Ghostbusters
One of the movies that defined the eighties, Ghostbusters wasn’t just a hit, some would argue it became a phenomenon. This film had everything a movie-goer could want. It had action, it had comedy of both high-brow and low-brow varieties, it even had excellent effects for the time and an all-star cast and crew. Critics loved it, audiences loved it, so it went down in history as one of the most legendary comedies in history.
Today we celebrate this milestone movie by taking a look not at the screen, but slightly behind or beside it. We are going to view some of the sights of the creation of this absolute marvel. Grab your proton packs and be careful not to cross the streams as we go behind the scenes of the timeless classic, Ghostbusters.
The Man in the Marshmallow.
The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man has perhaps become just as iconic as the movie itself because of its absolute lunacy, but the man who actually inhabited the costume for this enormous sugary baddie remains unsurprisingly unknown to a majority of fans. Well, the actor responsible for having to play this unorthodox part is named Bill Bryan.
Bill was a man who worked for Hollywood for quite a while playing roles in body suits like this one, however many of his appearances happen to be uncredited. He is a special effects designer who is responsible for fabricating and occasionally performing with practical effects to capture a scene for a film.
Bryan was hired onto Ghostbusters to aid with ghost designs and worked closely with Dan Aykroyd to conceptualize new and unique creatures to appear. The evil Zuul dog was also their handiwork in the final movie. They decided having the climactic final monster be the most harmless thing you could imagine, a friendly marshmallow sailor, would be worth a considerable number of laughs from audiences.
So after he designed it, Bill put on the suit and would act out the scenes on the sets to make their idea come to life. Bryan has also worked as a special effects designer in the new Ghostbusters movie as well as Army of Darkness.
Writer / Quiz Creator
Andrew Nicholas is a passionate reader and writer on the subjects of history and mankind. He is a published author, critic, and poet who grew up in the friendly scenery of rural Ohio. He is a graduate of Wright State University and a regular student of historical curiosities.