June 25, 2021

#33 - "Gremlins" (1984) with Gerry D. of "Totally Rad Christmas" Podcast

#33 -
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80's Flick Flashback

Cute. Clever. Mischievous. Intelligent. Dangerous. What more is there to say about this 1984 sleeper hit that somehow morphed the well-worn snowy small town Christmas tales with little monsters your older siblings whispered about around Summer campfires or bonfires at Halloween. So turn off your Zenith television, put away your left over fried chicken, and head to Kingston Falls as Tim Williams and guest co-host, Jerry D. (from "Totally Rad Christmas" Podcast), discuss “Gremlins” from 1984 on this episode of the 80’s Flick Flashback!


Here are some additional behind the scenes trivia we were unable to cover in this episode:

  • There are references to the crew's previous projects, including some Spielberg shout-outs on the Kingston Falls theater marquee (where early working titles for both "Close Encounters" and "E.T." are listed), a poster for Twilight Zone: The Movie (Spielberg and Dante's first collaboration), and a mention of Dr. Fantasy (the nickname of producer Frank Marshall). The scenes set at the trade show attended by Rand Petlzer (Hoyt Axton) feature brief appearances by Spielberg, composer Jerry Goldsmith, and Robby the Robot from Forbidden Planet. Legendary animation director Chuck Jones even pops up as Billy's artist friend in an early bar scene.
  • Although it is not clearly visible, "Four Magic Moves to Winning Golf", by Joe Dante, Sr. is on Billy's nightstand. Director Joe Dante, Jr. said his father criticized him for not making the title more visible.
  • At the end of the movie, Gizmo pops the window blind to expose Stripe to the sunlight. The original edit featured Gizmo lifting the shade, then Billy. Again, Spielberg suggested to Dante that the film show Gizmo to be more of the hero of the story than Billy. Dante agreed and the scene was edited to clearly show it was Gizmo that stopped Stripe.


Sources: Wikipedia, IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes 

https://screenrant.com/gremlins-behind-scenes-details-making-trivia/ 

https://www.looper.com/133866/the-untold-truth-of-gremlins/


Intro & Outro Music: "Total Eclipse" by Nathaniel Wyver

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Gerry D Profile Photo

Gerry D

Host of Totally Rad Christmas podcast

Creator and host of TRC, Gerry D loves all things ‘80s and Christmas, so naturally he mashed them up to start his own show! He works at Decorator’s Warehouse, the largest Christmas store in Texas. His favorite Christmas presents from his childhood were the Super Powers Batmobile, Castle Grayskull, Voltron, and Mega Man 2 for the NES! Something like that.