Dumb Trivia
The Plane Movie
Don't be late for Truant!
The Ballad of Aldo
- The jacket worn by
the undertaker (Adam Curren) in Antifreeze (1999) is the same
worn by Greg Cutter (Jim Finitsis) in Truant (2001)
- The same geeky glasses are worn by Old Man Winters, played
by Adam Curren in Nick Thomas Orchestra (2000) and by Jim Finitsis
in Billy's Got a Gun (2000) and also by Glen Walker (Steve Pieroni)
in End of World (2002)
- The gun used by Billy (Artie Boutin) and Chris (Alan Finitsis)
in Billy's Got A Gun (2000) is also used by Peter Wilkins (Dan
Curren) in No News (2000) and will be used again by Mayonaise
(Jason Morgan) in Two Dollars (2003)
- Alan Finitsis's character "Chris" in Billy's Got
a Gun (2000) and No News (2000) was intended by be the same
person years apart. In Billy's Got a Gun (2000) he makes a reference
to how nice the weather is.
- Billy's Got a Gun (2000) was written in March of 1999 and
intended to be filmed in May 1999. When the attacks on Columbine
occurred, Jim and Alan produced Antifreeze (1999), Ty Won't
Die! (1999) and Nick Thomas Orchestra (2000) before they attempted
Billy's Got a Gun (2000).
- Guy LIttlefield (Adam Curren) reminds Chris Cornwell (Alan
Finitsis) that he had had his clavicle broken previously. Kelly
Barnes (Christine Carter) threatens to break Toby Sheen's (Artie
Boutin) clavicle in End of World (2002) and Marceau LaMont actually
does break the clavicle of the gangster Aldo in Two Dollars
(2003)
- The title character in Billy's Got a Gun (2000) was orignally
supposed to be played by Jim, who then offered it to Adam Curren.
Adam turned it down and it was then given to Arthur Boutin.
Richie Thibeault [Nick Thomas Orchestra (2000) was also set
to appear but dropped out.
- Guy LIttlefield (Adam Curren) mentions that he has a cousin
named Stephanie who's is a prostitute in No News (2000) He says
she charges $40. In Truant (2001) Erin Zaricki plays a prostitute
named Stephanie but she only charges Debbi and her friends $30.
In End of World (2002) Peter Stanton (Matthew MacVane) suggests
Toby Sheen (Artie Boutin) visit a prostitute he knows named
Stephanie, claiming she charges "$40, or a group rate of
$30)
BACK
In 1997 Jim and Alan developed an idea for a movie where a character named Jeremy picks on a character named Glen. (Based on the real-life person Glen Lucas [Ty Won't Die (1999)] who was always hassled by Jeremy Haney [La Peste (1998)]) Glen does everything in his power to get back at Jeremy but everything he does fails.
So, in a last ditch effort he hijacks a plane and crashes it into the building where Jeremy works. (Jeremy took the job he had in this building from Glen.) Just before the plane crashes into the building one of Jeremy's co-workers says to the other "Come with me and I'll get you a mudslide." The other says "But sir I'm not gay." The first says "No, its a drink....HA! Gay!" At that exact moment the plane crashes and kills them both. This line resurfaced in No News (2000).
As the plane is going through the building people are giving Glen angered looks. He yells out at them "Stop looking at me!" Kirk Larson (Artie Boutin) in No News (2000) also did not like to be looked at, but this exact line didn't appear until End of World (2002) when Wallace Brody (Adam Curren) screams it out.
Eventually it is discovered that Jeremy isn't even in the building. Jeremy, safely on the ground, called Glen on his cellphone and says "If it weren't for distance restrictions I'd kick your ass." which also reappears in End of World (2002).
The character of Glen Walker played by Steve Pieroni in End of World (2002) was a nod to this abandoned project. Jim Finitsis's character Jeremy was just a coincidence, as he was named after the unhelpful president of the Student Cable Access Network.
The idea was scrapped in 1997 because Jim and
Alan couldn't think of a convicing way to do the special effects
needed. In 2000 they again considered the idea but again scrapped
it for the same reasons, although they had high hopes that the
special effects capabilities would become available soon. Then,
of course, September 11, 2001 pretty much put the nail in the
coffin for this film, or at least the ending they had come up
with.
BACK
*Truant (2001) was originally conceived in 1998 by Alan. He thought it would be funny if a movie were made starring MacCauley Culkin in which he skips school.
By 1999 Alan had developed the idea to be about a few kids who skip school and kill the truant officer sent after them to avoid being caught. Jim wrote a script with this concept in 1999 but it was scrapped in favor of Nick Thomas Orchestra (2000) and Billy's Got A Gun (2000).
The film was supposed to be "based on a true story" and featuring the real like characters of Alan Finitsis, Glen Lucas [Ty Won't Die (1999)] and Jeremy Haney [La Peste (1998)] The real-life Haney was extremely afraid of bears and would always say "I hope we dont run into any bears." Jim, Alan and Glen would very often tell him he was stupid for being so scared. He would tell them they were going to get attacked for not being careful. This real-life ancedote was worked into the 1999 script and survived in the final movie as well.
The Greg Cutter in the 1999 script (which was titled The Truant Officer.) was very passive and very easily duped by the kids. The grand finale of the film was when the kids get him caught in a piece of farm equpiment.
During a paintballing excursion on October 16, 2000, Alan started to run around stiff-legged screaming "Guys, wait up!" Jim and Adam Curren found this extremely funny and said he should do it in the next movie. This was less than a week before No News (2000) would be filmed, and they determined that they couldn't work it into that movie. Jim and Alan had planned their next film after No News to either be what would become End of World (2002) or Two Dollars (2003). They couldn't really put this character in either of those films. Jim then recalled their abandoned project The Truant Officer and suggested they resurrect it. Alan said the character should have a silly name. Jim then developed the word "Dweedle" out of no where. During all of this Adam made the comment that he never plays a funny character and requested that he be allowed to play Dweedle. The rest his history.
The new script, which Jim and Alan wrote during the filming of No News (2000) was retitled Truant, and featured Artie Boutin as Bryan, Alan Finitsis as Herm, Adam Curren as Dweedle and Dan Curren as Tom. Filming was set to begin in December of 2000.
Dan dropped out early on, and filming was delayed until March. At that time, the character of Tom was to be played by Matt Dade, a friend of Alan's. He dropped out and was replaced the next day by Richie Thibeault (Nick Thomas Orchestra (2000) who also dropped out. He was then replaced by Matthew MacVane, and filming was set to begin in mid-March of 2001. Most of the scenes occur outside, and due to high winds they project was delayed again.
By October of 2001 the film got underway again,
now with Mike Maganiello as Tom. A smaller role was written in
for Matthew MacVane, which later became the most memorable role.
BACK
*Mike Manganiello [Truant (2001)] once worked for a man named Aldo. Jim thought this would be a great name for a bad guy. Cliff Lodge was an abandoned project written in 1999 about two guys who open a disco in the middle of the woods in 1977. To fund it, the borrow money from a gangster named Aldo. They make so much money from the disco that they get greedy and decide not to pay him back. Aldo gets his vengence by blowing up the disco. The end of the film was supposed to be the guys digging themselves out of a pile of burned disco records and 8-tracks and screaming "Why God? Why?!"
Another film was conceived in 2000 during the filming of Billy's Got A Gun (2000) called Porn. It was supposed to be about two guys who start a porn company by borrowing money from a gangster named Aldo. They spend all his money on film and equipment and just before they film, they discover their porn star is underage and they are both arrested. Since they are in jail they can't film the movie, and when they get out Aldo finds them and beats them up.
Yet another abandoned film written in late 2001 and early 2002 was called Bee. This was based on an early idea by Jim from 1997. It was about and "illegal spelling bee ring" run by a gangster named Aldo. Indcidentally, the main character was to be named Wallace Brody, who appeared in End of World (2002).
Aldo finally appeared on film portrayed by JP
Kennedy in Two Dollars (2003)
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