| Suzanne Somers, who was paid a mere $136.72 for her role in Graffiti, was extremely broke at the time she auditioned for the part of the mysterious blonde in the T-bird. Two years earlier she had even resorted to minor crime leading to an arrest for bouncing a $100.00 check. Somers avoided prosecution by promising to make reparations and cover the check. In 1972 when the Graffiti audition came up she almost didn't make it because she couldn�t afford to get there. "I was a single mother from a teen pregnancy," she says. "I'd been doing commercials and local modeling. I lived in Sausalito and had to drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to audition, and there was a 50-cent toll, and I didn't have 50 cents to my name. So when I got to the tollbooth, they told me I'd have to leave something as collateral. I left a lipstick. Fortunately, no matter how poor a woman is, she always has a lot of lipstick." |
 |
 |
 |
| Page 3 |
| Some of the smaller parts that required a few speaking lines were filled by members of a San Francisco Bay Area theatre group called The Committee (1963-73). Considered by many as one of the hippest comedy theatre groups on the West Coast, the group included about 40 actors during its tenure. Some of the more famous alumni include: David Ogden Stiers (Major Charles Winchester from the TV series M*A*S*H), Howard Hesseman (Dr. Johnny Fever from "WKRP In Cincinnati," "Head of the Class," ), Carl Gottlieb (screenplay author of "Jaws" and co-wrote and appeared in "The Jerk"), Peter Bonerz (from "The Bob Newhart Show," now an active TV director of such shows as "Friends"), and improv leader Del Close (who taught John Belushi, Chris Farley, & others at Second City and Improv Olympic). The troupe also frequently appeared on the legendary "Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour" and had parts in the cult classic "Billy Jack." The members that were cast in Graffiti include John Brent (Car Salesman), Ed Greenburg (Kip Pullman), and Del Close (Man in the Alley). A 1969 film titled, A SESSION WITH THE COMMITTEE (aka The Committee) is available on DVD for those wishing to sample some of the groups' humor. The film is a montage of skits and includes Wolfman Jack in his first major screen appearance. |
| Easy Riders,Raging Bulls. Dir. Kenneth Bowser. DVD. Fremente Corp./BBC, 2003. Pollock, Dale. Skywalking: The Life and Films of George Lucas. Updated Ed. New York: De Capo Press, 1983, 1999. Patinkin, Sheldon. The Second City: backstage at the world's most greatest comedy theatre. Sourcebooks, Inc. Naperville, Illinois. 2000. The Making of American Graffiti. (supplmentary documentary by Laurent Bouzereau). American- Graffiti. Dir. George Lucas. DVD. Universal Studios, 1973; dist. Universal Home Video, Inc., 1998. |
 |
 |
| Of all the actors, Paul LeMat went through the most extreme change in appearance to become the character he portrayed and all it took was a shave and a haircut. |
 |
| Ms. Somers was arrested and booked on charges of writing a bad check in 1970. |
 |
| Paul LeMat as John Milner, Class of 1960 |
|