Honky Tonk Freeway (1981)

Ticlaw, a small town in Florida, has only one attraction: a safari park. The government constructs a freeway that passes near Ticlaw, but decides not to put an exit into the town. The ... See full summary »

Director:

John Schlesinger

Writer:

Edward Clinton

Stars:

David Rasche, Paul Jabara, Howard Hesseman

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Rasche	...	Eddie White
Paul Jabara	...	T.J. Tupus
Howard Hesseman	...	Snapper
Teri Garr	...	Ericka
Jenn Thompson	...	Delia
Peter Billingsley	...	Little Billy
Beau Bridges	...	Duane Hansen
Beverly D'Angelo	...	Carmen Odessa Shelby
Daniel Stern	...	Hitchhiker
Sandra McCabe	...	Prostitute
Celia Weston	...	Grace
Deborah Rush	...	Sister Mary Magdalene
Geraldine Page	...	Sister Mary Clarise
George Dzundza	...	Eugene
Joe Grifasi	...	Osvaldo

Storyline

Ticlaw, a small town in Florida, has only one attraction: a safari park. The government constructs a freeway that passes near Ticlaw, but decides not to put an exit into the town. The people of Ticlaw, led by its Mayor, will do anything in order to convince the governor to alter the project.

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Plot Keywords:

small town | florida | exit | car jump | big explosion | 

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Taglines:

Something funny is happening on this freeway. Get off on it.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 August 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Da steht der ganze Freeway Kopf

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$24,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$939,423, 23 August 1981, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$2,004,742

Company Credits

Production Co:

EMI Films, Honky Tonk Freeway Company, Kendon Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Wikipedia, the movie "was one of the most expensive box office flops in history, losing its British backers Thorn-EMI an estimated $11,000,000 and profoundly impacting its fortunes and aspirations. The film was financed in part by Roy Tucker's tax avoidance schemes funded by the Rossminster banking group".

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Goofs

During the scene where the orphans are being shown the petting zoo, a crew member or the director can be heard giving the cue to "Scream! Scream! Ricky!" as the children become afraid of the white horse they've mistaken for "Ricky the Carnivorous Pony."

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Quotes

Mary the Teller: Give 'em the money!
Actress in Bank: You would give them all your money and you won't cash a government check?
Mary the Teller: Dear, they have a gun.

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Connections

Features Krazy Kat (1963)

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Soundtracks

My Man Ain't Enough for Me
Written by Paul Jabara and Jennifer Lee
Performed by Beverly D'Angelo

User Reviews

You might see my car in it . . .

I think I've been in the movies.

The freeway scenes were filmed in Orlando, on the East-West Expressway (today known as SR 408.) I worked evenings for a bus company on Division St. (about 20 blocks south of downtown) and one summer night in 1980 I got off work about 1 a.m. and took the East-West Expressway home to Goldenrod (on the east side of town.) Back then, the toll was only 25 cents (man!) and it shaved half an hour off your driving time, so I went up Orange Ave., hung a right on Anderson St. and burned rubber up the entrance ramp. There was some guy standing there with a flashlight and he almost jumped out in front of me to get me to stop, but I swung around him and floored it! I thought "who the H*** is that?" as I swung up onto the Expressway at 65 MPH.

Suddenly I realized something funny was going on... the traffic was bunched together in one giant wolf-pack, and the whole pack was only going about 45. Thinking nothing of it, I just started weaving from lane to lane through the pack, still going at least 65, until I popped out the front and left 'em all in the dust.

It was only later that I found out that the cops had closed the expressway for about 2 hours that night so that they could film a scene in Honky Tonk Freeway! (Everybody was driving 45, but the film was sped up later to make it look like 65 or 70.) I busted right into the middle of their scene, and maybe I messed it up! Maybe they had to re-shoot that scene! To the director, I can only say: sorry!

So, if you see a brand-new pastel-blue 1980 Chevrolet Citation notchback coupe in that scene really hauling butt, it was me!