Vic Morrow

[Jason]

I found this story fascinating and the actual footage extremely tragic (WARNING You see a man and two children getting killed). I think John Landis should have been more to blame for this tragedy but I'm not sure to what extent. Some people say he should have been black listed from Hollywood but then he would have never gone on to make some of the most memorable classic movies of the 80's. Here is a more detailed article of the event... anyway, just curious what you death hags thought about this case.

[GODDESS6]

very, very sad~ thanx for the link, i have never seen the footage so well~
i do think it was an accident, but as a parent, i would prolly would want to find someone to blame~

[Danse Macabre]

So tragic! =[

[Aries65]

I like how they use the song by The Doors "The End" for the theme music!

I have that footage on a Hollywood tradegy/death DVD I got - same footage. I mean, all you can see is a flash - not body parts flying around everywhere! But it's still sad.

Oh, I just wanted to add here, Jennifer Jason Leigh is the daughter of Vic Morrow, and apparently they had some sort of falling out at one time or another, and after his death, he left everything to her sister - and nothing to her. Like she really needed any of the money anyway - since she's done alright along with the way with her career! (my favorite movie of hers: Last Exit to Brooklyn)

[Mrs. Watson]

I hate to say it, but I think if these had been two blonde blue-eyed children, there might have been a much bigger outcry.

[JeffD]

All I can say is I didn't like John Landis' attitude after the accident. It was total damage control and no true remorse for what had happened on his set. That, and that stupid grin on his face. Reminds me of a weasel ex-boss I once knew. Just my $0.02.

[Aries65]

All I can say is I didn't like John Landis' attitude after the accident. It was total damage control and no true remorse for what had happened on his set. That, and that stupid grin on his face. Reminds me of a weasel ex-boss I once knew. Just my $0.02.

Yeah, I'm with you there, and he even went on to make more movies! He wasn't black-balled in Hollywood at all.

I think they should have shut down the production of the movie after that and never released it. But I guess he needed the money from the box office return to pay for his day in court!

[hoxharding]

I have read a great deal about this.
The children were hired illegally and he knew this. Many people were at fault. Landis was at fault for quite a few things but blamed everyone else.
One of the families lost their only child.
One of the firemen was kept from knowing children were on the set. He had a reputation of closing down sets to protect children actors.
At least one of the workers changed his story to protect Landis.
There is an excellent book to read. I think the title is 'Special Effects' I don't recall the author.
I once saw Landis standing in a line and went out of my way not to stand next to him.

[hoxharding]

Btw, you should read what Landis said at Vic's funeral. It was pretty tactless.
He really was just pimping the film and saying that at least they got Vic's best performance on tape and film is immortal(not exact quote)

[Cindy]

I too am fascinated by this story. Thanks for the link, Jason. That was a new angle for me.

[JefeStone]

Landis is a P.O.S. Bottom line

[Lisamarie]

Wow thats the clearest footage I have ever seen! Wow thanks for posting it! Thats amazing and scary too!! Those kids must have been scared! I was and Im only watching!!! Its so intense!! Anyone seen death pics of Morrow???

[Jason]

very, very sad~ thanx for the link, i have never seen the footage so well~
i do think it was an accident, but as a parent, i would prolly would want to find someone to blame~

Well yeah in the end it wasn't a planned event but if you read through the course of events everything leads to Landis being very negligent. Here is a direct quote from that article I posted:

"Employers could get waivers to work kids later than that but Landis did not seek one. The exact reason for this failure later became a matter of intense dispute. Either he thought he would not get the waiver because the hour was too late or he knew he could not get approval to have kids around a helicopter and explosives. The director decided to break the law. He would employ the kids illegally and pay them out of petty cash to avoid putting their names on payroll."

Basically Landis just did what he had to do in order to get the shots he wanted regardless of who was at risk and I personally think Spielburg helped bail this guy out when the heat was put on him. BUT as I said earlier I am torn with this one because I do think John Landis went on to make some great films post Twighlight Zone.

[Jason]

Wow thats the clearest footage I have ever seen! Wow thanks for posting it! Thats amazing and scary too!! Those kids must have been scared! I was and Im only watching!!! Its so intense!! Anyone seen death pics of Morrow???

Yeah isn't it crazy? when I first saw it I was very shocked/fascinated (still am). I haven't seen any pics of him dead, to be honest I think watching the helicopter blade chopping him in half is enough for me. I actually found this story on Find A Death, it was one of those hidden treasures I found when I thought I saw them all.

[towser]

Do you know how we know Vic Morrow had washed his hair that morning? They found his Head & Shoulders in the bushes....

[Jason]

Do you know how we know Vic Morrow had washed his hair that morning? They found his Head & Shoulders in the bushes....

[cricket.... cricket]

[rjbrasher]

Do you know how we know Vic Morrow had washed his hair that morning? They found his Head & Shoulders in the bushes....

omg maybe im tired, but that shit was funny.

[Jason]

omg maybe im tired, but that shit was funny.

Maybe.

[rjbrasher]

gotta have a little humor to keep ya sane most times

[JefeStone]

That smile on Landis face makes me want to puke. He really don't think he's responsible.

[Danny62]

omg maybe im tired, but that shit was funny.

Okay I am playing an older Alice Cooper CD and I kid you not this song just came on as I was reading these posts "Chop, Chop, Chop."

From his "Raise your fist and yell" CD!!!!

[MOVIEDAN]

Thanks for the link.
I remember seeing another angle of this years ago. It was much closer on Vic and the children. Regardless, it's amazing to be able to see it even though it's a horrible tragedy.

[MOVIEDAN]

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

I don't know how long this will be up because it probably breaks some kind of YouTube rule. I just found it. It shows the crash at several different angles and is much better quality.

[seamuskaxen]

I´m reading a book about celebrity murders, and I just finnished reading a chapter on this case. I think that John Landis is guilty, he blamed everybody else, but he could have said stop, it´s not safe. But he wanted the special effects and he wanted the plane to go lower.

[Aries65]

I don't know, I guess it needs to be played in slow-mo for me, angle by angle - since I'm still not seeing any body parts flying around. Just lights flashing everywhere.

[Jason]

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

I don't know how long this will be up because it probably breaks some kind of YouTube rule. I just found it. It shows the crash at several different angles and is much better quality.

Wow.. that was much better and clearer, thanks for sharing.

Since I am a sick puppy, I freeze framed the exact moment their heads were severed (WARNING: A BIT GRAPHIC).

Before
After

on a side note, this has to be the least painful death one could endure. I actually read that the most humane way to kill a person is to behead them (QUICKLY though, not that crap they are doing to hostages in the middle east with steak knives).

[Aries65]

Wow.. that was much better and clearer, thanks for sharing.

Since I am a sick puppy, I freeze framed the exact moment their heads were severed (WARNING: A BIT GRAPHIC).

Before
After

on a side note, this has to be the least painful death one could endure. I actually read that the most humane way to kill a person is to behead them (QUICKLY though, not that crap they are doing to hostages in the middle east with steak knives).

Wow! Okay, NOW I see it. Thanks for taking the time out to do that Jason. It just all happened too quick on that video for ME to see anything.

On the "after" picture, it's as if they didn't know what was about to happened. Kind of freaky.

[BeanBoyGirl]

I don't think the video is graphic AT all. It happend very fast and I doubt they even knew what was happening.

[kelbons]

I hate to say it, but I think if these had been two blonde blue-eyed children, there might have been a much bigger outcry.

I think you're right!

[MOVIEDAN]

Good capture, Jason! Def. some heads flying on that one. I agree with BeanBoyGirl though. It really isn't that graphic. The head and shoulders joke, priceless.

They should re-release this footage in Hi-Def with Dolby 5.1 sound and director's commentary. Maybe add some snapping sound effects at the moment of impact.

[Aries65]

They should re-release this footage in Hi-Def with Dolby 5.1 sound and director's commentary. Maybe add some snapping sound effects at the moment of impact.

Yikes...

[Lisamarie]

Yeah you can clearly see he really got hacked up pretty bad!!! Tyhose poor kids! They were cute !!! What a way to go!!

[hoorayforhollywood]

Didn't Landis just get in trouble again for something recently or am I thinking of someone else? Seems like it was Landis 'cause I remember thinking about the Vic Morrow tragedy. But yeah, Landis is a piece of work for sure.....he looks sleazy to me........

[1karenhb]

In 1987 I was a juror on a murder trial next door to the Landis trial. There were always lots of media around especially near the end of the trial. On breaks, several of us would sit outside our courtroom and if we were lucky the Landis trial would also be on break. Saw all the key players numerous times. Landis came across as a pompous ass. His wife was always with him and they were always holding hands (that always looks good to the public). I don't care what movies Landis went on to make, he should have been held accountable for this tragedy. Like someone said in an earlier post, "if the kids had been blond hair, blue eyed".

[onehunglow]

I guess I'm odd man out. I see an accident. I don't think anyone said "man, slow day so lets drop a helo and some people". People are just sue happy. Very sad accident.

[Irishlass]

I grew up about 5 miles where that happened. It was so weird knowing that happned so close

[dirk diggler]

Yeah looks like it happened pretty quick very sobering to watch i saw that epsiode a few months back strange knowing what was outside that door..

[deathybrad]

Do you really think anyone was criminally guilty? I suppose criminal negligence. I can certainly understand winning a civil case against Landis or someone.

[Jason]

I guess I'm odd man out. I see an accident. I don't think anyone said "man, slow day so lets drop a helo and some people". People are just sue happy. Very sad accident.

It definitely was an accident but accidents happen for a reason, in this case the reason was John Landis had these people on a crazy schedule in crazy (dangerous) circumstances. The kids shouldn't have even been there, regardless of hair and eye color (it was too late in the night and too dangerous). If two people get into a car accident somebody is always to blame even though it was an accident, same thing applies here. Landis was tried and released so he was the man being blamed, but since it wasn't intentional he isn't the man in jail.

[onehunglow]

[quote=jason8478;7105]Wow.. that was much better and clearer, thanks for sharing.

Since I am a sick puppy, I freeze framed the exact moment their heads were severed (WARNING: A BIT GRAPHIC).

Before
After

Look at the after close. Like a cross and angel in that fog. See it?

[onehunglow]

Weird. I've heard Vic was not a joy to work with either.

[Jason]

Good capture, Jason! Def. some heads flying on that one. I agree with BeanBoyGirl though. It really isn't that graphic. The head and shoulders joke, priceless.

They should re-release this footage in Hi-Def with Dolby 5.1 sound and director's commentary. Maybe add some snapping sound effects at the moment of impact.

And add it to the Twilight Zone Special Edition DVD while they are at it!

[Aries65]

And add it to the Twilight Zone Special Edition DVD while they are at it!

Sadly, the DVD that was just released of this movie is "bare bones" - no extras!

[Jason]

Sadly, the DVD that was just released of this movie is "bare bones" - no extras!

Did you like the flick? if enough people buy it they will be sure to release the Collectors edition prior to the ULTIMATE EDITION!!!!!

I remember seeing it as a kid... I may havta toss it up on me Netflix

[Aries65]

Yeah, it's pretty good. The Vic Morrow segment is pretty harsh, since he plays a bigot. Maybe Dog will appreciate it - LOL.

[Danny62]

[quote=onehunglow;10012]

Wow.. that was much better and clearer, thanks for sharing.

Since I am a sick puppy, I freeze framed the exact moment their heads were severed (WARNING: A BIT GRAPHIC).

Before
After

Look at the after close. Like a cross and angel in that fog. See it?

Good Post!!!

Its really hard to tell when you watch the video. I remember seeing it in the faces of death video....I think it was the first volume?

[oranjuicejones]

I had a professor in college that was the line producer on the flick and was there the night the accident happened. She told us the story one day and painted a very poor picture of Landis and blamed him. She said they didn't have the money or time to go the proper route in casting children, instead Landis sent a PA down to Chinatown and offered an immigrant $100 or something like that, to bring her two children to set that night ignoring all rules regarding children. When the scene was filming Landis kept demanding that the chopper get lower, even when the pilot said it wasn't safe. Unfortunalty the pilot relented and did the stunt. One of the explosions went off and unsealed the heat treatment on the back blade and the helicopeter crashed. Wouldn't have happened if it wasn't so low.

[Jack-O-Lantern]

Just bought the newly-issued DVD of "Twilight Zone-The Movie" and wow, it has NOT aged well...don't know what I was thinking in the 80's but gotta say it went from my DVD player into the "sell on Amazon Marketplace" pile, instantly. What a bomb!
As for Landis, from everything I've ever read and heard, he acted recklessly (and heedlessly) as an employer and as such should have had to take at least some of the blame for what happened. But hey, that's Hollywood, right??!! All play and no pay...

[cash]

I am a sucker for official reports and have found the NTSB report into the helicopter crash. Officially called the Western Helicopters Inc. crash - July 23/82. Here is the full report.

http://www.airdisaster.com/reports/ntsb/AAR84-14.pdf

some interesting points from the NTSB report:

the chopper was originally 40 ft above the water. Landis ordered it lower to 24 ft when the accident happened.
the pilot expressed concerns before the accident that the blades on the chopper could come into contact with several huts constructed on the scene. the pilot was also told that the chopper would not hover over any explosives - a downright lie
there was a rehearsal - no explosives were set off and everything went fine
5 explosions in all - the 5th explosion engulfed the tail section of the chopper. the explosion consisted of gasoline and sawdust

you got to read the end of this report - Landis protested NTSB's original findings which blamed the accident on Landis ordering the chopper to descend and causing it to be hit by debris from the 5th explosion. Landis wanted to place blame on the licensed pyrotechnics operator.

Landis is a first class prick. He tried to blame a member of the crew. NTSB rejected Landis' claim and blamed the director. They said Landis failed in his responsibility to ensure safety on the film set.

it took NTSB over 2 years to release its report because of Landis' protestations.

[Jason]

[quote=Danny62;38964]

Good Post!!!

Its really hard to tell when you watch the video. I remember seeing it in the faces of death video....I think it was the first volume?

Thanks Danny... glad you enjoyed it

Landis is a first class prick. He tried to blame a member of the crew. NTSB rejected Landis' claim and blamed the director. They said Landis failed in his responsibility to ensure safety on the film set.

Yeah based on my understanding Landis was a huge COKE head and was always on GO regardless of the crazy hours crew members were putting in. This to me was just a combination of bad judgment and not enough sleep.

Just bought the newly-issued DVD of "Twilight Zone-The Movie" and wow, it has NOT aged well...don't know what I was thinking in the 80's but gotta say it went from my DVD player into the "sell on Amazon Marketplace" pile, instantly. What a bomb!

hmm... got me reconsidering my Netflix queue now