Ghostbusters

Related Topics:
Ghostbusters_Series :: Ghostbusters :: Ghostbusters_II :: Ghostbusters_-_Filmation

Ghostbusters (sometimes written Ghost Busters) is a 1984 sci-fi comedy film about three eccentric New York City parapsychologists. After they are fired from Columbia University, they start their own business investigating and capturing ghosts.

It was followed by a sequel, Ghostbusters II (1989), and two cartoon series, The Real Ghostbusters (later Slimer! And the Real Ghostbusters) and Extreme Ghostbusters.

Ghostbusters was released in the United States on June 8, 1984, starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts and Ernie Hudson, and grossed approx. $240 million in the US and over $50 million abroad during its theatrical run, more than the second "Indiana Jones" installment, making it easily the most successful film of that year, and the most successful comedy of the 1980s.

The films sparked the catchphrases, "Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!", and "I ain't 'fraid of no ghost(s)", both from the hit theme song written and performed by Ray Parker Jr. Parker used the idea of making the song as a commercial jingle for the fictional company. The song was a huge hit and reached #1 for three weeks on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, and #1 for two weeks on their Black Singles chart. The music video produced for this song is considered one of the key productions of the early music video era. It was a hit for MTV. Directed by Ivan Reitman (who directed the feature film), the video contains many snippets of the film which flowed well with the lyrics, along with quick cameo appearances of various celebrities answering "Ghostbusters!" to the oft-repeated "Who you gonna call?" and special footage of the four Ghostbusters, in costume and character, dancing in Times Square right behind Parker, joining in the singing. The song won Parker an Academy Awards nomination for "Best Song".

In 2000, readers of Total Film magazine voted Ghostbusters the 44th greatest comedy film of all time. The American Film Institute ranked it 28th in its list of the top 100 comedies of all time (in their "AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs" list). In 2005, IGN voted Ghostbusters the greatest comedy ever.

Taglines:

They're Here To Save The World.
Coming To Save The World This Summer.
We're Ready To Believe You.
Who ya gonna call? Ghostbusters!
The supernatural spectacular.
They ain't afraid of no ghost.
The world's most successful comedy.

Plot

Gozer the Gozerian

Gozer the Gozerian, also known as Gozer the Destructor, Volguus Zildrohar, and The Traveler is a fictional Sumerian shapeshifting god who is the major supernatural enemy in Ghostbusters. (In the actual Sumerian religion a somewhat similar deity is known as Tiamat.) According to other sources, the name "Gozer" is from a documented haunting that came to the attention of Dan Aykroyd, but this is unsubstantiated.

Gozer has two dog-like minions called Zuul ("The Gatekeeper") and Vinz Clortho ("The Keymaster"). Gozer the Traveler appears in one of its pre-chosen forms. Speaking through Louis Tully (played by Rick Moranis), Vinz Clortho claimed that:

During the rectification of the Vuldronaii the Traveler came as a large, moving Torb. Then, during the third reconciliation of the last of the Meketrex supplicants they chose a new form for him—that of a giant Sloar. Many Shubs and Zuuls knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of the Sloar that day, I can tell you.

After World War I, an insane surgeon named Ivo Shandor, leader of a secret apocalyptic cult, designed a massive apartment building in New York City (55 Central Park West) specifically to gather psychokinetic energy (PKE) that would power a portal that would allow Gozer and its minions, along with the ghosts of the dead, to enter the world and destroy it.

By 1984, the building had gathered enough energy to pull Zuul and Vinz Clortho through: the two planned to possess suitable humans to open the portal on top of the building to let Gozer through. Because of this (according to Dr. Spengler's reading), the PKE in the surrounding area in 1984 was a few thousand times normal. As a by-product, numerous ghosts were revived and became active throughout the city as they waited to join their new master.

The Ghostbusters arrive

Unfortunately for Gozer, three unemployed parapsychology professors start a business called Ghostbusters, a spectral investigation and removal service armed with technology of their own design that can track down and capture supernatural entities with unprecedented ease.

At first, their clients are few and far between, and the Ghostbusters have to depend on their individual talents to keep the business alive: Dr. Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis) is a scientific genius, Dr. Raymond "Ray" Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) is an expert on paranormal history and metallurgy, and Dr. Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), although in some ways a charlatan, has charm and business savvy. Although he initially comes off as a bit of a goof and sleaze, Venkman eventually finds a (subtly) heroic side to himself when he learns that Gozer and his minions are haunting the apartment of Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver), a client who has become the object of his lustful (and possibly deeper) intentions.

The business eventually teeters on the verge of bankruptcy until one night, Janine Melnitz (Annie Potts), the guys' personal secretary, answers a desperate call from the Sedgewick Hotel about a ghost that needs to be removed quickly and quietly. Although the Ghostbusters have no practical experience and their equipment is barely tested, they successfully catch the ghost (dubbed "Slimer" by audiences) after a destructively clumsy hunt.

Soon, business picks up dramatically and the company becomes a household name, due not only to the Ghostbusters building a reputation for themselves, but also due to an initially unexplained increase in supernatural activity. The Ghostbusters add a fourth member to their team, the blue-collar Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson) to deal with the rapidly increasing workload. The company captures so many ghosts that the scientists become concerned about the capacity of their custom-built containment grid. Unfortunately, it soon becomes apparent to the Ghostbusters that the spike in paranormal events means they are headed toward a climactic confrontation with Gozer, whose presence is hinted at throughout the film.

Walter Peck

Walter Peck, an overzealous EPA inspector, orders the grid deactivated, against the advice of the Ghostbusters and a ConEd electrician. The main result of the containment grid being shut down is the escape of all the captured ghosts inside. There is a widespread haunting that immediately sparks chaos throughout the city. Peck then has the Ghostbusters arrested for violating environmental laws.

Eventually the Mayor of New York summons the Ghostbusters from jail. (It is here that Reginald VelJohnson can be spotted in a tiny role as a jail guard.) The Ghostbusters are brought to City Hall. Peck is also there and tries to convince the Mayor that the Ghostbusters are staging a massive illusion, a "light show." However the department heads at the meeting all dispute Peck's claims, and with Venkman coming into his own as a skilled persuader, the Ghostbusters convince the Mayor to let them deal with the crisis.

Final showdown

The Ghostbusters leave to confront Gozer as it emerges from the portal on top of Shandor's building, in the form of a haunting young woman. After an initial skirmish, Gozer demands that the Ghostbusters choose the next form the Destructor takes. It will then use that form to destroy them. Ray Stantz reflexively chooses an innocuous corporate mascot, the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man. The result is the bizarre sight of a giant marshmallow man in a sailor suit with an insane smile stomping through New York toward the building.

The Ghostbusters eventually stop the god when Ego realizes that "the door swings both ways" and suggests that the Ghostbusters cross their proton pack streams as they fire at the portal - although Egon himself had warned them early in the film that crossing the streams should never be done. This succeeds in causing total protonic reversal, transforming the gate from a PKE generator to a PKE absorber. With the reversal of their energy flow from the gateway, Gozer, its minions, and the ghosts themselves are so weakened they are unable to maintain their presence in the living world, and are sucked back to the after-world. The explosion generated by the event detonates the Stay Puft man, covering a portion of the city in melted marshmallow goo.

History

The concept was inspired by Aykroyd's own fascination with the paranormal, and it was conceived by Aykroyd as a vehicle for himself and friend and fellow Saturday Night Live alum John Belushi. The original story as written by Aykroyd was much more ambitious—and unfocused—than what would be eventually filmed; in Aykroyd's original vision, a group of Ghostbusters would travel through time, space and other dimensions taking on huge ghosts (of which the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man was just one of many). Also the Ghostbusters wore S.W.A.T.-like outfits and used wands instead of proton packs to fight the ghosts. Aykroyd's original inspiration for the story was based on his fascination with a covert scientific organization named The Office of Scientific Investigation and Research (O.S.I.R.), who were under a different name at the time, and their high-tech explorations into the paranormal.

Aykroyd pitched the story to director/producer Ivan Reitman, who liked the basic idea but immediately saw the budgetary impossibilities demanded by Aykroyd's first draft. At Reitman's suggestion, the story was given a major overhaul, eventually evolving into the final screenplay which Aykroyd and Ramis hammered out over the course of a few months in a Martha's Vineyard bomb shelter. Aykroyd and Ramis initially wrote the script with roles written especially for Belushi, Eddie Murphy and John Candy. However Belushi died due to a drug overdose during the writing of the screenplay, and neither Murphy nor Candy could commit to the movie due to prior conflicts, so Aykroyd and Ramis shifted some of these changes around and polished a basic, yet sci-fi oriented screenplay for their final draft. In addition to Aykroyd's high-concept basic premise and Ramis' skill at grounding the fantastic elements with a realistic setting, the film benefits from Bill Murray's semi-improvisational performance as Peter Venkman, the character initially intended for Belushi. The extent of Murray's improvisation while delivering his lines varies wildly with every re-telling of the making of the film; some say he never even read the script, and improvised so much he deserves a writing credit, while others insist that he only improvised a few lines, and used his deadpan comic delivery to make scripted lines seem spontaneous.

A problem arose during filming when it was discovered that a show was produced in 1975 by Filmation for CBS called The Ghost Busters, starring Larry Storch and Forrest Tucker. Columbia Pictures prepared a list of alternative names just in case the rights could not be secured. But during the filming of the crowd for the final battle, the extras were all chanting "Ghostbusters," which reportedly inspired the producers to insist that the studio buy the rights to the name.

In 1986, a cartoon series based on the movie was created. It was titled "The Real Ghostbusters" to avoid licensing conflicts with Filmation, though it also serves as a bit of an in-joke, implying that Filmation's Ghostbusters aren't the real ones, despite the Filmation cartoon being produced earlier than the DiC one. The series ran for 7 seasons until 1991.

In 1989, Ghostbusters II was released to mixed reviews, featuring the return of the main cast and a new villain. The second film's storyline was nearly identical to the first, with Venkman again acting flippant until he gradually re-charms Dana, and the Ghostbusters again struggling to keep their business afloat in a city skeptical of the supernatural despite the previous obvious evidence until business picks up again thanks to the rise of another demonic/ghostly ruler from ancient times, as well as a river of pink slime below the city that seemed to be the living embodiment of hate and bad feelings. The movie also gave us the return of meek, mild-mannered accountant Louis Tully (Rick Moranis), who was introduced into the cartoon the following season.

A video game based on the movie was released by Activision for the Atari gaming system and a number of 1980s home computers, and West End Games released Ghostbusters: A Frightfully Cheerful Roleplaying Game. Upon the release of Ghostbusters II, they released an updated "Ghostbusters International" roleplaying game, including an adventure module very loosely based on the second movie.

The film also spawned a theme park special effects show at Universal Studios Florida. (The show closed some time in 2000 to make way for Ride it Out!.) The Ghostbusters were also featured in a lip-synching dance show featuring Beetlejuice on the steps of the New York Public Library facade at the park after the attraction closed. The GBs were all new and "extreme" versions in the show, save for the Zeddemore character. Their Ecto-1 automobile was used to drive them around the park, and was often used in the park's annual "Macy's Holiday Parade". The show, Ecto-1, and all other Ghostbuster trademarks were discontinued in 2005 when Universal failed to renew the rights for theme park use. Currently, the Ghostbuster Firehouse can still be seen near Twister, without its GB logo and "Engine 988" ribbon. A "paranormal investigator" etching on a nearby doorway hints at the old show.

Aykroyd and Ramis struggled for years to get started on a third Ghostbusters film, but they were unable to come up with a script with which they were satisfied. The possibility of a third film grew even more complicated as Murray's interest in reprising his role waned over the years, and Aykroyd finally admitted that a third film would probably never happen. At one stage Aykroyd had a working script, and Murray agreed to reprise a bit part, but Columbia would not get on board due to the cost. In a November 2005 interview with In Focus magazine, Ramis talks about the un-produced Ghostbusters 3 script. ^*

With the recent 80s nostalgia craze, Ghostbusters has made a quiet return. In 2004, 88MPH Studios began releasing their "Legion" limited series, which retconned the Ghostbusters' world to six months after the first movie and pushed the timeline up twenty years to present time. The owner and operator of 88MPH, Sebastien Clavet, still has plans to release an ongoing series, but difficult public opinion following delays in the initial comic series and a currently ongoing delay of the hardcover Legion collection mean it is unknown if he will be able to carry on his dream. Neca released a series of action figures based on the first movie. Their first and so far only series included Gozer, Slimer (or Onionhead), the Terror Dogs Vinz Clortho and Zuul, and a massive Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, contrasting the diminutive figure that was in the original figure line. Ertl released a die-cast 1/25 scale Ectomobile, also known as Ecto-1, the Ghostbusters' main transportation. iBooks published the novel The Return by Sholly Fisch.

Since 1989, rumours have resurfaced of a third Ghostbusters movie, each new set with a shifting character/actor selection and a changing plot. None at present have come to pass as anything official and chances seem less likely after Dan Aykroyd was interviewed on Canadian television [http://www.protoncharging.com/ghostbusters/archives/2006_05.shtml denouncing the recent rumours that surround co-author Harold Ramis and actor Ben Stiller.

Trivia

Dan Aykroyd's original inspiration for Ghostbusters surrounds his discovery of a covert organization that conducted scientific investigations and research into paranormal and supernatural phenomena. Under a different name at the time of this discovery, the organization later took on the name of The Office of Scientific Investigation and Research (O.S.I.R.) when it became overt several years later. Aykroyd's fascination with the group continued to inspire his sequel to Ghostbusters and then later helped spearhead PSI Factor, the dramatic TV series about the group, in which he starred.

With the DVD release, many original concepts of the film where revealed, based on the storyboard arwork: Louis Tully was originally to be a conservative man in a business suit played by comedian John Candy, but Candy was unable to grasp the role and chose to drop the part. The role was taken by Rick Moranis, portraying Louis as an über geek. Gozer was originally going to appear in the form of a man in a suit, wearing a necktie, mistaken by the protagonists for Ivo Shandor and played by Paul Reubens. The Proton Pack's Particle Throwers were originally portrayed as wands worn on each arm. Winston Zeddemore was going to be hired much earlier in the film where he would accompany the trio on their hunt for Slimer at the Hotel and be slimed in place of Peter Venkman.

At the Oscar ceremony following the September 11 2001 attacks, clips were screened from various films that were associated with New York City. Ghostbusters was featured in the montage.

Huey Lewis and the News sued Ray Parker Jr. for plagiarism, citing that Parker stole the melody from "I Want a New Drug." Ironically, Lewis was approached to compose the main theme song for the movie, but he had to decline due to his work on the soundtrack for Back to the Future. It was later reported that Lewis allegedly breached an agreement not to mention the original suit in 2001 on VH1's Behind the Music. Spook Central - The Huey Lewis Lawsuit

Lindsey Buckingham was also approached to do the theme song based on his success with "Holiday Road" for the National Lampoon's Vacation films. He declined, reasoning that he had already done a successful soundtrack theme and did not want to be "known" as just a soundtrack artist. These comments were made on the promotional CD Lindsey Buckingham: In His Own Words.

Among the featured New York City locations were Columbia University, the New York Public Library, the still active Hook & Ladder 8 (which still contains the "No Ghost" symbol and production photos with the actors and crew to this day), Central Park West, Tavern on the Green in Central Park, Lincoln Center, inside a defunct New York jail and various street locations for the montages. The interior of the firehouse was done in LA's Fire Station 23, the basement of the Library was substituted by an LA library, the Biltmore Hotel in LA served as the lobby and entrance for the Sedgewick Hotel, while the other locations were on sound stages.

Gozer's temple was the biggest and most expensive set ever to be constructed at that time. In order to properly light it and create the physical effects for the set, other stages needed to be shut down and all their power diverted over to the set. The hallway sets for the Sedgewick Hotel were originally built for the movie Rich and Famous in 1981 and patterned after the Algonquin Hotel in New York City, where Reitman originally wanted to do the hotel bust. The Biltmore Hotel was chosen because the large lobby allowed for a tracking shot of the Ghostbusters in complete gear for the first time. Dana Barrett and Louis Tully's apartments were constructed across two stages and were actually on the other side of their doors in the hallway, an unusual move in filmmaking.

A scarier version of the "Librarian Ghost" puppet was created, but it was rejected for being too scary. (The film has a PG rating for language and scary moments that are unsuitable for children under age 8, according to director Ivan Reitman and actor/writer Harold Ramis.) Luckily, it was recycled and reused for the 1985 horror/comedy hit, Fright Night, also released by Columbia Pictures. Richard Edlund and his team did the special effects for both films back to back.

For the premiere of Ghostbusters, half of the ghost effects were missing because the production team ran out of time. The audience still liked it, and the ghost elements were completed for the official theatrical release shortly thereafter.

The Ghostbusters mention three books which they consult to learn more about Gozer: Spates Catalog, Tobin's Spirit Guide, and the Roylance Guide (confirmed by the DVD subtitles).

In 1984, Harvey Comics, the copyright holders of Casper the Friendly Ghost, launched a lawsuit against Columbia Pictures for $52 million in damages on the grounds that the movie's logo was copied from their character. The case was dismissed in 1986. "There are only very limited ways to draw the figure of a cartoon ghost," said Judge Peter Leisure. (Time, November 10, 1986)

The trap in the first Ghostbusters movie requires the operator to hit the pedal twice as opposed to the one time during the sequel and the cartoons.

The soldiers seen towards the end of the movie belong to the 42nd Infantry (Rainbow) Division, as evidenced by their rainbow shoulder sleeve insignia. Since the end of World War II, the 42nd Infantry Division has been the largest element of the New York Army National Guard.

References in other media

In the 1995 Casper movie, a mustachioed Dan Aykroyd makes a cameo as his Ghostbusters character, Dr. Ray Stantz, who fails at ridding the haunted mansion of Casper and his uncles, stating "Who ya gonna call? ...Somebody else."

Aykroyd and Ramis' quandary over a third film was spoofed in an episode of The Critic, in which Jay Sherman was asked to write a script for a film called Ghost-Chasers 3. The movie includes an 80ft Ed Koch rampaging through New York City. The film ends up bombing.

In an episode of The Simpsons, following a parody of Hamlet, Bart mocks the story. Homer says Hamlet was made into the greatest story ever, Ghostbusters. After the comment is made, the Simpsons family start dancing to the movie theme as composed by Ray Parker Jr..

Danny Phantom, a popular cartoon on Nickelodeon, is very similar to Ghostbusters in the fact that the main character's parents are also ghost hunters and use ghost hunting weapons. Occasionally, it references Ghostbusters in some way or features similar concepts, such as the manner in which the Fenton Thermos releases captured ghosts in the Ghost Zone (much like the Ghostbusters' containment grid).

Luigi's Mansion a popular and probably the first Gamecube game to feature the Mario Brothers is said to have been inspired partly by Ghostbusters, mostly because it features Mario's barely seen brother Luigi catching ghosts using a device(Plotergust 3000) that is smilar to those that the Ghostbusters use.

A cartoon show on Cartoon Network, Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends, recently featured an episode in which one of the featured characters, Bloo, caught a cold. Bloo is rather ghost-shaped himself, and when he came down with the cold he turned white. That very evening, some other feature characters had just watched a scary late night TV show about a ghost that looked remarkably like Bloo with a cold. Numerous parodies of some memorable Ghostbusters moments follow, including: Bloo orbiting a chandelier, characters getting slimed by Bloo whenever he sneezed, and Coco being asked who to call to deal with the problem replying in a way to indicate they were shouting "Ghostbusters!" as per the theme song. The response was, "Nah, they've been out of business for years."

On the Family Guy episode "Petergeist", some ghosts come into the Griffin's house. On a Quahog News report, Tom Tucker says "Who are they gonna call?". Diane Simmons replies "Ghostbusters, Tom?". Tom then says "No, Diane, their insurance company. That's just stupid what you just said."

In another episode of Family Guy, Peter Griffin has a flashback to when he was a Ghostbuster. He runs onto the famous pottery-making scene from the film Ghost, captures Patrick Swayze and demands payment.

In a 1997 Halloween-themed episode of 3rd Rock From the Sun, Dick and Harry Solomon are at home, hearing spooky noises coming from the air vent. Thinking that a ghost is in there, and seeing smoke come in from the vent (thinking that it really is a ghost), Dick grabs the Yellow Pages to call for help. Harry asks, "Who are you gonna call, Dick?" to which Dick replies, "Ghostbusters!" Harry then responds, "What are ya, crazy?! It's their busiest night of the year!"

In the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "The Killer in Me", Buffy tells Spike that the way to get out of his current predicament is "a phone thing." Spike replies by candidly asking "Who you gonna call?" and, off her look, realizes what he just said and comments "God, that phrase is never gonna be usable again, is it?"

In the game Half-Life, the protagonist obtains an experimental nuclear cannon similar to those used by the Ghostbusters; the weapon's nickname is the name of its creator in Ghostbusters.

In "Army of Ghosts", a 2006 episode of the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who, the eponymous character is asked whether he is going to do anything about the apparent "ghosts" haunting the UK. He replies "Who you gonna call?", to which his companion Rose Tyler excitedly replies "Ghostbusters!", with the Doctor adding "I ain't afraid of no ghost!"

Cast

Bill Murray (Dr. Peter Venkman)
Dan Aykroyd (Dr. Raymond Stantz)
Sigourney Weaver (Dana Barrett)
Harold Ramis (Dr. Egon Spengler)
Rick Moranis (Louis Tully)
Annie Potts (Janine Melnitz)
William Atherton (Walter J. Peck)
Ernie Hudson (Winston Zeddemore)
Slavitza Jovan (Gozer the Gozerian)

External links

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