Airport 1975 (1974)

Director:

Jack Smight

Writers:

Arthur Hailey (novel)
Don Ingalls (written by)

Release Date:

18 October 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Something hit us... The crew is dead... Help us, please, please help us!

Plot:

A 747 in flight collides with a small plane, and is rendered pilotless. Somehow the control tower must get a pilot aboard so the jet can land.

Plot Keywords:

Pilot | Stewardess | Boeing 747 | Disaster | Mid Air Collision

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

Charlton Heston	...	Alan Murdock
Karen Black	...	Nancy Pryor
George Kennedy	...	Joe Patroni
Gloria Swanson	...	Gloria Swanson
Efrem Zimbalist Jr.	...	Captain Stacy
Susan Clark	...	Helen Patroni
Helen Reddy	...	Sister Ruth
Linda Blair	...	Janice Abbott
Dana Andrews	...	Scott Freeman
Roy Thinnes	...	Urias
Sid Caesar	...	Barney
Myrna Loy	...	Mrs. Devaney
Ed Nelson	...	Major John Alexander
Nancy Olson	...	Mrs. Abbott
Larry Storch	...	Glenn Purcell

Also Known As:

Airport '75 (International: English title) (informal title)

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Australia:PG | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:12 (orginal rating) | Brazil:14 | USA:PG (Certificate #24063) | Finland:K-16 | Iceland:L | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

Edwards Air Force Base, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Parodied heavily in Airplane! (1980).

Goofs:

Continuity: The first shot of the plane's film projector shows it not illuminated when the film is being shown, but in the following shots it is illuminated.

Quotes:

Major John Alexander: Is there much damage?
Joe Patroni: No, not much, theres just a hole where the pilots usually sit.

Movie Connections:

Edited into "The Incredible Hulk: 747 (#1.7)" (1978)

Soundtrack:

Best Friend

Funniest of the "Airports"

Airport '75 was definitely the funniest of that series. It was not as soap opera-esque as the original, nor was it as cheerless as '77.

Humorous elements abounded: The lewd young navigator (Erik Estrada, who at that point could not speak a word of Spanish, despite his seeming mastery of it here). The three obnoxious business passengers (Conrad Janis, Norman Fell, and Jerry Stiller; who would all later, as we know, go on to co-star in highly successful TV comedies) The hapless Cid Ceasar character, who only attended this flight to see the in-flight movie, which promptly broke right before his favorite scene.

The passenger areas look surprisingly comfortable, with ample space for individual passengers. Much better, it seems, than what we are subjected to today (the mid-seventies decor notwithstanding).

The mirthful subtones aside, this is a serious movie. The pivotal point happens when a small private plane goes astray, hitting the 747 right above the windshield. The navigator is killed, the co-pilot is sucked out through the hole (in a manner reminiscent of the commander of the imperial walker being pulled out by Chewbacca in "Return of the Jedi"; and the captain is incapacitated. Poor Nancy the Stewardess (Karen Black) must seize the controls!

It is up to Charlton Heston (before he became a conservative) and George Kennedy, with some help from friends in the U.S. Air Force, to save the day.

Verdict, hardly a brain challenger (If you want your brain challenged, read a book, I always say!) but worth seeing.