Vic Morrow

[theladyinquestion]

That's a bummer it was taken down, though I suppose it was only a matter of time. Thanks for the heads up.

The same clip is up again, but under a different name I think. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUYDCcZqXM8

[aedgar5000]

You're right. I just fixed my link at the exact same time

Take care.

[death_hag_slag]

Thanks for the heads up.

snigger

sorry, in bad taste!!

[aedgar5000]

snigger

sorry, in bad taste!!

LOL!

[theladyinquestion]

You're right. I just fixed my link at the exact same time

Take care.

I managed to watch the video the whole way through the other day and even here it's hard to really see anything. I mean, you can tell when the rotor blades hit them but the actual impact is obscured by the water that is thrown up by the same blades. Again, the most disturbing part is seeing the "body chunks" floating in the water after the chopper's crashed to the ground.

Also found it vaguely disturbing when, in the first angle of the accident in this video, after the helicopter's crashed to the ground, one of the first two guys who rush in--not Landis, but the other guy, in red I think--bends down, maybe thinking he's going to pull someone (living) out of the carnage, but then sort of recoils in horror at what he sees. That one image definitely said it all.

One thing I've always wondered about: Were there other scenes filmed with the kids, besides the infamous helicopter scene? I did a little research and found this: http://www.twilightzonemuseum.com/media/movie/index.php It sounds like there were.... I'd be interested in finding out what happened to that footage. I've also read that there were actually six cameras filming that night, yet I've only seen three, maybe four different angles of the accident. I'd be interested in finding out about that footage too, but I doubt we'll ever see any of it....

[aedgar5000]

I managed to watch the video the whole way through the other day and even here it's hard to really see anything. I mean, you can tell when the rotor blades hit them but the actual impact is obscured by the water that is thrown up by the same blades. Again, the most disturbing part is seeing the "body chunks" floating in the water after the chopper's crashed to the ground.

Also found it vaguely disturbing when, in the first angle of the accident in this video, after the helicopter's crashed to the ground, one of the first two guys who rush in--not Landis, but the other guy, in red I think--bends down, maybe thinking he's going to pull someone (living) out of the carnage, but then sort of recoils in horror at what he sees. That one image definitely said it all.

One thing I've always wondered about: Were there other scenes filmed with the kids, besides the infamous helicopter scene? I did a little research and found this: http://www.twilightzonemuseum.com/media/movie/index.php It sounds like there were.... I'd be interested in finding out what happened to that footage. I've also read that there were actually six cameras filming that night, yet I've only seen three, maybe four different angles of the accident. I'd be interested in finding out about that footage too, but I doubt we'll ever see any of it....

I'm honestly surprised any footage from that accident ever saw the light of day. I'm also curious where that other footage is. Thanks for the great link.

[theladyinquestion]

I'm honestly surprised any footage from that accident ever saw the light of day. I'm also curious where that other footage is. Thanks for the great link.

No problem! Basically since the accident footage was introduced as evidence in a public trial (The People vs. John Landis et al), it was made public record, available for anyone to access. And apparently a few people did. Still makes me wonder though why only a few different angles have seen the light of day in the years since, since, again, there were supposed to be six cameras rolling that night....

[MirrorDimly]

I managed to watch the video the whole way through the other day and even here it's hard to really see anything. I mean, you can tell when the rotor blades hit them but the actual impact is obscured by the water that is thrown up by the same blades.

That's what I came away with, too. I'm glad I saw this because 1. the actual moment of impact is still difficult to discern, and 2. it happened SO FAST. I can't imagine the feeling of filming a scene and having no idea what's coming. It's a mercy that the victims didn't see it coming...but doesn't lessen the tragedy either

[Afghanhoundcalledmorrow]

Hi everyone! Long time reader frist time poster. I was wondering if anyone has ever seen any pics from the funeral of Vic Morrow. I have looked everywhere and have had no luck. Also, has anyonw got the E True Hollywood story The Twilight Zone Trial?

[theladyinquestion]

Hi everyone! Long time reader frist time poster. I was wondering if anyone has ever seen any pics from the funeral of Vic Morrow. I have looked everywhere and have had no luck. Also, has anyonw got the E True Hollywood story The Twilight Zone Trial?

Hello hound! Welcome. I've actually seen video footage of news coverage of the funeral. It was quite fascinating.... You see all major players: Morrow's daughters, ex-wife, and other family. John Landis giving his infamous rambling eulogy. Rick Jason and his other friends carrying his casket and loading it into the hearse. Etc. It was part of a series of videos entitled The Twilight Zone Tragedy uploaded to Youtube by a user named VICMORROWFAN. He had, it seemed, every single clip of news out there that even mentioned the accident and the subsequent trial. The death footage was part of it.

He (I'm assuming that user was a he) posted the footage late last year I think, but then suddenly took it all down this past May or June (not sure exactly when, I think the last time I saw any of it was April), for reasons unknown. You can still see his profile here: http://www.youtube.com/user/VICMORROWFAN. He says something that leads one to believe he knows more about the case the rest of us don't, but of course that could just be talk. Who knows. The whole thing is/was weird.

And yes I've been looking everywhere for that E! special as well, but with no luck. I thought I heard that that special showed the funeral footage as well, but not sure.

[aedgar5000]

I can't seem to find the E! Hollywood special, as well.

[Miho]

I could have sworn that someone in this thread someone did still shots of the moment of impact..

[Miho]

Our renowned Death hag Jason actually made a couple of freeze frames of the accident. I try to copy and paste it here.

Before: http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i3/jason8478/TZ1.png

After: http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i3/jason8478/TZ2.png

Ahh yes

[aedgar5000]

I could have sworn that someone in this thread someone did still shots of the moment of impact..

At around 3:50 in the video linked at the top of this page, you see some decent frame by frame shots.

[Miho]

At around 3:50 in the video linked at the top of this page, you see some decent frame by frame shots.

Just saw that part. *L* Thanks!

[theladyinquestion]

I can't seem to find the E! Hollywood special, as well.

Think it might be something E! would sell as part of a DVD package or something like that?

[aedgar5000]

Think it might be something E! would sell as part of a DVD package or something like that?

Not looking good at the E! online store, at least. The only DVD's I found for sale were mainly Kardashian and Girls Next Door garbage. No True Hollywood Story DVDs.

[Afghanhoundcalledmorrow]

You would think that E would listen to the viewers and air or at least offer on dvd the old episodes. I guess they think that they know better than their own viewers do. If I have to watch one more spoiled drunk girl, I think I just might snap!

I find it odd that the death of Vic Morrow has been pushed under the rug as time goes by. It almost feels like someone has made a point to cover things up. Outside of a couple of books that were published years ago, there has been nothing. Tv guide has been doing a rundown on the most notorious scandals in Hollywood history and it has not made the list yet.

[racingfan]

You would think that E would listen to the viewers and air or at least offer on dvd the old episodes. I guess they think that they know better than their own viewers do. If I have to watch one more spoiled drunk girl, I think I just might snap!

I find it odd that the death of Vic Morrow has been pushed under the rug as time goes by. It almost feels like someone has made a point to cover things up. Outside of a couple of books that were published years ago, there has been nothing. Tv guide has been doing a rundown on the most notorious scandals in Hollywood history and it has not made the list yet.

Probably because John Landis still works in Hollywood and is still considered a respected director. Media outlets like E! are probably scared to piss him off or any of his many supporters. It's a huge embarrassment to everyone involved and since those involved (even Steven Spielberg) are still A-listers, there may be an unspoken rule to leave incidents like this one alone...

[Giada]

Newhall Land and Farm and their PR machine played a role in this as well.

This area is now slated for homes.

http://www.wikimapia.org/5015272/New...-Airfield-site

[theladyinquestion]

You would think that E would listen to the viewers and air or at least offer on dvd the old episodes. I guess they think that they know better than their own viewers do. If I have to watch one more spoiled drunk girl, I think I just might snap!

I find it odd that the death of Vic Morrow has been pushed under the rug as time goes by. It almost feels like someone has made a point to cover things up. Outside of a couple of books that were published years ago, there has been nothing. Tv guide has been doing a rundown on the most notorious scandals in Hollywood history and it has not made the list yet.

E! might just be pandering to/wanting to appease the younger crowd which they figure would be more interested in the trash like that than a lot of the scandals/Hollywood history death hags like us would be interested in. I don't know, I think to some degree it's inevitable that things like this are gonna fade from people's memories a little bit as other scandals erupt elsewhere and life goes on, as they say...but I'm also sensing...not so much a cover up, but that certain parties are happy it's basically left most people's consciousnesses. I mean, I'm not big on conspiracy theories as a rule, but, let's face it, Hollywood is second only to Washington, D.C. in terms of ethical behavior and transparency.

Probably because John Landis still works in Hollywood and is still considered a respected director. Media outlets like E! are probably scared to piss him off or any of his many supporters. It's a huge embarrassment to everyone involved and since those involved (even Steven Spielberg) are still A-listers, there may be an unspoken rule to leave incidents like this one alone...

Landis a respected director? Eh, maybe in some quarters. It was always my impression that, while he's always had his loyalists, he was basically shunned even after the acquittal and always considered something of a joke.

He did pop up all of a sudden in a documentary I was watching the other day about pre-code films. He and Hugh Hefner. I was like, "What the duce?" I can understand in his case if the doc was about late 70's/early 80's films, but...is he now supposed to be some sort of authority on random periods in film history or something?

[theladyinquestion]

Newhall Land and Farm and their PR machine played a role in this as well.

This area is now slated for homes.

http://www.wikimapia.org/5015272/New...-Airfield-site

I remember reading something about this back in 2006 when I first started getting interested in this case, but as you can see from the aerial map I linked to a few posts back, there's still nothing really out there. Like I said, I imagine the housing bubble bursting a couple of years back has considerably slowed down such a project.

Not sure I'd be quick to buy a house where something like happened. Didn't someone say (maybe on this very thread--yeah I'm too lazy to check) that not all of the remains were recovered from the site? For instance, they could never find one of Vic's fingers or something like that? That would be a lovely thing to find as I'm planting a fig tree or digging the ground up to install a pool or something like that.

Seriously, though, I hope they don't build anything on the exact crash site, or even too close to it. Besides the possibility of finding body parts (however small or decomposed at this point), it just seems really disrespectful.

[racingfan]

Landis is still active in Hollywood:

http://www.slashfilm.com/john-landis...monster-movie/

I think since they got off a lot of the "twilight zone unpleasantness" was swept under the rug. He's still known as the guy who made the Thriller video and several cult classics. I doubt many younger fans know much about the Vic Morrow incident since it's rarely talked about outside of boards like these. He wasnt black-balled as much as he could/should have been, IMO.

[racingfan]

No problem! Basically since the accident footage was introduced as evidence in a public trial (The People vs. John Landis et al), it was made public record, available for anyone to access. And apparently a few people did. Still makes me wonder though why only a few different angles have seen the light of day in the years since, since, again, there were supposed to be six cameras rolling that night....

I've seen it from, I think, three different angles over time. I read somewhere that one of the camera operators ran after the heat became too intense from the fireballs, so I doubt this camera was still running. I'm fairly certain the camera in the helicopter itself would have been cut off earlier because they knew in the helicopter that they were in trouble before it went down. The other camera could have stopped rolling as soon as the operator saw the helicopter going down or maybe it wasn't focused on Morrow and the kids but on a different part of the scene.

[racingfan]

But there may yet be footage we have not seen. Someone on another forum posted this from "Outrageous Conduct: Art, Ego and the Twilight Zone Case":

page 140 Stumbling in the shallow channel, Vic Morrow lost his grip on Renee Chen and she dropped into the water. He tried to retrieve her, but it was too late. Within seconds, the helicopter ski came crashing down upon the girl, crushing her to death. The blade edge of the chopper's main rotor whirled across the river, decapitating Morrow and then Myca Le.
The set errupted in pandemonium. Fireman Jack Rimmer rushed over to the downed aircraft and began pulling out the passengers. Then he saw the bodies.
The murky water of the Santa Clara River was turning blood red. The still-rolling cameras captured glimpses of human body parts floating to the surface.

[theladyinquestion]

Oh Landis has certainly continued to work in Hollywood: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000484/ , but there are also clearly some career gaps, and much of what he has done hasn't been all that high profile. Either way, getting work in Hollywood isn't the same thing as being respected in Hollywood. Spielberg is a respected director and producer. I agree Landis should have been totally black-balled (as well put in jail). It was just my impression that even aside from TZ to some degree he's considered a bit of a joke around town, but hey.

Camera angles--I guess we can take the one up in the helicopter out of the equation since it probably was destroyed when the copter went down (but maybe not--weirder things have happened...supposedly....). That still leaves two unaccounted for. I don't recall reading or hearing anything about one camera man running away, but that could be my bad memory. That would still be some footage left unaccounted for though (unless it was destroyed in the heat or whatever).

I do recall reading something about a camera person being up on the cliff behind all the action (unless my memory fails me again), which would be a significantly higher/different angle than the rest.

(By the way, the shot Farber and Green mention with the floating body parts can be seen in the Death Scenes linked to above....)

[racingfan]

I don't recall reading or hearing anything about one camera man running away, but that could be my bad memory. That would still be some footage left unaccounted for though (unless it was destroyed in the heat or whatever).

I do recall reading something about a camera person being up on the cliff behind all the action (unless my memory fails me again), which would be a significantly higher/different angle than the rest.

(By the way, the shot Farber and Green mention with the floating body parts can be seen in the Death Scenes linked to above....)

According to the TruTv crime library article, two cam ops ran away

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/n...ht_zone/2.html

What link has the footage with the body parts? Im missing it...

[aedgar5000]

Slightly off topic, but Lady, isn't the music in that Faces of Death video completely over the top? Lol. I just watched it again (btw racingfan, the link is at the top of this page), and the ghoulish music is a little unnecessary. Amusingly so.

[Giada]

I remember reading something about this back in 2006 when I first started getting interested in this case, but as you can see from the aerial map I linked to a few posts back, there's still nothing really out there. Like I said, I imagine the housing bubble bursting a couple of years back has considerably slowed down such a project.

Not sure I'd be quick to buy a house where something like happened. Didn't someone say (maybe on this very thread--yeah I'm too lazy to check) that not all of the remains were recovered from the site? For instance, they could never find one of Vic's fingers or something like that? That would be a lovely thing to find as I'm planting a fig tree or digging the ground up to install a pool or something like that.

Seriously, though, I hope they don't build anything on the exact crash site, or even too close to it. Besides the possibility of finding body parts (however small or decomposed at this point), it just seems really disrespectful.

I lived in Santa Clarita when this happened and recall this making the news and feeling horrified. One of my brother's used to race motocross at ID.

The housing bubble has slowed the project, but it will eventually become another city, "Newhall Ranch." Even with slow growth this was a project that was 20 years out.

People move on ... and there truly is little interest in the site as a memorial.

I'll offer an example of the same area ...

San Francisquito Dam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Francis_Dam

Lives lost, engineering failure, water flowed to the sea, and there may still be bones in the area.

[ichabodius]

People die everywhere all the time, no need to make those sites into some kind of memorial. Thats what cemetaries are for.

[Giada]

I agree with you Ich ...

This is the only memorial I'm aware of that garnered publicity for a number of years. I don't know of any other celeb who garnered the amount of attention James Dean did.

http://www.jamesdeanmemorialjunction.com/history.html

[racingfan]

Wow, I should have clicked on that link sooner -- detailed video! Always amazes me just how fast it happens. Which is good, because they likely didn't feel anything or have much time to realize just how much danger they were in.

I hope this doesnt sound crass....but as a filmmaker myself (albeit at the indie level, where we have nowhere near the resources Landis had), I can see why he wanted that helicopter lower -- it was just kind of hovering in a corner of the wide shot. Im not defending Landis, but I think he just lost his head for a moment (no pun intended), and all he could think about was getting a spectacular shot in the one take they had to do it in. What's sad is, it wasn't even needed. The explosions and the footage of Morrow running through that water with those kids was powerful enough. Had he not been so caught up in the moment and damned obsessed with that helicopter, he would have had an awesome scene and everyone would be alive (albeit a little pissed off though). It's a shame all that work ended up in tragedy, and is only viewed now because of the deaths, not for the great footage that it could have been...

[Haunting_Immortal]

Probably because John Landis still works in Hollywood and is still considered a respected director. Media outlets like E! are probably scared to piss him off or any of his many supporters. It's a huge embarrassment to everyone involved and since those involved (even Steven Spielberg) are still A-listers, there may be an unspoken rule to leave incidents like this one alone...

The other day we were watching an interview with Corey Feldman stating a lot of things about Hollywood that are covered up because of people who are very high up being in charge, while the pedophilia he was talking about is not the same, its the same principle, things happen and it is covered up because people who are in charge like power. Its sickening, but true and I see that being the case here.

[Buttercup]

The other day we were watching an interview with Corey Feldman stating a lot of things about Hollywood that are covered up because of people who are very high up being in charge, while the pedophilia he was talking about is not the same, its the same principle, things happen and it is covered up because people who are in charge like power. Its sickening, but true and I see that being the case here.

Unfortunately, this has been happening in Hollywood since move making began.

[Haunting_Immortal]

Unfortunately, this has been happening in Hollywood since move making began.

Its the truth, people just do not always like to see the evil around them because they like their entertainment, but people like Landis SHOULD PAY for what they do just as you or I would. It sickens me that these people are allowed to do things that are so evil and it is hidden but if we the people do not speak out when we hear the truth it will always continue, we give them the money and the power by consuming these things, we personally cannot take it away or even stop most people from watching BUT we can stop consuming it ourselves when we learn about evil like this. People like Vic, My-ca and Renee do not have to die. I recommend watching the interview with Corey Feldman if you can, he is talking about the pedophilia, but if that is allowed and hidden, what else is?!

[Lily]

Its the truth, people just do not always like to see the evil around them because they like their entertainment, but people like Landis SHOULD PAY for what they do just as you or I would. It sickens me that these people are allowed to do things that are so evil and it is hidden but if we the people do not speak out when we hear the truth it will always continue, we give them the money and the power by consuming these things, we personally cannot take it away or even stop most people from watching BUT we can stop consuming it ourselves when we learn about evil like this. People like Vic, My-ca and Renee do not have to die. I recommend watching the interview with Corey Feldman if you can, he is talking about the pedophilia, but if that is allowed and hidden, what else is?!

Well said. Right after the Corey Feldman interview, I happened to have a conversation with a major child star from the 60's. He said he believed every word Corey said because while he (the 60's child star) was never exposed to any of that during his heyday, it is pretty much standard operating procedure now and everyone knows about it but turn their heads because of the power wielded by those perpetrating the pedophilia. Very, very sad.

[Mintgiver]

Lives lost, engineering failure, water flowed to the sea, and there may still be bones in the area.

I have a book about old deaths in the Los Angeles area, and there are tons of pictures and stories about this dam bursting. Ther are a few intimations about it being deliberate, too; there is a mention of the dam manager's (Unsure?) mistress being found dead in the opposite direction of the water flow. Not really sure about it, but your post triggered my memory of that book.

[theladyinquestion]

Slightly off topic, but Lady, isn't the music in that Faces of Death video completely over the top? Lol. I just watched it again (btw racingfan, the link is at the top of this page), and the ghoulish music is a little unnecessary. Amusingly so.

I've never understood why people have put music to this footage. Doesn't another one have the Doors' The End playing over it? It is amusing in a dark way but also really tasteless. This also brings up another point--why hasn't any audio come out of what happened? All video of the accident has music playing over it or is silent, from what I've seen. I'd be very curious to know if there's something to that (maybe not, but who knows).


"Two camera operators ran up a slope to get away from the pain of the heat."
But were they in fact operating running cameras at that moment? Maybe so. Still have a feeling there's stuff out there we haven't seen (and maybe never will).


I wasn't speaking of dedicating a memorial on the site (even as emotionally riled as this case makes me, even I think that would be a bit much in a way). Some places are just better left not built on/exploited for commercial gain. Hopefully we don't reach a point as a society where's that's just the norm and every little square inch of land has to be taken up by a cheap cracker jack sized house or Starbucks or parking lot or whatever, and open space of any sort is a thing of the past. It's my view; I know not everyone shares it. Hopefully if they do build in and around that area....they'll put a park or something like that in the immediate area, where kids can play and be happy.... [/end of foolish dreamy rant]

[theladyinquestion]

I agree with you Ich ...

This is the only memorial I'm aware of that garnered publicity for a number of years. I don't know of any other celeb who garnered the amount of attention James Dean did.

http://www.jamesdeanmemorialjunction.com/history.html

(Racingfan would probably know this) Doesn't the Buddy Holly/Big Bopper/Ritchie Valens crash site also have some sort of a memorial?

Edit: As well as the lake where Otis Redding crashed?

[aedgar5000]

I've never understood why people have put music to this footage. Doesn't another one have the Doors' The End playing over it? It is amusing in a dark way but also really tasteless. This also brings up another point--why hasn't any audio come out of what happened? All video of the accident has music playing over it or is silent, from what I've seen. I'd be very curious to know if there's something to that (maybe not, but who knows).


"Two camera operators ran up a slope to get away from the pain of the heat."
But were they in fact operating running cameras at that moment? Maybe so. Still have a feeling there's stuff out there we haven't seen (and maybe never will).


I wasn't speaking of dedicating a memorial on the site (even as emotionally riled as this case makes me, even I think that would be a bit much in a way). Some places are just better left not built on/exploited for commercial gain. Hopefully we don't reach a point as a society where's that's just the norm and every little square inch of land has to be taken up by a cheap cracker jack sized house or Starbucks or parking lot or whatever, and open space of any sort is a thing of the past. It's my view; I know not everyone shares it. Hopefully if they do build in and around that area....they'll put a park or something like that in the immediate area, where kids can play and be happy.... [/end of foolish dreamy rant]

That is an excellent point. Where is the sound? Hmmm, need to dig deeper ...(by the way, I don't think your rant was foolish at all)

[krais]

That is an excellent point. Where is the sound? Hmmm, need to dig deeper ...(by the way, I don't think your rant was foolish at all)

Since it's an action scene with no dialogue, the scene was probably shot silent, with all the sound to be dubbed in afterwards at sound editing. It's sometimes surprising how much of films even today are dubbed and looped in post-production.

[racingfan]

(Racingfan would probably know this) Doesn't the Buddy Holly/Big Bopper/Ritchie Valens crash site also have some sort of a memorial?

Edit: As well as the lake where Otis Redding crashed?

I don't know about Otis, but yep, there is a nice memorial at the crash site of Buddy Holly/Bopper/Valens. And there's one at the Surf Ballroom, the last venue they played before the crash. There should be one for Vic and those kids, but since that would hinder the potential development of the area, they probably won't erect one now

RE: The audio. Audio is recorded separately from the film, so it's possible they weren't running it. If they were recording it, you'd think if Landis' voice yelling "lower, lower!" to the helicopter is audible on the track, it would be submitted as evidence. I'm betting though there was audio recorded...

Was the submitted evidence made public in court records for the criminal trial? That would probably answer our questions of what was available and what wasn't.

[Dulcinea]

RE: The audio. Audio is recorded separately from the film, so it's possible they weren't running it. If they were recording it, you'd think if Landis' voice yelling "lower, lower!" to the helicopter is audible on the track, it would be submitted as evidence. I'm betting though there was audio recorded...

In a big special effects scene like that I doubt there was audio being recorded. Where would you put the microphones? The explosions and ambient sounds would have been added later and there is no way you would have heard any lines being spoken without a microphone. I would say there is no audio.

[tamiele]

Wow!! What a tragic story!! I have a vague memory of travelling with my family to Disneyland in 1982, I was 12. I recall hearing about an accident involving a helicopter at Six Flags, while filming a movie. Finding out all of these years later what that was and how horrific it turned out to be. Just unbelievable. I think that has to be the worst death video I have ever scene - it really bothers me. I almost feel like Vic really is running for his life, frantic. Why was a 60-something doing a stunt so physically grueling I wonder?? Nice looking man. Jennifer being his daughter - I had no idea. She is one of those actresses that once I saw her in Single White Female - I can't see her any different in any other characters. That happened to me watching De Niro in Cape Fear and seeing Matthew Mcconaughey in Dazed and Confused.

[racingfan]

In a big special effects scene like that I doubt there was audio being recorded. Where would you put the microphones? The explosions and ambient sounds would have been added later and there is no way you would have heard any lines being spoken without a microphone. I would say there is no audio.

Yeah, there really would have been no point in recording audio for that scene. If there had been, it would have been analyzed by the prosecution and submitted as evidence. I don't think it exists.

Wish it was easier to get the "Outrageous Conduct" or the "Special Effects" books -- guess I'll have to order them secondhand...would be a lot easier if they were on Kindle though...

[theladyinquestion]

Since it's an action scene with no dialogue, the scene was probably shot silent, with all the sound to be dubbed in afterwards at sound editing. It's sometimes surprising how much of films even today are dubbed and looped in post-production.

I think there was suppose to be some dialogue in the helicopter scenes, but you still could be right. They could have just replaced any dialogue in the scene later with Vic in a studio.

I found this version though where it does sound like there's audio to it. Specifically it sounds like you can hear the helicopter. Unfortunately it's so hard to tell with lawyer Harland Braun talking over it. :/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djVBzrucNLY

I almost feel like Vic really is running for his life, frantic. Why was a 60-something doing a stunt so physically grueling I wonder?? Nice looking man.

I think there's a lot of pressure on actors, especially older ones (Vic was in his early 50's by the way--though there is some dispute as to exactly how old he was/what year he was born--do agree with you about the nice looking part ) to do dangerous stunts themselves rather than leave it up to a stuntman. I think Nico Minardos expressed it best after his co-star Eric Fleming was killed by drowning in a river in Peru where they were filming a TV movie:

"Minardos explained that no stuntmen were included in the crew and that there were "intangible pressures" which force conscientious actors to perform inherently dangerous stunts. "An actor wants to look good," Minardos explained after the tragedy. There exist subconscious desires to appear strong and resist appealing to the director about every hazard while filming dangerous scenes." (from ericfleminginformationbase.com/Biography)

I believe Farber and Green mention in Outrageous Conduct that Vic, in initial meetings with Landis and company, stressed his ability to do most stunts and how he didn't have a stuntman on Combat! (though he did).

Speaking of that book and 'Special Effects'....they're no longer in print from what I hear, so you've have to get them secondhand. I got Outrageous Conduct from an independent, used bookstore, and the other one from a third-party Amazon seller. When that used bookstore closed later that year I went back to see what I could salvage from their liquidation sale, and I found a hard copy of Farber and Green's book, with pictures and all (I have the paperback), but for some reason I didn't get it. Wish I had--to either give to another fan or donate to our school's library--as I'm pretty sure whatever wasn't bought before they totally closed was thrown in the trash (which might have included OC...but maybe not...just pains me to think if it was, considering it is out of print et al).

I think the park idea would be a nice compromise, if they are gonna develop the area eventually. Functional but also respectful/memorializing, if say they were to name it after one or more of the victims.... Really though I'd hate to see the area built on at all still.... Even if the accident didn't happen there it is a notable filming location where they also shot Baa Baa Blacksheep, The Rocketeer, etc. We've already lost so many former filming locations here to developers who were just itching to build a bunch of ugly faux-Spanish, cracker jack box-sized houses or a Walmart or whatever. We shouldn't have to loose any more Hollywood--and, by extension, California--history like that.

[aedgar5000]

Since it's an action scene with no dialogue, the scene was probably shot silent, with all the sound to be dubbed in afterwards at sound editing. It's sometimes surprising how much of films even today are dubbed and looped in post-production.

In a big special effects scene like that I doubt there was audio being recorded. Where would you put the microphones? The explosions and ambient sounds would have been added later and there is no way you would have heard any lines being spoken without a microphone. I would say there is no audio.

Thanks for the info

[tamiele]

I think there's a lot of pressure on actors, especially older ones (Vic was in his early 50's by the way--though there is some dispute as to exactly how old he was/what year he was born--do agree with you about the nice looking part ) to do dangerous stunts themselves rather than leave it up to a stuntman.

Oops, I was going to blame Wikipedia for that - but I just can't add I guess.

Somewhere up the thread or a link it states that he supposedly commented just before the scene that he should have had a stunt double do it - but he pushed on. So sad!!!

[Dulcinea]

Somewhere up the thread or a link it states that he supposedly commented just before the scene that he should have had a stunt double do it - but he pushed on. So sad!!!

A stunt double would have saved HIS life, but there would still be three people dead, including two kids...

[tamiele]

A stunt double would have saved HIS life, but there would still be three people dead, including two kids...

Yes, I didn't mean to sound like the others didn't matter.