WL: Of course, that was right in the middle of the whole Bustin Down The Door saga. "Big Wednesday" (1978) is a film that was made for baby boomers. A coming of age story, it chronicles the three characters transition to adulthood with parties, surf trips, marriage and the Vietnam War in the background. The Los Angeles Times reported that it was one of the very few to really capture the surfing life., Surf journalist Paul Gross concurred, writing in The Surfers Journal on the films 25th anniversary that even its harshest critics had to acknowledge that Big Wednesday remains true to the sport., While Surfer Magazine went one further in their modern appraisal bestowing what may be the ultimate compliment, declaring simply that Big Wednesday makes you proud to be a surfer.. Terry Remick is now heavily involved with the marketing of vintage rail trips along the central coast. Honestly, the whole experience completely ruined me for being back on the pro tour. All Rights Reserved. They were depicted as both titanic figures who embody physical perfection and barbarians who refuse to conform to the rules of civilised society. Raised in Southern California, Milius made Big Wednesday as an homage to the time he spent in Malibu during his youth. IC: One day I was at home in Australia and the phone rang and it was Hollywood calling. n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}; This is one of Terrys favorite shots. Several surf legends Peter Townend, Ian Cairns, Jay Riddle and Bill Hamilton were involved in the making of the film as stunt coordinators or doubles. "[15], Milius invented the Bear brand of surfboard as a fictional brand to be used in the movie,[16] and even had surfboards made and arranged for a Californian designer to create a logo. by Information Press, Behind The Scenes On Big Wednesday: Tales From The Set With Stunt Double Ian Cairns Wavelength Surf Magazine, Alan Nafzger's Los Angeles Surfing Drama - VERITY'S SURFING MOVIE, Kanga The Trials and Triumphs of Ian Cairns, Historic San Augustine is Set for This Weekends Heritage Days, Judge Revives Lunada Bay Lawsuit: Localism Is Illegal and Cities TheInertia.com, From Hawaii to South Africa: Top 10 surfing destinations around the world, Matthew McConaugheys dashing young son collects , Architect Ed Niles Designed This Massive Geometrical Manse on the Malibu Coast. Big Wednesday is a 1978 American coming of age film about California surfers facing life, the Vietnam War, and use of the ever-changing surf as a metaphor for the changes in life.. Photo via www.bearsurfboards.eu. Wed surf and then get a filet mignon for lunch. The production assistant tried to shoo her off when he saw her camera but George told them she was a regular and harmless, so they let her keep shooting. My contribution to the movie was telling the assistant director that the license plates on the cars were wrong for the period. Privacy Policy / Terms & Conditions. He was the double for William Katt in the film. Jean Micheal Vincent and Billy Kat were there but the Masochist wasnt. No Stress.Just Stoke. When he comes home from Vietnam he is an Army Green Beret. Except for Big Wednesday, none of the Milius-directed films have a satisfying conclusion. Ian Cairns, shown above, was the surf double for Gary Busey. Trips planned for this summer include roundtrip runs to SLO from SB and Goleta on June 30th, July 21st and August 18th. Each plays a talented . Senior Lecturer, Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington. Similarly, most of the sequences of the film, including the iconic Vietnam draft dodging scene and the trip to Mexico, were based on the filmmakers own real-life experiences. Denny Aaberg continues his life long passion for playing music. At least half the people who participated are dead now. In the 1980s, Milius would go on to make commercially successful films such as Conan the Barbarian and Red Dawn. Bruce Brown, king of surfing documentaries, returns after nearly thirty years to trace the steps of two young surfers to top surfing spots around the world. We were treated like rock stars and I still get a cheque every year from the screen actors guild. For those of you that dont know about George Greenough, you should learn. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. She is the guide for a few of these private rail trips which travel through the Gaviota Coast. WL: Are there any other memories from that trip that particularly stand out? So anyway one Sunday we took him out surfing at Sunzal, it was about 3 feet, and he got smashed and almost drowned and had to be rescued and brought in. The water camera hes holding was one of those ideas. Theyre riding prop boards, made for the movie, and no wetsuits, since this was supposed to the early sixties Malibu. The board I was riding was an 86, so it wasnt really a longboard, but it worked kind of fun. The new Point Break is hitting the theaters Dec. 25 and the movie required some death-defying stunts that have never happened before. Its the artful portrayal of these hardy perennials that allows Big Wednesday to still resonate so thoroughly with wave riders over forty years on. Billy Hamilton, above, was the double for Jan Michael Vincent. The idea of the ocean as the new Far West is reinforced by the films references to Milius favourite Westerns, including The Wild Bunch (the scene in which four characters walk to the draft office) and The Searchers (Hank Worden, the actor who played Mose Harper in Fords classic was cast as one of the secondary characters in Big Wednesday). "[23], The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports a 67% approval rating, based on 12 reviews, with a weighted average of 6.50/10. He had a lot of innovative ideas that changed surfing, and he created them. The seemingly paradoxical juxtaposition between an ordinary day (Wednesday) and epic adjective (Big) also matched Milius double ambition to provide both a realistic account of surfing subculture and to create a long-lasting surf mythology. . But we simply didnt take into account things like, oh, sharks, civil war and dysentery.. We grabbed our boards from the bushes and had a session with the pros for the 45 minutes it took for the truck with everyone elses boards to show up. {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod? Send her a message via her facebook page if youd like to go. IC: Well, we were in the Northern Ranch, where the breaks Cojo and Governments are. Together with percussionist Sam Adams, they are the Saltwater Cowboys and play gigs on a regular basis. Official Sites It's the most personal film I'll probably ever make, and I figured I ought to do it now, before I get too far away from it. The heroes are depicted as walking like the kings of an ancient civilisation. It was work that you got to have fun and got paid for, which was rare back then., Being a lifelong surfer himself, Jan-Michael Vincent had no trouble pulling off an authentic-looking knee paddle. George had broken it up into pieces and [stuffed it into] that yellow fibreglass thing. He would then either place the big homemade housing on his shoulder while sitting on a board in the channel or balance it on his surf mat. Another famous water photographer, Dan Merkel, was hired to shoot this film. A 1940s film star but best known as Della Street from the long-running Perry Mason television series, this was Hale's last appearance in a feature film. Much of the authenticity of the film was due to the fact that Milius was himself an avid surfer. Terry Remick is now heavily involved with the marketing of vintage rail trips along the central coast. Shop Now , Home Behind The Scenes On Big Wednesday: Tales & Trivia From The Making Of A Cult Classic, [The Wavelength Drive-In Cinema is back for 2021, bringing you a range of surf cinema, cult classics and family favourites from the clifftops of Cornwall, kicking off with Surfs Up and Big Wednesday on Friday 16th July. In addition, two-time Pipeline Masters champion Gerry Lopez, who served as one of the six surfing masters in the production of the film, also appears in a cameo as himself during the final surfing section of the film. It's all changed now."[7]. IC: For about two months we were on the North Shore, filming mainly at Sunset, but also other places to get pick up shots. Milius, well-known for his involvement in successful productions such as Jeremiah Johnson, Dirty Harry and The Wind and the Lion, was considered to be one of the most promising filmmakers in Hollywood. Looks like that heavy camera setup bumped George in the eye, and hes laughing it off. Similarly, the ocean and the American west coast symbolise the possibility of a return to the frontier, the physical and symbolical home of the authentic American character. In the last sequence of the film, the three are reunited to face the Great swell of 74, which represents the final moment in this maturation process. n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; "The part is simply too big for me to do."[7]. It was a lot of money. Youlll see in the movie Jean and Billy paddling out, pushing under and catching a couple of waves and then youll see the stunt doubles come in. The picture stars Jan-Michael Vincent, William Katt, and Gary Busey as California surfers facing life and the Vietnam War against the backdrop of their love of surfing . Buy $9.99. ), For starters, it was only decided that the tour was a tour halfway through the year, with a few events from the dozens of surfing comps that had already taken place around the world chosen retrospectively as the opening leg. Heres Jan Michael Vincent again. Recently, we called him up at home in Laguna Beach to see what he could remember from his time working on the film. Barbara Hale, mother of William Katt, plays a small role in the film. A 20th Anniversary screening (which included cast and crewmembers) took place at the Newport Film Festival in 1998. Free Delivery on all Orders Over 80. "I've been working on Big Wednesday a long time," Milius said. From left, Gary Busey, Jan-Michael Vincent and William Katt in Big Wednesday. "William Katt: New Golden Boy of Tile Romantic Lead Katt as the Golden Boy", "Big Wednesday: four decades between surfing and myth making", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Big_Wednesday&oldid=1139114837, American coming-of-age comedy-drama films, Rotten Tomatoes template using name parameter, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 13 February 2023, at 12:40. Thats not enough. Shown here walking out to the surf with Dan Merkel and one of his legendary lightning bolt boards. Not to mention a few vintage lenses. He features prominently in two documentaries about surfing: Hollywood Dont Surf and Between the Lines: Surfers during the Vietnam War. The surfers and stunt doubles with director John Milius. But not just any BEAR Surfboard made for Big Wednesday -- we have for you the Original Bear Surfboard made for Big Wednesday director John Milius. And then there was the surfing. There was no one living there and you had to come in by boat, even until today its really uncrowded. Actors - Big Wednesday (1978) Returning Jan-Michael Vincent played troubled surfer Matt Johnson. WL: I just watched it the other day and its incredible the surfing you guys are doing on those big single fin longboards. It become one of the most influential surf movies ever made. He was a very popular surfer at the time, but now is best known for being the father of Laird Hamilton. Above is the Silver Splendor 1956 and below is the Overland Trail 1949 Pullman Club Car . This is a faux pas of no mean eminence; after all, Miss Hale actually is Mr. Katt's mother. The international distribution of the movie promoted the Bear label worldwide, with people wanting boards with the bear logo. I have fond memories of being one of the extras. Greenough arrived with his own custom-built water housing and proceeded to take apart the 100 grand film camera provided to him by the production to fit it inside. The film production hired the Hui to clear the water for us. The third lead, Gary Busey, had to learn to surf for the role and after just a few months, ended up joining his co-stars out in the lineup at 12-foot Sunset for the final scene. We know these are freesurfing shots because hes riding a late 70s shortboard. In particular, Milius film had a huge impact on surfing subculture, both in shaping the international perception of the sport and providing one of the most authentic depictions of Californian surfers during the 1960s and 1970s. This film about three Malibu surfers in the 1960s has been branded major statement and it's got Big Ideas about adolescence, friendship and the 1960s. The film makers had what they refer to as a cattle call up at the Riviera theater to select the lucky folks. When we saw these photos, we contacted surf legend Denny Aaberg to give us some more insight. Back then they built the whole Hollywood wall set and we were staying in this country town called Lompoc, which is just north of the Ranch, in the middle of farmland, with all the actors and crew. "[7], "A lot of things [in the film] happened to me," said Milius. Remick says this was typical Greenough attire; barefoot, jeans, sweatshirt and self cut hair. I dug a Yater spoon out of David Adornettos back yard and used it as my longboard, though we also brought our shortboards. Milius and his friends George Lucas and Steven Spielberg famously agreed to exchange a percentage point of Big Wednesday, Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind prior to the release of the three films throughout 1977-1978. Lucky for us, Terry was a photographer, and she happened to be friends with George Greenough, who was hired as a photographer for the film. Overview System Requirements Related. Also starring Jan-Michael Vincent ("The Winds of War"), real- life mother and son Barbara Hale . The nostalgic celebration of friendship is strongly associated with the critique of contemporary capitalist American society. The prevailing wind is offshore, summertime theres swells. After roping in a few replacements, including Billy Hamilton, to stand in for Vincent and famous Malibu surfer Lance Carson to double for the third star, Gary Busey, the crew set off for El Salvador, where the filming for Big Wednesday got underway. Technical Specs, See agents for this cast & crew on IMDbPro, executive in charge of production (uncredited), second assistant director trainee (uncredited), sound effects editor (as Joe von Stroheim), stairs fall double for Geoff Parks (uncredited) / stunt coordinator (uncredited), camera operator: special water photography, wardrobe supervisor: women (as Ann Lambert), wardrobe supervisor: men (as Bill Minton Jr.), music consultant (uncredited) / musician: violin (uncredited), surfing photography consultant (as Roger Brown).