Gone in 60 Seconds (1974)

When a South American drug lord pays Pace to steal 48 cars for him, all but one is in the bag - thereby, the police precipitate in a desperate car chase against Pace and his Eleanor across Southern California.

Director:

H.B. Halicki

Writer:

H.B. Halicki

Stars:

H.B. Halicki, Marion Busia, Jerry Daugirda

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
H.B. Halicki	...	Maindrian Pace
Marion Busia	...	Pumpkin Chase
Jerry Daugirda	...	Eugene Chase
James McIntyre	...	Stanley Chase
George Cole	...	Atlee Jackson
Ronald Halicki	...	Corlis Pace
Markos Kotsikos	...	Uncle Joe Chase
Parnelli Jones	...	Parnelli Jones
Gary Bettenhausen	...	Self
Jonathan E. Fricke	...	KFOX Interviewer
Hal McClain	...	KFOX Announcer
J.C. Agajanian	...	Self
J.C. Agajanian Jr.	...	Light Blue Unmarked Detective
Christopher J.C. Agajanian	...	Self
Billy Englehart	...	Billy

Storyline

Insurance investigator Maindrian Pace and his team lead double-lives as unstoppable car thieves. When a South American drug lord pays Pace to steal 48 cars for him, all but one, a 1973 Ford Mustang, are in the bag. As Pace prepares to rip-off the fastback, codenamed "Eleanor", in Long Beach, he is unaware that his boss has tipped off the police after a business dispute. Detectives are waiting and pursue Pace through five cities as he desperately tries to get away.

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Plot Keywords:

named car | coors beer | marijuana smoking | cigar smoking | telephone call | 

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Taglines:

See 93 cars destroyed in the most incredible pursuit ever filmed

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

To achieve the effect of cars sliding into each other when hit by the patrol car at Moran Cadillac, the filmmakers put oil under the tires of the first few cars to help them slide. When it came time to do the stunt, it worked too well and many of the agency's own Cadillacs that were for sale were badly damaged. Director H.B. Halicki had to purchase all of them.

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Goofs

When Pumpkin is calling the various limousine companies to set-up the thefts, she gives the address of Villa Riviera in Long Beach as "2206 Ocean Blvd." Villa Riviera is located at 800 (East) Ocean Blvd, as can be seen in the next shot when the limo arrives at the building, with "800" clearly visible on the front doors.

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Quotes

Maindrian Pace: Hey, Atlee, how come you don't get called up at five o'clock in the morning?
Atlee Jackson: Because I live right.
Maindrian Pace: Yeah, well I'll fix your living habits! Tomorrow morning you can get up at five o'clock and start tearing that truck apart to find out how come he hit the train.
Atlee Jackson: Okay, if Stanley helps me. I think five years in the army gave him brain damage!
Stanley Chase: Hey, hey, I'll learn the business next week, all right? I don't even know how these switch-overs work.

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Crazy Credits

The opening credits stop after only one acting credit: "Eleanor."

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Alternate Versions

"Special Edition" re-release VHS/DVD version features remastered video, and audio. The soundtrack has also been completely changed.

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Connections

Featured in Missing Reel: Car Chase Pictures (2014)

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Soundtracks

Hope The Man Doesn't Catch Me
Music and Lyrics by Ronald Halicki and Philip Kachaturian
Sung by Philip Kachaturian

User Reviews

The original car-jack classic.

I've only seen trailers for the Summer 2000 release of GONE IN SIXTY SECONDS. But the trailers show a big budget, MTV style editing, and big stars. What it didn't show was that this thriller about a master car thief is a remake of this 1974 no-budgeter by auto man Halicki. The 1974 GI60S's charm is that it is very low budget. Some scenes, such as the auto auction in the run down lot, or the Radio DJ's cramped little studio add to some crisp atmosphere. However, the first half of GI60S is rather amateurish (One entire scene is terribly out of focus) and we have trouble following Halicki's unprofessionally written plot. The second half of the film is a car chase that has to be seen to be believed! In 40 minutes, close to 90 cars are destroyed in a massive auto chase spanning several cities, freeways, parks, lots, you just name it. For all it's sloppiness, the original 1974 version of GI60S has a neat charm.

Details

Official Sites:

maintained by writer/director's widow

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 July 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gone in Sixty Seconds

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles Harbor, San Pedro, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$150,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

H.B. Halicki Mercantile

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min 93 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono Dolby (DVD re-release) DTS (DVD re-release)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1