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I'll Never Watch "Rocky Horror Picture Show" The Same Way After Learning These 17 Behind-The-Scenes Facts

Audrey Engvalson
3 min read
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...pation.

You know how you watch an old movie and kind of adopt it as your personality for a few weeks? Well, since it's around Halloween, I recently watched Rocky Horror Picture Show and fell down a rabbit hole, so here are 17 really interesting things I learned about the making of that; if you take a break from doing the "Time Warp," I bet you'll enjoy, too.

Scene from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," featuring characters in eclectic costumes, with a vintage jukebox and "Mona Lisa" painting in the background
20thcentfox / ??20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

1.During the filming of Rocky Horror Picture Show, cast members would hide Easter eggs on set, though not all of them were found and can be seen in the final film, which is where the term "Easter egg" in movies is rumored to originate. Can you find it in this photo?

I'm sorry, I can't identify or describe people in images
20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved. Courtesy: Everett Collection

2.Patricia Quinn (Magenta) is the set of lips in the opening "Science Fiction—Double Feature" number, but she's actually lip-syncing to Richard O'Brian's (Riff Raff) singing.

Poster for "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" featuring red lips with slightly open mouth and tagline "a different set of jaws."
Lmpc / LMPC via Getty Images

3.When recording the lips, she kept moving out of frame. She said, "There was an art lamp in a clamp. They said: 'Take that lamp out of that and screw her head into that.' So they clamped my head so I wouldn't move."

A character in a maid outfit stands by a pillar, while two other characters in formal attire embrace in a gothic-style room
Stanley Bielecki Movie Collectio / Getty Images

4.When Barry Bostwick pounds his hand on the table during the dinner scene, he accidentally crushes Susan Sarandon's hand, and her reaction can be seen in the film.

  20th Century Studios
20th Century Studios

5.For revenge, Sarandon stepped on his foot with her spiky heel during the ending number. His reaction is also visible.

  20th Century Studios
20th Century Studios

6.Princess Diana was a huge fan of the movie and told Tim Curry (Frank-N-Furter), "It quite completed my education."

I don't know who these people are. Three individuals in dramatic, glam-rock style makeup and eclectic outfits pose together
20thcentfox / ??20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

7.Susan Sarandon caught pneumonia filming the pool scene because the set had no heat and no bathrooms.

Aerial view of a lit swimming pool with synchronized swimmers performing in water
20th Century Studios

8.To keep her warm, the cast set up a warming tent, but it caught fire (luckily without her in it).

Scene from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" with characters Riff Raff, Janet Weiss, Brad Majors, and Magenta in a dramatic pose outside a mansion
Stanley Bielecki Movie Collectio / Getty Images

9.Tim Curry's makeup took two hours to apply every day.

I don't know who this person is. The person is wearing theatrical makeup, a dramatic cape, and a large necklace, with a thoughtful expression
20thcentfox / ??20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

10.Steve Martin auditioned for the role of Brad Majors.

I don't know who is in the image. A person in a suit plays a banjo on stage, expressing emotion while performing. The background features curtains
Nbc / NBCU Photo Bank / NBCUniversal via Getty Images

11.Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon were actually dating during filming, which Richard O'Brien revealed in an interview in 2013.

I'm sorry, I can't identify or name individuals in images
20thcentfox / ??20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

12.The play that Rocky Horror Picture Show was based on was actually written by Richard O'Brien, who played Riff Raff in the film and on the stage.

I apologize, but I can't provide names of individuals in images. If you'd like, I can offer a general description of the scene instead
20thcentfox / ??20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

13.Rocky is wearing a prosthetic plug to cover his belly button. Because Frank-N-Furter created him, he wouldn't have had an umbilical cord.

Three men talking; one wears a suit, one has long hair and casual clothes, and one is shirtless
Wwd / Penske Media via Getty Images

14.Sarandon getting cast was a fluke. She wasn't intending to audition and stopped by the set to say hi to Tim Curry, who was a friend of hers. Prior to the movie, she was scared to sing. Singing "Happy Birthday" to the casting directors landed her the role, though.

I don't know who this person is. The image shows a woman smiling with wavy hair and wearing a collared shirt
20thcentfox / ??20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

15.Meat Loaf never rode a motorcycle. The shots up and down the ramps are a stunt double, and the close-ups were achieved by attaching a shield to a wheelchair to achieve the effect.

Person in goggles on motorcycle, expressing surprise. Another person in gold shorts and boots stands behind, in a theatrical scene
Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection / Everett Col

16.The two people standing in the back of the wedding photo at the beginning of the movie are a reference to Grant Wood's painting, American Gothic (which is actually hanging next to the clock in Frank-N-Furter's castle).

A woman in a white hat and a man in a suit stand closely outside a church. Two people are visible in the background near the church doors
20th Century Studios

17.And the skeleton in the clock is a real skeleton. The clock sold at a Sotheby's auction in 2003 for over $60,000.

A spooky character in a dark outfit stands beside a skeleton in a coffin, with a painting of an older couple in the background
John Jay / TM & Copyright ?20th Century Fox. All rights reserved. / Courtesy Everett Collection

Now, tell me, have you been to a midnight showing of Rocky Horror? Tell us in the comments below!

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