Fat, Drunk, and Stupid: The Inside Story Behind the Making of Animal House

I was 13 years old when National Lampoon's Animal House was released. Probably a little younger than the intended audience, but as the film turned out to have remarkable influence and staying power in the culture I may in fact have been right on time because I ended up "growing into it. The dialogue is chock full of deep " I was 13 years old when National Lampoon's Animal House was released. The dialogue is chock full of deep "wisdom," and a work colleague and I routinely quote from it almost every week. While I was an undergraduate in the s the movie acquired a kind of iconic status and was so popular that actor DeWayne Jessie, who played rhythm'n'blues singer Otis Day, went on a successful concert "toga tour" of college campuses and played a gig at my campus - I even got to interview him for the campus newspaper after the show.

Yes, the film is certainly not what one would call politically correct, and one of the most-used adjectives contemporary reviewers used to describe it was "tasteless;" yet director John Landis has always described its essential tone as "sweet," and he has a point because unlike many subsequent film comedies it is never mean-spirited. Simmons, who had a successful business career as a press agent and as a founder of The Diners Club credit card company, entered publishing in the late s and began Weight Watchers magazine before launching National Lampoon with a core editorial staff drawn from the Harvard Lampoon magazine.

He presided over the magazine's rapid rise to success and supported its expansion into books, stage shows, radio, and audio recordings. By , Simmons was looking to retain his now-formidable roster of writing talent and ambitious to break into film, so he teamed with Ivan Reitman who would become his co-producer and hired writers Harold Ramis, Doug Kenney, and Chris Miller to develop a script based loosely around a recently-published school yearbook parody and Miller's own college experiences in a fraternity. Yet it was the popularity of National Lampoon, rather than the intrinsic merits of the preliminary screenplay draft, that enabled Simmons eventually to secure a low-budget deal with Universal.

The heart of "Fat, Drunk, and Stupid," running to about pages in the middle of the book, tells the story of the making of Animal House, with two chapters on casting, some amusing anecdotes about the location filming on Eugene, Oregon, and some simple techniques director Landis used to get convincing performances out of his actors, several of whom were making their first appearances in a film e.

One interesting story details the experience of cast members who crashed a real frat party at the campus where they were about to start filming and getting roughed up by a gang of hostile jocks, barely escaping from a sound thrashing. Simmons was apparently able to get some help from several cast and crew members who provided him with reminiscences he quotes at length.

He also samples some details from proposed sequels to the film, none of which were ever - thankfully - produced. Nevertheless, the book is not nearly as good as it probably could have been. Simmons pads the beginning with about 40 pages of personal history and the last 60 pages with meandering filler, including a tiresome "where are they now" section. Despite Simmons' insider status as producer, the reader gets the distinct impression he was not nearly "inside" enough to witness or obtain more stories from those who participated in the filming, and he fails to compile or get new perspectives on some of the more hilarious episodes that have been reported in other publications.

The result is a half-baked narrative that doesn't quite live up to the promise of the title, but fans of the film may want to check it out anyway, if only for chapters 7 through One thing they will find is that "Fat, Drunk, and Stupid" is a quick read. I was able to start and finish it in a single afternoon, leaving me with enough time for a road trip. His insider view is very fun and very open.

He doesn't try to hide the open secrets of drug and alcohol use on set but is adamant that John Belushi was clean and drinking only moderately while on set, remember he wasn't yet a superstar. He had just started doing Saturday Night Live but it was his Bluto character that catapulted him into the highest reaches of Hollywood fame.

I love the descriptions of trying to get the movie made and then the descriptions of the studio heads as this "little movie". That little movie is still making money for them. Simmons sounds like he was a smart producer, he got very good writers all from National Lampoon , was extremely lucky in getting John Landis to direct John was also relatively unknown and Harold Ramis and Ivan Reitman working behind the scenes. It is quite amazing how many careers where launched by this little movie.

Just to name a few: This was more about the background of the movie and less about the "stars", I think because none of them were stars at the time. The book is a quick read, has plenty of picture but not sure why they are all in black and white and enough backstage tidbits to keep the gossip mongers happy. Jan 30, Stewart Summers rated it really liked it. I love this movie so I could not pass up reading a behind the scenes book written by the films producer. Great anecdotes from the inception of the idea all the way up to post production. The author also includes a "where are they now" look at the cast and crew.

If you loved the film, you'll enjoy this book! I was thrilled to work with Tim "Otter" Matheson on a television show he was directing a few years ago. He is a fine director and sensitive to the needs of all on set. I can't overstate how much I love the movie Animal House. This book had a lot of background that I found interesting. It was a nice light read between gatherings over the holidays. Jul 30, Matthew rated it really liked it. Unless I was really interested in movie nostalgia and this movie in particular, or the history of humor in popular culture, I wouldn't choose this to read.

I'm all those things so it worked for me.

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I think Simmons has his rose-colored glasses of a guy who had a sweetheart deal to make this movie. Financially, he made a ton - this movie made him rich.

Some of the behind the scenes of the movie business, for someone who doesn't read about that stuff, was fascinating. I knew, for example, that the Unless I was really interested in movie nostalgia and this movie in particular, or the history of humor in popular culture, I wouldn't choose this to read. I knew, for example, that the way finances on a film are structured, they very often don't post a 'profit'. And I also knew that everyone's taking their financial piece as box office revenue comes in, but it did help to have a vivid example.

Unfortunately, the actors weren't among those who financially benefited. He goes into some detail about what became of the cast and we get to know them more than just what you can learn from their IMDB pages. His small chapter on Belushi is very insightful. So although they didn't earn the big bucks, at least Simmons displays a lot of respect and admiration for the actors.

Dec 05, Justin Ritter rated it it was amazing. Very quick read, short chapters. This re-capped the formation of National Lampoon magazine and how they branched out into movies. Well, they wouldn't have made more movies were it not for the enormous success of Animal House. None is as good as the original, however. The book would have benefitted from more stories and fewer tributes to the author.

Jul 17, Bob rated it liked it Shelves: Be better with more making of the movie stories. May 23, Jason Weber rated it liked it. Nov 26, Cinematic Cteve rated it really liked it. An insider look at a comedy classic, Fat, Drunk and Stupid is no less irreverent than the film it recounts. Most of the vignettes in Animal House were drawn from the fraternity experiences of National Lampoon writers, including the late Harold Ramis and Douglas Kenney, who died at 33 barely two years after the film's release.

A Harvard graduate, Kenney also played the apparently brain-damaged "Stork," who gets off one line in the film during Bluto's rousing speech " Donald Sutherland, the only established star in the cast, was offered profit participation if he would work for a reduced salary. Belushi was already deep into serious alcohol and drug abuse. Consequently, he was kept away from the rest of the cast, whose nightly parties were at least as wild as those portrayed in the picture.

A breezy read I blasted through it in three hours , Fat, Drunk and Stupid makes a fine addition to any library of books on film, not least because it explains how a group of anarchists got away with making a very funny film with practically no money and negligible studio support -- and walked away winners. This is a Horatio Alger tale as improbable as Bluto's ascension to the U. Dec 18, Paul Pessolano rated it really liked it. This book gives an insight in how the movie came together, how the actors were chosen, cost, profit, and popularity.

The idea came from writers working on the magazine, National Lampoon. The actors were not chosen for their star quality, in fact, they were picked for their obscurity. It also changed life on college campuses around the world.

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Dec 08, Jennifer Didik rated it liked it Shelves: A very quick, very light read. Doesn't scratch too deeply below the surface, though. The book assumes more from the reader than I was anticipating. It's been quite a while since I've seen the movie, so I was fuzzy on the characters and specific scenes discussed. At multiple points, I found myself wishing to know more about a story or anecdote i. Also, in the "where are they now" portion towards the end, I was a little disappointed to see Belushi got a whole chapter to himself when his life is probably the most well-known of those involved in the film.

Mar 12, Susan Olesen rated it it was ok. It remains consistently ranked among the best comedies of all time, and one of my top 20 movies. This book will not give you any insight into why. A very shallow overview of the film by the producer, the most revealing idea in it is that Belushi was allegedly clean and sober throughout the shoot. If you're into making movies and want to read about the process, or if you just want to read anything about the movie, than read this.

It's short, it's painless, but don't go looking for in-depth revelations about the film or the stars. May 08, Sue rated it it was ok Shelves: I have fond memories of this film, just like most folks. When I saw this book on the "new" rack at the library, I grabbed it in hopes of getting a nice juicy glimpse into what I assumed had to be a crazy and fun production. I remembered what Charlie Powell had told me. A week earlier we had screened the movie at the American Book Association convention in Atlanta.

The place was jammed with 10, people for the book fair and to see an advance showing of this new film. The sound of the movie was not recorded for an arena. Fifteen minutes into the film I got up and strode out into the lobby. I just stood there alone, smoking, and trying to listen to the reactions from the audience. Charlie then marketing head of Universal Studios, saw me and came over. I told him I was disturbed because the sound was so bad. He smiled and put a hand on my shoulder.

Charlie loves his son very much. And now I could see from the lines at the Sutton theater that Charlie might be right. It was the same scene, lines around the block. There were at least 2, people on lines around the block. The lines were again snaking around 57th Street to Third Avenue.

As I looked around the crowd, I noticed a familiar figure standing quietly watching. It was Walter Garibaldi, the assistant to the treasurer of the National Lampoon , and in his hand was a small calculator, which he kept tapping.

I called out his name and he walked over to my car. In Chicago that night, Lampoon editor John Hughes sat alone in a jammed movie theater watching the film.

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Universal executive Sean Daniel and the distribution people were calling studio head Ned Tanen to give him numbers and tell him about the opening-day reaction to Animal House. At one point, Tanen called Universal chairman Lew Wasserman and told him what was going on. Universal had agreed to have the world premiere in New York City and asked me to run it. My staff and I were to handle the invitations and to set up the premiere party. I gathered everybody who worked on the business end of the Lampoon in my office. My assistant, Barbara Atti, would coordinate the event. From the start, I knew I wanted to have the party at the Village Gate.

Guests were asked to wear college garb: Some came in togas, others in T-shirts or letter sweaters, carrying pennants from their alma maters. There were girls in cheerleader costumes and a couple of guys came in football uniforms. Some came as Bluto look-alikes. I wanted servers everywhere with trays of food, and I wanted college-kid food: There would be no hard liquor, just kegs of beer. Sixties rock bands would play wall-to-wall music.

It was spectacular, and I remember it all so well, even though it was one of the few times in my life when I spent an evening in what seemed to be a total daze. The screening of the film that night started with a problem. The movie was supposed to begin at 7 p. By that time, the Astor theater was jammed with 3, people. We had to rent another theater some blocks north to screen the film for the overflow crowd.

The audience was getting restless at the Astor. I was too restless to sit and watch the movie, so, again, I stood out in the lobby. He was furious that the movie was already screening and began arguing with me in the lobby. Both of us threatened to start throwing punches. We were face to face when Universal execs Thom Mount and Sean Daniel moved between us and separated us. Landis then went into the theater and watched the rest of the film while sitting on the steps of the balcony.

His reserved seats had been taken. Every entrance to the Gate was guarded, not only by uniform police but by the senior class of Columbia Prep, headed by my son Andy, a senior there at the time. Now it was the Village Gate and we expected ten times the crowd that had been invited to the Lemmings party. We invited 2, people; more than 5, showed up, some with, more without, invitations. So there was a 3,seat world premiere, a 1,seat theater in addition, and then a 2,plus party. Thousands of people contacted us to get an invitation to the premiere and the party.

Crashers were stopped by the guards, who looked like a small army surrounding the Pentagon. Ross put a hand on my shoulder. His company would eventually merge with Time, Inc. The music at the party was nonstop.