170-709: The Mooney Suzuki is an American garage rock band that formed in New York City in 1996. Originally comprising vocalist and guitarist Sammy James Jr., guitarist Graham Tyler, bassist John Paul Ribas and drummer Will Rockwell-Scott, the band has released four studio albums – People Get Ready (2000), Electric Sweat (2003), Alive & Amplified (2004) and Have Mercy (2007). The current lineup includes founding members James and Rockwell-Scott, guitarist Chris Isom, and bassist Reno Bo. The band formed in 1996, after Graham Tyler responded to an ad that former 2 Skinnee J's guitarist, Sammy James Jr., posted in
340-584: A BAFTA Award , and a Screen Actors Guild Award , while both he and Cruise received nominations for a Golden Globe Award . Hook-handed Vietnam veteran Staff Sergeant John "Four Leaf" Tayback's memoir Tropic Thunder is being made into a film. Except for newcomer supporting actor Kevin Sandusky, the cast—faded action hero Tugg Speedman, overbearing five-time Academy Award -winning Australian method actor Kirk Lazarus, closeted gay rapper Alpa Chino, and drug-addicted comedian Jeff Portnoy—all cause problems for
510-459: A UH-1 Huey gunner and the disc jockey from Zoolander (shown in a deleted scene). ... I feel the tone of the movie is its own thing. I think there are elements of satire, but I don't think it should be categorized just as that. There are elements of parody in it, but obviously I don't think it's just that. I feel like hopefully it's its own thing, which has a lot of familiar stuff that we are playing off of. —Ben Stiller reacting to
680-762: A fuzzbox , teamed with bass and drums. Guitarists sometimes played using aggressive-sounding bar chords or power chords . Portable organs such as the Farfisa were used frequently and harmonicas and hand-held percussion such as tambourines were not uncommon. Occasionally, the tempo was sped up in passages sometimes referred to as "raveups". Garage rock acts were diverse in both musical ability and style, ranging from crude and amateurish to near-studio level musicianship. There were also regional variations in flourishing scenes, such as in California and Texas. The north-western states of Idaho, Washington and Oregon had
850-502: A Boy or Are You a Girl ". In 1964, the group appeared on the T.A.M.I. Show on same bill as the Rolling Stones and James Brown . In the film of the show, their drummer, Victor "Moulty" Moulton, is seen holding one of his drumsticks with a prosthetic clamp while playing—the result of a previous accident in which he lost his left hand. In 1966, Moulton recorded " Moulty ", a spoken monologue set to music, in which he recounted
1020-531: A Curbstone" and "I'm Movin' On". Like the United States, Canada experienced a large and vigorous garage rock movement. Vancouver's the Northwest Company , who recorded "Hard to Cry", had a power chord-driven approach. The Painted Ship were known for primal songs such as the angst-ridden "Frustration" and "Little White Lies", which Stansted Montfichet called a "punk classic". Chad Allan and
1190-565: A Supporting Role. The Broadcast Film Critics Association nominated Downey for Best Supporting Actor and awarded Tropic Thunder Best Comedy Movie at the BFCA's Critics' Choice Awards. Both Downey and Cruise received nominations from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for Golden Globes for Best Supporting Actor . The Boston Society of Film Critics recognized the cast with its Best Ensemble award. Downey
1360-659: A big hit for Chicago's the Shadows of Knight , and "I Can Only Give You Everything". Keith Richards 's use of fuzz distortion in the Rolling Stones' 1965 hit, " (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction " affected the sound of countless American garage bands. Also influential were the Pretty Things and the Downliners Sect , both of whom were known for a particularly raw approach to blues-influenced rock that has sometimes been compared to garage. By 1965, bands such as
1530-486: A black guy. The movie is skewering actors and how they take themselves so seriously." Stiller previewed the film before the NAACP , and several black journalists reacted positively to the character. Tom Cruise was initially set to cameo as Stiller's character's agent, Rick Peck. Instead, Cruise suggested adding a studio head character, and the idea was incorporated into the script. Stiller and Cruise worked together to create
1700-471: A blackface performance would be acceptable, any more than I can imagine any circumstance under which the use of the N-word would be acceptable." Sara Vilkomerson said that Cruise did "an astonishingly funny and surprising supporting performance." Logan Hill of New York argued against Cruise's cameo, saying that it "just makes him look a little lost and almost pathetic—shucking and jiving, trying to appeal to
1870-407: A bridge rigged to explode to get to Underwood's helicopter. Tugg initially remains behind, believing Flaming Dragon to be his "family," but runs back screaming, chased by an angry horde of soldiers. Four Leaf destroys the bridge, rescuing Tugg, but as the helicopter takes off, Tran fires an RPG at the helicopter. Rick unexpectedly stumbles out of the jungle and saves them by throwing a TiVo box into
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#17328016122992040-431: A contract with Motown Records and recorded several songs including "It's My Time". Outside of the mainland, garage rock became a fixture in the islands and territories adjacent to the continent. The Savages from Bermuda recorded the album Live 'n Wild , which features " The World Ain't Round It's Square ", an angry song of youthful defiance. The garage phenomenon, though most often associated with North America,
2210-720: A controlling influence and sought to market more conventionally acceptable recordings. Electric musical instruments (particularly guitars) and amplification were becoming more affordable, allowing young musicians to form small groups to perform in front of local audiences of their peers; and in some areas there was a breakdown, especially among radio audiences, of traditional black and white markets, with more white teenagers listening to and purchasing R&B records. Numerous young people were inspired by musicians such as Chuck Berry , Little Richard , Bo Diddley , Jerry Lee Lewis , Buddy Holly , and Eddie Cochran , whose recordings of relatively unsophisticated and hard-driving songs from
2380-516: A day, leading him to become brainwashed. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, Tugg's agent, Rick "Pecker" Peck, confronts Les over an unfulfilled term in Tugg's contract that entitles him to a TiVo . Flaming Dragon calls during the discussion and demands a ransom for Tugg, but Les instead delivers a profanity-laden death threat. Les is uninterested in rescuing Tugg and is instead delighted at the prospect of
2550-508: A distinctly recognizable regional sound with bands such as the Sonics and Paul Revere & the Raiders . In the 1960s, garage rock had no name and was not thought of as a genre distinct from other rock and roll of the era. Rock critic and future Patti Smith Group guitarist Lenny Kaye remarked that the period "dashed by so fast that nobody knew much of what to make of it while it
2720-478: A faux film exhibited within the film, was removed by DreamWorks on August 4, 2008, due to protests from disability advocates. In addition, other promotional websites were created for "Make Pretty Skin Clinic", the fictitious company that performed the surgery of the film's character Kirk Lazarus, along with one for the energy drink "Booty Sweat". In mid-July 2008, a faux trailer for the mockumentary Rain of Madness
2890-543: A few years earlier proclaimed personal independence and freedom from parental controls and conservative norms. Ritchie Valens ' 1958 hit " La Bamba " helped jump-start the Chicano rock scene in Southern California and provided a three-chord template for the songs of numerous 1960s garage bands. By the end of the 1950s regional scenes were abundant around the country and helped set the stage for garage rock
3060-703: A group of prima donna actors making a Vietnam War film. When their frustrated director ( Steve Coogan ) drops them in the middle of a jungle and dies in an accident, they are forced to rely on their acting skills to survive the real action and danger. Tropic Thunder parodies many prestigious war films (specifically those based on the Vietnam War ), the Hollywood studio system , and method acting . The ensemble cast includes Nick Nolte , Danny McBride , Matthew McConaughey , Bill Hader , and Tom Cruise . Stiller developed Tropic Thunder 's premise during
3230-703: A guitar store. They released their first two singles, "Taking Me Apart" and "Love Is Everywhere", in 1998. The band takes its name from two lead singers for the band Can , Malcolm Mooney and Damo Suzuki . The band came out with their first EP in 1999, followed by their first album, People Get Ready , in 2000 on the Estruslabel . In early 2002, the band won the New York Regional Poll in The 1st Annual Independent Music Awards for "My Dear Persephone" They broke up shortly afterwards, but soon reunited at
3400-846: A hit in 1964 with " Farmer John ", and Thee Midniters are considered prominent figures in Chicano rock , as are the San Diego –based, Cannibal & the Headhunters , who had a hit with Chris Kenner 's " Land of a Thousand Dances ". San Jose and the South Bay area had a bustling scene featuring the Chocolate Watchband, the Count Five , and the Syndicate of Sound . The Chocolate Watchband released several singles in 1967, including "Are You Gonna Be There (at
3570-463: A large insurance payout if Tugg dies. He attempts to convince Pecker to play along by promising a Gulfstream V jet and "lots of money." Kirk, Alpa, Jeff, and Kevin discover Flaming Dragon's heroin factory. After witnessing Tugg being tortured, they plan a rescue attempt based on the film's script. Kirk impersonates a farmer towing a "captured" Jeff on the back of a water buffalo , distracting Tran and his guards so Alpa and Kevin can infiltrate and find
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#17328016122993740-486: A map and scene listing that will lead to a helicopter waiting at the end of the route. Unknown to the actors and production, the group has been dropped in the middle of the Golden Triangle , the home of the heroin-producing Flaming Dragon gang. Just as the group is about to set off, Damien inadvertently steps on an old land mine and is blown up, stunning the actors. Tugg, believing Damien faked his death to encourage
3910-572: A musical solo act and television actress in the 1970s. The Luv'd Ones , also from Michigan, signed with Chicago's Dunwich Records and cut records with a sometimes somber sound, such as "Up Down Sue". San Francisco's the Ace of Cups became a fixture in the Bay Area scene in the late 1960s. Other notable 1960s female groups were the Daughters of Eve from Chicago and She (previously known as
4080-540: A nomination by the Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor . In a November 2008 issue by Entertainment Weekly , Downey's film role was considered one of the three contenders for Best Supporting Actor. As a way of extending the film-within-a-film "universe" into real life, there were at least two online "For Your Consideration" ads touting Downey's character, Kirk Lazarus, for Best Supporting Actor; one of these contains "scenes" from Satan's Alley that were not in
4250-633: A particularly high concentration of acts and venues, and the Beatles emerged from this thriving music scene. In London and elsewhere, certain groups developed a harder-driving, distinctively British blues style. Nationally popular blues- and R&B- influenced beat groups included the Rolling Stones and the Yardbirds from London, the Animals from Newcastle , and Them , from Belfast , Northern Ireland, featuring Van Morrison . Coinciding with
4420-660: A racially integrated band from North London whose membership included guitarist Eddy Grant , later a popular solo artist, specialized in an upbeat style of rock—their 1966 recording " Baby Come Back " was a hit in Europe before becoming a British number one in 1968. Tropic Thunder Tropic Thunder is a 2008 satirical action comedy film directed by Ben Stiller , who wrote the screenplay with Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen . The film stars Stiller, Jack Black , Robert Downey Jr. , Jay Baruchel , and Brandon T. Jackson as
4590-430: A racially integrated band headed by African-American musician Arthur Lee , was one of the most popular bands in the scene. Their propulsive 1966 proto-punk anthem " 7 and 7 Is " was another song often covered by other groups. The Music Machine , led by Sean Bonniwell , employed innovative musical techniques, sometimes building their own custom-made fuzzboxes. Their first album (Turn On) The Music Machine featured
4760-471: A ragged bass voice; he then auditioned Lazarus' voice over the phone to Stiller, who approved the characterization immediately. Downey revealed that he modeled the character on actors Russell Crowe , Colin Farrell , and Daniel Day-Lewis . The initial script was written for Downey's character to be Irish, but was altered after Downey stated he could improvise better as an Australian, having previously played
4930-532: A result of the move from July, 20th Century Fox moved its family comedy Meet Dave in the open slot. The August 13 release date was also the opening weekends for the animated family film Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the horror film Mirrors . Studios consider the third week of August to be a weaker performing period than earlier in the summer because of students returning to school. Previous R-rated comedies such as The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Superbad were released in mid-August and performed well at
5100-489: A result of the protest, the normally unobstructed views of the red carpet leading to the premiere were blocked off by 10-foot (3-m)-high fences and there was an increase in the number of security personnel present. No protests were held at the United Kingdom's September premiere. The North American release was scheduled for July 11, 2008, but was delayed until August 15, before being brought forward to August 13. As
5270-428: A similar outlandish Australian character in the film Natural Born Killers . Downey's practice of remaining in character between takes and even off the film set was also written into the script for his character to perform. Downey required between one-and-a-half and two hours of makeup application. According to Downey, "One makeup artist would start on one side of my face and a second makeup artist would start on
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5440-593: A sketch at the 2008 MTV Movie Awards which featured the actors attempting to create a successful viral video to promote the film with awkward results. In September 2008, Stiller and Downey attended the San Sebastián International Film Festival to promote the film. A screening was shown, but it was not chosen to compete against the other films at the festival. Between April 2008 and the film's commercial release in August 2008,
5610-409: A special 30-minute fictional E! True Hollywood Story aired about the making of Tropic Thunder . In video games, a themed scavenger hunt was incorporated into Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 , and Stiller allowed his likeness to be used in the online Facebook application game based on the film. As a tie-in for the film's release, Paramount announced it would market the energy drink known in
5780-753: A string of singles, such as " Western Union ", which became a top 10 US hit in 1967. From Phoenix, Arizona, the Spiders featured Vincent Furnier, later known as Alice Cooper , and eventually adopted that name as the group's moniker. As the Spiders they recorded two singles, most notably "Don't Blow Your Mind", which became a local hit in Phoenix in 1966. The group ventured to Los Angeles in 1967 in hopes of achieving greater success, however they found it not there, but while in Detroit several years later, re-christened as Alice Cooper . From Florida, Orlando's We
5950-399: A surprise for his fans worldwide. Paparazzi have ruined what should have been a fun discovery for moviegoers." The photography agency INF, who debuted the image, responded with a statement: "While these pictures were taken without breaking any criminal or civil laws , we've decided to pull them from circulation effective immediately." Serving as a last-minute replacement, Tobey Maguire
6120-449: A total of $ 195,702,811 worldwide. "It's so funny to me that the role is a guy who is an Oscar-seeking moron. His whole motivation is Oscars ... Irony is synonymous with pretty much everything that is going on." —Downey reacting to his Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Kirk Lazarus. In October 2008, Paramount chose to put end-of-year award push funds behind Tropic Thunder and began advertising for Downey to receive
6290-543: A variety of venues. Local and regional groups typically played at parties, school dances, and teen clubs. For acts of legal age (and in some cases younger), bars, nightclubs, and college fraternity socials also provided regular engagements. Occasionally, groups had the opportunity to open at shows for famous touring acts. Some garage rock bands went on tour, particularly those better-known, but even more obscure groups sometimes received bookings or airplay beyond their immediate locales. Groups often competed in " battles of
6460-530: A worthy descriptive replacement". The term "garage punk" has also persisted, and style has been referred to as " '60s punk" and " proto-punk ". "Frat rock" has been used to refer to the R&;B - and surf rock - derived garage sounds of certain acts, such as the Kingsmen and others. In the late 1950s, the initial impact of rock and roll on mainstream American culture waned as major record companies took
6630-683: Is 60s punk at its sexually charged, aggressive best." Also recording for Dunwich were the Del-Vetts and the Banshees , who released the cathartic "Project Blue". Other notable Chicago acts were the Little Boy Blues and the New Colony Six . Michigan had one of the largest scenes in the country. In early 1966, Detroit's MC5 released a version of "I Can Only Give You Everything" before they went on to greater success at
6800-482: Is a triumphant late summer comedy." Metacritic gave a film score of 71 out of 100 based on 39 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. Michael Cieply from the New York Times stated that the film was "shaping up as one of [DreamWorks]'s best prospects for the summer." Claudia Puig of USA Today gave
6970-468: Is characterized by basic chord structures played on electric guitars and other instruments, sometimes distorted through a fuzzbox , as well as often unsophisticated and occasionally aggressive lyrics and delivery. Its name derives from the perception that groups were often made up of young amateurs who rehearsed in the family garage , although many were professional. In the US and Canada, surf rock —and later
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7140-563: Is generally agreed that the garage rock boom peaked around 1966. That April, the Outsiders from Cleveland hit No. 5 with " Time Won't Let Me ", which was later covered by acts such as Iggy Pop . In July, the Standells from Los Angeles almost made it into the US top ten with " Dirty Water ", a song now often associated with Boston. " Psychotic Reaction " by the Count Five went to No. 5 on Billboard ' s Hot 100 and
7310-415: Is impossible to determine how many garage bands were active in the era, their numbers were extensive in what Markesich has characterized as a "cyclonic whirlwind of musical activity like none other". According to Mark Nobles, it is estimated that between 1964 and 1968 over 180,000 bands formed in the United States, and several thousand US garage acts made records during the era. Garage bands performed in
7480-411: Is the closest we came in the 1960s to the original rockabilly spirit of rock & roll." In addition to Rolling Stone and Creem , writings about the genre appeared in various independent "fanzine" publications during the period. In May 1973, Billy Altman launched the short-lived punk magazine , which pre-dated the more familiar 1975 publication of the same name , but, unlike the later magazine,
7650-517: The Coast Guard , has never left the United States, and that he wrote his "memoir" as a tribute. As the actors continue through the jungle, Kirk, who has become convinced that Tugg's ineptitude is jeopardizing them, and Kevin, the only actor who bothered to properly prepare for his role, discover that Tugg is leading them in the wrong direction. The resulting argument results in Kirk leading the rest of
7820-657: The UK Singles Chart at No. 38, and appeared in the 2005 remake of Fun with Dick and Jane , as well as the 2006 film Grandma's Boy . They also contributed to the Burnout 3 soundtrack with another single from that album, "Shake that Bush Again". Soon the band toured with Kings of Leon . The band traded labels for V2 Records in 2005. The band's album Have Mercy was to have been released on V2 Records in summer 2007 (originally set for January 2007, and then spring, according to V2 marketing materials). Due to
7990-425: The garage punk label originally and otherwise associated with 1960s garage bands. In the 2000s, a wave of garage-influenced acts associated with the post-punk revival emerged, and some achieved commercial success. Garage rock continues to appeal to musicians and audiences who prefer a "back to basics" or " do-it-yourself " musical approach. The term "garage rock", often used in reference to 1960s acts, stems from
8160-464: The iTunes Store after the film's release and was also included on the home video release. Amy Powell, an advertising executive with Paramount, reflected on the timing of the release of Madness : "We always thought that people would be talking about Tropic Thunder at the water cooler, and that's why we decided to release Rain of Madness two weeks into Tropic ' s run—to keep this positive buzz going." Tropic Thunder held an early screening at
8330-406: The "Best Comedy Trailer" award at the 9th annual Golden Trailer Awards . DreamWorks also released a red band trailer , the first of its kind used by the studio to promote one of its films. Stiller, Downey, and Black appeared on the seventh-season finale of American Idol in a sketch as The Pips performing with Gladys Knight (via archival footage ). The three actors also later performed
8500-597: The "British Invasion" of the US, a musical cross-fertilization developed between the two continents. In their 1964 transatlantic hits " You Really Got Me " and " All Day and All of the Night ", the Kinks took the influence of the Kingsmen's version of "Louie Louie" and applied greater volume and distortion, which in turn, influenced the approach of many American garage bands. With Van Morrison, Them recorded two songs widely covered by American garage bands: " Gloria ", which became
8670-477: The 1960s. Guitarist Link Wray has been cited as an early influence on garage rock and is known for his innovative use of guitar techniques and effects such as power chords and distortion. He is best known for his 1958 instrumental " Rumble ", which featured the sound of distorted, "clanging" guitar chords, which anticipated much of what was to come. The combined influences of early-1960s instrumental rock and surf rock also played significant roles in shaping
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#17328016122998840-565: The 1972 compilation album Nuggets —did much to define and memorialize the style. Between 1971 and 1973, certain American rock critics began to retroactively identify the music as a genre and for several years used the term " punk rock " to describe it, making it the first form of music to bear the description, predating the more familiar use of the term appropriated by the later punk rock movement that it influenced. The term "garage rock" gained favor amongst commentators and devotees during
9010-424: The 1980s. The style has also been referred to as " proto-punk ", or, in certain instances, "frat rock". In the early to mid-1980s, several revival scenes emerged featuring acts that consciously attempted to replicate the look and sound of 1960s garage bands. Later in the decade, a louder, more contemporary garage subgenre developed that combined garage rock with modern punk rock and other influences, sometimes using
9180-558: The 2008 San Diego Comic-Con , two weeks before it officially premiered on August 11, 2008, at the Mann Village Theatre in Westwood, California and two days before its wide release. Members of several disability groups picketed before the premiere, protesting at the portrayal of intellectual disability shown in the film. The groups revealed that it was the first time that they had ever protested together at an event. As
9350-523: The American bands who often attempted to emulate them, and the music of certain UK acts has been mentioned in particular relation to garage. Beat music emerged in Britain in the early 1960s, as musicians who originally came together to play rock and roll or skiffle assimilated American rhythm and blues influences. The genre provided the model for the format of many later rock groups. The Liverpool area had
9520-518: The American box office with $ 142.6 million. Tropic Thunder opened in 3,319 theaters and, for its first five days of American and Canadian release, earned $ 36,845,588. The film placed first in the weekend's box office with $ 25,812,796, surpassing Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Mirrors , which debuted the same weekend. Reacting to the film's opening receipts, DreamWorks spokesman Chip Sullivan stated, "We're thrilled, quite frankly. It played out exactly how we hoped." In foreign markets for
9690-937: The Atlantic coast, with acts such as the Vagrants , from Long Island, and Richard and the Young Lions from Newark, New Jersey, and the Blues Magoos from the Bronx, who got their start in New York's Greenwich Village scene and had a hit in 1966 with " (We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet ", which appeared on their debut album, Psychedelic Lollipop , along with a lengthy rendition of the Nashville Teens ' " Tobacco Road ". The garage craze came into full swing in California, particularly in Los Angeles. The Sunset Strip
9860-699: The B-52's , the Cramps , and Bruce Springsteen . Two months later, the Music Machine reached the top 20 with fuzz guitar-driven " Talk Talk ", whose sound and image that helped pave the way for later acts such as the Ramones . The Syndicate of Sound 's " Little Girl ", which featured a cocksure half-spoken lead vocal set over chiming 12-string guitar chords, reached No. 8 on the Billboard charts and
10030-541: The Beatles and other beat groups of the British Invasion —motivated thousands of young people to form bands between 1963 and 1968. Hundreds of grass-roots acts produced regional hits, some of which gained national popularity, usually played on AM radio stations. With the advent of psychedelia , numerous garage bands incorporated exotic elements into the genre's primitive stylistic framework. After 1968, as more sophisticated forms of rock music came to dominate
10200-664: The Beau Brummels broke into the national charts with " Laugh, Laugh ", followed by " Just a Little ". According to Richie Unterberger, they were perhaps the first American group to pose a successful response to the British Invasion. That year, Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs ' " Wooly Bully " went to No. 2, and they followed it up a year later with another No. 2 hit, "Little Red Riding Hood". Also in 1965,
10370-629: The Castaways almost reached Billboard 's top ten with " Liar, Liar ", which was later included on the 1972 Nuggets compilation. Featuring a lead vocal by Rick Derringer , " Hang On Sloopy " became a No. 1 hit for Indiana's the McCoys , topping the Billboard charts in October 1965. They were immediately signed to Bang Records and followed up with another hit in 1966, a cover of " Fever ", originally recorded by Little Willie John . It
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#173280161229910540-686: The Hairem) from Sacramento, California. All-female bands were not exclusive to North America. The Liverbirds were a beat group from the Beatles' home city of Liverpool, England, but became best known in Germany, often performing in Hamburg's Star-Club . All-female groups of the 1960s anticipated later acts associated with the 1970s punk movement, such as the Runaways and the Slits . In 1964 and 1965,
10710-573: The Kingsmen, frat rock also thrived elsewhere. In 1963, singles by several regional bands from other parts of the United States began appearing on the national charts, including " Surfin' Bird " by the Trashmen from Minneapolis, which essentially fused together parts from two songs previously recorded by the Rivingtons , " The Bird is the Word " and " Papa Oom Mow Mow ". " California Sun " by
10880-433: The Los Angeles and interior scenes. Tropic Thunder was the first major studio production on Kaua'i in five years. It is the largest production filmed on the island to date, and contributed more than $ 60 million to the local economy. Tim Ryan, the executive editor of Hawaii Film & Video Magazine , commented on the filming on the island: "I think Tropic Thunder will give Kaua'i much needed and long idled publicity in
11050-567: The Love In)", which was also featured on their debut album No Way Out . The album's opening cut was a rendition of "Let's Talk About Girls", previously recorded by the Tongues of Truth (aka the Grodes ). Chicago, known for electric blues, continued to have a strong recording industry in the 1960s and was also a hotbed of activity for garage rock. Chicago blues as well as the Rolling Stones,
11220-401: The Mysterians as an "exposition of punk rock". Conjuring up the mid-1960s, Lester Bangs in June 1971 wrote "...then punk bands started cropping up who were writing their own songs but taking the Yardbirds' sound and reducing it to this kind of goony fuzztone clatter ... oh, it was beautiful, it was pure folklore, Old America, and sometimes I think those were the best days ever". Much of
11390-477: The Pacific Northwest is sometimes referred to as "the Northwest Sound" and had its origins in the late 1950s, when a handful of R&B and rock & roll acts sprang up in various cities and towns in an area stretching from Puget Sound to Seattle and Tacoma, and beyond. There and elsewhere, groups of teenagers were inspired directly by touring R&B performers such as Johnny Otis and Richard Berry , and began to play cover versions of R&B songs. During
11560-462: The People came about as the result of the merger of two previous bands and featured songwriters Tommy Talton and Wane Proctor. They recorded a string of self-composed songs, such as primitive rockers, "You Burn Me Upside Down" and "Mirror of my Mind", as well as the esoteric "In the Past", later covered by the Chocolate Watchband. Evil from Miami, had a hard, sometimes thrashing sound and a reputation for musical mayhem, typified in songs such as "From
11730-435: The Pretty Things , and the Yardbirds influenced the Shadows of Knight , who recorded for Dunwich Records and were known for a tough, hard-driving sound. In 1966 they had hits with versions of Them 's Van Morrison -penned " Gloria " and Bo Diddley's "Oh Yeah", and also released the aggressive "I'm Gonna Make You Mine", which Mike Stax remarked "was recorded live in the studio with the amps cranked beyond distortion, this
11900-432: The Reflections from Winnipeg , Manitoba, began in 1962 and had a hit in the mid-1960s, Johnny Kidd & the Pirates ' " Shakin' All Over ", then went on to greater success in the late 1960s and early 1970s as the Guess Who . In 1966, the Ugly Ducklings from Toronto had a hit with "Nothin ' " and toured with the Rolling Stones. The Haunted from Montreal specialized in a gritty blues-based sound influenced by
12070-431: The Rivieras , from South Bend, Indiana followed, becoming a hit in early 1964. Frat rock persisted into the mid-1960s with acts such as the Swingin' Medallions , who had a top twenty hit with " Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love) " in 1966. During the mid-1960s, garage rock entered its most active period, prompted by the influence of the Beatles and the British Invasion . On February 9, 1964, during their first visit to
12240-625: The Rolling Stones and released the single "1–2–5". Two other bands from Toronto were the Paupers and the Mynah Birds . The Paupers released several singles and two albums. The Mynah Birds featured the combination of Rick James on lead vocals and Neil Young on guitar, who both went on to fame as solo acts, as well as Bruce Palmer who later accompanied Young to California to join Buffalo Springfield in 1966. They signed
12410-522: The Rolling Stones on their American tour the following year. They had a hit in England with a version of " Can't You Hear My Heartbeat ". The Continental Co-ets from Fulda, Minnesota, were active from 1963 to 1967 and had a hit in Canada with "I Don't Love You No More". The Pleasure Seekers (later known as Cradle), from Detroit, featured Suzi Quatro and her sisters. Quatro went on to greater fame as
12580-581: The Smoke , the Sorrows , and Wimple Winch . Some commentators have branded the Troggs as garage rock. Extolling the virtues of their seemingly unrepentant primitivism and sexually charged innuendo, in 1971 Lester Bangs memorialized the Troggs as a quintessential "punk" [i.e. garage] band of the 1960s. They had a worldwide hit in 1966 with " Wild Thing ", written by American Chip Taylor . The Equals ,
12750-551: The Standells who are seen during the opening credits performing the theme song, as well as San Jose's the Chocolate Watchband . The Seeds and the Leaves were favorites with the "in-crowd" and managed to achieve national hits with songs that have come to be regarded as garage classics: the Seeds with " Pushin' Too Hard " and the Leaves with their version of " Hey Joe ", which became a staple in countless bands' repertoires. Love ,
12920-470: The Troggs . Their 1966 worldwide hit " Wild Thing " became a staple in countless American garage bands' repertoires. By 1965, the influence of the British Invasion prompted folk musicians such as Bob Dylan and members of the Byrds to adopt the use of electric guitars and amplifiers, resulting in what became termed folk rock . The resulting success of Dylan, the Byrds, and other folk rock acts influenced
13090-536: The US prior to the arrival of the Beatles ;... [T]he indigenous popular music which functioned in this way ... was the proto-punk more commonly identified as garage rock ". As a result of cross-pollination between surf rock, hot rod music, and other influences, a new style of rock sometimes referred to as frat rock emerged, which has been mentioned as an early subgenre of garage rock. The Kingsmen 's 1963 off-the-cuff version of "Louie Louie" became
13260-399: The United States, the Beatles made an historic appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show watched by a record-breaking viewing audience of a nation mourning the recent death of President John F. Kennedy . For many, particularly the young, the Beatles' visit re-ignited the sense of excitement and possibility that had momentarily faded in the wake of the assassination. Much of this new excitement
13430-464: The White Stripes . According to Peter Blecha , they "were the unholy practitioners of punk rock long before anyone knew what to call it". Founded in 1960, they eventually enlisted the services of vocalist Gerry Rosalie and saxophonist Rob Lind and proceeded to cut their first single, " The Witch " in 1964. The song was re-issued again in 1965, this time with the even more intense "Psycho" on
13600-723: The Who and the Small Faces tailored their appeal to the mod subculture centered in London. Some of the harder-driving and more obscure bands associated with the mod scene in the UK are sometimes referred to as Freakbeat , which is sometimes viewed as a more stylish British equivalent of garage rock. Several bands often mentioned as Freakbeat are the Creation , the Action , the Move ,
13770-766: The Yeah Yeah Yeahs . From April 2010 to February 2012, Will Rockwell-Scott was the drummer for Australian rock band Wolfmother . That same year, Mooney Suzuki's song "Do It" was used for a commercial by SAP AG . Notable past members include Nikolai Fraiture of the Strokes and the Strokes' manager, Ryan Gentles , Jay Braun of the Negatones , Steven Mertens of Adam Green and the Moldy Peaches , Carson Bell of The Pattern , and Marc-Phillipe Eskenazi of Albert Hammond, Jr. Original member Graham Tyler left
13940-412: The antics here are pretty thin, redundant and one-note." Glenn Kenny of RogerEbert.com said that the film was "intermittently amusing but entirely smug and hateful." Rick Groen of The Globe and Mail said that it was "an assault in the guise of a comedy—watching it is like getting mugged by a clown." J.R. Jones of Chicago Reader stated, "The rest of the movie never lives up to the hilarity of
14110-604: The band recorded their fifth album and made a cameo appearance in Ben Stiller's film Tropic Thunder , in addition to contributing covers of "I Just Want to Celebrate" and " All Along the Watchtower " to the film's soundtrack. Sammy James Jr. mentored a young rocker for an episode of the award-winning MTV series Made . In April 2019 it was announced the band would play the Mercury Lounge on July 19 as part of
14280-433: The band to become a graphic designer, as did Augie Wilson, drummer on Alive & Amplified , upon graduating from Cooper Union . The current lineup includes guitarist Chris Isom, who has played with members of The Fiery Furnaces and The Negatones , as well as bass player Reno Bo, who contributes to Albert Hammond, Jr. and The Fame. Drummer Will Rockwell-Scott rejoined the band for their Have Mercy tour after leaving upon
14450-671: The bands ", which allowed musicians to gain exposure and a chance to win a prize, such as free equipment or recording time in a local studio. Contests were held, locally, regionally and nationally, and three of the most prestigious national events were held annually by the Tea Council of the US, the Music Circus , and the United States Junior Chamber . Performances often sounded amateurish, naïve, or intentionally raw, with typical themes revolving around
14620-574: The behest of The Donnas . After shows with The White Stripes and The Greenhornes , the band decided to record another record with Jim Diamond . Electric Sweat came out in 2002 and the band toured with longtime friends the Strokes and Swedish garage rockers the Hives . This tour led to their signing with Columbia Records , followed by appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brien , The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn , and Friday Night with Jonathan Ross . During this time, Sammy James Jr. penned
14790-645: The best films of 2008. Stephen King placed it at the fourth position, calling the film "the funniest, most daring comedy of the year." The Oregonian ' s Marc Mohan, placed it sixth, and several critics placed it seventh: Elizabeth Weitzman of the New York Daily News , Premiere magazine, Mike Russell of The Oregonian , as well as Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle . David Ansen of Newsweek placed it eighth and Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly included
14960-467: The box office for the four weeks prior to the release of Tropic Thunder . Bob Thompson, a writer for the National Post , speculated that Tropic Thunder ' s opening weekend would outperform The Dark Knight for the weekend. In a list compiled prior to the summer's film releases, Entertainment Weekly predicted that the film would be the tenth highest-grossing film of the summer at
15130-406: The box office. Reacting to Tropic Thunder' s release date, Rob Moore , vice chairman of Paramount Pictures, stated, "For a young person at the end of summer, you want to have some fun and forget about going back to school. What better than a crazy comedy?" Tropic Thunder was released in the United States on DVD and Blu-ray on November 18, 2008, three months after its release and a week after
15300-471: The cast back toward the resort they are staying at as an increasingly delirious Tugg is captured by the Flaming Dragon guards. Taken to their base, Tugg believes it is a POW camp from the script. He is then brought forward to the gang's boss, the 12-year-old Tran, who discovers that Tugg is the star of their favorite film, the box-office bomb Simple Jack , and forces him to reenact it several times
15470-420: The cast to give better performances, assures the others that Damien is alive and that they are still shooting the film. Kirk is unconvinced but joins them in their trek to escape the jungle. When Four Leaf and pyrotechnics operator Cody Underwood try to locate the deceased director, they are captured by Flaming Dragon guards. Four Leaf is revealed to have hands; he confesses to Underwood that he actually served in
15640-410: The completion of Electric Sweat . Rockwell-Scott has also played drums for New York City-based quintet Apes & Androids . Garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or ' 60s punk ) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style
15810-518: The country picked up guitars and started bands by the thousands. In many cases, garage bands were particularly influenced by the increasingly bold sound of a second wave of British groups with a harder, blues-based attack, such as the Kinks , the Who , the Animals , the Yardbirds , Small Faces , Pretty Things , Them , and the Rolling Stones often resulting in a raw and primitive sound. Numerous acts sometimes characterized as garage rock formed in countries outside North America, such as England's
15980-479: The crew was required to be 3,000 feet (910 m) away for their safety. A trailer for the film was released in April 2008. The Calgary Herald gave it a rating of 3/5, commenting: "This could either be good or very, very bad." Gary Susman of Entertainment Weekly questioned whether the film would "... turn into precisely the kind of bloated action monstrosity that it's making fun of." The trailer received
16150-474: The de facto "big bang" for three-chord rock, starting as a regional hit in Seattle, then rising to No. 1 on the national charts and eventually becoming a major success overseas. The group unwittingly became the target of an FBI investigation in response to complaints about the song's alleged use of profanity in its nearly indecipherable lyrics. Though often associated with Pacific Northwest acts such as
16320-432: The difficult terrain. The film advising company Warriors Inc. was enlisted to ensure that the war scenes looked authentic, including the attire worn by the actors. Former members of the U.S. military taught the actors how to handle, fire, and reload their weapons, as well as to perform various tactical movements. The opening war scene was filmed over three weeks and required 50 stuntmen. Animatics were used to map out
16490-455: The distortion-driven "She Lied" in 1964, which Rob Fitzpatrick called "a truly spectacular piece of proto-punk, the sort of perfect blend of melody and aggression that the Ramones would go on to transform the planet with a dozen or more years later". The Squires from Bristol, Connecticut, issued a song now regarded as a garage rock classic, "Going All the Way". Garage rock flourished up and down
16660-564: The end of its theatrical run in the U.S. and Canada. The film was released on home video on January 26, 2009, in the United Kingdom. Special features include audio commentaries (including one featuring Stiller, Downey, and Black, with Downey providing his commentary as Lincoln Osiris, a nod to a joke in the film that Lazarus never breaks character until he completes the DVD commentary), several featurettes, deleted scenes , an alternate ending. A 2-disc director's cut, with 12 minutes of extended footage,
16830-558: The end of the decade. The Unrelated Segments recorded a string of songs beginning with local hit "The Story Of My Life", followed by "Where You Gonna Go". In 1966, the Litter from Minneapolis released the guitar-overdriven " Action Woman ", a song which Michael Hann described as "one of garage's gnarliest, snarliest, most tight-trousered pieces of hormonal aggression". In Texas, the 13th Floor Elevators from Austin, featured Roky Erickson on guitar and vocals and are considered one of
17000-460: The explosions and crashes were embellished to look more destructive. The visual effects supervisor Michael Fink reflected on the exaggerated explosions: "We worked really hard to make the CG crashing helicopter in the hot landing sequence look real. Ben was adamant about that, but at the same time he wanted the explosion to be huge. When you see it hit the ground, it was like it was filled with gasoline! It
17170-455: The film a somewhat positive review: "There are some wildly funny scenes, a few leaden ones and others that are scattershot, with humorous satire undercut by over-the-top grisliness. Still, when it's funny, it's really funny." Other reviewers were more critical. Todd McCarthy's review in Variety stated: "Apart from startling, out-there comic turns by Robert Downey Jr. and Tom Cruise, however,
17340-483: The film also received mixed reviews. David Ansen of Newsweek approved of the trailers: " Tropic Thunder is the funniest movie of the summer—so funny, in fact, that you start laughing before the film itself has begun." Christy Lemire of the Associated Press called the trailers "the best part of the trip." Robert Wilonsky of The Village Voice was critical, saying that the trailers' comedy "resides in
17510-421: The film as "Booty Sweat". Michael Corcoran, Paramount's president of consumer products, commented on the release: "We're very excited, because it has the potential to live for quite a while, well beyond the film." The drink was sold in college bookstores, on Amazon.com , and at other retailers. Several faux websites were created for the characters and some of their prior film roles. A website for Simple Jack ,
17680-489: The film being called a spoof Ben Stiller developed the premise for Tropic Thunder while shooting Empire of the Sun , in which he played a small part. He wanted to make a film based on the actors he knew who became "self-important" and "self-involved" and appeared to believe that they had been part of a real military unit after taking part in boot camps to prepare for war film roles. Co-writer Justin Theroux revealed that
17850-545: The film had over 250 promotional screenings. On August 3, 2008, Stiller, Downey, and Black visited Camp Pendleton , a U.S. Marine Corps base in California , to present a screening to over a thousand military members and their families. The screening was on behalf of the United Service Organizations and included the actors heading to the screening by helicopter and Humvees . On August 8, 2008,
18020-415: The film in the tenth position. Stacey Snider , the chief executive of DreamWorks, suggested that the film would earn around $ 30 million in its opening weekend and go on to be as successful as Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan , which earned $ 129 million in the U.S. and Canada and $ 260 million worldwide. The Dark Knight had been the number one film at
18190-436: The film's opening weekend, it was released in 418 Russian and 19 United Arab Emirates locations earning $ 2.2 million and $ 319,000, respectively. The film maintained its number one position at the American and Canadian box office for the following two weekends, making it the second film in 2008 (after The Dark Knight ) to hold the number-one position for more than two consecutive weekends. The film's widest release
18360-512: The first rock-and-roll act to be signed to Columbia Records , but did not achieve their commercial breakthrough until 1965 with the song "Steppin Out", which was followed by string of chart-topping hits such as " Just Like Me " (originally recorded by the Wilde Knights ) and " Kicks ". The Sonics from Tacoma had a raunchy, hard-driving sound that influenced later acts such as Nirvana and
18530-500: The flip side. They released several albums and are also known for other "high-octane" rockers such as "Cinderella" and "He's Waitin ' ". Prompted by the Sonics, the Wailers entered the mid-1960s with a harder-edged sound in the fuzz-driven "Hang Up" and "Out of Our Tree". The Barbarians from Cape Cod , wearing sandals and long hair and cultivating an image of "noble savages", recorded an album and several singles, such as " Are You
18700-615: The following year. Other regional scenes of teenage bands playing R&B-oriented rock were well-established in the early 1960s, several years before the British Invasion , in places such as Texas and the Midwest . At the same time, in Southern California surf bands formed, playing raucous guitar- and saxophone-driven instrumentals. Writer Neil Campbell commented: "There were literally thousands of rough-and-ready groups performing in local bars and dance halls throughout
18870-617: The fuzz-driven " It's a Cry'n Shame ", which in Mike Markesich's Teenbeat Mayhem is ranked as one of the top two garage rock songs of all time, second only to "You're Gonna Miss Me", by the 13th Floor Elevators. The Outcasts from San Antonio cut two highly regarded songs, "I'm in Pittsburgh and It's Raining", which became a local hit, and "1523 Blair", that Jason Ankeny described as "Texas psychedelia at its finest". The Five Americans were from Durant, Oklahoma, and released
19040-463: The garage outfit Thee Sixpence and had a No. 1 hit in 1967 with psychedelic " Incense and Peppermints ". Garage rock was not an exclusively male phenomenon—it fostered the emergence of all-female bands whose members played their own instruments. One of the first of such acts was New York's Goldie and the Gingerbreads , who appeared at New York's Peppermint Lounge in 1964 and accompanied
19210-461: The hit "Talk Talk". The Electric Prunes were one of the more successful garage bands to incorporate psychedelic influences into their sound, such as in the hit " I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night) ", whose opening featured a buzzing fuzz -toned guitar, and which appeared on their self titled debut LP . Garage rock was also present in the Latino community of East L.A. The Premiers , who had
19380-471: The impact of the Beatles and the British Invasion shifted the musical landscape, presenting not only a challenge, but also a new impetus, as previously established acts in the Pacific Northwest adapted to the new climate, often reaching greater levels of commercial and artistic success, while scores of new bands formed. After relocating to Portland, Paul Revere & the Raiders in 1963 became
19550-511: The inexperienced director Damien Cockburn, who cannot control them, resulting in a million-dollar pyrotechnics scene being wasted. With the project months behind schedule, studio executive Les Grossman gives Damien an ultimatum: get the cast under control, or the project will be canceled. On Four Leaf's advice, Damien drops the actors into the middle of the jungle, with hidden cameras and rigged special effects explosions to film " guerrilla-style ." The actors have guns that fire blanks , along with
19720-478: The initial script concept was to have actors go to a mock boot camp and return with post traumatic stress disorder . The final script was developed to satirize Vietnam War films such as Apocalypse Now , Rambo , Missing in Action , Platoon , Full Metal Jacket , Hamburger Hill , and The Deer Hunter . Theroux pointed out that viewers have an increased awareness of the inner workings of Hollywood due to celebrity websites and Hollywood news sources, so
19890-460: The instrumental "Tall Cool One". After the demise of the Blue Notes, "Rockin' Robin" did a brief stint with the Wailers, and with him on vocals in 1962, they recorded a version of Richard Berry's 1957 song " Louie Louie "—their arrangement became the much-replicated blueprint for practically every band in the region, including Portland's the Kingsmen who went on to achieve a major hit with it
20060-414: The island sought 500 residents to portray the villagers in the film. Two units shot simultaneously on the island from the ground, and an aerial unit shot from helicopters. Many of the sets and the bridge used for one of the final scenes were built in three months. The island's erratic weather hampered filming with rain and lighting. The crew also faced complications in moving the equipment and cast due to
20230-616: The island was also selected for its similarity to Vietnam, based on its dense foliage, variety of terrains, and weather. Kaua'i was first scouted as a possible location to film Tropic Thunder in 2004. Stiller spent more than 25 hours over six weeks exploring the island, using all-terrain vehicles, boats, and helicopters. DreamWorks gave the green light for filming in 2006, but preproduction lasted for six months, most of this time spent on scouting additional locations for filming. Filming occurred on sets at Universal Studios in Hollywood for
20400-501: The land of the obvious, easy chuckle." Downey, Stiller, Black, and Cruise were repeatedly singled out for praise by numerous critics, claiming that they "stole the show", were "off-the-charts hilarious", and would bring viewers "the fondest memories" of their work. Scott Feinberg of the Los Angeles Times criticized the concept of Downey's portrayal of an African-American: "I just can't imagine any circumstance under which
20570-683: The late 1950s and early 1960s other instrumental groups playing in the region, such as the Ventures , formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington , who came to specialize in a surf rock sound, and the Frantics from Seattle. The Blue Notes from Tacoma, Washington, fronted by "Rockin' Robin" Roberts , were one of the city's first teenage rock & roll bands. The Wailers (often referred to as the Fabulous Wailers) had national chart hit in 1959,
20740-400: The marketplace, garage rock records largely disappeared from national and regional charts, and the movement faded. Other countries in the 1960s experienced similar rock movements that have sometimes been characterized as variants of garage rock. During the 1960s, garage rock was not recognized as a distinct genre and had no specific name, but critical hindsight in the early 1970s—and especially
20910-463: The media. In November 2007, images of Cruise wearing a bald headpiece and a fatsuit appeared on Inside Edition , as well as on the Internet. Cruise's attorneys threatened a lawsuit if photos showing Cruise in costume were published. They approached various sites that were hosting the image and quickly had it removed. A representative for Cruise stated: "Mr. Cruise's appearance was supposed to be
21080-429: The most positively praised for his performance. However, the depiction of people with disabilities and the use of blackface makeup attracted controversy. The film opened at the top of the American box office and retained the number-one position for three consecutive weeks, ultimately grossing more than $ 195 million worldwide before its release on home media on November 18, 2008. Downey was nominated for an Academy Award ,
21250-475: The necessary camera angles for filming. Six companies working on different scenes and elements created 500 shots of visual effects in the film. These were at times altered weekly due to the reactions of test audiences in screenings. CIS Visual Effects Group assisted with the Scorcher VI faux trailer and twenty additional shots for the home media release. To expand on the comedy in the film, some of
21420-402: The new character, Les Grossman, as a middle-aged businessman. The role required that Cruise don a fatsuit , large prosthetic hands, and a bald cap. It was Cruise's idea to give the character large hands and dance to " Low ". Stiller intended to keep Cruise's role a secret until the film's release. In addition, Paramount Pictures refused to release promotional pictures of Cruise's character to
21590-528: The onset of the annual Hollywood film award season at the end of 2008, Tropic Thunder began receiving nominations and awards starting with a win for "Hollywood Comedy of the Year Award" at the 12th annual Hollywood Film Festival on October 27, 2008. The film was nominated for Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical, for the Satellite Awards . In addition, Downey was nominated for Best Actor in
21760-483: The opening, partly because the large-scale production smothers the gags but mostly because those gags are so easy to smother." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave 3.5/4 and wrote, "The movie is, may I say, considerably better than Stiller's previous film, Zoolander (2001). It's the kind of summer comedy that rolls in, makes a lot of people laugh and rolls on to video." The faux trailers before
21930-518: The opposition: " Tropic Thunder is drawing fire from special interest groups" for "its frequent use of the word 'retard', but discerning audiences will know where the humor is targeted. And they'll be laughing too hard to take offense." In January 2009, Entertainment Weekly included Tropic Thunder in its list "25 Great Comedies From the Past 25 Years" for its "spot-on skewering of Hollywood." The film also appeared on several critics' top ten lists of
22100-465: The other side, and then they'd meet in the middle." Downey acknowledged the potential controversy over his role: "At the end of the day, it's always about how well you commit to the character. If I didn't feel it was morally sound, or that it would be easily misinterpreted that I'm just C. Thomas Howell [in Soul Man ], I would've stayed home." Co-star Brandon T. Jackson stated: "When I first read
22270-469: The palm trees used in the explosion were moved to the specific location after the crew determined the impact of the lighting and necessary camera angles. Due to the size and cost of the 1.25-second explosion, it was performed only once and was captured from twelve cameras. For the safety of the crew and cast, the detonators were added one hour before the explosion and nobody was allowed to be within 400 feet (120 m) during detonation. The explosion
22440-473: The part while on vacation in Hawaii . Downey said on CBS ' The Early Show that his first reaction was, "This is the stupidest idea I've ever heard!" and that Stiller responded, "Yeah, I know – isn't it great?" In another interview, Downey said that he accepted the part but, having no idea where or even how to start building the character of Lazarus, eventually settled on a jive-esque speech pattern and
22610-585: The part. Following his suicide attempt in August 2007, Wilson dropped out of the film and was replaced by Matthew McConaughey . Southern California and Mexico were considered for the main unit filming, but Stiller selected the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i where he has a home for the majority of the shooting. Kaua'i was chosen over Mexico because a tax credit was negotiated with the Kaua'i Film Commission for in-state spending. Cinematographer John Toll stated that
22780-418: The perception that many performers were young amateurs who rehearsed in the family garage. While numerous bands were made up of middle-class teenagers from the suburbs, others were from rural or urban areas or were composed of professional musicians in their twenties. Referring to the 1960s, Mike Markesich commented "teenage rock & roll groups (i.e. combos) proliferated Everywheresville USA". Though it
22950-501: The prisoners. Still, a combination of broken Mandarin Chinese and inconsistencies in his story sets off Tran. Knowing their cover has been blown, the actors begin firing, fooling the gang members into surrendering. Their control of the gang falls apart when Jeff grabs Tran and heads for the drugs, and the gang, realizing the guns fire blanks, recover their guns and fight back. The four actors locate Four Leaf, Underwood, and Tugg and cross
23120-510: The production arena.... It should put Kaua'i back on the production consideration radar." Preliminary production crews were on the island starting in December 2006, and principal photography began in July 2007, with filming lasting 13 weeks over seven separate locations on the island. Much of the filming took place on private land as well as conservation status designated areas. Casting calls on
23290-511: The production of Empire of the Sun in the spring of 1987, and later enlisted Theroux and Cohen to complete a script. The film was greenlighted in 2006 and produced by Stuart Cornfeld , Stiller, and Eric McLeod for DreamWorks Pictures and Red Hour Productions as an international coproduction between the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Filming took place in 2007 on the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i over thirteen weeks and
23460-505: The prominent bands of the era. They had a regional hit with " You're Gonna Miss Me " and a string of albums, but the band was hampered by drug busts and related legal problems that hastened their demise. Richie Unterberger singled out The Zakary Thaks , from Corpus Christi, for their songwriting skills, and they are best known for the frantic and sped-up "Bad Girl". The Moving Sidewalks , from Houston, featured Billy Gibbons on guitar, later of ZZ Top . The Gentlemen from Dallas cut
23630-544: The reorganization of V2 announced in January 2007, the album was not released on that label, but instead came out on June 19 on indie label Elixia Records. In 2007, the band recorded a cover version of Cher 's " Just Like Jesse James " for Engine Room Recordings' compilation album Guilt by Association , which appeared in September 2007. Around this time, they also recorded the "spring soundtrack" for DKNY jeans. In 2008
23800-443: The revival of interest in 1960s garage rock can be traced to the release of the 1972 album Nuggets compiled by Lenny Kaye. In the liner notes, Kaye used "punk rock" as a collective term for 1960s garage bands and also "garage-punk" to describe a song recorded in 1966 by the Shadows of Knight. In the January 1973 Rolling Stone review of Nuggets , Greg Shaw commented: "Punk rock is a fascinating genre ... Punk rock at its best
23970-747: The rocket's path. The crew return to Hollywood , and footage from the hidden cameras is compiled into the feature film Tropic Blunder , which becomes a major critical and commercial success. The film wins Tugg his first Academy Award, which Kirk presents to him at the ceremony. Several actors and celebrities portray themselves, including Tobey Maguire , Tyra Banks , Maria Menounos , Martin Lawrence , The Mooney Suzuki , Jason Bateman , Lance Bass , Jennifer Love Hewitt , Alicia Silverstone , Christine Taylor , Mini Anden , Anthony Ruivivar , Yvette Nicole Brown , Rachel Avery , Sean Penn , and Jon Voight . Co-writer Justin Theroux appears in two brief roles as
24140-419: The script was easier to write. Dialogue for unscripted portions of the storyboard was developed on set by the actors or was improvised. Stiller's original plan was to cast Keanu Reeves as Tugg Speedman and himself as Rick Peck. Etan Cohen created the role of Kirk Lazarus as a way of lampooning the great lengths that some method actors go to depict a role. Robert Downey Jr. was approached by Stiller about
24310-424: The script, I was like: What? Blackface ? But when I saw him [act] he, like, became a black man ... It was just good acting. It was weird on the set because he would keep going with the character. He's a method actor." Stiller commented on Downey's portrayal of a white actor playing a black man: "When people see the movie – in the context of the film, he's playing a method actor who's gone to great lengths to play
24480-523: The site appeared to be insensitive to people with disabilities." A coalition of more than 20 disability advocacy groups, including the Special Olympics and the Arc of the United States , objected to the film's repeated use of the word "retard". DreamWorks offered to screen the film for the groups on August 8 to determine if it still offended them. The screening was postponed to the same day of
24650-453: The sound and approach of numerous garage bands. In the wake of the British Invasion, garage rock experienced a boom in popularity. With thousands of garage bands active in the US and Canada, hundreds produced regional hits during the period, often receiving airplay on local AM radio stations. Several acts gained wider exposure just long enough to have one or occasionally more national hits in an era rife with " one-hit wonders ". In 1965,
24820-480: The sound garage rock. According to Lester Bangs , "the origins of garage rock as a genre can be traced to California and the Pacific Northwest in the early Sixties". The Pacific Northwest , which encompasses Washington , Oregon , and Idaho , played a critical role in the inception of garage rock, hosting the first scene to produce a sizable number of acts, and pre-dated the British Invasion by several years. The signature garage sound that eventually emerged in
24990-448: The term " punk rock " to characterize it, making it the first musical form to bear the description. While the coinage of the term "punk" in relation to rock music is unknown, it was sometimes used then to describe primitive or rudimentary rock musicianship, but more specifically 1960s garage as a style. In the May 1971 issue of Creem , Dave Marsh described a performance by ? and
25160-658: The title track in the Jack Black movie School of Rock . He also wrote the closing theme "Tread Lightly Rosie Grier." In 2003, at Lollapalooza , the band began playing new songs such as "Primitive Condition", which would appear on the Matrix -produced album, Alive and Amplified . The title song became the band's biggest hit, appearing in the Madden NFL 2005 , Shaun White Snowboarding , and ATV Offroad Fury 3 video game soundtracks. "Alive and Amplified" broke into
25330-546: The trailer as released in theaters. At least one of the ads was produced by Paramount Pictures and intended for early For Your Consideration awareness for Downey's role. On January 22, 2009, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences nominated Downey for Best Supporting Actor. At the 81st Academy Awards , Downey lost to Heath Ledger , who won posthumously for his role as The Joker in The Dark Knight . With
25500-459: The traumas of high school life and songs about "lying girls" being particularly common. The lyrics and delivery were frequently more aggressive than that of the more established acts of the time, often with nasal, growled, or shouted vocals, sometimes punctuated by shrieks or screams at climactic moments of release. Instrumentation was frequently characterized by basic chord structures played on electric guitars or keyboards often distorted through
25670-680: The travails of his disfigurement, released under the Barbarians' name, but backed by future members of the Band . Boston's the Remains (sometimes called Barry & the Remains), led by Barry Tashian , became one of the region's most popular bands and, in addition to issuing five singles and a self-titled album , toured with the Beatles in 1966. Also from Boston, the Rockin' Ramrods released
25840-456: The venue's 25th anniversary celebrations. The show sold out immediately. In May, a second show was added for July 20. Guitarist Chris Isom formed a band, Loud Owls, while bassist Reno Bo played bass with Albert Hammond, Jr. , putting his solo album on hold. Sammy James Jr. played New York City with bands such as The Pierces , Men Without Pants and Native Korean Rock , featuring Russell Simins of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and Karen O of
26010-485: The year. By September 2009, 2,963,000 DVD units had been sold, gathering revenue of $ 49,870,248. An HDR Dolby Vision mastered Ultra HD Blu-ray was released through Kino Lorber . The review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives Tropic Thunder a rating of 82% based on 252 reviews and an average rating of 7.1/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "With biting satire, plenty of subversive humor, and an unforgettable turn by Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
26180-504: The younger moviegoers who are abandoning him." Several critics commented on the controversy over lines in the film about the mentally disabled. Duane Dudek of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote that the film "is just sophomoric enough to offend. And while it is also funny, it is without the empathy or compassion to cause us to wonder why we are laughing." Christian Toto of The Washington Times argued against
26350-588: Was also nominated by both the Screen Actors Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts for Best Supporting Actor awards. Tropic Thunder was criticized by the disability advocacy community. The website for Simple Jack was withdrawn on August 4 amid several groups' concerns over its portrayal of intellectual disability . A spokesman for DreamWorks said, "We heard their concerns, and we understand that taken out of context,
26520-714: Was also released, containing additional special features and the Rain of Madness mockumentary. For the film's first week of release, Tropic Thunder placed on several video charts. It reached second place on the Nielsen VideoScan First Alert sales chart and Nielsen's Blu-ray Disc chart, earning $ 19,064,959 (not including Blu-ray sales). In rentals, it placed first on the Home Media Magazine ' s video rental chart. The DVD sales in 2008 totaled $ 42,271,059, placing it in 28th for DVD sales for
26690-429: Was around". In the early 1970s, Kaye and other US rock critics, such as Dave Marsh , Lester Bangs , and Greg Shaw , began to retroactively draw attention to the music, speaking nostalgically of mid-1960s garage bands (and subsequent artists then perceived to be their stylistic inheritors) for the first time as a genre. "Garage rock" was not the initial name applied to the style. In the early 1970s such critics used
26860-460: Was available to be on set for only two hours to film his scenes in Satan's Alley . Downey said he was amazed Maguire would agree to do the film and felt like they were creating a " karmic pay-off" for their scenes together in the 2000 film Wonder Boys , where Downey's character has a one-night stand with Maguire's character. After Cruise vacated the role of Rick Peck, Owen Wilson was cast to play
27030-513: Was expressed in rock music, often to the chagrin of parents and elders. In the wake of the Beatles' first visit, a subsequent string of successful British beat groups and acts achieved success in America between 1964 and 1966, often referred to in the US as "the British Invasion". Such acts had a profound impact, leading many (often surf or hot rod groups) to respond by altering their style, and countless new bands to form, as teenagers around
27200-414: Was in 3,473 theaters, placing it in the top 25 widest releases in the U.S. for 2008. For 2008, the film was the fifth-highest-grossing domestic R-rated film. The film's U.S. and Canada gross of over $ 110 million made Tropic Thunder Stiller's most successful film as a director. The film has had gross receipts of $ 110,515,313 in the U.S. and Canada and $ 85,187,498 in international markets for
27370-532: Was largely devoted to discussion of 1960s garage and psychedelic acts. Greg Shaw's seasonal publication, Who Put the Bomp! , was influential amongst enthusiasts and collectors of the genre in the early 1970s. Though the phrase "punk rock" was the favored generic term in the early 1970s, "garage band" was also mentioned in reference to groups. In Rolling Stone in March 1971, John Mendelsohn made an oblique reference to "every last punk teenage garage band having its Own Original Approach". The term "punk rock"
27540-480: Was later appropriated by the more commonly-known punk rock movement that emerged in the mid-1970s and is now most commonly applied to groups associated with that movement or who followed in its wake. For the 1960s style, the term "garage rock" came into favor in the 1980s. According to Mike Markesich: "Initially launched into the underground vernacular at the start of the '80s, the garage tag ... slowly sifted its way amid like-minded fans to finally be recognized as
27710-433: Was later covered by acts such as the Dead Boys , the Banned , and the Chesterfield Kings . In 1965, a Pittsburgh disc jockey discovered " Hanky Panky ", a 1964 song by a since-defunct group, the Shondells; the song's belated success revived the career of Tommy James , who assembled a new group under the name Tommy James and the Shondells and produced 12 more top-40 singles. In 1967, Strawberry Alarm Clock emerged from
27880-407: Was later memorialized by Lester Bangs in his 1971 piece "Psychotic Reactions and Carburetor Dung". " 96 Tears " (1966) by Question Mark and the Mysterians , from Saginaw, Michigan, became a No. 1 hit in the US. The song's organ riffs and theme of teenage heartbreak have been mentioned as a landmark recording of the garage rock era and recognized for influencing the works of acts as diverse as
28050-403: Was made up of twelve individual explosions and resulted in a mushroom cloud that reached 350 feet (110 m) in the air. For the scene in the film, Danny McBride's character, Cody Underwood, was the only actor shown in the shot of the explosion. All the other characters were added digitally. The explosion of the bridge in one of the final scenes used nine cameras to capture the shot, and
28220-459: Was not exclusive to it. As part of the international beat trend of the 1960s, other countries developed grass-roots rock movements that closely mirrored what was happening in North America, which have sometimes been characterized as variants of garage rock or as closely related forms. Although Britain did not develop a distinct garage rock genre in the same way as the United States, many British beat groups shared important characteristics with
28390-412: Was released. The mockumentary was a parody of Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse . It follows co-writer Justin Theroux as a fictitious documentarian named Jan Jürgen documenting the behind-the-scenes aspects of the film within the film . Marketing for the faux documentary included a movie poster and an official website prior to Tropic Thunder ' s release. The mockumentary was released on
28560-414: Was the center of L.A. nightlife, providing bands with high-profile venues to attract a larger following and possibly capture the attention of record labels looking to sign a new act. Exploitation films such as Riot on Sunset Strip , Mondo Hollywood , captured the musical and social milieu of life on the strip. In Riot on Sunset Strip , several bands make appearances at the Pandora's Box , including
28730-473: Was the largest film production in the island's history. The extensive marketing campaign included faux websites for three of the main characters and their fictional films, a fictional television special, and selling the energy drink advertised in the film, "Booty Sweat". Tropic Thunder was released in the United States on August 13, 2008. It received generally positive reviews for its characters, story, faux trailers, and cast performances, with Downey Jr. being
28900-499: Was the same thing with Ben's sergeant character, who almost intercepts a hand grenade ... Now, I was in the Army for three years and no hand grenade would make an explosion like that ... But it was a big dramatic moment and it looks really cool ... and feels kind of real." Filming the large napalm explosion in the opening scene of the film required a 450-foot (137-meter) row of explosive pots containing 1,100 gallons (4,165 liters) of gasoline and diesel fuel. All
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