Greatest Extra!

[jdavis]

During the AFI Lifetime Achievement Award ceremony for Steven Spielberg, George Lucas said that when Spielberg was told how much time they had to shoot the scene that day, Spielberg said, "The only way we can get it done in that amount of time is if Indy just pulls out his gun and shoots the guy." A bunch of crew members cracked up when they heard that, so they decided to change the scene.

The bit about it being Harrison Ford's spur of the moment improv appears to be an urban legend, given that both Ford and obviously Spielberg were in the audience and they both laughed in agreement with Lucas.

If that's the case then it's more than a urban legend, I have seen it in several different shows on TV (documentaries and biography type shows) and I'm pretty sure I heard a interview with Harrison Ford where he told the story too. It's a story that has been around for a long time and has been fairly widely publicized, which may be why they chose to talk about it on the AFI ceremony, to set the record straight.

 

[jonesy]

From http://theindyexperience.com/raiders_deleted.shtml:

Indy vs. the Cairo Swordsman - Near the end of the Cairo basket chase sequence, Indy meets up with a swordsman awaiting to challenge Indy. The scene was originally scripted to be an elaborate fight sequence between Indy and the enormous swordsman. But due to 'technical difficulties' (Ford was suffering from intestinal illness that day), Ford was unable to go through with the shot, so he suggested to Spielberg: "Why don't I just shoot the son of a b*tch?" So when the swordsman, who had been practicing for months on the fight scene, learned that it was being cut out, he was furious, and did not want to go through with it. So when it came time to film, Ford simply pulled out his gun and fired away, and the swordsman fell to the ground, thus resulting in one of the most memorable and funniest scenes in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

 

[Kai Lord]

From http://theindyexperience.com/raiders_deleted.shtml:

Yeah I'm afraid the account shared by Lucas to those gathered to honor the work of Spielberg trumps that website.

 

[jonesy]

Yeah I'm afraid the account shared by Lucas to those gathered to honor the work of Spielberg trumps that website.

Or not.

"As for whose idea it was, according to a 1981 interview with Steven Spielberg:
Ford developed dysentery in the blistering 130-degree heat of Tunisia, where the cast and crew had to fan their mouths constantly to keep out flies looking for shade (one crawled into chief villain Paul Freeman's mouth during a crucial scene). Too weak to swing his whip, Indy was slated for a 3 1/2-page fight when Ford had a better idea. "We had Indy pull out his revolver and dispatch the dude," says Spielberg of the film's funniest scene."

From: http://www.snopes.com/movies/films/raiders.htm

 

[Kai Lord]

Or not.

"As for whose idea it was, according to a 1981 interview with Steven Spielberg:
Ford developed dysentery in the blistering 130-degree heat of Tunisia, where the cast and crew had to fan their mouths constantly to keep out flies looking for shade (one crawled into chief villain Paul Freeman's mouth during a crucial scene). Too weak to swing his whip, Indy was slated for a 3 1/2-page fight when Ford had a better idea. "We had Indy pull out his revolver and dispatch the dude," says Spielberg of the film's funniest scene."

From: http://www.snopes.com/movies/films/raiders.htm

Spielberg's quote in your post supports my initial post, which stated that it was Spielberg's idea, not Ford's. I can't remember why Lucas said they had to hurry up; probably cuz of Ford's tummy. Besides, you're still just quoting a website. As opposed to Lucas on a live telecast a couple years back.

 

[Mark Chance]

Besides, you're still just quoting a website. As opposed to Lucas on a live telecast a couple years back.

Yeah, but you can't trust Lucas. I'm sure he's at one point in time said Attack of the Clones is a good movie, and, well, it wasn't.

 

[jdavis]

Spielberg's quote in your post supports my initial post, which stated that it was Spielberg's idea, not Ford's. I can't remember why Lucas said they had to hurry up; probably cuz of Ford's tummy. Besides, you're still just quoting a website. As opposed to Lucas on a live telecast a couple years back.

Actually that said it was Ford's idea.

I am pretty sure that where I first heard it was in a interview with Harrison Ford in a TV special on Raiders, it's been in fact books and on TV specials several times too. I know the part about Ford being sick was true, as for the rest well it isn't that important, besides maybe they were not laughing at the story but were laughing at how bad Lucas messed up the story, it's not like they are going to get up and make a big deal about it at a live awards ceremony.

 

[Kai Lord]

besides maybe they were not laughing at the story but were laughing at how bad Lucas messed up the story, it's not like they are going to get up and make a big deal about it at a live awards ceremony.

Nope, after Lucas finished the story Harrison Ford could be clearly seen leaning over to Tom Hanks and mouthing the words to:

"At least he got one story right, for a second I thought he was going to go off into 'Greedo' land," which caused the entire table he was sitting at to burst out laughing.

What made it so memorable was seeing champagne coming out of Kate Capshaw's nose. Apparently Lucas assumed this was just their reaction to his humorous anecdote, and continued with the presentation.

 

[jdavis]

From the Internet Movie Database:
"The scene in Cairo in which Indy just shoots a sword-wielding man was intended to be a long, choreographed fight scene featuring Indy's whip versus the Arab man's saber. Harrison Ford, suffering from dysentery after three months of filming in Tunisia, couldn't face the three additional days of filming and suggested that this much shorter version should be tried instead. Some sources attribute the idea to Steven Spielberg rather than to Ford." http://us.imdb.com/Trivia?0082971


It also said that Spielberg didn't get sick in Tunisia because he brought his own food:
"During filming in Tunisia, nearly everyone in the cast and crew got sick, except director Steven Spielberg. It is thought that he avoided illness by eating only the food he'd brought with him: cans and cans of Spaghetti-O's."

 

[Welverin]

"It is thought that he avoided illness by eating only the food he'd brought with him: cans and cans of Spaghetti-O's."

Reason enough to like the man.