Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 Nathalie Wood after a pie fight while filming The Great Race, 1961 The pie fight scene in the royal bakery was filmed over five days in 1964. The first pastry thrown was part of a large cake decorated for the king's coronation. Following this was the throwing of 4,000 pies, the most pies ever filmed in a pie fight. The scene lasts four minutes and twenty seconds and cost $200,000 to shoot; $18,000 just for the pastry. Colorful cream pies with fillings such as raspberry, strawberry, blueberry and lemon were used. For continuity between days of shooting, the actors were photographed at the end of each day and then made up the following morning to have the same colorful appearance, the same smears of pie crust and filling. Edwards told the cast that a pie fight by itself is not funny, so to make it funny they would build tension by having the hero, dressed all in white, fail to get hit with any pies. He said, "The audience will start yearning for him to get it". Finally, the hero was to take a pie in the face at "just the right moment". Shooting was halted while the actors took the weekend off. Over the weekend, the pie residue spoiled all over the scenery. When the actors returned Monday morning, the set reeked so badly that the building required a thorough cleaning and large fans to blow out the sour air. The missing pie residue was carefully recreated with more pies, and shooting resumed. At first, the actors had fun with the pie fight assignment, but eventually the process grew wearisome and dangerous. Wood choked briefly on pie filling which hit her open mouth. Lemmon reported that he got knocked out a few times; he said, "a pie hitting you in the face feels like a ton of cement". At the end of shooting, when Edwards called "cut!", he was barraged with several hundred pies that members of the cast had hidden, waiting for the moment. 2 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassnetguy50 Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 Warner Brothers cut out the scene opening in this clip. If we are talking pie fights, especially in The Great Race, we need to credit Stan Laurel for The Battle Of The Century (1927). He didn't want to do a pie bit because it was passe by 1927. Laurel gave in saying "Look, if we make a pie picture – let’s make a pie picture to end all pie pictures. Let’s give them so many pies that there will never be room for any more pie pictures in the whole history of the movies." Writings vary whether they used 3,000 or 4,000 pies. Laurel wanted to make the film more realistic by having the characters go through the emotions rather than action (hit with pie) and reaction (throw pie as retaliation) that had been standard in slapstick of the period. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Father Kit Cool Gun Garth Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irish ike, SASS #43615 Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 Great funny, funny movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Lizard Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 13 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: Nathalie Wood after a pie fight while filming The Great Race, 1961 The pie fight scene in the royal bakery was filmed over five days in 1964. The first pastry thrown was part of a large cake decorated for the king's coronation. Following this was the throwing of 4,000 pies, the most pies ever filmed in a pie fight. The scene lasts four minutes and twenty seconds and cost $200,000 to shoot; $18,000 just for the pastry. Colorful cream pies with fillings such as raspberry, strawberry, blueberry and lemon were used. For continuity between days of shooting, the actors were photographed at the end of each day and then made up the following morning to have the same colorful appearance, the same smears of pie crust and filling. Edwards told the cast that a pie fight by itself is not funny, so to make it funny they would build tension by having the hero, dressed all in white, fail to get hit with any pies. He said, "The audience will start yearning for him to get it". Finally, the hero was to take a pie in the face at "just the right moment". Shooting was halted while the actors took the weekend off. Over the weekend, the pie residue spoiled all over the scenery. When the actors returned Monday morning, the set reeked so badly that the building required a thorough cleaning and large fans to blow out the sour air. The missing pie residue was carefully recreated with more pies, and shooting resumed. At first, the actors had fun with the pie fight assignment, but eventually the process grew wearisome and dangerous. Wood choked briefly on pie filling which hit her open mouth. Lemmon reported that he got knocked out a few times; he said, "a pie hitting you in the face feels like a ton of cement". At the end of shooting, when Edwards called "cut!", he was barraged with several hundred pies that members of the cast had hidden, waiting for the moment. Do you think they had some fun doing this....Something you dream about doing.... Texas Lizard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WHITE LIGHTNIN,SASS # 527 Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 On 6/30/2024 at 8:23 AM, WHITE LIGHTNIN,SASS # 527 said: Winter range and eot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted July 1 Author Share Posted July 1 37 minutes ago, Texas Lizard said: Do you think they had some fun doing this....Something you dream about doing.... Texas Lizard Don’t know but I’m sure they enjoyed creaming the director when they were done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Lizard Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 26 minutes ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: Don’t know but I’m sure they enjoyed creaming the director when they were done. I think I would be careful not to ask re-shoot... Texas Lizard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted July 1 Author Share Posted July 1 1 minute ago, Texas Lizard said: I think I would be careful not to ask re-shoot... Texas Lizard Could not do a lot of reshoots except for closeups. The did not clean anything between takes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 Mable Normand was credited with first pie in face of Fatty Arbuckle in 1913. I think she was credited with first tie on railroad tracks gag. She had a lot of influence in early movie industry. She died of tuberculosis at 37. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted July 1 Author Share Posted July 1 2 hours ago, Warden Callaway said: Mable Normand was credited with first pie in face of Fatty Arbuckle in 1913. I think she was credited with first tie on railroad tracks gag. She had a lot of influence in early movie industry. She died of tuberculosis at 37. Mable Normand 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted July 1 Share Posted July 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forty Rod SASS 3935 Posted July 2 Share Posted July 2 The Great Race also had one of the best bar brawls ever filmed, right up there with the one in North To Alaska and Donovan's Reef. Three of my all time favorite movies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T.K. Posted July 2 Share Posted July 2 This clip has a pie counter. Pretty cool 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Okie Sawbones, SASS #77381 Posted July 2 Share Posted July 2 I just want to know if you could lick the pie off of your chosen actor/actress? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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