National Lampoon's Animal House 75261 225550227 2008-07-14T07:25:18Z Ed Fitzgerald 169140 /* Soundtrack and score */ {{redirect|Animal House|the Angie Martinez album|Animal House (album)}} {{Infobox Film | name = [[National Lampoon]]'s Animal House. | image = Animalhouseposter.jpg | image_size = 225px | caption = theatrical poster | director = [[John Landis]] | producer = [[Ivan Reitman]]<BR />[[Matty Simmons]] | writer = [[Harold Ramis]]<BR \>[[Douglas Kenney]]<BR />[[Chris Miller (writer)|Christopher Miller]] | narrator = | starring = [[John Belushi]]<br>[[Tim Matheson]]<br>[[John Vernon]]<br>[[Thomas Hulce|Tom Hulce]]<br>[[Peter Riegert]]<br>[[Stephen Furst]]<br>[[Mary Louise Weller]] | music = [[Elmer Bernstein]] | cinematography = Charles Correll | editing = George Folsey Jr. | distributor = [[Universal Studios|Universal Pictures]] | released = [[July 28]] {{fy|1978}} ''(premiere)'' | runtime = 109 minutes | country = [[Cinema of the United States|United States]] | language = [[English language|English]] | budget = [[United States dollar|$]]2,700,000 | gross = [[United States dollar|$]]141,600,000 ''(U.S.)'' | preceded_by = | followed_by = | website = http://www.animalhouse.com/ | amg_id = 1:60324 | imdb_id = 0077975 }} '''''National Lampoon's Animal House''''' is a [[1978 in film|1978]] [[comedy film]] in which a misfit group of [[fraternities and sororities|fraternity]] boys take on the system at their college. The movie was adapted by [[Douglas Kenney]], [[Chris Miller (writer)|Christopher Miller]] and [[Harold Ramis]] from stories written by Miller and published in [[National Lampoon magazine]] based on his experiences in the [[Alpha Delta Phi]] fraternity at [[Dartmouth College]], as well as Ramis's experiences in the [[Zeta Beta Tau]] fraternity at [[Washington University in St. Louis]]. The film was directed by [[John Landis]]. It is considered to be the movie that launched the [[gross-out film|gross-out genre]]<ref>{{cite news | last = Peterson | first = Molly | coauthors = | title = ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[NPR]] | date = [[July 29]], [[2002]] | url = http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/animalhouse/ | accessdate = 2006-12-17}}</ref> (although it was predated by [[Gross-out film#Examples of the Gross-out Movie Genre|several films]] now also included in the genre). Produced on a small ([[United States dollar|$]]2.7 million) budget, the film has turned out to be one of the most profitable movies of all time. Since its initial release, ''Animal House'' has garnered an estimated return of more than $141 million in the form of video and DVDs, not including merchandising. In 2001, the United States [[Library of Congress]] deemed the film "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the [[National Film Registry]].<ref>{{cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Films Selected to The National Film Registry, Library of Congress 1989-2006 | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[National Film Registry]] | date = | url = http://www.loc.gov/film/nfrchron.html | accessdate = 2007-10-10}}</ref> This film is first on [[Bravo (television network)|Bravo's]] "100 Funniest Movies."<ref>{{cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = Bravo's 100 Funniest Films | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = Boston.com | date = [[July 25]], [[2006]] | url = http://boards.boston.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?nav=messages&tsn=1&tid=231&webtag=bc-movies | accessdate = 2007-10-10}}</ref> It was #36 on [[American Film Institute|AFI]]'s "[[AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs|100 Years, 100 Laughs]]" list of the 100 best American comedies.<ref>{{cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[American Film Institute]] | date = | url = http://www.afi.com/tvevents/100years/laughs.aspx | accessdate = 2007-10-10}}</ref> ==Plot summary== It is Rush Week 1962 at fictional [[Faber College]] in Pennsylvania. [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]], the [[sexual revolution|Sexual Revolution]] and the [[Counterculture of the 1960s|counterculture]] movement are blips on the horizon. A 1950s mentality still pervades the campus, typified by the Omegas&mdash;the most prestigious, elitist [[Fraternities and sororities|fraternity]]. At the other end of the spectrum (but right next door) stands the Delta Tau Chi House, a repository for campus misfits. Two freshmen, Larry Kroger ([[Thomas Hulce]]) and Kent Dorfman ([[Stephen Furst]]) are trying to pledge a good fraternity. They first try their luck at the Omega House rush party, but are out of their league. The Omegas repeatedly steer them to an area where they have segregated the other "undesirables": Mohammed, Jagdish, Sidney, and Clayton (who is blind and in a wheelchair). Larry and Kent then try the Deltas next door. As they approach, a headless female mannequin comes flying out of a window and lands at their feet. They meet [[John "Bluto" Blutarsky]] (played by [[John Belushi]]), outside taking a leak. Bluto turns to greet them and urinates on their pants. Another member, "D-Day" (Daniel Simpson Day) ([[Bruce McGill]]), rides his motorcycle through the front door and up the stairs, where he gives a rendition of the [[William Tell Overture]]&mdash;using his throat as a [[percussion instrument]]. The Deltas "need the dues" so Larry and Kent are allowed to pledge Delta (in Dorfman's case, mainly because he is a [[Legacy preferences|legacy]] since his brother Fred was a Delta). They are sworn in as pledges and given the fraternity names "Pinto" (Larry) and "Flounder" (Kent). Meanwhile, Dean Vernon Wormer ([[John Vernon]]), is trying to kick the Deltas off campus. Since they are already on probation, he puts the Deltas on "Double Secret Probation" and orders the cleancut Omega president Gregg Marmalard ([[James Daughton]]) to assign Doug Neidermeyer ([[Mark Metcalf]]) the job of finding a way to get rid of the Deltas once and for all. As the campus [[Reserve Officer Training Corps|ROTC]] detachment drills, Neidermeyer, the pompous cadet commander, spots plebe Flounder wearing a pledge pin on his uniform and begins berating him. Two Deltas, "Otter" ([[Tim Matheson]]) and "Boon" ([[Peter Riegert]]), witness this and object to the mistreatment (only they are allowed to "abuse their pledges"). They take turns hitting golf balls, aiming for the horse Neidermeyer is riding. A ball eventually strikes the horse, causing it to rear up. Then, a second ball hits Neidermeyer on the head, knocking him out of the saddle. The already spooked animal bolts, dragging a screaming Neidermeyer behind, entangled in the stirrups. Later, he orders Flounder to clean his horse's filthy stable stall. Bluto and D-Day talk Flounder into sneaking the hated animal into Dean Wormer's office. They give him a gun and tell him to shoot it. Unbeknownst to Flounder, the gun is loaded with [[Blank (cartridge)|blanks]]. He can't bring himself to kill the horse and fires into the ceiling, but the noise causes the horse to have a heart attack and die. The next day, a chainsaw is required to remove the carcass, in [[rigor mortis]], from the office. In the cafeteria the next day, Bluto provokes Gregg and Omega pledge Chip ([[Kevin Bacon]]) with his impression of a popping [[Acne vulgaris|zit]] and triggers a wild food fight. Not done, Bluto and D-Day rummage through a trash bin to steal the answers to an upcoming psychology test. Unfortunately, the exam [[stencil]] had been planted by the Omegas, and the Deltas get every answer wrong. Their [[Academic grading in North America#Grade point average|grade point averages]] drop so low that Wormer only needs one more incident to revoke their charter. Undaunted, the Deltas organize a [[toga party]]. Pinto invites Clorette ([[Sarah Holcomb]]), the cashier at the local supermarket; she turns out to be the underage daughter of shady Mayor Carmine DePasto ([[Cesare Danova]]). When she gets drunk and passes out, Pinto is tempted to take advantage of her (an angel and a devil appear over his shoulders and have a frank discussion of his choices); in the end, he takes her home in a [[shopping cart]]. A drunken Mrs. Wormer ([[Verna Bloom]]) crashes the party (both figuratively and literally) and spends the night with Otter. That turns out to be the last straw. Wormer gets the fraternity's charter revoked, and everything is confiscated. Bluto is horrified when they take "the bar, the whole fuckin' bar!" where Otter manages to lift a bottle of [[Jack Daniels]] from one of the movers and throws it to Bluto who in turn guzzles the whole bottle all at once and proclaims "Thanks, I needed that!" To take their minds off their troubles, Otter, Boon, Flounder, and Pinto go on a [[road trip]]. Otter picks up some girls from [[Dickinson College]], a local [[liberal arts]] college, by pretending to be the boyfriend of a girl recently killed on campus in a kiln explosion ("She was going to make a pot for me!") and unwisely go to a roadhouse called the [[Dexter Lake Club]], which has an all-black clientèle. Otis Day & the Knights happen to be playing there that night. Some of the hulking regulars are not amused and intimidate (one with a knife at the bar) the guys into fleeing without their dates. Says one, "If I was in your shoes, I'd be...", "Leaving!!" "What a Great Idea!!" responds Boon. In their haste to leave, they damage several cars in the parking lot. Things go from bad to worse. "Babs" ([[Martha Smith]]) lies to Gregg Marmalard, telling him that his girlfriend, Mandy ([[Mary Louise Weller]]), and Otter are having an affair (in fact, they only had a [[one-night stand]]). Marmalard and some of his fellow Omegas lure Otter to a motel and beat him up. The Deltas' midterm grades are so bad that they are all expelled from school (and their [[Conscription in the United States|draft board]]s notified of their eligibility) by the ecstatic Wormer, resulting in a drunk Flounder vomiting on him. For revenge, the Deltas decide to wreak havoc on the annual [[Homecoming]] parade, inspired by Bluto's impassioned speech invoking the memory of the "[[Nazi Germany|Germans]]" bombing [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]]. In the ensuing chaos, Bluto steals a car, abducts Mandy and drives off into the sunset...or rather to [[Washington, D.C.]], as the futures of many of the main characters are "revealed" (Bluto and Mandy become [[United States Senate|Senator]] and Mrs. John Blutarsky). ==Characters== [[Image:Animal House Deltas.jpg|thumb|right|240px|The Deltas in front of their house]] ===Deltas=== *Eric "Otter" Stratton ([[Tim Matheson]]), a smooth playboy (the nickname suggests a sleek player), whose room is an uncannily pristine seduction den amid the sheer filth of the rest of the Delta house. Otter is essentially the fraternity's unofficial leader. He goes on to become a [[gynecologist]] in [[Beverly Hills, California|Beverly Hills]]. *Donald "Boon" Schoenstein ([[Peter Riegert]]), Otter's best friend, who is forever having to decide between his Delta pals and his girlfriend Katy. They get married in 1964 and divorced in 1969. In the book adaption, Boon goes on to be a cab driver in New York and a part time writer. *John "Bluto" Blutarsky ([[John Belushi]]), an abject, drunken degenerate with a style all his own, in his seventh year of college, sporting a GPA of 0.0. He goes on to become a [[United States Senator]]. *Robert Hoover ([[James Widdoes]]), the affable, reasonably clean-cut president of the fraternity, who desperately struggles to maintain a façade of normalcy to placate the Dean. He becomes a [[public defender]] in [[Baltimore, Maryland|Baltimore]]. *Daniel Simpson Day ([[Bruce McGill]]), "D-Day", a tough [[motorcycle|biker]] with no grade point average: all classes incomplete. His later whereabouts are unknown. *"Stork" (real name not mentioned, but in the book adaptation is listed as "Dwayne Storkman"). During his first year, everyone thought the Stork was [[brain damaged]]. This character was played by ''Animal House'' co-writer [[Douglas Kenney]]. *Lawrence "Pinto" Kroger ([[Thomas Hulce]]), a shy but normal fellow, who becomes the [[Editing|editor]] of ''[[National Lampoon]]'' magazine. *Kent "Flounder" Dorfman ([[Stephen Furst]]), an overweight, clumsy [[legacy preferences|legacy]] pledge, later a [[Encounter group|sensitivity trainer]] in [[Cleveland, Ohio|Cleveland]]. ===Omegas=== * Gregory Marmalard ([[James Daughton]]), the president of Omega House and boyfriend of Mandy Pepperidge. He goes on to become a [[Richard M. Nixon|Nixon]] [[White House]] aide and is subsequently [[raped]] in [[prison]] in 1974. * Douglas C. Niedermeyer ([[Mark Metcalf]]), an [[ROTC]] cadet officer and scion of a military family who hates the Deltas with unbridled passion. He is [[Fragging|killed by his own troops]] in [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]]. His death is discussed in ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]'', also directed by Landis. Ironically, Metcalf played a character named "Colonel Neidermeyer" in the 1996 film ''[[The Stupids (film)|The Stupids]]''. Metcalf recreated the "Neidermeyer" character in Twisted Sister music videos (their song "We're Not Gonna Take It" includes Neidermeyer's trademark quote "You're all worthless and weak. Now drop and give me twenty."); in one he re-united with (and had sweet revenge taken on him by) Furst's character "Flounder." * Chip Diller, an Omega pledge ([[Kevin Bacon]] in his on-screen debut), is trampled by the panicking crowd at the end of the movie. ===Other significant characters=== *Dean Vernon Wormer ([[John Vernon]]), who wants to revoke the Deltas' charter and kick them off-campus. In the book adaption, he suffers a stroke during the '69 campus riots. *Marion Wormer ([[Verna Bloom]]), the Dean's [[dipsomaniac]] wife. *Katy ([[Karen Allen]]), Boon's frustrated girlfriend who has a dalliance with a professor but subsequently goes on to [[Marriage|marry]] and [[divorce]] Boon. *Professor Dave Jennings ([[Donald Sutherland]]), a bored English professor who smokes [[cannabis (drug)|marijuana]] and tries to turn his students on to [[left-wing politics]]. *Clorette DePasto ([[Sarah Holcomb]]), the mayor's 13-year-old daughter, who (possibly) sleeps with Larry. *Otis Day ([[DeWayne Jessie]], who later legally changed his name to Otis Day), the leader of the band ([[Otis Day and the Knights]]) that plays at the toga party. In the book adaption, Otis Day and the Knights go on to be a house band for a club in upstate New York. *Mandy Pepperidge ([[Mary Louise Weller]]), a cheerleader and sorority girl who dates Gregg, but is not entirely "satisfied" with the relationship. She goes on to marry Bluto. *Barbara Sue "Babs" Jansen ([[Martha Smith]]), a [[Southern belle]] who wants Gregg for herself and is turned off by the crude Deltas. She ends up a [[tour guide]] at [[Universal Studios]] in [[Hollywood, California|Hollywood]]. *Mayor Carmine DePasto, the shady local mayor with suggested mafia ties. In the book adaption, he ends up missing a few years later and is rumored to be part of the recently built Faber Freeway. == Production == === Origins === ''Animal House'' was the first movie produced by ''[[National Lampoon]]'', the most popular humor magazine on college campuses in the mid-1970s.<ref>{{cite news | last = Peterson | first = Molly | coauthors = | title = National Lampoon's Animal House | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[NPR]] | date = 1998 | url = http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/animalhouse/ | accessdate = 2007-01-31}}</ref> The periodical specialized in humor and satirized politics and popular culture. Many of the magazine’s writers were recent college graduates, hence their appeal to students all over the country. Doug Kenney was the magazine’s first editor-in-chief and also wrote for the ''Lampoon''. He had graduated from Harvard College in 1969. He was responsible for the first appearances of two characters that would appear in ''Animal House'' – Larry Kroger and Mandy Pepperidge. They made their debut in ''National Lampoon’s High School Yearbook,'' a satire published in 1975. However, Kenney felt that fellow ''Lampoon'' writer [[Chris Miller]] was their expert on the college experience. Faced with an impending deadline, Miller submitted a chapter from his then-abandoned memoirs (later published in 2006 as ''The Real Animal House'') entitled, "The Night of the Seven Fires" that recalled his fraternity days ([[Alpha Delta Phi]]) at the [[Ivy League]]'s [[Dartmouth College]], in [[Hanover, New Hampshire|Hanover]], [[New Hampshire]]. The antics of the Alphas became the inspiration for the Delta Tau Chis of ''Animal House''. Filmmaker [[Ivan Reitman]] approached the magazine’s publisher Matty Simmons about making movies under the ''Lampoon'' banner. Reitman had worked on ''The National Lampoon Show'' in [[New York City]] that featured several future ''Saturday Night Live'' cast members, including John Belushi. === Writing the screenplay === Kenney met with another ''Lampoon'' writer, Harold Ramis, over brunch at the suggestion of Simmons. Ramis drew from his own fraternity experiences as a member of [[Zeta Beta Tau]] fraternity at [[Washington University in St. Louis]] and was working on a treatment about college entitled, "Freshman Year" but the magazine’s editors were not happy with it. Kenney and Ramis started working on a treatment together and created the premise of [[Charles Manson]] in high school and called it, "Laser Orgy Girls." Simmons wasn’t crazy about this idea so they changed the setting to college. Kenney was a fan of Miller’s frat stories and suggested using them as a basis for a movie. Kenney, Miller and Ramis met for brunch and began brainstorming ideas. One thing they agreed on was that Belushi should star in it and Ramis wrote the part of Bluto specifically for the comedian.<ref name= "Schwartz">{{cite news | last = Schwartz | first = Tony | coauthors = | title = College Humor Comes Back | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Newsweek]] | date = [[October 23]], [[1978]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> At the time, he was a big star thanks to ''Saturday Night Live'' and ended up doing the show while shooting the movie, spending Monday through Wednesday making it and then flying back to New York City to do the show on Thursday through Saturday. The result was a 110 page treatment (the average was 15 pages) that Reitman and Simmons pitched to various Hollywood studios. They met with Ned Tanen, an executive at Universal Studios who hated it. Ramis remembers, "We went further than I think Universal expected or wanted. I think they were shocked and appalled. Chris’ fraternity had virtually been a vomiting cult. And we had a lot of scenes that were almost orgies of vomit...We didn’t back off anything."<ref name= "Nashawaty">{{cite news | last = Nashawaty | first = Chris | coauthors = | title = Building ''Animal House'' | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Entertainment Weekly]] | date = [[July 29]], [[2002]] | url = http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,285149~7|50838||0~,00.html | accessdate = 2007-01-31}}</ref> As the writers created more drafts of the screenplay (nine in total), the studio gradually became more excited about the project, especially vice-president [[Thom Mount]] who was responsible for championing it.<ref name= "Medjuck">{{cite news | last = Medjuck | first = Joe | coauthors = | title = The Further Adventures of Ivan Reitman | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = Take One | date = July 1978 | url = http://moviejunkarchive.blogspot.com/2007/05/further-adventures-of-ivan-reitman.html | accessdate = 2007-11-09}}</ref> Surprisingly, the studio green-lighted the film and set the budget at a modest $3 million. Simmons remembers, "They just figured, ‘Screw it, it’s a silly little movie, and we’ll make a couple of bucks if we’re lucky – let them do whatever they want.’"<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> === Casting === Originally, the film's producers approached [[Richard Lester]] and [[Bob Rafelson]] before considering John Landis who got the job directing ''Animal House'' based on his work on the ''[[Kentucky Fried Movie]]''.<ref name= "Medjuck"/> That film’s script and continuity supervisor was the girlfriend of Sean Daniel, an assistant to Mount. Daniel saw Landis’ movie and recommended him to direct ''Animal House''. Landis then met with Mount, Reitman and Simmons and got the job. Ramis originally wrote the role of Boon for himself but Landis felt that he looked too old for the part and Peter Riegert was cast instead. Landis did offer Ramis a smaller part, but Ramis declined, saying gruffly, "I'm too proud to be an extra." Landis remembers, "When I was given the script, it was the funniest thing I had ever read up to that time. But it was really offensive. There was a great deal of projectile vomiting and rape and all these things."<ref>{{cite news | last = Olson | first = Eric | coauthors = | title = Director, John Landis: The Dean Speaks | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Digital Movie Talk]] | date = | url = http://www.acmewebpages.com/animal/9901dvd1.htm DVD.com | accessdate = 2007-01-31}}</ref>.One bit that was written in the original script but never filmed included a parade bust that was destroyed at the climax of film. The bust was of John F. Kennedy, the US President in 1962, and the gag was Kennedy's head was punctured by a beer keg in the same way the real Kennedy would be shot the next year. Landis cut the idea because he felt the tone of the gag was wrong. Another scene that Landis cut was one in which a Delta brother put out a campfire by vomiting on it. Yet another unfilmed portion from the original script called for a scene of competitive projectile vomiting ("booting") in the Delta House basement. Flounder was going to fail at this repeatedly. Later, after throwing up on Dean Wormer when he's told he's flunked out, Boon congratulates Flounder on his technique. There was also a certain amount of friction between Landis and the writers early on because he was a high school dropout from Hollywood and they were college grads. Ramis remembers, "He sort of referred immediately to ''Animal House'' as ‘my movie.’ We’d been living with it for two years and we hated that."<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> The initial cast was to feature [[Chevy Chase]] (as Otter), [[Bill Murray]] (as Boon), [[Brian Doyle-Murray]], [[Dan Aykroyd]] and John Belushi but only Belushi wanted to do it. Chase turned them down to do ''[[Foul Play]]''. The character of D-Day was based on Aykroyd, who was a motorcycle aficionado. Aykroyd was offered the part, but he was already committed to ''Saturday Night Live''.<ref name= "Medjuck"/> Landis met with [[Jack Webb]] to play Dean Wormer and [[Kim Novak]] to play his wife. Webb ultimately backed out due to concerns over his clean-cut image, and was replaced by [[John Vernon]]. Belushi received only $35,000 for ''Animal House'' with a bonus after it became a hit.<ref name= "Schwartz"/> Landis also met with [[Meat Loaf]] to play Bluto in case Belushi didn’t want to do it. Much of the cast, including Karen Allen, Tom Hulce, Mark Metcalf, Bruce McGill and Kevin Bacon, were struggling actors just starting out. Despite the presence of Belushi, Universal wanted another movie star because they said that the whole movie doesn't have a star; just a lot of [[sub-plots]]. Landis had been a crew member on ''[[Kelly's Heroes]]'' and had become friends with actor Donald Sutherland (he even used to babysit his son, [[Kiefer Sutherland|Kiefer]]).<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> Landis called up Sutherland and asked him to be in the film. He ended up becoming the highest-paid member of the cast. Sutherland's casting was essential for the movie being picked up by Universal as they were reluctant to produce a picture with no stars, and the veteran actor was one of the biggest stars of the 1970s. For two days work on the picture, Sutherland was offered either a $40,000 flat fee or a percentage of the film's [[income|gross]]; assuming that the movie would be quickly forgotten, he opted for the sure money, a decision which (by his own admission) has cost him millions.<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> === Locations === [[Image:AnimalHsePlaque.JPG|thumb|right|Plaque at the site where the house used to portray the Delta House formerly stood]] The filmmaker’s next problem was finding a college that would let them shoot the film on their campus. They had submitted the script to a number of colleges and universities, and the movie was set to be filmed at the [[University of Missouri]] until the president of the school read the script and refused permission. The [[University of Oregon]] agreed because after consulting with student government leaders and officers of Pan Hellenic Council, the Director of University Relations advised the president that the script, although raunchy and often tasteless, was a very funny spoof of college life. The president of University of Oregon had been a senior administrator of a major California university years before. Back in the late 1960s his campus was considered for being the location for the film ''[[The Graduate]]''. After he consulted with other senior administrative colleagues who advised him to turn it down, production moved to the [[University of California, Berkeley]] and the [[University of Southern California]]. The reason given by the president was that the board believed the film script to be without artistic merit. ''The Graduate'' went on to become a classic. He was determined not to make the same mistake twice, even allowing the filmmakers to use his office as Dean Wormer's. As Landis relates in the DVD special features, Oregon was pretty much their last hope for a shooting location. This movie was filmed in [[Cottage Grove, Oregon]] and at the University of Oregon, in [[Eugene, Oregon|Eugene]] and features numerous sites from that campus and the surrounding area. Johnson Hall, the university's administration building, is prominently featured throughout the film (including then-UO President William Boyd's office), as is Gerlinger Hall (the women's dormitory in the film, but actually the women's gymnasium), the Erb Memorial Union (renovated since that time), Carson Hall (Dormitory), Fenton Hall, Straub Hall, Earl Hall, [[Hayward Field]], the [[Knight Library]] (the building behind Emil Faber's statue), and the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art (seen in the opening credits). Despite all the campus locations, UO officials insisted that the university not be identified by name in the film's credits. [[Image:AnimalHousefilmset.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The front of the house set used for exterior shots, located in [[Universal Studios Hollywood]] in June 1985.]] The actual house that was depicted as the Delta House was originally a residence in Eugene, the Dr. A.W. Patterson House. Around 1959, it was acquired by the Psi Deuteron chapter of [[Phi Sigma Kappa]] fraternity and was their chapter house until 1967, when the chapter was closed due to low membership and the house was sold and slid into disrepair, with the spacious porch removed and the lawn graveled over. It was the sad state of the house that probably made it attractive as the chapter house for a degenerate fraternity. The interior of the Sigma Nu house was used for nearly all of the interior scenes. The individual rooms were filmed on a soundstage. At the time of the shooting, the [[Phi Kappa Psi]] and [[Sigma Nu]] fraternity houses sat next to the old Phi Sigma Kappa house. The Omega House was actually the Phi Kappa Psi House, it is now the [[Alpha Epsilon Pi]] house. The Patterson house was demolished in 1986.<ref>{{cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = On Film | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = University of Oregon Archives | date = | url = http://libweb.uoregon.edu/speccoll/archives/ | accessdate = 2007-08-16 }}</ref> A suite of physicians' offices now occupies the site. A large boulder placed to the west of the entrance to the parking lot displays a bronze plaque commemorating the Delta House location. The selection of Oregon as a the principal location would have a profound effect on Belushi's career. While in the state for filming, Belushi (who had at the time a budding interest in [[blues]] music) would meet and be inspired by longtime Oregon bluesman [[Curtis Salgado]], after which time Belushi became a devoted fan of the blues. This led to Belushi and fellow ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' veteran [[Dan Aykroyd]]'s formation of [[The Blues Brothers]]. The [[Cab Calloway]]-portrayed character "Curtis" in the [[The Blues Brothers (film)|1980 film]] was so named in honor of Salgado, and the first Blues Brothers album is dedicated to him.<ref name="CS">{{cite web | title=Curtis Salgado | work=Biography | url=http://www.curtissalgado.com/biography.html | accessdate=December 16 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> === Principal photography === Landis brought the actors who played the Deltas up five days early in order to bond. Actor James Widdoes remembers, "It was like freshman orientation. There was a lot of getting to know each other and calling each other by our character names."<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> This tactic encouraged the actors playing the Deltas to separate themselves from the actors playing the Omegas, helping generate authentic animosity between them on camera.<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> While shooting the film, Landis and Bruce McGill staged a scene for reporters visiting the set where the director pretended to be angry at the actor for being difficult on the set.<ref name= "Arnold">{{cite news | last = Arnold | first = Gary | coauthors = | title = The Madcap World of John Landis | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Washington Post]] | date = [[August 13]], [[1978]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> Landis grabbed a breakaway pitcher and smashed it over McGill's head who fell to the ground and pretended to be unconscious. The reporters really believed the incident and when Landis asked McGill to get up, he refused to move.<ref name= "Arnold"/> The film was shot in 28 days. The studio became more enthusiastic about the film when Reitman showed executives and sales managers of various regions in the country a 10-minute production reel that was put together in two days.<ref name= "Medjuck"/> The reaction was very positive and the studio ordered 20 copies and sent them out to exhibitors.<ref name= "Medjuck"/> ==Soundtrack and score== {{Infobox Album <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Albums --> | Name = Animal House: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | Type = Soundtrack | Artist = various artists | Cover = Animalhousesoundtrack.jpg | Background = soundtrack | Released = 1978 | Recorded = | Genre = [[Rock and roll]], [[R&B]], [[film score]] | Length = 36:23 | Label = [[MCA Records|MCA]] | Producer = | Reviews = * [[Allmusic]] {{rating-5|3.5}} [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ejuj6jo771u0 Link] | Last album = | This album = | Next album = }} The soundtrack is a mix of [[rock and roll]] and [[R&B]], mostly of songs that were popular around the approximate time period in which the film is set. The original score was by film composer [[Elmer Bernstein]], who had been a Landis family friend since John Landis was a child. According to the DVD special features, Bernstein was easily persuaded to score the film, but was not sure what to make of it. Landis asked him to score it as though it were serious. Bernstein said that his work on this film opened yet another door in his diverse career, to scoring comedies (he would write the so-called "God music" segment in the Landis picture ''[[The Blues Brothers (film)|The Blues Brothers]]'', for example). The Faber College theme, played over the main credits, was based on the German student song "[http://www.ingeb.org/Lieder/wirhatte.html Wir hatten gebauet ein stattliches Haus]"<ref>http://www.ingeb.org/images/wirhatte.gif</ref><ref>http://ingeb.org/refer/wirhatte.MP3</ref> featured in [[Johannes Brahms]]' [[Academic Festival Overture]], and the score includes a brief quotation from [[Richard Wagner]]'s "Rise of the Valkyries" as the Deltas' float makes its way to the homecoming parade. In the film, the [[R&B]] band [[Otis Day and the Knights]] is depicted performing '[[Shout (Isley Brothers song)|Shout]]' at the Delta house toga party and later, at an all-black club, doing "Shama Lama Ding Dong". On the soundtrack album, the tracks are credited to a singer named Lloyd Williams. In the film, Otis Day is portrayed by actor [[DeWayne Jessie]]. Additionally, blues guitarist and singer [[Robert Cray]] is seen in the film, playing bass in the Knights. Due to [[music licensing]] concerns, some DVD releases of the film have a new score that replaces the original songs heard in the film.<ref>Olsen, Eric. [[August 25]], [[2003]]. [http://blogcritics.org/archives/2003/08/25/181107.php Animal House Soundtrack], Blogcritics.org (retrieved on October 19, 2006).</ref> ===Soundtrack album listing=== # "Faber College Theme", composed by [[Elmer J. Bernstein]] # "[[Louie Louie]]", written by [[Richard Berry]]; performed by [[John Belushi]] # "[[Twistin' the Night Away]]", written and performed by [[Sam Cooke]] # "Tossin' and Turnin' ", written and performed by [[Bobby Lewis]] # "Shama Lama Ding Dong", written by Mark Davis; performed by [[Lloyd Williams (singer)|Lloyd Williams]] # "[[Hey Paula (song)|Hey Paula]]", written by [[Paul & Paula|Ray Hildenbrand]] and performed by [[Paul & Paula]] # "Animal House", written and performed by [[Stephen Bishop (musician)|Stephen Bishop]] # Intro # "[[Money (That's What I Want)]]", written by [[Berry Gordy]] and Janie Bradford; performed by John Belushi # "Let's Dance", written by Jim Lee; performed by [[Chris Montez]] # "Dream Girl", written and performed by Stephen Bishop # "[[Wonderful World (song)|Wonderful World]]", written and performed by Sam Cooke # "[[Shout (Isley Brothers song)|Shout]]", written by [[Rudolph Isley]], [[O'Kelly Isley, Jr.]] and [[Ronald Isley]]; performed by Lloyd Williams # "Faber College Theme", composed by [[Elmer Bernstein]] ===Other songs in the film=== * "[[Theme from A Summer Place]]", composed by [[Max Steiner]]; performed by [[Percy Faith]] and his Orchestra * "[[Who's Sorry Now]]", written by [[Ted Snyder]], [[Bert Kalmar]] and [[Harry Ruby]]; performed by [[Connie Francis]] * "[[Washington Post March]]", composed by [[John Philip Sousa]] * "[[Tammy]]", by [[Debbie Reynolds]] ==Reception== The first preview screening for ''Animal House'' was held in [[Denver]] four months before it opened nationwide. The crowd loved it and the filmmakers realized they had a potential hit on their hands.<ref name= "Nashawaty"/> On its opening weekend, ''Animal House'' grossed $276,538, in 12 theaters and made $120,091,123 in [[North America]],<ref>{{cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title = ''National Lampoon's Animal House'' | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = Box Office Mojo | date = [[October 10]], [[2007]] | url = http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=animalhouse.htm | accessdate = 2007-10-10 }}</ref> well above its $2.7 million budget.<ref name= "Schwartz"/> In his review for the ''[[Washington Post]]'', Gary Arnold praised Belushi's performance: "...he can seem irresistibly funny in repose or invest minor slapstick opportunities with a streak of genius."<ref>{{cite news | last = Arnold | first = Gary | coauthors = | title = ''National Lampoon's Animal House'': Bringing the Beast Out of the Fraternity | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Washington Post]] | date = [[August 11]], [[1978]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> [[David Ansen]] wrote in ''[[Newsweek]]'', "But if ''Animal House'' lacks the inspired tastelessness of the Lampoon's ''High School Yearbook Parody'', this is still low humor of a high order."<ref>{{cite news | last = Ansen | first = David | coauthors = | title = Gross Out | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Newsweek]] | date = [[August 7]], [[1978]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> Universal Pictures spent four million dollars promoting the film at selected college campuses and helped students organize their own toga parties.<ref name= "Darling">{{cite news | last = Darling | first = Lynn | coauthors = | title = TOGA! TOGA! TOGA!: The Toga Party, Popping Up on Campuses Across the Country | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Washington Post]] | date = [[September 26]], [[1978]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> One such party at the [[University of Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland]] attracted approximately 2,000 people while students at the [[University of Wisconsin-Madison]] tried for a crowd of 10,000 people and a place in the ''[[Guinness Book of World Records]]''.<ref name= "Darling"/> ==TV series, sequel== {{main|Delta House}} The film inspired a short-lived half-hour television [[sitcom]], ''Delta House'', in which [[John Vernon]] reprised his role as the long-suffering, malevolent Dean Wormer. The series also included Steven Furst as Flounder, Bruce McGill as D-Day and James Widdoes as Hoover.<ref>{{cite news | last = Waters | first = Harry F | coauthors = | title = Send in the Clones | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[Newsweek]] | date = [[January 29]], [[1979]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> Tim Matheson declined. The producers had the right to call the show ''Animal House'' but for some reason, the network decided against it.{{Fact|date=February 2008}} [[Michelle Pfeiffer]] made her acting debut in the series. In the TV series, John Belushi's character from the film (John "Bluto" Blutarsky) was replaced with Bluto's brother, Jim "Blotto" Blutarsky<ref>{{cite web|url=http://imdb.com/title/tt0078597/fullcredits#cast|title=Full cast and crew for "Delta House" at IMDB.}}</ref> played by [[Josh Mostel]] (son of [[Zero Mostel]]). The name "[[Blotto]]" is a reference to drunkenness. ''Animal House'' also inspired ''[[Co-Ed Fever (TV series)|Co-Ed Fever]]'', another sitcom but with none of the involvement of the film's producers or cast. Set in a dorm of the formerly all-female Baxter College, the [[pilot episode|pilot]] of ''Co-Ed Fever'' was aired by [[CBS]] on [[February 4]], [[1979]], but the network canceled the series before airing any more episodes.<ref>[http://www.tv.com/co-ed-fever/show/6343/episode_listings.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=tabssh&tag=tabs;episodes ''Co-Ed Fever'' episode list from TV.com]</ref> [[NBC]] also had its ''Animal House''-inspired sitcom, ''[[Brothers and Sisters (1979 TV series)|Brothers and Sisters]]'', in which three members of Crandall College's Pi Nu fraternity "interact" with members of the Gamma Iota sorority.<ref>[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078578/ IMDB listing for ''Brothers and Sisters'']</ref> Like [[American Broadcast Company|ABC]]'s ''Delta House'', ''Brothers and Sisters'' lasted only three months.<ref>[http://www.tv.com/brothers-and-sisters-1979/show/7997/episode_listings.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=tabssh&tag=tabs;episodes ''Brothers and Sisters'' episode list from TV.com]</ref> The film's writers planned a movie sequel set in 1967 (the "[[Summer of Love]]"), in which the Deltas have a reunion for Pinto's marriage in Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco.<ref name= "Darling">{{cite news | last = Quindlen | first = Anna | coauthors = | title = Young Actor Weary of Lying About Age | work = | pages = | language = | publisher = [[New York Times]] | date = [[September 5]], [[1980]] | url = | accessdate = }}</ref> The only Delta to have become a hippie is Flounder, who is now called Pisces. Later, Chris Miller and John Weidman, another Lampoon writer, created a treatment for this screenplay, but Universal nixed it because the sequel to ''American Graffiti'' (''[[More American Graffiti]]''), which had a few hippie-1967 sequences, had not done well. When John Belushi died, the idea died along with him. == References in pop culture == === Ask For Babs === After the closing credits, a card appears advertising the Universal Studios tour. To correlate with the film, it reads, "When in Hollywood, visit Universal Studios. (Ask for Babs.)" Some later Landis films, such as ''[[The Blues Brothers]]'' and ''[[An American Werewolf in London]]'' also carried this tagline in their theatrical releases, partially as an inside joke and reportedly as a tongue-in-cheek promotion for Universal's studio tour and its [[Universal Studios Hollywood|theme park in Los Angeles]]. As of 1989, Universal Studios no longer honors the "Ask for Babs" promotion, which was either a discount or a free entry. === Double Secret Probation === In the film, Dean Vernon Wormer tells Inter-Fraternity Council President Greg Marmalard that, since Delta is already on probation, "as of this moment they are on 'double secret probation.'" The expanded release of the original movie on [[DVD]] in 2003, was titled the ''Double Secret Probation Edition''. In the [[Futurama]] episode "[[Mars University]]", Robot House is put on "dodecatuple secret probation" by Dean Vernon (a nod to John Vernon, who played Dean Wormer in the movie). The episode also features several other references to ''Animal House'', including a secret fraternity handshake, "[[Louie Louie]]" and "[[Shout (Isley Brothers song)|Shout]]". The infamous ladder scene is also parodied, with the robots climbing to the top of a ladder to watch a sorority member repair her computer. === The smashed guitar === During the toga party, Bluto smashes an [[steel-string acoustic guitar|acoustic guitar]] belonging to a folk singer (portrayed by singer/songwriter [[Stephen Bishop (musician)|Stephen Bishop]], credited as "Charming Guy With Guitar") who is serenading a group of girls with the folk tune ''[[The Riddle Song]]''. Bluto then hands him a splintered piece and says "Sorry." Bishop wrote and performed the "Animal House Theme" and claims to have framed the smashed guitar. One of the girls whom he is serenading is John Belushi's wife Judith. The hole in the wall caused by the destruction of the guitar was the only damage done to the Sigma Nu fraternity house where the Delta House interiors were filmed. It was not repaired; instead, the hole was framed with an engraved brass tag commemorating the event.<ref>[http://www.acmewebpages.com/animal/trivia.htm ACME Animal House Trivia - College as it should have been<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> In an episode of ''[[8 Simple Rules]]'', directed by "Hoover" actor James Widdoes, Rory sings while playing his guitar, then Kerry breaks it and says "Sorry!". This sight gag has been imitated on TV several times, memorably by [[Worf]] on ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' when he objected to [[Geordi La Forge]]'s mandolin playing. During the second season of the television show ''[[Scrubs (TV series)|Scrubs]]'', Dr. [[Perry Cox]] abruptly ends a song by [[Colin Hay]] in the same manner. === Ladder Peeping === The sequence wherein Bluto puts a ladder up to the sorority house window has been recreated at least twice. First, as previously stated, in the ''Futurama'' episode "Mars University" when members of Robot House climb a ladder and watch a sorority girl fix her computer. The second time was on an episode of ''[[Family Guy]]''. Herbert hops a ladder over in front of Chris's window. He then perfectly recreates the scene by turning around to look at the camera/audience and resumes peeping. He then falls backwards off the ladder. ==DVD editions== A "Collector's Edition" DVD was released in 2002 and featured a 30-minute 1998 documentary entitled, "The Yearbook - An ''Animal House'' Reunion" by producer JM Kenny with new interviews with many of the cast and crew, including director Landis, stars Tim Matheson, Karen Allen, Peter Riegert, Mark Metcalf, and Kevin Bacon. Also included were production notes and the theatrical trailer. The "Double Secret Probation Edition" DVD released in 2003 features the members of the cast reprising their respective roles in a "Where Are They Now" [[mockumentary]], which purported that the original film had been a [[Documentary film|documentary]]: This DVD also includes "Did You Know That? Universal Animated Anecdotes," a subtitle trivia track, the making of documentary from the "Collector's Edition," [[MXPX]] "Shout" music video, a theatrical trailer, production notes, and cast and filmmakers biographies. == See also == *[[Rick Meyerowitz]], the illustrator who drew ''Animal House's'' iconic poster. == References == {{Reflist|2}} ==External links== {{wikiquotepar|Animal House}} * {{imdb title|id=0077975|title=National Lampoon's Animal House}} * [http://www.ew.com/ew/report/0,6115,285149~7|50838||0~,00.html ''Entertainment Weekly'' retrospective article] * [http://libsyn.com/media/tsoya/tsoya111905.mp3 Interview (MP3) with John Belushi biographer Tanner Colby and widow Judith Belushi Pisano] on the public radio program [[The Sound of Young America]] regarding their book, "Belushi." Includes clips from Belushi's work on ''[[National Lampoon|The National Lampoon]] Radio Hour''. * [http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/patc/animalhouse/ NPR retrospective article] * [http://movies.ign.com/articles/376/376226p1.html IGN interview with Stephen Furst] * [http://www.acmewebpages.com/animal/9901dvd1.htm DVD.com interview with John Landis] {{John Landis Films}} [[Category:1978 films]] [[Category:Films directed by John Landis]] [[Category:Teen comedy films]] [[Category:1970s comedy films]] [[Category:English-language films]] [[Category:National Lampoon films|Animal House]] [[Category:United States National Film Registry films]] [[Category:Films shot in Oregon]] [[Category:Films set in the 1960s]] [[de:Ich glaub’, mich tritt ein Pferd]] [[fr:Animal House]] [[it:Animal House (film)]] [[ja:アニマル・ハウス]] [[no:Deltagjengen]] [[pt:Clube dos Cafajestes]] [[fi:Delta-jengi]] [[sv:Deltagänget]]