Philadelphia - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts

[discussimdb]

Fan of Philadelphia or just want to share your movie knowledge? This topic is dedicated to all trivia and questions related to Philadelphia

[bernard]

Jonathan Demme has stated that he was moved to direct the film after a friend of his, the illustrator Juan Suárez Botas, was diagnosed with AIDS.

[lena]

John Leguizamo turned down the part of Miguel in favor of Super Mario Bros. (1993).

[lena]

Filmed in sequence.

[kristina]

In the scene shown on the television in the bar, then Mayor Edward Rendell was interviewed for the news. Jonathan Demme wanted him to follow lines in the script and Rendell had refused. He insisted on simply answering as he would for any other topic when interviewed for the news. As a result, he managed to get the take on the first try. Through the rest of his tenure as mayor, many referred to him as "One Take Eddie" due to this part in the film and his subsequent ability to do this shot in one try.

[ruby]

The film's journey from script to screen was an extraordinarily rocky one. The script underwent over 25 major revisions, the film's rights were embroiled in bankruptcy proceedings, and the subject matter sparked some major protests.

[jesus]

As of 2018, Bruce Springsteen's "Streets of Philadelphia" is the second of just two songs (the first being Carly Simon's "Let the River Run" from Working Girl (1988)) to win the three major awards - Oscar, Golden Globe, and Grammy - while being composed, written, and performed by a single artist.

[sophie]

One of the extra cameramen was Luis Lozada.

[violet]

While filming on Market Street, the Mellon Bank Building had been changed to the Wheeler Building and the art department had made temporary signs that were placed over the ones for Mellon. As a result of this, many law students that were scheduled to go on interviews for impending jobs missed their appointment. The reason given was that all they could find was the Wheeler & Wheeler building and had difficulty finding the Mellon Building.

[bernice]

According to Philadelphia (film) - Wikipedia, "The director deliberately asked Bruce Springsteen to make the main song for this film in an effort to try to get more people who don't know much about AIDS to be more comfortable with viewing the film, and to raise awareness overall. However, Springsteen's first contribution, "Tunnel of Love", was rejected by Demme". It wouldn't have been the same had that song been used, "Streets of Philadelphia", was far more fitting for Philadelphia (1993), as it's a sad song and low-key. "Tunnel of Love", on the other hand is a happy song and upbeat. Not really in keeping with Tom Hanks's gay, HIV positive lawyer Andrew Beckett, who is also nearing the end of his life.

[oscar]

The following message appears at the end credits: This motion picture was inspired in part by Geoffrey Bowers' AIDS discrimination lawsuit, the courage and love of the Angius family and the struggles of the many others who, along with their loved ones, have experienced discrimination because of AIDS.

[cameron]

Denzel Washington's character's office is above the now defunct Snow White diner in Philadelphia. The office itself became a bar called "No Che". The entrance to the office (Where Tom Hanks' character famously exits onto the street and looks both ways as if with no hope left) is located at 1901 Chestnut Street, and is still there.

[ethel]

In the lawsuit filed by Geoffrey Bowers, the lawyer whose case contributed to the story of the character Andrew Beckett, the jury awarded $500,000 in compensatory damages and the back pay he would have earned had he remained employed. The firm appealed and the case ended in a settlement. In Philiadelphia, Andrew Beckett was awarded $143,000 for back pay and loss of benefits, $100,000 for mental anguish and humiliation, and $4,782,000 for punitive damages.

[kristina]

There was a statistic that there were 53 gay men who appeared in various scenes in this movie and within the next year, 43 of them had died. On his "Entertainment Urban Legends Revealed" website, Brian Cronin more or less confirmed but also corrected this statistic, based, in part, on a New York Times article and other research. According to Cronin, the movie's producers approached the "Action AIDS" non-profit organization in Philadelphia, and asked it to help recruit, as extras, 50 or so gay men whose appearance was indicative of their having AIDS. Contrary to the statistic, the 40 or so who subsequently died -- including Ron Vawter, who played main character "Bob Seidman" in the film -- did not die in the first year after the film was either produced or released; rather, they died over the next few years thereafter. Freelance writer Clifford Rothman also wrote about this subject in a 1995 New York Times piece that further confirmed at least some of this information.

[frederick]

Daniel von Bargen, Buzz Kilman, Ron Vawter, Paul Lazar, Lauren Roselli, Tracey Walter, Lawrence T. Wrentz, Harry Northup, Kenneth Utt, Charles Napier, Obba Babatundé, James B. Howard, Roger Corman, Jim Roche, Andre B. Blake, and Gene Borkan all starred in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) directed by Jonathan Demme. Both movies were also scored by Howard Shore and featured music by Q. Lazzarus, who makes an appearance in Philadelphia (1993).

[albert]

The film cast includes six Oscar winners: Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, Jason Robards, Mary Steenburgen, Joanne Woodward, and Kenneth Utt.

[chad]

An elderly double was used for the close-up of Beckett's hands after his collapse in court.

[sylvia]

Tom Hanks had to lose almost thirty pounds to appear appropriately gaunt for his courtroom scenes. Denzel Washington, on the other hand, was asked to gain a few pounds for his role. Washington, to the chagrin of Hanks, who practically starved himself for the role, would often eat chocolate bars in front of him.

[francisco]

The film was very nearly lost to oblivion when Orion Studios filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 1991. Producer Edward Saxon had to appear before a bankruptcy court to convince them that the film's rights should not be lost as an asset in the studio's bankruptcy fallout.

[wesley]

In addition to multiple cast members also starring in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), many of the cast and crew appeared in, or worked on The Manchurian Candidate (2004), also directed by Jonathan Demme.