Trivia
Barbra Streisand wanted the part of John Norman Howard to be played by either Elvis Presley or Marlon Brando.
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Neil Diamond was considered for the role of John Norman Howard but had to turn it down due to his concert commitments.
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Barbra Streisand insisted that she wanted Elvis Presley for the part of John Norman Howard. She even went to Las Vegas to see Elvis after one of his performances in 1975 and talked to him directly to convince him to play the part. Elvis wanted to do it but Colonel Tom Parker, his manager, was angry that Streisand did not come to him first. He told the producers that if they wanted Elvis, Elvis's name had to be at the top of the movie poster, above Streisand's name. Moreover, it was told that he asked them a very large sum of money while Elvis hadn't been in a movie since 1969 and nobody knew what he could do at the box-office. Because of all that, Elvis Presley didn't make the movie although he had been Streisand's first choice since the beginning of the project.
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The version of "Evergreen" during the recording studio scene is a live recording, filmed in a single take. This was done at the insistence of Barbra Streisand: she hates doing lip sync work; she wanted to be able to have closeups during the scene (which would expose any flaws in lip sync); and she wanted a more "natural" feel to that version (as evidenced by the kissing and laughing). Kris Kristofferson, however, was very reluctant about singing live on screen, and had to be talked into it. A more formal studio recording was used for the final credits and soundtrack album.
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According to several Barbra Streisand bios, she directed a few minor scenes herself after she and Frank Pierson disagreed over the necessity of those scenes.
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When the helicopter is flying above Sun Devil Stadium, you can hear a brief snippet of the song "Rock Candy" performed by the band Montrose, which at the time featured future Van Halen vocalist Sammy Hagar.
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Director Frank Pierson was so angered by his experience working with Streisand on this film that he wrote a first person account, published in both New York and New West magazines, detailing what a horrible experience it had been. Pierson portrayed his star as egocentric, manipulative and controlling. The article was published just prior to the film's release in December 1976 and Streisand and Pierson have never worked together again.
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Kris Kristofferson compared making the movie to going through Ranger School, the elite US Army Ranger program, which he did in 1963. In Ranger School, you sleep an average of three hours every 24 hours, and your skills and will to succeed is constantly challenged to the maximum for three months.
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Kris Kristofferson did not get along with the director. According to Kris, Frank Pierson, himself a WW2 veteran, looked down on Kristofferson for being in the army, but not going to war in Vietnam. Kristofferson later said: "I was too drunk to give a shit."
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Kris Kristofferson said: "Filming with Streisand is an experience which may have cured me of the movies."
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The first Dolby System film released with rear channel information, making it the first Dolby surround sound film.
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