A 17-year-old boy was busted for subway surfing in Queens on Wednesday just two days after another teenager was killed pulling the same stunt on the Williamsburg Bridge.. Send her a message via her facebook page if youd like to go. Click here to buy a ticket, or subscribe now for free entry. Im actually really stoked on the surfing in that final sequence, they did a really good job stitching it all together . Set in Malibu over a twelve-year period between 61 and 74, it centres on three friends Jack, Leroy and Matt following them from their hedonistic youthful days, surfing, partying and talking with their fists, through their transition to adulthood in the shadow of the Vietnam War. In the late 1950s, Milius surfed regularly in Malibu, where he met Denny Aaberg, the brother of surf legend Kemp Aaberg and the future co-writer of Big Wednesday. Hell, we offered to smoke dope in front of them just to prove we were surfers. However, while Star Wars (Lucas) and Close Encounters (Spielberg) would haul in hundreds of millions of dollars, Big Wednesday was a major critical and popular wipe-out, at least initially. Another luminary brought in for this film was none other than Gerry Lopez. Next day, the cars had new (old) license plates. WL: And then you all jetted off to Hawaii. Although access has since opened up a little, back then it was only residents and boat owning day-trippers who could surf along the stretch. This largely autobiographical film from director John Milius ("Conan The Barbarian") features truly spectacular surfing scenes. big wednesday stunt surfers. Milius Waxes Up 'Big Wednesday' Milius created a mythical aura around the protagonists of Big Wednesday. Shop Now, 8 OF THE BEST FEMALE SURF RETREATS FOR 2023, Where To Surf In Italy The Wavelength Guide. Hank Worden for some reason took a small role as a guy that pushed a shopping cart around. The nostalgic celebration of friendship is strongly associated with the critique of contemporary capitalist American society. Surf is a reoccurring trope in Milius work. [8], "Because I surfed, I'm the only director in the world who could have made his picture," said Milius. Townend was just gearing up to embark on the tours second spin around the sun when he received a phone call from John Milius a long time Malibu surfer and Hollywood director inviting him to fly to LA to stunt double on a new film he was working on. WL: I just watched it the other day and its incredible the surfing you guys are doing on those big single fin longboards. Hamilton was surfing for Jan Michael Vincents character and Cairns was the double for Gary Busey. Big Wednesday: four decades between surfing and myth making Some say the best surf movie Hollywood has made yet! Multiple scenes required surfers to ride waves up to 70 feet . WL: Are there any other memories from that trip that particularly stand out? Its pretty sweet, Ill tell you that. It was pretty bizarre. Did working with them that winter help smooth things over a bit? Free Delivery on all Orders Over 80. In the foreground is what Denny calls the crumple car. The attrition rate among surfers is very high. Big Wednesday - Wikiquote We were samurai. Other filming locations included El Paso, Texas; Hollister Ranch near Santa Barbara; Surfrider Beach (in Malibu); Ventura, California; and La Libertad, El Salvador. WL: Of course, that was right in the middle of the whole Bustin Down The Door saga. Now, with their innocence lost to the deeds . So he took a sledgehammer and pounded Important all over Big Wednesday. 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. Or, subscribe to Wavelength now to get free entry to a screening of your choice.]. WL: I just watched it the other day and its incredible the surfing you guys are doing on those big single fin longboards. Here you will find unforgettable moments, scenes and lines from all your favorite films. The cult success lay in its ability to combine the accurate observation of real people and events, the reproduction of believable stunts and performances, and a supercharged sense of the mythic. 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. IC: Yeah, we were all there hanging at Sunset. IC: Well, we were in the Northern Ranch, where the breaks Cojo and Governments are. She said it was the last shot on the roll. In the end, the trip set the production back half a million dollars and yielded just four minutes of useable footage. 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. Wed surf and then get a filet mignon for lunch. Despite what he describes as a childhood of juvenile delinquency, Milius developed into an accomplished screenwriter, penning a series of hit films in which surfing often featured. Frank McRae played a tough Army Sergeant at the induction center. It's based on the lives of three friends ten years ago. I jumped on a plane and flew down there to join the crew, who were about a week into the shoot. I worry I might lose sight of the characters. [1] William Katt explained in a 1979 interview with Roger Ebert a year after the film's release that he believed the movie's failure was due to the marketing focusing only on the fight scenes and surfing angle. [10] In August Milius announced Big Wednesday would be postponed because the script was not ready and he would instead make Extreme Prejudice. I mean, they were all just waiting for the Big Wave. You can also see a pretty nice wave rolling throughGreat photo. Above is George Greenough, Denny Aaberg with the guitar, Peter Townend and Townends girlfriend. I said of course, who wouldnt! Los Angeles Times 21 August 1977: n7. Big Wednesday is American writer-director John Milius' attempt to use surfing as a metaphor for life. 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. "[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. From left, Gary Busey, Jan-Michael Vincent and William Katt in Big Wednesday. Big Wednesday (1978) - Summer Surfing Scene (2/10) - YouTube Big Wednesday (1978) - IMDb Milius and Aaberg based their script on their own stories about Malibu, which in the film would be referred to as The Point. Once you select Rent you'll have 14 days to start watching the movie and 48 hours to finish it. s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,document,'script', However, the rapid commodification of surfing culture that occurred during the late 1970s and 1980s made Big Wednesdays nostalgic celebration of a pure surfing culture relevant again. WL: So it was year two of the new IPS tour, and you were defending a runner up spot, did all that filming not get in the way of competing? Those [guerrillas] looked at him and absolutely freaked. We have found an absolute gem of a surfboard packed with provenance. t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; This thing would be wrapped up in two weeks. Click Here to learn about Dan. I jumped on a plane and flew down there to join the crew, who were about a week into the shoot. Most of the shots of Gary Busey paddling out are me, so I kind of have a lot of those stunt double pieces. My contribution to the movie was telling the assistant director that the license plates on the cars were wrong for the period. Nineteen seventy-six was a big year for innovation. Apparently, therefore, Big Wednesday is a 100% Hollywood movie. And Denny should know, he co-wrote the film with the director John Milius! The $11 million PG-rated Big Wednesday was the only Hollywood movie of its kind in the '70s. Free Delivery on all Orders Over 80. Privacy Policy / Terms & Conditions. "I'd lived that life since I was ten. 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. Matt Johnson: Well, I did a lot of things around here I'm kind of ashamed of. The board I was riding was an 86, so it wasnt really a longboard, but it worked kind of fun. The extras got paid $60 a day, plus a catered lunch and a bus ride up from Santa Barbara everyday. The fictional Bear surfboards logo and t-shirts, originally created by the filmmaker as props for the film, went on to become a popular surf trademark owned by Milius himself. By the late 1970s surfing had become a fashionable, popular global sport. Company Credits The mythical resonance of the Big Wednesday, the hump-day, when the weeks beginning tips into its end, when the gods of surf and youth reach the apex of their glory, continues to fascinate new generations of viewers. Browse the full lineup and get your ticket here. IAN will be signing his new book from 6:30 to 7:30. 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. Big Wednesday Collection by Roger Hinds - Bing Surfboards Here well present a miscellany of facts, trivia and anecdotes from behind the scenes on Big Wednesday. It took an awful long time to write the script. Conceived by Randy Rarrick and Fred Hemmings, The IPS, as it was known, was a little haphazard during that first foray according to those in attendance (or chaos if a certain wounded winged Novocastrian is to be believed. Spielberg in particular was certain that Big Wednesday was going to be a box office hit, opining it was like "American Graffiti meets Jaws", two of the decade's most successful films.[2]. Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, Te Herenga WakaVictoria University of Wellington, Between the Lines: Surfers during the Vietnam War. Milius wrote the script with his friend and fellow surfer, journalist Denny Aaberg. We were paid for basically hanging out on the beach at Cojo all day. Denny wrote a song about it with Phil Pritchard and it was featured in this film and became quite popular. I have fond memories of being one of the extras. It was written by John Milius and Dennis Aaberg, who met hanging on the beach at Malibu in the late '50s, alongside characters like Miki Dora and Lance Carson. xenophon agesilaus summary; But we simply didnt take into account things like, oh, sharks, civil war and dysentery.. "What I've got to watch out for is getting lost in the surf again," said Milius during filming. It's a movie that I have never forgotten. Another famous water photographer, Dan Merkel, was hired to shoot this film. Or, subscribe to Wavelength now to get free entry to a screening of your choice.]. The opening and closing sequences of Big Wednesday feature the three protagonists walking through the ruins of a decaying portico like kings of an ancient civilisation where traditional values such as heroism, courage and loyalty are still upheld. That's important to me because I'm a real surfer. Free Delivery on all Orders Over 80. McRae was covered in Hard Times (1975). fbq('track', 'PageView'); Copyright 2020 Surfing.LA. "[14], Milius at one stage intended to play the role of the Bear himself. You just get treated like a king, youre part of the crew, hanging out with the actors, writers and directors. (1) Cairns in a Sunset tube (2) PT off the bottom. Recently, we called him up at home in Laguna Beach to see what he could remember from his time working on the film. In Milius film, the surfers are the last true American pioneers whose courage and heroism are forged by their ability to live at the intersection between nature and culture. IC: We were with the whole Hollywood crew, and the stunt coordinator was this really famous guy that did Harrison Ford in the Indiana Jones movie, a real mans man. Ian Cairns, shown above, was the surf double for Gary Busey. Surfing is a strange thing. Which by contrast seem to contain the frustration of filmmaking."[25]. "Big Wednesday" (1978) is a film that was made for baby boomers. Greenough was hired to do water shots and Townend was a surf double for William Katt, one of the stars in the film. Finally, a nice shot of Denny Aaberg, co-writer of the film, enjoying the fruits of his labor. Each plays a talented . "We very much want it to be authentic. to hear the song and see some stills from the film. The films authenticity was enhanced by Milius connection to the surfing world, which enabled him to bring in experienced surf documentary maker Greg MacGillivray. It's about growing up and relationships and the surf is the exotic background. Of course, thats where you get all the stuff from Sunset that wraps up the movie. [6], In writing the script Milius and Aaberg interviewed a lot of their friends from the 1960s. At least half the people who participated are dead now. Terry knew him through friends at the beach and Denny knew him from surfing.