5 Fascinating Facts About THE SOUND OF MUSIC
By Movieguide® Contributor
As SOUND OF MUSIC turns 60 this month, we want to celebrate this beautiful movie by sharing some fun facts about it that may surprise you! Julie Andrews’s role, along with the songs from the film, have lived much longer than the film makers probably expected. Though it strays a bit from the historical account, the story remains an enduring household classic that lives on.
“Do-Re-Mi” Took Two Months To Film
The hills are alive with the sound of music, but the weather did not want to cooperate all the time! In fact, one scene from the movie, showcasing the hit song, “Do-Re-Mi,” took two months to film because of inclimate weather and various issues.
The NY Post reported:
Because of lousy weather and complex logistics, the iconic number “Do Re Mi” took two months to shoot at nine locations. The process was marred by unexpected rain and cold spring temperatures. Angelic Andrews, Santopietro writes, would actually play guitar and sing for the kids during unexpected breaks. One of the little ones, Debbie Turner, who played Marta, had her baby teeth fall out during filming. Dentists made temporary false choppers for her.
Julie Andrews Kept Falling And Laughing
The beloved actress Julie Andrews could not stay on her feet during the opening scene, running through the hills. The helicopter that was used for filming the scene kept blowing the actress over, making her fall over several times. “This was a jet helicopter,” Andrews said. “And the down draft from those jets was so strong that every time … the helicopter circled around me and the down draft just flattened me into the grass. And I mean flattened. It was fine for a couple of takes, but after that you begin to get just a little bit angry… And I really tried. I mean, I braced myself, I thought, ‘It’s not going to get me this time.’ And every single time, I bit the dust.”
Also, Andrews could not keep a straight face during the romantic gazebo scene with the captain. The actress kept breaking character and laughing because the lights were making a silly noise, so the crew eventually decided to dim the lights and film the actors’ silhouettes. “Christopher would be looking into my eyes and saying ‘Oh Maria I love you,’ and there’d be this awful raspberry coming from the lights above us,” Andrews said.
“It seemed like a terrible comment on our acting,” Andrews revealed on THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT. “It’s very hard to be nose-to-nose doing a love scene and having these awful raspberries coming at you.’”
Nicholas Hammond Had A Growth Spurt
The movie included several child actors, some of which experienced major changes during filming. Their growth caused several issues on the set and keeping up with the continuity of the film. One actor in particular hit a major growth spurt over the duration of the shoot.
Mental Floss reported:
Nicholas Hammond, who played Friedrich, grew from 5-ft. 3-in. to 5-ft. 9-in. during the six months of shooting. Since Friedrich had to be shorter than Liesl but taller than Louisa, the growth spurt posed a continuity problem. At the start of the film, Hammond had lifts on his shoes; by the end, his shoes were off, and Carr had to stand on a box.
“Edelweiss” Was Hammerstein’s Last Lyric
Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musicals are timeless classics. From CINDERELLA to OKLAHOMA to THE KING AND I, this dynamic duo struck success again with the beautiful musical THE SOUND OF MUSIC. Hammerstein didn’t know at the time of writing the musical that he was dying from stomach cancer. “Edelweiss” were the last lyrics he wrote in his lifetime after a successful career of many hits.
According to the BBC, “Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II added Edelweiss to the score of their new stage musical The Sound of Music after a try-out in Boston. They felt that Captain von Trapp’s love for his land of Austria needed to be communicated more clearly to the audience, and that a solo song would do the job. It was Hammerstein’s last lyric. He was dying of stomach cancer, unknown to himself, but known to Rodgers.”
The Cast Had To Use The Restroom In The Woods
The Austrian Alps may have served as a beautiful backdrop for THE SOUND OF MUSIC, but the remote location meant few accessible roads, and the filming equipment was transported by oxen.
“On one particularly chilly day, the wind was blowing hard and there was a lot of mud. Bob said to me, ‘Sit on the ox cart, Julie, with the cameras. We’ll give you a lift,” Andrews recalled. Her wardrobe at the time: “A fur coat (it was the 1960s, after all), and the humor in the contrast between my attire and mode of transport wasn’t lost on any of us.”
The actress also revealed that the set didn’t include public restrooms. “When nature called, we went into the woods—not easy for us women!”
- Content: +3Share:
- Content: +1