- Title: USA: WALT DISNEY COMPANY RELEASES THEIR NEW MOBSTER PARODY FILM "MAFIA!"
- Date: 12th July 1998
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (JULY 12, 1998 (RTV ACCESS ALL) CHRISTINA APPLEGATE SAYING ABOUT A SCENE IN THE FILM, (SOUNDBITE ENGLISH) "WELL, THE FOOTBALL CATCH AND ALL OF THAT I, YOU KNOW, I INSISTED ON DOING THAT STUNT MYSELF SO, I WAS WAY INTO THAT, AND THEN THE WHOLE, ACTUALLY THE WHOLE FUNKY CHICKEN THING HAPPENED, I DID THAT OFF-CAMERA, JUST AS A JOKE
- Embargoed: 27th July 1998 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES AND FILM LOCATIONS
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA7IHGZVUT7FZHEAT2MI15PFNRX
- Story Text: In an unusual publicity stunt even by Hollywood standards, the marketing gurus at the Walt Disney Company dropped a giant meatball into a huge vat of pasta sauce on Wednesday (July 22) to spice up the release of their new mobster parody film "Mafia!" Disney's recipe for Wednesday night's (July 22) publicity stunt consisted of a 50 pound meatball, 400 gallons of pasta sauce, 10 pounds of oregano, 10 pounds of basil and 10 thousand feet of spaghetti, each strand 50 feet in length.
Helped by a pair of popular Los Angeles radio personalities, the marketing people at Disney then put the pasta in a six foot wide pasta bowl positioned on a 12 foot by 12 foot checked table cloth, speared the meatball on a seven foot long fork and raised it 16 feet in the air.
The coup de grace came when the massive meatball was dropped sixteen feet into the pasta sauce, splashing on-lookers and the disc jockeys alike.
The whole event was devised as an off-beat way of calling attention to Disney's newest comedy from the same filmmakers who brought the parodies "Airplane" and "Hot Shots" to the big screen.
Director Jim Abrahams who shot disaster films such as "Airplane" and military adventure "Hot Shots," now turns his rapid-fire and irreverant comedic style on gangster films like "The Godfather" series, "Goodfellas" and "Casino." Jay Mohr stars in "Mafia" as Anthony Cortino, the young war hero who returns home to his crime syndicate family faced with the dilemma off whether or not to take over the reigns of his father's gangland kingdom.His father Vincenzo is played by Lloyd Bridges, in his last on-screen role prior to his death in March of this year.
"Married With Children" co-star Christina Applegate steps into Diane Keaton's shoes from "The Godfather" series by playing Diane, a woman who loves Anthony but can't accept his family's criminal background.Instead, she becomes President of the United States and achieves world peace.
Other cast members include Oscar-winning "Moonstruck" star Olympia Dukakis and Sophia Cortino, the family matriarch, and Billy Burke as Anthony's psychotic old brother Joey, played along the lines of James Caan in "The Godfather." Jay Mohr received critical acclaim for his role as the client-stealing sports agent opposite Tom Cruise in "Jerry Maguire." He was also featured with Jennifer Aniston in the romantic comedy "Picture Perfect" and with Christopher Walken in "Suicide Kings." In addition to directing "Mafia," Jim Abrahams also co-wrote the screenplay.Besides "Airplane" and "Hot Shots," his other credits include both films' sequels, the "Naked Gun" series of films with Leslie Nielsen, and "Ruthless People" with Danny DeVito and Bette Midler.
"Mafia" opens in theaters throughout the United States on Friday, July 24. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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