Gone in 60 Seconds/Fun Facts

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< Gone in 60 Seconds
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  • 93 cars are crashed in this 97 minute movie.
  • The scene where the Mustang tags a car on the highway and spins into a telephone pole was a real accident. Star/director H.B. Halicki was badly hurt and filming was stopped while he recovered. The scene was left in.
  • The license plate of the Rolls-Royce outside the airport reads "HBH" - the initials of the film's star/director/writer, H.B. Halicki.
  • Director and star H.B. Halicki drove at least two of the cars during the crash scene on the Vincent Thomas Bridge.
  • The fire trucks seen on the Vincent Thomas Bridge during the main chase were real Long Beach FD units on their way to an emergency call. The "crash" staged for the film was blocking both lanes and they could not get past until the cars were cleared. Director H.B. Halicki asked the camera crew to film them in case there was somewhere to fit the shot into the movie. There was.
  • Nearly every civilian vehicle seen in close proximity to the main chase (especially in downtown Long Beach) was owned by director H.B. Halicki. This resulted in several of them being seen multiple times throughout the 40-minute sequence. The second "Eleanor" (that Maindrian steals from the car wash) and the white Ford that he and Stanley spend much of their time in are visible parked in one street that Maindrian turns into before hitting the boat in Long Beach. The white Ford also shows up in many other shots.
  • When Maindrian is first telling Atlee about the new contract, a message on the blackboard behind them is visible saying, "Sgt. Hawkins called about Vacek case" - a reference to director of photography Jack Vacek.
  • Harold Smith's dog was actually owned by cinematographer Jack Vacek, and called Flash. All of the hats Maindrian wears in the film also belonged to Vacek, as did the black Pontiac Trans Am being cleaned in the scene where Atlee steals Lyle Waggoner's car.
  • According to director of photography Jack Vacek, only 1-Baker-11 was supposed to crash in the final scene. The drivers of the other police cars decided to all wreck as well "for the hell of it".
  • The complete list of 48 cars stolen by Maindrian and his crew for the contract, with the celebrity/business owners, where applicable, is as follows (piecedtogether from the blackboard in Maindrian's office and the list he gives Atlee and Stanley, as well as dialog throughout the film): - 1. Donna: 1974 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 Limousine - 2. Karen: 1973 Stutz Blackhawk (The Upstairs Art Gallery) - 3. Marilyn: 1970 De Tomaso Mangusta - 4. Judy: 1962 Ferrari 340 America - 5. Kathy: 1970 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I - 6. Nancy: 1971 Cadillac El Dorado - 7. Terry: 1971 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I (Willie Davis) - 8. Dianne: 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 Limousine (Morgan Limousine Service) - 9. Christy: 1971 Chevrolet Vega - 10. Patti: 1971 Citroen SM - 11. Marion: 1974 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham Limousine (The Gamby Mortuary) - 12. Janet: 1971 Ford "Big Oly" Bronco (Parnelli Jones) - 13. Annie: 1969 Manta Mirage (Whittlesey Motors) - 14. Maxine: 1969 De Tomaso Pantera - 15. Claudia: 1970 Jaguar XK1500 - 16. Leona: 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood Station Wagon (Bruce Industries) - 17. Ruth: 1974 Lincoln Continental Mark IV - 18. Sandy: 1972 Maserati Ghibli Coupe - 19. Laurie: 1973 Cadillac El Dorado - 20. Patricia: 1974 Cadillac Coupe DeVille - 21. Tracie: 1967 Lamborghini Miura (Tayco) - 22. Kelly: 1971 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I (J.C. Agajanian) - 23. Rosie: 1959 Rolls Royce Phantom V - 24. Dorothy: 1957 MercedesBenz 300SL - 25. Eleanor: 1973 Ford Mustang Mach I (Hal McClain) - 26. Martha: 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 Limousine (Morgan Limousine Service) - 27. Beverly: 1930 Hudson Great Eight - 28. Jean: 1971 Chevrolet Corvette C3 - 29. Betty: 1973 Jensen Interceptor - 30. Joanne: 1972 MercedesBenz 200SE - 31. Carey: 1966 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud II - 32. Mary: 1973 Cadillac Coupe DeVille - 33. Dorie: 1973 Stutz Blackhawk (FlorenceWestern Medical Center) - 34. Frances: 1971 White Freightliner (Transall Trucking Co.) - 35. Maria: 1970 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow I - 36. Sharon: 1972 Ferrari 365 GTB - 37. Ruby: 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 Limousine (Morgan Limousine Service) - 38. Michelle: 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray - 39. Susan: 1972 Plymouth Barracuda - 40. Alice: 1953 Chrysler Coupe Elegance - 41. Paula: 1949 Ferrari V12 - 42. Julie: 1973 Lincoln Continental Mark IV Limousine - 43. Renee: 1966 Lotus Europa S1 - 44. Jackie: 1966 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III - 45. Eileen: 1924 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost - 46. Elizabeth: 1927 Citroen B14 Conduite - 47. Lorna: 1968 Intermeccanica Italia GFX (Lyle Waggoner) - 48. Nicole: 1972 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 Limousine (Morgan Limousine Service)
  • Director/star H.B. Halicki compacted ten vertebrae performing the "big jump" in the Mustang at the end of the movie. Fortunately the injury was not very serious, although according to director of photography Jack Vacek, Halicki never walked the same again.
  • All of the police cars damaged in the film, as well as the garbage truck that overturns, were bought at city auction by director H.B. Halicki in 1972, for an average price of $200 each. They sat in an empty lot for over a year until production on the movie began in 1973.
  • There was no official script for the movie, apart from several pages outlining main dialog sequences. Much of the action/dialog was improvised and made up by the cast and crew as they went along. This caused many problems for the editor, Warner E. Leighton, who never knew what footage was being dumped on him or where in the movie it belonged. In the DVD audio commentary, he described the script for the construction site portion of the main pursuit as a piece of cardboard with a circle on it. Director H.B. Halicki pointed at it and said, "That's the dust bowl. We went around it twice. There's your script."
  • With the exception of a few extras, the bulk of the by-standers/public in the movie are real people just going about their business who had no idea that a film was being made. This caused several incidents where people assumed a real police pursuit was in progress, with many trying to help the accident "victims". In the scene at the Carson Street off-ramp where the two cars collide after Maindrian drives against traffic, a pedestrian can be seen in the background shouting angrily at the passing police cars for not stopping to help the occupants.
  • The featured car in this film, affectionately named "Eleanor," is a 1973 Ford Mustang Mach I.
  • The scene in which a train derailment is observed in the film was not part of the original shooting script but it is in fact a real train that derailed and when the director heard about this he wanted to incorporate it into the film.
  • The 2001 video release features an all new musical score and all new sound effects. In the original video release, the sound effects made by the cars (engines, tires, crashes, etc.) is authentic.
  • Ronald Halicki, the director's real-life brother and Corlis Pace in the film, operated the crane that lifted "Jill", the red Challenger, to its fate in the car-crusher at the junkyard.
  • The workshop scenes at Chase Research were filmed at director H.B. Halicki's real-life workshop, and occasionally filming would stop for several days so he could repair cars to earn money and continue production.
  • 'J.C. Agajanian, Jr.', who plays a detective in the roadblock sequence at Torrance Mazda Agency, was almost killed when a stunt with "Eleanor" went wrong and the Mustang slammed into his unmarked police car, which he was standing behind. The scene was left in the film.
  • The car that flips during the earlier night-time chase in Torrance was actually overturned by six men lifting it up from one side. The film was later skip-framed to create the desired effect.
  • The garbage truck that overturns when two police cars smash into the side of it was actually pulled over at the precise moment the cars hit by two tow trucks. Cables can be seen attached to the top of the garbage truck as it topples.
  • Much of the crowd at the gas station where Harold Smith is pulled over after the night-time Torrance chase were part of a real biker gang, who verbally abused the police officers "arresting" the actor and demanding they leave him alone. Being an independent production, the film used real civilians who happened to be wherever they were filming. It was the police officers' bad luck that at the gas station there was a real biker gang filling up.
  • In one scene at the construction area where the Mustang has been surrounded, a patrol car roars up a hill in pursuit and overturns. This was a real accident, and the officer inside was nearly crushed when the siren "can" on the roof caved the roof in. The scene was left in.
  • To achieve the effect of cars sliding into each other when hit by the patrol car at Moran Cadillac, the filmmakers put oil under the tires of the first few cars to help them slide. When it came time to do the stunt, it worked too well and many of the agency's own Cadillacs that were for sale were badly damaged. Director H.B. Halicki had to purchase all of them.
  • 1-Baker-11 is a 1970 Mercury Montego.
  • Parnelli Jones still owns his Big Oly Ford Bronco, and often brings it out to car shows.
  • The final "big jump" went 30 feet high and cleared 128 feet; Halicki suffered a compressed spine in the landing.
  • According to people on the set, after the mishap when a driver missed a mark and caused "Eleanor" to hit a real light post at 85mph, the first thing that Halicki said when he regained consciousness was "Did we get coverage?"
  • When Pumpkin tells Maindrian that they have to give Eleanor back because the car is not insured, Maindrian reads the owner's address from a newspaper - 18511 Mariposa, Gardena. This was in fact director/star H.B. Halicki's own real home address at the time.
  • The six original songs by Philip Kachaturian featured in pre-1999 releases of the film (but since removed in the remastering process) are: - "Gone in 60 Seconds" - "Lois Lane Blues" - "I Do Hope the Man Doesn't Catch Me" - "Big Town, Big City" - "Charriot Ride" - "Low Rider"
  • The license plate (613HSO) of the Eleanor at the airport is sequential with Hal Maclean's Mustang (614HSO).
  • A different version of the film exists. The earlier version has several scenes not used in the released version. Stills and footage from the alternate version can be found on the 25th Anniversary DVD by going to the Credits screen, highlighting Main Menu, then pressing up. A fast slide show of the early print will be shown.
  • Fans of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Volume 1 may recognize a interesting shot of the inside of Maindrian Pace's dashboard lined with sunglasses at the opening of the film.
  • In the 90s remake of Gone in 60 Seconds with Nicolas Cage, theres a certain scene they took from the original involving a stolen car and a cache of heroin.
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