By Lauren Linhard – llinhard@eveningsun.com – @LinhardReports
As all of you Evening Sun readers should know by now, the 151st anniversary of the Battle Of Gettysburg is this weekend. You should also know that it’s taking place on the outdoor movie set of the 1993 film “Gettysburg,” since that was in the paper today.
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From Evening Sun archives: Gettysburg 150th
Now for something you might not know – I am a movie nerd. I actually minored in film studies with my major in journalism. So, in celebration of my love for movies and journalism coming together, today I present you with some little known, behind the scenes trivia about “Gettysburg” (courtesy of IMDB.com).
- The movie featured more than 13,000 volunteer Civil War re-enactors who paid their own way and provided their own props and uniforms.
- Actor Sam Elliott was so in character on the set that a production assistant was sent out before takes to warn extras that Elliot would only respond to salutes and address individuals by their rank.
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From Evening Sun archives: Gettysburg 150
- An exterior model of the Lutheran Theological Seminary was built for the film because of the modern buildings surrounding the real one. This model building cost about $40,000 to build. The actual Lutheran Theological Seminary is only seen in one, very carefully angled shot, when Gen. John Buford is writing the message to Gen. Reynolds the night before the battle.
- The production team received the news of actor Richard Jordan‘s death while they were editing his character’s death scene.
- The final scene of the movie, when Tom and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain are reunited on the battlefield as the sun sets, was the final scene to be filmed, a rare occurrence for a motion picture. It took about 12 takes to shoot.
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From Evening Sun archives – Gettysburg 150
- The original working title was “The Killer Angels,” the title of the source novel by Michael Shaara, but test audiences thought the movie was about motorcycle gangs and it was changed to the broader title of “Gettysburg.”
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