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This content was originally collated and submitted to Warner Brothers by BBI Mojo, who created and produced the special features for the Buckaroo Banzai Special Edition DVD. All of the DVD material was written by W.D. Richter and Earl Mac Rauch. All of the DVD menus and bios were also written by Earl Mac Rauch. You can purchase the Buckaroo Banzai DVD or the Buckaroo Banzai Blu-ray on Amazon.

Pinky Carruther's 47,000 Unknown Facts

The following information is the transcript of the Pinky Carruther's Unknown Facts subtitle track found on the Buckaroo Banzai Special Edition DVD. The time codes tell you at which point the text appears during the film. Some of the text only really makes sense while you are watching the film. 

1:00:09 - Greetings, viewer, from the Banzai Institute. Pinky Carruthers (keeper of the 47,000 Unknown Facts) reporting. Reno is on special assignment chasing hurricanes in the Caribbean so he asked me to fill in and share my knowledge base with you. Special thanks to Mrs. Johnson, Reno, Earl Mac Rauch and W.D. Richter for their help in researching the information that follows.

1:00:55 - For the first time ever, I will be sharing some of my 47,000 unknown facts with the public at large. Keep an eye out for them in this subtitle track - they will appear suddenly and without warning!

1::01:15 - Unknown Fact #8,506: Rawhide's fave song: "Anything ending with a C note."

01:01:20 - I hope you caught that!

01:01:30 - This film recreates the tumultuous events of June 11 & 12.

01:01:54 - This test site (now known as the San Antonio Proving Grounds) is the exact spot where Buckaroo's parents lost their lives during the original Jet Car experiment in 1953 (Interpol believes Hanoi Xan to be responsible, although hard evidence has yet to be uncovered).

01:02:23 - A plaque commemorating the historical importance of this day's events was placed here in 1988.

01:02:55 - This was the first scene shot for the film, on location at Lakeview Medical center on Monday, July 12, 1983.

01:03:25 - "Comfort the afflicted, afflict the comfortable." - B. Banzai

01:04:00 - The Eskimo boy, after a brief period of time as an Alaskan crabber, became a Goth.

01:04:30 - Packed in Buckaroo's briefcase are the Overthruster, Albert Einstein's brain and a tuna sandwich.

01:04:48 - The Jet Car's top speed was actually clocked at 718 MPH.

01:05:13 - Unknown Fact #12,086: the designation HB 88 refers to Hikita/Banzai and the number of keys on a piano.

01:05:30 - For the past 17 years, the original Oscillation Overthruster has sat in Mrs. Johnson's kitchen as a can opener, while Buckaroo has struggled to get the kinks out of its successors (more on this later).

01:06:06 - This headband was also worn by Masado Banzai (Buckaroo's father) on that fateful day in 1955. The kanji reads "beauty in every day life." It is now on display at the Smithsonian.

01:06:20 - The Jet Car you see here is not the real mccoy, but a replica of the vehicle made for the film. At the time of production, many of the Jet Car's components were still classified, so the Institute was obligated to deny W.D. Richter's request to use the actual vehicle. As a consolation, Perfect Tommy (who designed the Jet Car's revolutionary suspension and oversaw the vehicle's construction) offered to review Art Director Stephen Dane's blueprints for the recreation of the vehicle and correct any gross inaccuracies (none were found).

01:07:00 - The movie's Jet Car replica was built by Jerry Segal of Southern California's Thrust Racing. Jerry still builds jet-powered drag racers and is working with the Institute on a new, top-secret project involving scooters.

01:07:22 - "The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible." - Arthur C. Clarke

01:07:39 - Professor Hikita once built an atom bomb using only an abacus.

01:08:27 - Unknown Fact #12,560: The sonic boom was heard as far away as Canyon Lake.

01:08:50 - In actual fact, his man on the phone was later discovered to be an operative of The World Crime League. Fortunately for us, only those with the highest clearance were privy to the true nature of the test about to take place. Much to our horror, when his cover was blown years later, an inept hit man hired by Xan targeted the actor by mistake.

01:09:40 - These incredible images of the 8th Dimension are not a special effect - they are the actual film taken by the Jet Car cameras while inside the mountain. The EM-sensitive film was created by Dr. Peter Kuran. The Banzai Institute agreed to declassify the footage specifically for its inclusion in this release (which marked the first time it was seen publicly).

01:10:05 - Much as Sir James 'Black' Douglas vowed to carry out Robert The Bruce's dying wish to have his heart buried in Jerusalem, Buckaroo Banzai carried Albert Einstein's brain with him during the fateful Jet Car run through solid matter. It was, after all, Einstein who worked on Project Rainbow, the original time-space window experiment back in 1943. Otherwise known as the infamous Philadelphia Experiment, the test either went spectacularly haywire or never actually happened, depending upon whom you choose to believe. Basing his work upon the Unified Field Theory, which posits that gravity and magnetism are connected in the same way as mass and energy, Einstein sought to send a US Navy vessel, the Eldridge, through a time vortex. Judging by the alleged results, he only partially succeeded. Many of the ship's crew were left imbedded in solid matter, others went insane. Einstein confessed to never fully solving the theory, but to judge by the success of the Oscillation Overthruster, Dr. Banzai did - although he unfailingly acknowledged his debt to Einstein, whose papers at Princeton's Institute for Advanced Studies served as Buckaroo's primer on the Unified Field Theory. It was therefore in tribute to the great man that Buckaroo decided to take along Einstein's preserved brain during the Jet Car test run through solid matter.

01:12:05 - The other white meat.

01:13:00 - A deserted room at Brentwood's V.A. hospital in California provided the perfect place to recreate the New Brunswick Home for the Criminally Insane. Lithgow described it as "a bagwoman's lair."

01:13:30 - What you are watching here is a re-creation of the events of October 11, 1938, the first time (to our knowledge) that humankind broke through the dimensional barrier.

01:14:30 - We now know that the key to Lizardo's incomplete penetration was his restrained initial velocity. However, his partial access to the Eighth Dimension (despite its brevity) provided opportunity enough for John Whorfin to take over Lizardo's consciousness.

01:15:25 - The joy of finally being freed from exile in the Eighth Dimension (albeit in a human body) proved so intoxicating that Whorfin-as-Lizardo went on a lengthy crime spree (the proceeds of which founded YoYodyne).

01:16:30 - Despite the overpowering presence of Whorfin's consciousness, for brief periods Lizardo was occasionally able to regain control of himself. This would lead to the most bizarre behavior, often a combination of Lizardo's kind, peaceful disposition and Whorfin's violent dementia (as just evidenced by his offering of a gratuity to the orderly he will later kill).

01:17:30 - Artie, previously an insurance salesman, had emergency bypass surgery under the knife of Dr. Banzai. The operation saved his life and left him a changed man. Upon recovery, he resigned his position and made good on his high school dream of owning a rock and roll club. Tongue planted firmly in cheek, I suggested the name "Artie's Artery." It remains there still, and Artie has recently wed his second wife, a 24 year old back-up vocalist currently on tour with 'Lil Kim.

01:18:30 - The song we're performing here is a cover of "Rocket 88," recorded in 1951 by Bill Haley and the Saddlemen. Bill Haley is often credited as one of the founders of rock and roll and, coincidentally, played his first rock and roll song while goofing around during a show at the Twin Bar in Gloucester, New Jersey.

01:18:50 - The Hong Kong Cavaliers often enjoy playing unannounced gigs in small clubs. Scheduling shows too far in advance provides opportunity to those who might do us harm, so it is often a necessity.

01:19:40 - I am often asked how Buckaroo could hear the soft wimpers of Penny Priddy over the din of the music. At the time we wondered the same thing, but Buckaroo later explained it was not what he had heard, but a flash of intuition that told him someone out there was terribly alone and in need.

01:20:35 - Penny was so down-in-the-dumps that night because she had just come from making her first and last squish video. The money was good but she felt so empty inside.

01:21:15 - Unknown Fact #6,070: Buckaroo rarely plays piano at gigs.

01:21:35 - B. Banzai had not performed "Since I Don't Have You" since the death of his first wife, Peggy, poisoned by Hanoi Xan. It was her favorite.

01:21:53 - Penny's earrings are also bottle openers.

01:22:15 - "Need a penny, take a penny." - Penny Priddy

01:23:20 - This is the first of many violent moments that required softening for the film version of this tale. In reality (according to the New Brunswick police report), Whorfin had brutally stabbed the orderly with a crude, hand made knife, plunging it straight through his stomach and into several vertebrae. W.D. Richter knew depicting this would earn the film an 'R' rating, so the conceit was made to snap the orderly's neck. Why one form of cinematic violence is more acceptable than another cannot readily be explained by the likes of me.

01:24:24 - The Hong Kong Cavalier tour bus (a modified Greyhound SceniCruiser) provides us with much more than transportation between gigs: it contains a strategic command center & monitoring station (also known as World Watch One), living quarters and a small recording studio.

01:24:41 - Unknown Fact #1,018: Reno's first wife was ordered from a catalog of Filipino brides!

01:25:10 - Fingerprints lifted at the scene of the crash later revealed that the Maserati Whorfin escaped in had been driven by Lo Pep, lieutenant to the infamous Hanoi Xan. What interest did Xan have in Lizardo's escape? Time will tell.

01:25:45 - Unknown Fact #220: Old Spice is banned from World Watch One.

01:26:20 - The costume seen here on New Jersey once belonged to his grandfather, a famous silent movie star.

01:27:12 - Pecos (a gal with whom Reno was once quite smitten) was at this moment in Tibet with the Seminole Kid, embroiled in a bitter conflict with Xan's Death Dwarves.

01:27:28 - Reno's mail-order bride later got her teeth done and left him.

01:28:48 - In the spring of 1966 at the age of 18, B. Banzai embarked on a hiking tour of Europe and Asia. Through a serendipitous series of wrong turns, he found himself a witness to the wedding procession of Her Majesty Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard. The Dutch queen was the most beautiful woman the impressionable young man had ever seen. Years later, Buckaroo had the exact same feeling upon first laying eyes on Peggy.

01:29:42 - Unknown Fact #9528: Perfect Tommy's pet peeve: women with Adam's apples.

01:30:20 - Buckaroo once told us that if we ever saw him at one of these press conferences where he appeared to be having a good time, to shoot him.

01:31:18 - "Like a bee in the middle of St. Peter's Cathedral," notes a prominent Berkley physicist. According to quantum field theory, as initially developed by Yukawa and many others in the 1930s (when Buckaroo's father first began his experiments), the forces between particles are created by exchanges of other particles. The electromagnetic force is carried by the exchange of particles called "virtual photons." In other words, the empty space between the electrons and protons in normal material is full of virtual photons. Furthermore, if virtual photons fail to travel all the way between electrons and the nucleus, atoms would no longer be prevented from passing through each other. Since virtual photons have no mass, they are able to travel the full distance between electrons and protons. If virtual photons had mass, they would be restricted to a very small region around the elementary particles that make up the atoms. This would reduce the ability of these particles to "see" each other, in effect creating truly empty space within and between atoms. The passage would be clear for Buckaroo Banzai and his Jet Car to pass through matter.

01:32:33 - This creature (nicknamed Odd Wad) is actually a sentient parasite that lives on alcohol (it was attracted to the Jet Car by a small pinhole leak in a fuel line). It is seen here basking in a beaker of rum. Eventually growing to a circumference of ten feet, it was successfully crossed with one of Rawhide's prize-winning pigs as a potential food source for the developing world.

01:33:20 - During this brief intermission, Reno kept members of the press entertained by showing psychedelic slides of the Eigth Dimension.

01:34:10 - The bolt sent to Buckaroo over the phone was not an electrical shock per se, but a form of electro-chemical communication (the information contained in that one charge would have taken nearly an hour to impart verbally).

01:34:45 - This moment was utter chaos, as none of the Cavaliers yet knew what a Lectroid was, and Buckaroo was the only one that could see them! Perfect Tommy later said he noticed the reporters in question heaping giant spoon fulls of sugar into their coffee and thought it odd, but didn't feel it warranted mentioning. Ah, the benefit of hindsight.

01:36:15 - The motorcycle Buckaroo is riding is a Harley Davidson XR1000. This bike was a special production number and very few were made (today this model is quite collectable). In 1984, the XR1000 was the fastest and baddest model that Harley offered.

01:36:40 - The scenes with the duck hunters were filmed at the end of the first week of production at Rocky Oaks Park in the Malibu Mountains.

01:37:05 - Note the Lectroid on the left, sucking on the battery leads. Lectroids derive great pleasure from electricity; what you see here is the equivalent of a nic fit.

01:37:35 - These chase sequences were shot at Griffith Park in Los Angeles (also the site of a free concert by the Hong Kong Cavaliers in 1992).

01:37:45 - While it may seem odd that a simple shotgun could shoot down an advanced alien vessel, remember that Lectroid technology is electro-chemically based. While designed to withstand a barrage of fire from every conceivable energy source, protection from simple projectiles was not part of the design (weapons of this sort do not exist on Planet 10).

01:38:30 - The Thermopod replica for the film was constructed out of an inflated eight-foot weather balloon covered with polyurethane foam, which expands and hardens on contact with the air.

01:40:00 - This was the comics adaptation of the first Buckaroo Banzai story ever committed to paper, "The Strange Case of Mr. Cigars."

01:40:15 - Unknown Fact #28,512: The Banzai Institute was a primary developer of cellular technology, first put to use in our very own 'Go-Phones,' used by Buckaroo and Rawhide in this scene.

01:40:50 - Unknown Fact #8,391: Perfect Tommy's Pet Peeve: "People that can't dance."

01:42:32 - After fumbling a previous strike team assignment, Tommy was fined a year's supply of guitar picks.

01:43:00 - At last count there were over 6,000 Blue Blaze Irregulars world wide - extraordinary men, women and children who are "on call" 24 hours a day to help B. Banzai in a pinch. They must submit to rugged physical training and are required yearly to make certain educational advances. The motto of the Blue Blaze Irregulars: "Treat me good, I'll treat you better. Treat me bad, I'll treat you worse."

01:44:22 - This is Mrs. Johnson, official archivist of the Banzai Institute. She provides the grease that keeps the wheels turning in this place - without her I daresay little would get done. Her world famous sticky cinnamon buns have provided the fuel for many a late night jam session!

01:44:45 - Unknown Fact #8,490: Mrs. Johnson's Pet Peeve: "Watches costing more than my car."

01:45:05 - Buckaroo's Five Doctrines are #1: A man should love others better than himself. #2: To serve is more honorable than to command. #3: To give one's life for another is the greatest glory. #4: Unrequited love is the greatest happiness. #5: Poverty is the best state for man, although a pauper should accept a certain amount of wealth to relieve the unhappiness of the rich.

01:45:45 - "Every year we pass the anniversary of our death" - B. Banzai

01:46:00 - This was another moment that had to be toned down for the benefit of younger audiences. Far from simply knocking them unconscious, the evil representatives from YoYodyne actually slaughtered the duck hunters and sheriff in a most gruesome manner (full details are available in the novel "Across the Eighth Dimension," now available from Pocket Books).

01:47:10 - Unknown Fact #42,109: Peter Weller's father was a helicopter pilot.

01:47:41 - Albert Einstein also played piano.

01:47:45 - Unknown Fact #8,381: Billy's Pet Peeve: "Firewalls." Sadly, he was arrested for 'freelance hacking' his way into the FBI's files on Monica Lewinsky and is still serving the remainder of his sentence.

01:48:00 - The Banzai Institute is always looking for alternative revenue streams. If you have a money-making idea, we'd be happy to hear from you at www.Banzai-Institute.com

01:48:30 - When the Planet 10 spaceship aimed its beams at this planet, they scanned the island of Jamaica, leaving the Adders (black Lectroids) with the false impression that all Earthlings look like Rastafarians.

01:48:50 - Billy Vera, who was cast as me in the film, is a real life rock star in Los Angeles. His band, Billy Vera & The Beaters, still play around town. Blue Blaze Irregulars often show up to gigs with pink cake boxes full of goodies for the band.

01:49:30 - All the inhabitants of Planet 10 took the earthly first name "John," which, according to Reno, sounds like a form of greeting they commonly use "comparable to the use of 'che' in Argentine or, to a lesser extent, our own 'hey.'" Their surnames are either phonetic approximations of their real names or common Earth names chosen at random from the pages of the phonebook found in the Grover's Mills, New Jersey, social security office.

01:50:30 - "Mystery is the source of all true art and science." - Masado Banzai

01:50:45 - Unknown Fact #32,807: Director W.D. Richter's credits also include writing the screenplay for the 70's remake of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers."

01:51:45 - Unknown Fact #23,901: The author of the Buckaroo Banzai adventure novel "Across the Eighth Dimension" is actually Reno. It was ghostwritten for his friend, Earl Mac Rauch, as a favor to appease a legal dispute.

01:52:05 - Sam was a former exotic dancer. After his death, a cache of folded $1 bills was found in his lock box.

01:52:16 - Lectroids blow poison barbs from their esophagus as a primary offensive weapon (if you ever find yourself face to face with a Lectroid, go for its throat - it's the most vulnerable spot on its body).

02:00:00 - John Bigboote is not your typical Lectroid. Soon after Yoyodyne was founded and Lizardo incarcerated, Bigboote led the company to become the nation's largest privately held defense manufacturer. Forbes Magazine once described him as an "innovative CEO" and, at the time of Whorfin's return, plans were underway to open a new branch in London. He had become a capitalist and was enjoying the fruits of his labor. Although he was forever sworn to Whorfin's side, he harbored a deep resentment at being forced to give up the life he had worked so hard to make for himself here on Earth.

02:00:50 - Unknown Fact #43,901: Rawhide is an accomplished astronomer, but dropped out of university shortly before getting his degree.

02:01:00 - Unknown Fact #1,429: Next to Buckaroo, Mrs. Johnson has the biggest keyring at the Institute.

02:01:18 - Buckaroo and Casper had met a year earlier at the Blue Blaze Irregular desert survival school in Nevada.

02:01:33 - The original 'record' device and viewing glasses are on display at the Smithsonian. Special, written requests to actually view the hologram are accepted, but less than 5% of said requests are granted (scholarly research will give you the best chance). Study of this technology provided the key to several components in your DVD player!

02:01:53 - "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -Arthur C. Clarke

02:02:10 - Mrs. Johnson loves animals. She has a Japanese snow monkey and a Mexican Hairless, which is the unofficial mascot of the Banzai Institute.

02:02:20 - Red Lectroids were bred by the Adder majority expressly for fighting wars of planetary defense, but in time the Lectroids grew ambitious and seized power for themselves, overthrowing civilian rule with an army led by Whorfin.

02:03:20 - It turns out the Black Lectroids were only bluffing about vaporizing Smolensk, in order to gain Buckaroo's help. Their actual plan was to strike Yoyodyne - they were only awaiting approval from the Nova Police, sanctioning body of the universe.

02:03:45 - On his much-delayed forthcoming solo album, Perfect Tommy has a song entitled "Emdall."

02:04:20 - His "guns" are the Navy Colts Buckaroo ordinarily uses only when going in search of Hanoi Xan. Manufactured in 1851, they are .36 caliber and among the most popular of all Colt cap and ball revolvers. They have a 7 1/2 inch barrel and cylinder engraved with the scene of a battle between the navies of Texas and Mexico. This weapon was a personal favorite of Col. Colt himself.

02:05:00 - Peggy was murdered by Hanoi Xan shortly after she wed Buckaroo in New York.

02:05:10 - To quote Dr. Banzai: "A scientist, like a warrior, must cherish no view. A 'view' is the outcome of intellectual processes, whereas creativity, like swordsmanship, requires not neutrality, or indifference, but to be of no mind whatsoever."

02:05:35 - Bethlehem Steel in Los Angeles doubled as the lab corridors of the Banzai Institute (a private home in Rustic Canyon served as the exterior location).

02:06:05 - Allow me to share a story with you, which seems oddly appropriate at this point in the film. A sly old Zen master, who was very proud of his cunning, one day met a new pupil, Buckaroo Banzai, who was already a boy professor of philosophy at the Imperial University. "How do you do, master?" said Buckaroo. "Very well," replied the old man. "Come now, young Banzai, it is said you are very quickwitted. Tell me, I pray you, how many tricks do you know for escaping the heartless ronin in these parts?" "Oh, I know but one," answered Buckaroo, "and that is to scramble up a tree as fast as I can." "Is that all?" said the master. "Why, I know at least a hundred. How I pity your ignorance!" Just then they heard the thunder of horses ridden by cutthroats. "Goodbye," said Buckaroo, and running up a tree, he hid in the branches, where he could see all that was happening without being seen. The Zen master tried all his tricks in vain. The cutthroats quickly seized him. As they were dragging him away, Buckaroo called from the tree, "Goodbye, master, how I pity you and how glad I am that I know one good thing well!"

02:08:25 - Unknown Fact #8,523: Hikita's fave thing: "Any game of chance."

02:09:06 - Don't forget the annual Basho Haiku Festival at the Banzai Institute. Send your entries to www.Banzai-Institute.com

02:09:42 - Unknown Fact #8,501: Reno's fave saying: "Give something back."

02:10:08 - These frames from the movie have appeared in numerous underground squish videos.

02:10:25 - "After the first death there is no other." - B. Banzai

02:10:45 - Contrary to popular belief, Rawhide is not dead. While he is not 'with us' in the sense of daily camaraderie, neither is he a lost cause. Following his descent into coma, he was placed in medical stasis, his metabolic rate slowed to nearly imperceptible level (also known as being put 'on ice.') An entire wing of the Institute was dedicated to finding a cure for the deadly Lectroid barb, the best men in their fields working around the clock. Only now we do we feel confident to announce that an antidote is indeed nearly at hand, and we expect our fallen comrade to rejoin our ranks shortly (his modified Trans-Am is still in his parking space and his favorite book, "The Compleat Angler," is still on his dresser where he left it).

02:11:45 - Secretary of Defense McKinnley, while speaking to a highly respected senator, reportedly once referred to Buckaroo and his trusted inner circle as "a bunch of amateur international do-gooders who spend half their time battling man's inhumanity to man in every corner of the globe and half their time playing that goddamn primitive rock 'n roll music so loud you can't even hear yourself scream." The senator's response: "If they're amateurs, so be it. The world needs those who do something for the love of it." McKinnley recently swallowed a little too much Viagra and became a donkey man.

02:12:35 - Be sure to check out the new Buckaroo Banzai & the Hong Kong Cavaliers trading cards in every box of Mrs. Johnson's cornbread mix.

02:13:00 - Unknown Fact #8,386: New Jersey's Pet Peeve: "Stickers on fruit."

02:14:15 - Unknown Fact #22,281: John Lithgow played Yoda in the radio production of "The Empire Strikes Back."

02:15:00 - We at the Banzai Institute are often asked why the Overthruster has been 'on the shelf' for so long. The obvious unintended side effect of the original technology is well-documented: the inability to prevent the time vortex from being used as a conduit to our world by uninvited travelers from other dimensions, such as the psychopathic alien John Whorfin and his exiled crew from Planet 10. But there were also other, less known problems associated with the original test. Although not highly publicized, a veritable laundry list of ailments, both emotional and physical, continued to plague Buckaroo for months after his trip through solid matter. In addition to violent black vomiting spells and apparent damage to the limbic system of the brain (the seat of emotions), far more troubling phenomena presented themselves. For example, on several occasions, Buckaroo walked through walls or simply disappeared before our eyes. These 'freezing episodes' typically went on for several minutes, during which time Buckaroo was totally invisible to us and unable to speak or move. When a visitor accidentally brushed against Buckaroo seconds after one such disappearing incident, the poor woman burst into flames, which proved impossible to extinguish. Despite these and other problems, work on the latest version of the Oscillation Overthruster continues apace for the next test run of the new polymorphous Jet Car II, tentatively scheduled for real soon.

02:16:45 - "Nothing real can defeat us. Nothing unreal exists." -B. Banzai

02:17:08 - The President's underwear kept riding up to the point where surgery was the only option.

02:17:25 - Unknown fact #89: Assumption is the mother of all mistakes.

02:17:45 - Unknown Fact #8,664: Fire dwells beneath the water palace.

02:18:10 - General Catbird was still trying to deaden the pain of 'Nam. Add in the crippling factor of booze and... he is now cleaning glasses in a San Diego sports bar.

02:18:35 - "Sometimes verbal ingenuity is not enough" - B. Banzai

02:18:55 - The Firestone Rubber Plant in Southgate (Los Angeles), already dark, dirty and dank, made the perfect location for "The Pitt."

02:19:21 - "Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein

02:19:55 - The public's fascination with the Jet Car helped spark the SUV craze which began in the early 90's. SUV owners take note: The Jet Car was fine-tuned for extraordinary fuel milage. Is yours? If not, contact the Institute today and request a copy of the environmental action memorandum 'Turn Your Gas Guzzler Into A Hydrogen Happymobile.'

02:20:20 - Look in the mirror, moron.

02:20:45 - All nasty goober teeth.

02:20:55 - Dig a hole and die.

02:21:20 - Psychotic loser.

02:21:32 - When sparks fly from a monkey's ass!

02:21:45 - That yellow mound on the floor is a giant pile of cream-filled, sponge cake-life snack food.

02:22:25 - Wilmington's Department of Water and Power was used for the Shock Tower scenes.

02:23:35 - Although we referred to it as the Shock Tower, to the Lectroids it was known as the "Chair of Delight" (so called because, to the Lectroids, massive electrical shocks were a source of great pleasure). Among themselves, they used the chair for recreational purposes, much as we might use a sauna.

02:24:18 - Unknown Fact #45,987: Roughly translated from Lectroid texts, Whorfin means 'the strong.'

02:24:43 - Unknown Fact #45,990: John Whorfin is the father to over 200 illegitimate offspring on Planet 10.

02:25:10 - The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power plant also served as the Yoyodyne exterior.

02:25:57 - The Cavaliers follow the traditional three stages before an attack is launched: ACTION ALERT - ACTION REQUEST - ACTION ORDER

02:26:30 - Lectroids have plump black tongues like Chow puppies.

02:26:50 - "Nothing is ever what it seems, but everything is exactly what it is." - B. Banzai

02:27:20 - Lectroids do not bathe as a rule except twice in their lives (at birth and on their wedding night); they do have a ritual of self fumigation, however, which also constitutes recreation for them. A fire using their excrement is started on the floor and several of them strip and shake their clothes over the flames. Small parasites which infest their bodies fall out of their clothes and into the fire where they explode with different noises, depending upon the parasite's size. The cumulative effect of all these little explosions is, to the Lectroid ear, the sweetest kind of music, akin to a symphony.

02:28:05 - The Lectroids have a macabre and little understood philosophy, which may be summed up as, "Death is the mother of beauty."

02:28:30 - It has been a matter of great speculation why the alarms at Yoyodyne were not sounded sooner and why, once sounded, many failed to function. A subsequent investigation by the FBI revealed that much of the alarm-system wiring had been chewed through, presumably by the Lectroids themselves.

02:29:10 - Lectroids in general are mucous eaters (along with the electricity elemental to their existence), but after decades on this planet they have been weakened by a steady diet of sweets, asbestos and filter-tip cigarettes.

02:29:40 - "Greatness can only be achieved when it is not sought" - B. Banzai

02:30:30 - Yoyodyne smelled like a nursing home. One of the biggest dangers to our boys was punji sticks coated with Lectroid dung.

02:30:30 - Unknown Fact #8,402: Buckaroo fave place: "Anywhere that doesn't exist."

02:30:56 - The Armco Steel Plant in Torrance housed the Lectroid launch hanger.

02:31:15 - Unknown Fact #46,907: Director W.D. Richter's latest hobby is helping his wife raise rare breed chickens. His current obssesion is with the South American Araucanas, a bird coveted centuries ago by the Araucas Indians who refused to allow their fowl to be crossbred with those of the Spanish conquerors. Today, the Araucana is prized for the remarkable, celadon colored eggs it lays.

02:32:10 - Get that copyrighted. Somebody could steal that.

02:32:20 - The "snott monster," prop, as it was affectionately known, was coated with actual clams, giving it the ability to leave a genuine slime trail.

02:32:45 - Unknown Fact #8,511: Perfect Tommy's Pet Peeve: "How many can I list?"

02:33:00 - "If all wishes were granted, what would be left to dream?" - B. Banzai

02:33:13 - Unknown Fact #8,325: The strong energy gate is the center of the palm.

02:34:16 - Lectroids are easily aroused sexually by the sight or smell of the dead, becoming vaso-congested and lubricated by the proximity of a corpse.

02:34:55 - The budget of the movie called for suits and ties, but the real Lectroids at Yoyodyne were found wearing guayabera shirts and skyblue jumpsuits.

02:35:16 - Unknown Fact #42: Reno's Fave Thing to Do on a Day Off: Get messed up and waste time.

02:36:38 - Scooter Linley went to Santeria seminary and now resides in the Miami area, where he remains an active Blue Blazer.

02:36:58 - These are the feet of Associate Producer Dan Lupovitz. The ring is the wedding band of Susan Richter, wife of the Director.

02:37:10 - Unknown Fact #77: Time is of the essence.

02:38:31 - This special effect shot required five cameras running at speeds of 120 to 240 frames per second, a special model and a very delicate wall. A cart was made to carry the small Lizardo ship on a track towards the wall at a speed of 30 miles per hour. The spines on the front of the ship had to be reinforced with steel rods to prevent them from breaking. Special dump tanks filled with debris were rigged to fire just as the ship broke through. One sunny afternoon everything was set up, the cameras rolled and in less than a third of a second the whole thing was over.

02:38:56 - The Panther ship model was more than three feet across.

02:39:30 - The Escape Pod miniature was built by Greg Jein, using photo reference provided by the Banzai Institute (courtesy of the Nova Police).

02:41:35 - After being shot down by Buckaroo, pieces of Whorfin regenerated and he resumed his treacherous, criminal ways. In order to survive, he began a career as an Ethiopian drug mule, squeezing out drug balloons for the World Crime League. His later plots included a roofing scam that preyed on the elderly and a graverobbing operation that mined silicone breast implants for resale to crooked plastic surgeons. Eventually, he once again came to the attention of Hanoi Xan. He was last seen co-hosting a goofy morning show in Philadelphia.

02:42:10 - "Hope is A Dream by One Who is Awake" - Aristotle

02:42:20 - "All of us have wings. Some of us just don't know what they're for" - B. Banzai

02:42:30 - After the heroic assault on Yoyodyne, each Blue Blazer received an oversized spoon and fork from the grateful government of the Philippines.

02:42:40 - Unknown Fact #38,209: Before joining the institute, Perfect Tommy once escaped from prison and evaded capture by posing as a Belgian and joining the Foreign Legion.

02:42:55 - "Be careful of half-truths - you might have the wrong half" - Reno of Memphis (formerly Reno Nevada)

02:43:07 - To this day, Peter Weller is still mistaken for Bucakroo Banzai. Billy Vera (who portrays me in the film) is approached on a weekly basis by fans looking for an autograph from Pinky!

02:43:20 - Lewis Smith has been known to go clubbing with the real Perfect Tommy. They enjoy taking bets as to whom will be recognized as Tommy first.

02:43:37 - Unknown Fact #40,055: During the massive post-raid cleanup/excavation of Yoyodyne, John Whorfin's private quarters revealed a cache of edible panties. In addition, Buckaroo and the boys found various human and Lectroid skeletons seated around a carved ice swan.

02:45:05 - "Nobody is nobody. Everyone has something to offer." -B. Banzai

02:45:54 - Unknown Fact #2,337: The World Crime League controls 90% of the squish video market.

02:46:00 - "Few will have the greatness to bend history, but each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope. And crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance." - Robert F. Kennedy

02:49:48 - Pop quiz! Q: What's the unofficial mascot of the Banzai Institute?

02:49:53 - [hold a beat with no subtitle]

02:49:55 - A: Mrs. Johnson's Mexican Hairless.

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This page was last updated on May 25th, 2020.
Maintained by Sean Murphy [figment@figmentfly.com]