Holiday Road!
October 27, 2006 10:25 AM   Subscribe

Did you know that the Vacation series of movies were inspired by a story in the September 1979 edition of the National Lampoon entitled Vacation '58? The writer then was little known, but would go on to create some of the seminal jems of the 80s teen film genre and then devolve into poor commercial crap, but what career doesn't?
posted by Ogre Lawless (27 comments total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
I did know that.
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:29 AM on October 27, 2006


Not to be a smartass, but, yeah, I knew that too.

Not that this isn't a perfectly fine post, though. Thanks.
posted by grubi at 10:30 AM on October 27, 2006


I knew it, just like I knew the Orbitz web site would pop up when I clicked on the link.
posted by wfc123 at 10:31 AM on October 27, 2006


It is a very funny story.
posted by Astro Zombie at 10:32 AM on October 27, 2006


A great read and better than any of the films. Thanks.
posted by wfc123 at 10:33 AM on October 27, 2006


I did not know that either.
posted by GuyZero at 10:34 AM on October 27, 2006


I knew that, too; and I had copies of all those 1978 issues, as well as most of those from the preceding three years. Damn you, stereotypical throwing-out-the magazines mother!
posted by yhbc at 10:51 AM on October 27, 2006


I even knew that Lyndsey Buckingham wrote Holiday Road. And he used to be married to a witch.
posted by hal9k at 10:59 AM on October 27, 2006


It's posts like this that make me love MetaFilter so much.
posted by caddis at 11:05 AM on October 27, 2006


The career arc of John Hughes and Richard Curtis are similar in that both started out writing really savage, funny stuff, then as they became very successful, devolved into mawkish pabulum.
posted by George_Spiggott at 11:29 AM on October 27, 2006


Jems?
posted by Eekacat at 11:31 AM on October 27, 2006


Jems.
posted by Astro Zombie at 11:37 AM on October 27, 2006


seminal jems?
posted by sonofsamiam at 11:37 AM on October 27, 2006


That was great.

*remembers when the Lampoon was the cat's pajamas*
posted by languagehat at 11:37 AM on October 27, 2006


I did kind of know that, at least once, but thanks for reminding me. And that link to the story is sweet.

Still, none of that excuses John Hughes for Home Alones 1 - Avogadro's No.

seminal jems
Truly outrageous. Truly, truly truly outrageous

posted by Opposite George at 11:50 AM on October 27, 2006


OG: hey, Home Alone 3.012x1014 was pretty good. At least towards the beginning. The first thirty minutes, were, I guess.

No, I guess it sucked too.
posted by sonofsamiam at 12:01 PM on October 27, 2006


Seminal jems?
posted by pracowity at 12:36 PM on October 27, 2006


Until I read the original Ferris Bueller script, I thought John Hughes was a blight on humanity. Now I realize he's just a guy who was relevant... once, a long time ago, before he fell prey to HOME ALONE, BEETHOVEN, etc., etc.

FERRIS:
My uncle went to Canada to protest the war, right? On the Fourth of July he was down with my aunt and he got drunk and told my Dad he felt guilty he didn't fight in Viet Nam. So I said, "What's the deal, Uncle Jeff? In wartime you want to be a pacifist and in peacetime you want to be a soldier. It took you twenty years to find out you don't believe in anything?"
(snaps his fingers)
Grounded. Just like that. Two weeks.
(pause)
Be careful when you deal with old hippies. They can be real touchy.


Thanks for this.
posted by Gucky at 12:39 PM on October 27, 2006


JEM?

Seminal jems?

IMDB ratings:
(3.58) - Beethoven's 3rd (2000) (V)
(3.69) - Beethoven's 5th (2003) (V)

Comeback city!
posted by dhartung at 1:09 PM on October 27, 2006


Jems, too, which I thought was hi-fucking-larious back when I was an EMT.
posted by nebulawindphone at 1:40 PM on October 27, 2006


> Comeback city!

This is self-limiting, in a sense, since Beethoven only wrote 9. Now, if he had a photogenic mutt names Haydn... Haydn wrote 104.
posted by jfuller at 2:22 PM on October 27, 2006


Speaking of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, another fun fact: the parking attendant, that weird guy who takes the Ferrari out for fun, is the drummer on Sonic Youth's early (and awesome) self-titled e.p.
posted by koeselitz at 2:59 PM on October 27, 2006


His name is Richard Edson.
posted by koeselitz at 3:02 PM on October 27, 2006


His name is Richard Edson. Wow, I thought he looked familiar! Thanks for the post. Because, I did not know that!
posted by snsranch at 5:40 PM on October 27, 2006


I did not know that. And it's fucking awesome! Thanks!
posted by smeger at 1:27 AM on October 28, 2006


I recognize Mr Edson from other films (Good Morning, Vietnam comes to mind), but he really was the drummer on their early stuff?

I now have more respect for him (to add to my already considerable respect). Rock on, sir. Rock ON.
posted by grubi at 8:26 PM on October 28, 2006


Yeah. Found some corroboration. Go here. (Allmusic.com is great.)

I always thought that guy must be great to have at parties. "Yeah, I was in Sonic Youth... and Ferris Bueller." Almost everybody of a certain age is bound to like one of those things.
posted by koeselitz at 10:37 PM on October 28, 2006


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