[upbeat music playing] If you’re a fan of the “The Sandlot” then stick around
because you’re about to discover 15 behind the scenes facts
about this classic coming-of-age baseball film.
[film clapper sounds, music continues]
“The Sandlot” was based on true events from the childhood of the writer, director,
and narrator of the film, David Mickey Evans.
When he was younger the older boys in his neighborhood wouldn’t let his brother
play baseball with them,
but when they lost a ball over a brick wall,
his brother thought he could get on their good side by getting it back for them.
When he hopped the wall, though, he found a giant dog on the other side, whose actual name was Hercules,
and the dog bit him really badly in the leg..
A costume was used to film some shots of “The Beast”,
and it was so huge that it took two people to operate it.
The original title wasn’t “The Sandlot” it was first going to be called “The Boys of Summer.”
However, there was a problem with the title that made it impossible to use, which was there was
already a book about baseball called “The Boys of Summer” written by Roger Kahn,
and he threatened to sue the director if he didn’t change the name.
I think it’s all for the best though because “The Sandlot” is a better title anyway.
Tom Guiry who played Smalls hears
“you’re killing me, Smalls!” almost every day.
It’s been more than 20 years since “The Sandlot” hit theaters, and Tom reportedly still runs into fans who
yell the iconic line whenever they see him, sometimes hearing it up to four times a day.
Smalls actually knew how to play baseball in real life, but Tom Guiry was coached to
look like he didn’t know how to throw,
which Tom said made his little league coach very disappointed when he saw the movie.
“Ham” was cast at the last-minute.
Pat Renner who played “Ham” Porter is one of the most memorable characters from the film.
However, finding a cast member to play the smart-mouthed catcher proved to be a difficult task.
On the day the cast was going to board a plane to Salt Lake City, the filmmakers still didn’t have a “Ham”.
David Mickey Evans had an audition with Renner that same day, and luckily
Renner was perfect and the director told the him, “you’re in…
and you’ve got to make a plane!.”
Marty York who played “Yeah-Yeah” got the part by accident.
York was chosen to play “Bertram”.
But he got the role of “Yeah Yeah” because the original kid who was cast got sick
just as the movie was scheduled to start filming, and York replaced him.
The set was so hot that Smalls passed out from the heat.
“The Sandlot” was shot during a massive heat wave in Salt Lake City, UT
with temperatures reaching over 100 degrees Fahrenheit,
and it made filming very difficult for the young actors.
On a day where the temperature was over 105 degrees,
Tom Guiry became so overheated that he fainted and fell into a cameraman.
On the other hand, the pool scene was shot in freezing cold temperatures.
After weeks of intense summer heat,
the time finally came for the cast to shoot the pool scene.
Unfortunately, it was overcast outside and the water was about 56 degrees,
and if you look closely you can see Squints’s teeth chattering while he looks at Wendy Peppercorn.
Actor Chauncey Leopardi who played “Squints” was very anxious about the kissing scene
and David Mickey Evans made an effort to keep the shooting schedule a secret from him
to ramp up his excitement even more.
On the day they filmed the scene Evans had an important message for the young actor
right before rolling the cameras,
which was to keep his tongue in his mouth.
Well he did and immediately after he said he was ready for another take.
The real-life “Squints” tried to sue 20th Century Fox over the movie.
The nerdy character was apparently too similar to a real person from Evans’s childhood
who didn’t like the way he was depicted in the movie
and tried to sue 20th Century Fox for invasion of privacy and exploitation of his likeness.
The case was dismissed, but had he won,
he could have received damages and even a share of the film’s profits.
The famous insult scene was mostly unscripted.
The director fed off-the-cuff insults to the two actors as they were shooting the scene,
and they played off each other to perfection
to create one of the most memorable scenes of the whole film.
If you ever wanted to know what the chewing tobacco and vomit were made of,
the tobacco was actually made of licorice and bacon bits.
And ironically, some of the boys actually did get sick while shooting the scene
because they had to ride the ride several times
while keeping their mouth full of the nasty concoction.
The vomit was a mixture of split pea soup,
baked beans, oatmeal, water, and gelatin.
If you ever thought there was something familiar about Smalls’s mom and step-dad
it’s because the step-dad was played by Dennis Leary
who was the voice of Diego in the Ice Age movies,
and the mom was played by Karen Allen
who was Marion Ravenwood in the Indiana Jones movies.
Mike Vitar, who also starred in The Mighty Ducks 2 & 3,
wasn’t the only actor to play the role of Benny Rodriguez.
Vitar’s older brother Pablo played Benny as an adult when he was on the Dodgers.
So now you know why the two versions of Rodriguez look so much alike.
If you enjoyed the video make sure to share it with a friend,
and then watch another video you see on the screen
to discover more fun facts about your favorite films.