santa Cruz. Little did I know that my senior year, I would move to Modesto and met my husband because of cruzing McHenry Avenue, I've always referred to American Graffiti to explain how I met him 😊
Finally a reaction channel reacting to something unique, different, and special. We need more of this.
I can not agree more!
You mean like some... More American Graffiti?
Yep. These two guys do some really good stuff.
@gyrene_asea4133 Now if someone would do "Patton"
This movie started the 50s craze during the 70s. It also reached forward to the start of the Vietnam War. What a timeless classic!
Widely known as the first film where we followed multiple lead characters and went back and forth between storylines. Before this, movies would just follow the star of the movie from beginning to end., so really a groundbreaking movie. And also, Lucas made this right before the first Star Wars, so that's also cool.
This movie had so many future stars in it it's unthinkable. Yes, that was Harrison Ford, also Richard Dreyfuss from Jaws and many other movies, Ron Howard, from Happy Days, and later one of the biggest directors in Hollywood, Cindy Williams from Lavern and Shirley and other things too. And many more that I am just not thinking of right now.
The little girl, Mackenzie Phillips was on a popular sitcom in the 70s/80s. Her father was the Phillips from the Mamas and Papas, and I am pretty sure one of the old guys was Abe Bagota from Barney Miller--another very popular sitcom.
Don't forget " The Wolfman".
Ron Howard did Cinderella Man and Apollo 13, among many others. Just trying to think of ones they’ve seen.
@@drdr76 "... and I am pretty sure one of the old guys was Abe Bagota from Barney Miller..."
Similar look, but that was definitely NOT Abe VIGODA.
Don't forget the blonda in the T Bird was Suzanne Sommers from Three's Company!
I saw this movie at the drive-in as a kid. It's a legendary classic with so many stars. Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford, Ron Howard, Cindy Williams, Bo Hopkins, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips and of course, Suzanne Somers in the white Thunderbird. The music, the cars, the drama and the comedy make this an unforgettable experience.
WOLFMAN JACK!!!!! How could you forget the Wolfman?
@@maxsparks5183 My bad, he definitely deserved mentioning. He was an institution unto himself.
And except for Ron Howard none of these actors were known at the time. That’s what’s so amazing about this movie.
Don't forget Charles Martin Smith as Terry 'Toad' who went on to have a very solid career and Kathleen Quinlan in a small role as Peg in only her second movie
Yeah I lived at Harrah as a teenager about 15 years old loved every minute of it and I got drafted by the by the Air Force and symptoms Vietnam I joined the Airforce so I wouldn't be drafted but I ended up in Vietnam anyhow I was a chopper pilot air-sea rescue
Wolfman Jack used to host a TV show called "The Midnight Special" in the 70's. It featured a wide variety of music groups and was on at Midnight on Friday. That's how many of us learned about new bands and songs back then.
This is close to the reality of that time, serious and laid back. Now there is another movie that plays just like this... that is more like Dad telling the story of his childhood. The 1980 movie The Hollywood Knights (comedy)
This movie with Harrison ford was directed by George Lucas. The story is George Lucas was casting for Star Wars, the casting was being done in groups of three people; Han, Leia, and Luke. They were short a Han for one casting. Harrison Ford was working as a carpenter on the set. Knowing him from American Graffiti Lucas asked him to stand in. The rest is history.
That Ron Howard took over directing "Solo:A Star Wars Story" is just surreal if you think about it.
@@richardrobbins387 OHHH that is sooo good! Nice grab sir!
@@CallegriaofSoulbound
Also found out that Cindy Williams was almost Princess Leia for a minute. Would've been a different look.
This movie always reminds me of a fabulous weekend in the early eighties in San Diego. A good friend lent me his classic 57 Chevy Bel Aire, baby blue. Wolfman Jack was still broadcasting out of Tijuana and we listened to him while cruising up the Pacific Coast Highway. It was the whole American Graffiti experience and this ex Brit was in hog Heaven ✌️
More than a movie, it was a lifestyle. Cruising, racing, partying. Great times.
Can't believe you guys chose this particular movie. Saw, and fell in love with this movie when I was 13, in 1973! So many future stars in the cast. People might forget but there was a sequel to this movie called 'More American Graffiti'. The sequel connects the dots to what happened to some of the major characters, especially John Milner and Terry The Toad. The soundtrack to AG is an amazing journey through a wonderful place in time. 2 weeks after seeing the movie I bought my first double album....I still have it, it's priceless!
Yes, pay phones could receive calls. Drag racing was a thing. It wasn't unusual to be cruising the strip looking to meet people. There was some mischief from time to time, but it was mostly harmless fun. Many of the people in this movie became huge stars. Even the blonde in the Thunderbird.
And pay phones were in booths.
some mischief ? The reason a lot of the people i hung out with did a lot of crusing was for stop light drag racing. lol
My dad said this movie perfectly captured his teenage years. He was 18 in 1962. Watching this movie makes me feel close to him. #misshimeveryday
Same for me. I watched this with my parents when I was 14 in 1984 and they said this was as close as I was going to get to living then.
Finally Guy's; this is my all time favorite movie. My friends and I have always said you have to watch it 4 times. First time for the movie, second time for the music, third time for the cars and fourth time for the street scenes of what small town America used to be. So many actors that went on to be bigger after this. You recognized Harrison Ford, now add Richard Dreyfus, Cindy Williams, Susan Sommers, Makenzei Phillips the daughter of John Phillips leader of the Mommas and Papas and of course Ron Howard who was a child star from The Andy Griffeth Show. Plus The Wolfman who was a radio icon and hosted The Midnight Special, a late night television music show. Plus like others here have stated, the popularity of this movie lead to Star Wars. You mentioned the jackets, back in the day there were car clubs, motorcycle clubs and just clubs of people with like interests and they all had a signature patch or jacket that identified who they were with. Now I believe it's called wearing your colors, which is associated with gangs. As for the yellow deuce coupe, if you say Milner coupe to any car guy they know exactly what you mean. Jay, you can go on line and search Milner coupe replica and get one for yourself from multiple places.
Notice that about 12:30 they're dancing in their socks (thus "sock hop"), so as to not mar the wooden floor of the gym.
George Lucas was 29 years old when the film was released. He was nominated for Best Director, and the film also received nominations for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Editting, and Best Supporting Actress for Candy Clark's performance as Debbie.
I found it funny that you said, "He was very nice. I could see him going to Canada." The Vietnam War was on-going. It was being implied that Curt was dodging the draft. A lot of people disappeared to Canada for a while during that era. Toad went to Vietnam and became MIA (Missing In Action). Also, originally, the white T-Bird wasn't suppose to be real. It was a metaphor. Lucas was going to have a shot showing the T-Bird disappearing while at a drive-in ended up not having the money to film the shot.
So happy you reacted to this movies. It was a special time for those of us who grow up at that time. This movie represents I think 1962 or at least the 60s. I was 17 at the time and had a candy apple red 327 chevelle small engine 4speed crome shifters , real wire wheel covers. all the goodies,, glasspack muffler, made a neat sound driving around the root beer drive-ins. I have to admit they represented how it really was in those times. Thats those of us who lived it love this movie as it takes us back to a better more wholesome time.
Cruising’ on Saturday nights…the best.
Yes! Such a feel good classic. What I love about this movie is that it's so down to earth, so simple. It's not over the top with some crazy plot. It's just a day in the life portrait of 1962. It makes it feel like you're actually there spending the night with these characters.
Since you liked this you should try “That Thing You Do.” This was written and produced by Tom Hanks. The story is about a group of teens that make a hit record. And as a bonus Liv Tyler from Lord of the Rings is in it!
I'd love to see you check out “That Thing You Do.”
Couple fun things! That water balloon was supposed to hit Milner, but Lucas kept the take.
The girl at the hop who tells Steve "Joe College strikes out" is Kathleen Quinlan, the wife of Tom Hanks in Apollo 13.
The greatest 50s/early 60s collection of hits in a double album!! After seeing this movie twice the first night (with roommate) and 7 times total with various dates in the following 2 weeks, I can safely say this is one of my all-time favorites. Check the movies history. The film company people had no Idea what to do with it or how to market it, but being a slice of teen life, with such great writing, acting, and filming... it became a smash hit and helped launch many of these young actors to much greater things!!
Wolfman Jack was probably the most famous DJ in radio history. He was on the radio for around 35 years.
This movie in the early 70's was a throw back for my generation. I as a teen loved it for how it portrayed those before us. When it came out, we weren't living in those times, we were reliving them. We all knew these people...
This movie came out basically 10 years AFTER the time it is depicting. I was 17 years old in 1973, and had lived through the whole Beatles and 60s music explosion, which happened after this, so to my limited perspective this movie looked like ancient history to me. But AG was in the theaters in November of 73, and I saw it in the theater the night before I was to start classes at the military language school in Monterrey, California to learn Russian. I was nervous about whether I would be able to cut it at this school because it was one of the toughest language schools in the country (we had 45 students who started my class and only 13 graduated, including me), so I was depressed and fearful, walked waaaayyyy down the hill in Monterey by myself and watched this movie. Cheered me right up!
The advertising tag line for the movie was "Where were you in '62?" AG is easily one of my favorite movies ever. It's unique for the movie's entire story taking place on one night. The story behind the movie is fascinating, too. Look up some of the many "the making of American Graffiti" videos online, or the movie's Wiki entry. It was made for next to nothing and without any big name (at the time) stars, but it was a huge hit and gave George Lucas the power in Hollywood to make the movie he really wanted make - the original Star Wars (1977). AG is semi-biographical. According to Lucas, the four main male characters in the story, Curt, Steve, John, and Terry, represent sides of Lucas at different points in his teens and young adulthood.
I was a teen when AG came out in '73 and, as was the only choice to see recently released movies in those days either once or more, I saw it several times in theaters with friends. Theaters back then would "hold over" a movie for as long as enough people to make it worth it were willing to pay to see or re-see it, and AG was held over in some theaters for a year or more. The only movie of that period I remember being held over for longer was The Sting, which btw would be a great movie to watch on your channel.
1962 seemed like a long time ago to us when this movie came out but it was set only a decade prior, and the life of a teen really wasn't much different in the '70s or even '80s from how it was portrayed in that movie. If you wanted to talk to your friends without getting yelled at for tying up the one landline phone in the house, you had to go physically hang out with them somewhere, and many times that somewhere was on the local "strip", where you could cruise, listen to music, act a fool with your friends, and "see and be seen". One or more fast food restaurants (aka drive-ins) invariably formed the anchor(s) for the strip, either a chain like a McD's or a privately owned, one of kind drive-in like Mel's in the movie.
AG propelled Wolfman Jack from a regional radio star to a national one, so we even had the Wolfman on his nationally syndicated radio show to cruise to in the '70's, plus the American Graffiti soundtrack on 8 track and/or cassette. Since '73 I've had an original issue copy of the AG sound track on double album vinyl (still have it), 8 track, cassette, CD, and now downloaded on my vehicle's in-dash hard drive. Seriously, if you like the music in this movie and how it makes it seem like you're listening to it on the radio, complete with the Wolfman, get the soundtrack. Fifty years later it's still widely available.
For better or worse, we were out there on our own with no lifeline if we got into trouble other than maybe a dime or two in our pocket for a "help" call on a pay phone. If you were lucky, someone would actually answer the phone (no such thing as voice mail) or you wouldn't get a constant busy signal (if it was really an emergency you might be able to get an operator to break into the call and ask them to "give up" the line). However, most of the time if we got ourselves in trouble we just had to take our lumps, deal with it, and learn from it. It was great training for hopefully someday being an adult.
And yes, pay phones back then had their own phone number type written in the middle of the rotary dial, and many/most of them could receive incoming calls.
Wolfman Jack was a real radio guy. Apparently my mom got to meet him, she was behind a door and he came in and she tapped him on the shoulder and scared the hell out of him lol. This movie is a classic
Not gonna' lie, when I saw that you guys watched this I got a little emotional ❤️ Thank you both SO MUCH for watching this movie that means SO much to SO many of us. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!!! Love and respect! ❤️🇺🇸🤘
This is in my Top 10 list and I can't count the number of times that I have watched it. ALSO: Wolfman Jack is a Legendary DJ and hosted the Midnight Special for awhile. The Guess Who wrote a song for him *Clap For The Wolfman* - should check it out.
As a subscriber to many reaction channels and checked out their reaction to this classic portrayal of a great time in my family's life, my dad decided you guys were the best. He had a '32 Plymouth coup that blew others away.
Notice the teenager with Milner takes the shifter knob much like a famous space baby did in recent times.
Also Milner's license plate on the yellow coupe is THX-138 which is a reference to Lucas's first movie THX 1138. This is an inside joke/easter egg which would then continue through Lucas's other films.
Another great movie with a killer soundtrack with the cast just "hanging out with each other" that you need to react to is "The Big Chill"
The Big Chill is one if my most FAVORITE movies! The music in it is fantastic!
Love seeing young Richard Dreyfus in this
That line dance is called "The Stroll". It's was very popular.
The guy with the red hair is Ron Howard. He was little Opie in The cAndy Griffith Show ( Mayberry RFD) Andy was the sheriff and Opie his son. Ron was also the star in the tv show Happy Days.( with the Fonz or Fonzie...a 50's themed show). Ron also started in John Wayne's last movie .." The Shootist"
Ron Howard is a huge successful movie director now. He directed Tom Hanks in Apollo 13 is one of his many.I
Workman Jack we one of the biggest/hottest radio personalities/DJ's of the 50's- 70's.
The girl in the yellow truck is McKenzie Phillips. She started on the t.v. show, You he Day at a Time.
Of course you recognized Harrison Ford. He is a huge movie star.
So many in this movies went on to be on tv shows or in movies.
Richard Dryfus( Curt) was in the movie Jaws ( one of the guys on the boat that Jaws was attacking. Was in many movies...Closed Encounters of the 3rd. Kind, Mr. Holland's Opus. and many more.
The girl in the White T-Bird is Suzanne Simmers. She started in the tv show 3's Company.
I can't recall the "toad/tiger's name but he's been on tv. and in movies.
This is quite a cast and I can say with much shame that I never watched this movie before. So thanks for reviewing it.
His girlfriend is Cindy Williams (she just passed). She and Penny Marshall were introduced on Happy Days as Laverne and Shirley. They had a successful spinoff tv show called Laverne and Shirley that was also on for a few years. (poodle skirts, Bobby socks and saddle shoes)
Love this movie! Another amazing soundtrack is “The Graduate”!🤘🔥
The Graduate is a good movie all the way around.
They definitely need to check out The Graduate.. a quirky movie with a great soundtrack!
So glad you’re doing this movie this is an exceptional movie that brings back so many memories even when I saw it in 1973. I think you’re gonna enjoy this one
I really love a movie who transports me to another time and place the way American Graffiti does.
This was Harrison Ford's debut. Because of his work with George Lucas on this, it led to his casting as Han Solo.
Before this movie future director of Splash,Backdraft,Ransom, A Beautiful Mind and several others,was a child star who became a house hold name as Oppy Taylor in the 1960s tv series The Andy Griffith Show. After American Graffiti he became a tv star once more with his role as Richie Cunningham in Happy Days created by Gary Marshal.
Happy Days was loosely inspired by this film...
The Wolfman was a legend!! You can probably catch some clips of him when he used to host the Midnight Special on TV back in the day.
RIP Cindy Williams! The music in this movie was so good. My first cat was a '74 Thunderbird that my cousin gave me. He was taking it to the junk yard. My boyfriend spent more time working on it trying to keep it running than anything else. I got it in '85.
Also RIP Bo Hopkins who passed recently and Cindy Williams. There is American Graffiti 2. Yes phone booths had telephone numbers and you could receive calls. One of my friends has a yellow 32 Ford deuce coupe like the one in this movie.
As someone else mentioned, this movie lost the Academy Award to "The Sting" which I have been suggesting for ages. Glad you have watched Steel Magnolias and hope you consider more movies that aren't geared towards kids. A return to Tom Hanks would be good. Perhaps "Castaway". Excellent movie. But I'm still pushing for "The Sting".
Wolfman was the greatest DJ ever.He was nationwide.Sad day when he passed.
Wolfman Jack was an iconic radio disc jockey in So. California in the late 50s and early 60s. He broadcast out of Tijuana, Mexico, where he could be on a much more powerful radio station. The maximum power for a AM station in the US was only 50,000 watts. In Mexico they could broadcast at 500,000 watts. The signal coming off from that transmitter was so great that you literally could not turn off your incandescent light bulbs. Cut the electricity to them, and the radio waves would cause the filament to glow again after about two minutes. With that kind of power behind him, the music he played, and his immense entertainment talent, The Wolfman dominated the radio listening thru a major area for years. What you're hearing in this movie is basically the same schtick he used his entire career. One of a kind, certainly, and an idol to radio broadcasters everywhere.
If you wanted to know what was going on, you had to go out and find out, LOL. As a teenager of the 80's, this was still our lifestyle. Driving around at night, "taking a main" (driving up and down Main Street), going to the Dairy Dip and A&W, both drive-ins. We'd jump into a car with other people, but we usually needed to know at least one person that was already in the car. Of course, there was that crazy girl who'd jump into a car full of boys from the town over and drive around with them all night. On Saturday nights at Rick's Recreation there would be live music and we'd go to dance and the kids that were 18 could drink low-point beer.
Still one of my all time favorite movie soundtracks...so many classics from the late 50's and early 60's...and with the Wolfman Jack bits thrown in, you can just play it over and over and over...good times.
Richard Dreyfus played the guy that hung with the Pharaohs and narrated Stand By Me. He was also in Close Encounters. The Blonde in the T Bird was played by Suzanne Sommers. The redhead kid is Ron Howard (Opie from the Andy Griffith Show). His girlfriend played Shirley on the Laverne & Shirley Show. And yes, Harrison Ford in the '55 Chevy.
The lead Pharaoh was played by Bo Hopkins, who passed away last year. He was in some Sam Peckinpah films, including "The Wild Bunch", "The Getaway" and "The Killer Elite". Hopkins' last film was "Hillbilly Elegy", starring Amy Adams and Glenn Close. Ron Howard directed it.
Candy Clark was the cat's meow.
This all takes place one night in 1960, just as the Boomer years were coming to a close. Nostalgia was strong in '72/'73 to be looking back a scant dozen years at 'better times'. Amazing how young Dreyfus looks! The girl in the white T Bird was played by Suzanne Somers before she was a star. Wolfman Jack and the radio show soundtrack is what really makes this film.
Awesome movie! Thanks for watching this. This movie was a love letter to Lucas' teenage years. It's also semi-autobiographical, where some of the characters are based on different times during his teen years.