"It's a MAD MAD MAD MAD Beech D-18" (TCM)

[DiggerWW2]

Gang, Just a heads up that the Classic "IT'S A MAD MAD MAD MAD WORLD" will air tonite (Saturday) on TCM at 8pm Eastern.
This movie is noteworthy due to the WW2 AAF/USN era Beech D-18 that appears in many of the scenes.
Including the famous billboard crash. Here's more on this aircraft & the airport where they filmed it:

http://www.gchudleigh.com/madworld.htm

http://members.cox.net/mkpl4/mmmmw/thumb.htm

Here's what happened to that Beech D-18. Wow, They really beat the crap out of it. It's a shame it was scrapped...
I'd like to have it for My back yard:

http://www.gchudleigh.com/madworld2.htm

http://members.tripod.com/airfields_fre ... nchoconejo

Here's the Mad World Movie Trailer, showing some of the Beech D-18 stunts.
I think the hanger fly-through scene had to be the most dangerous:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyxyirNH ... ed&search=

The D-18 Billboard Crash Scene.
Also note Jonathan Winter's Weapons Carrier/Towtruck:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2SpROYb ... ed&search=

Ha! Ha! Here's one of My Favorite scenes. I actually did this last week at a local Dunkin Donuts. (The Donuts were stale) :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSq5y_NU9N8

Again, It's on tonite (Saturday) on TCM at 8pm Eastern.
Adjust Your Own Time Zone accordingly... Some of the jokes in this film haven't aged very well & the plot is kinda thin, but it's still fun to see all those stunts with the vintage vehicles & aircraft... Digger

[visaliaaviation]

IIRC and IMHO, the best scene in the movie is when the Jonathan Winters character kicks Phil Silvers right in the chest (thud) saying "You shut up!"

[DiggerWW2]

Ha! Ha! Yeah, there's endless funny stories about making this movie. Too many to mention here... Beleve it or not, Winters REALLY was beating the living crap out of Phil Silvers. Winters knee'd Silvers in the crotch & everything. Winters was completely out of control at this time. During the Gas Station destruction scene, the crew strapped Winters to the chair with all that electrical tape & then broke for lunch... They returned a hour later & discovered they completely FORGOT about Jonathan. Winters was crazed from the heat & said "When I get out of this chair Gang, the fun REALLY starts!!" Ha! Ha! He probably beat the hell out of all of them too... Digger

[Steve Nelson]

Oh man, that takes me back. When I was a kid it seems like they always ran that movie on New Years Eve, and we always made a point of watching it. I've got an old audio tape of some bits recorded from the TV, and you can hear us all laughing hysterically in the background.

Is that one available on DVD yet? I'm gonna have to pic up a copy.


SN

[agent86]

While its hard to pick a favorite out of many very funny scenes,I think that the part where the little boy shows Phil Silvers the "Shortcut" back to the highway is my favorite.Phil trying to climb the hill in his overweight/underpowered mid-century era auto( SUV equivalent) is a real hoot.But the best is when the kid assures Phil that the stream is so shallow that he can walk across it,and then he laughs as Phil sets sail downstream in his sinking convertible,always makes me laugh to tears.One of my all time favorite movies. Tim

Sylvester(Dick Shawn) in bandages talking to the police capt/lt./sgt?(Spencer Tracy) " Man,there was enough there for all of us,but you had to go and grab up the whole scene baby!"

Sylvester.."you're buggin me baby! ooo now you're REALLY buggin me Baby!

[DiggerWW2]

Yes!! You can get a razor sharp DVD of this film on Amazon for just 10 bucks.
It's fun to read the reviews from other fans of this film:

http://www.amazon.com/Its-Mad-World/dp/ ... 497&sr=8-1

When I was a kid, "Gilligan's Island" was My favorite TV show & "Mad World" was My favorite movie. I would even try to tape-record it each year, back before VCR's. This DVD is the restored version where they added a few deleted scenes. They found about 20 minutes worth of chopped out footage in an old warehoue & added it back in.
However, there's still about 20 more minutes worth of "lost scenes" out there somewhere...
There's also a priceless "Making Of" feature, where the cast & crew tell all thier juicy secrets about the film. That alone is worth the 10 bucks!! It's fascinating to hear how they made this movie & all the crazy antics that went on....
I think My favorite scene is the WILD Cab chase at the end with all the Corvettes & '57 Chevy's running around in the background.
Ah, Those were the days... Digger

[Steve Nelson]

Oooh...I gots ta gits it now!

They found about 20 minutes worth of chopped out footage in an old warehoue & added it back in. However, there's still about 20 more minutes worth of "lost scenes" out there somewhere...

I've heard the same thing about "Tora! Tora! Tora!" Apparently, the version available on video and shown on TV is considerably shorter than the original. I understand that the original cut shown at the premiere was conisdered too long, so it was chopped down for wide theatrical release, then shortened again for further big-screen runs and television. I don't know if the cut scenes even still exist, but it would be great to see the film as it originally premiered.

I'm a real sucker for special editions and director's cuts (I own both DVD releases of Peter Jackson's "King Kong," as well as all three extended versions of the "Lord of the Rings" movies. I already have "T-T-T" on DVD, but I've been toying with picking up the latest incarnation, because it includes the AMC "Backstory" episode, and a couple of other documentaries.


SN

[Craig59]

Look closely (or if you've got a DVR - freeze it) and you'll see the Tallmantz B-25 cameraship for a brief second in the scene following the Beech-18 landing. More disscussion at Scott's site here:

http://aerovintage.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=124

[DiggerWW2]

According to the original script, here's a list of the "Lost-Lost Scenes" that this guy says are still out there:

"For 22 years, Paul and I and others have been on a futile quest to restore IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD back to its original 192 minute Cinerama world premiere length. The closest we have come is the 182 minute reconstruction on home video and cable TV, and it includes preview material. So we are still missing at least ten minutes of crucial visual material and as much as fifteen minutes. Included in the still lost material (I have the complete script--I think) are Shawn stealing his married girlfriend's (!) convertible, more of Buster Keaton's cameo as a crook, getting Jim Backus INTO a shower he subsequently is removed from, the identity of a strange man in the police station (he is a police reporter told to sit on the story for now), Tracy learning who Silvers is (an unemployed piano player and gambler), and the beginning of almost all the police office scenes. Current prints, including the 182, join them in progress."

Those scenes sound interesting...
Apparently these "Lost-Lost Scenes" have been found & are all ready to be edited back into the film. Hollywood is all set to restore it back to it's full-length version. Just as soon as someone comes up with the 2 Million Dollars to do it....

I saw the recently re-edited version of "THE BIG RED ONE" with Lee Marvin. It has about 40 minutes of added footage in it.
It's a completely different film now, alot better & makes much more sense... Digger

[Jerry O'Neill]

My two favorite lines:

Sylvester.."Did you all hear what Mama said?!"

and,

Sylvester.."We tell them to hit the road or we smack their brains in!"

Love that movie!
Jerry

[Chris Brame]

Sid Caesar:
"When was this plane built?"

Ben Blue:
"1916."

Sid Caesar:
"19... 16."

All in the delivery. One of the original scripts owned by Stanley Kramer just sold at auction for $3500.00 and one page revealed that the car Milton Berle was driving was supposed to be a Cadillac, rather than the Imperial they used (so my other favorite line - from Ethel Merman - "We're the ones with the Imperial, and we're in last place?!?" would have made more sense). By the way, I'm the one who spotted the B-25 in the background:

[BK]

My two favorite lines:

Sylvester.."Did you all hear what Mama said?!"

Love that movie!
Jerry

Trivia:
This line was sampled by Jeff Beck on the song "What Mama Said" off his 1999 CD Who Else?

BK

[bdk]

Just saw the movie again last night. I had forgotten how funny it was, and so many actors/comedians whose names were on the tip of my tongue.

Of course "Mr. Bean On Vacation" comes out in theaters on Friday. I'm sure that will be much funnier...

[DanteC]

Yes!! You can get a razor sharp DVD of this film on Amazon for just 10 bucks.

Go to Best Buy, it's on the cheapy rack.....$5.99

[Steve Nelson]

I saw the recently re-edited version of "THE BIG RED ONE" with Lee Marvin. It has about 40 minutes of added footage in it.
It's a completely different film now, alot better & makes much more sense...

Is it out on DVD? I may have to add that one to my collection as well.

SN