What interesting facts do you know about the film "Sound of Music"?

Question

I have seen it many times. I meant interseting facts about cast and production etc.

Answer 1

Maria never uses the Captain's first name, "Georg", in the film. Instead, she calls him Captain, Sir and Darling.


One of the actresses who tried out for the role of Liesl was Mia Farrow.


Along with The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966), this is one of the few Twentieth Century-Fox films in which no music at all is heard when the Twentieth Century-Fox logo appears on screen.


According to director Robert Wise the grass on the hill of the opening song was supposed to be much longer than it was. The filmmakers had made an arrangement with the farmer who owned the land to leave the grass long, but when they arrived for filming it had been cut. Wise commented that the scene turned out very well after all.


Doris Day was apparently offered the role of Maria von Trapp, but turned it down.


Julie Andrews nearly turned down the role of Maria Von Trapp, fearing the character was too similar to her role in Mary Poppins (1964).


William Wyler wanted Audrey Hepburn to play Maria von Trapp.


Voted number 18 in channel 4's (UK) "Greatest Family Films"


When Maria is running through the courtyard to the Von Trapp house in "I Have Confidence", she trips. This was an accident; however, director Robert Wise liked this so much that he kept it in the movie. He felt it added to the nervousness of the song and of the character.


The actors had to be continually hosed down while filming the scene after they had fallen out of the boat, in order to remain dripping wet.


When the film was released in South Korea, it did so much business that some theaters were showing it four and five times a day. One theater owner in Seoul tried to figure out a way to be able to show it even more often, in order to bring in more customers. So he cut out all the musical numbers.


The film sets its story "in the last golden days of the thirties", when in actual fact Maria became governess to the Von Trapp family in 1927 and married the Captain in November of that year


The songs "I Have Confidence" and "Something Good" were written specially for the film, by Richard Rodgers, the latter song replacing "An Ordinary Couple" from the stage version. The two numbers became so popular and so integrated into the musical, that most subsequent stage productions, including the 1998 Broadway Revival, have felt the need to add them on (and delete "An Ordinary Couple" in the process).



Peggy Wood's singing was dubbed, as she herself declared that she was too old to handle the vocals.


Four other children were brought in to augment the singing of the seven von Trapp children - to produce a better, fuller, more polished sound. Among the four "extra singers" was Charmian Carr's younger sister, Darleen Carr.


Duane Chase's (Kurt) high note in the "So Long, Farewell" number was actually sung by Darleen Carr (younger sister of Charmian Carr), as that note was beyond Chase's range.


Although Christopher Plummer's own vocals were in fact recorded, it was subsequently decided that he should be dubbed.


Charmian Carr sings "Sixteen Going On Seventeen". In reality she was nearly 22 at the time.


In Spain the film is known as "Smiles and Tears". In France it is known as "The Melody of Happiness".


The first time they filmed the wedding scene between the Captain and Maria, there was nobody at the altar to wed them when they reached the top of the stairs - someone had forgotten to summon the actor playing the bishop. According to Julie Andrews, the real bishop of Salzburg is seen in the movie.


The gazebo changes size (becomes larger) when we go inside it. This is intentional. There was a real gazebo on the property where they filmed the scenes at the back of the house, but it was too small for the dance numbers, so they built an interior for the gazebo in Hollywood that was significantly larger.


Came second in the UK's Ultimate Film, in which films were placed in order of how many seats they sold at cinemas


Christopher Plummer intensely disliked working on the film. He's been known to refer to it as "The Sound of Mucus" and likened working with Julie Andrews to "being hit over the head with a big Valentine's Day card, every day." Nontheless, he and Andrews have remained close friends ever since.


The outfit that Kurt wears at the party is called a Tracht, an authentic Austrian costume. The jacket he wears is called a Loden.


"Edelweiss" was written for the musical and is little known in Austria. The song was the last that Oscar Hammerstein II wrote.


The Ländler dance that Maria and the Captain shared was not performed the traditional way it is done in Austria.


The movie featured a rare onscreen performance by Marni Nixon, who plays Sister Sophia. The producers weren't sure how Julie Andrews would react to her after Nixon dubbed Audrey Hepburn in a role made famous by Andrews, but when Andrews first met Nixon, she exclaimed, "Marni, I'm a fan of you!" and the producers were relieved.


Despite the enormous popularity of the movie, which at the time became the largest grossing picture of all time, noted film critic Pauline Kael blasted the film in a review in which she called the movie "The Sound Of Money". This review allegedly led to Kael's dismissal from McCall's magazine.


According to the British tabloid The Sun, the movie was selected by BBC executives as one to be broadcast after a nuclear strike, to improve the morale of survivors. The BBC did not confirm or deny the story, saying, "This is a security issue so we cannot comment".

Answer 2

The 'Captain' father of the children she looks out for and Juile Andrews had a secret love affair while making the movie.

All the children lip sank to all the songs in the movie.

The original cast before the movie sang all of the songs 3 chords lower.

- keepin t' real - Sphet ;)

Answer 3

The Von Trapps are a real family and have three great grand-children who still sing today! I saw them on TV... Oh and the story took place over 5 years not as quick as they portray in the movie- AND they did not cross into switzerland over the alps.
THis story was either on the VIEW or Good morning America!

Answer 4

Julie Andrews is a used a robot double in the movie
Some of the Von Trapp Children are actually made of choclate

Answer 5

Ohhhh, I absolutely love this movie.. I was just looking around this page but I HAD to answer that!!! it´s my all time favorite movie.. What I know about it?? that most of the kids are still in touch 40 years after the movie was relased. I could spend the rest of my life talking about this movie.. i have seen it seriosuly about 700 times.. i´d see it 5 times a day when i was a kid... I LOVE IT!!! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!! :D

Answer 6

This is just one off the wall factoid...

The boy who played the youngest son, later played Peter Parker/Spiderman in a short series of really bad TV movies in the 70s.

Answer 7

i know that the book Surviving the Applewhites which was a Newbery Honor book had the characters put on the play The Sound of Music!

Answer 8

I love that movie! Well a babysitter was trying to let the kids have fun but they had to be like polite and everything but if you havent watched it you should so watch t because i sound retarded explaining it lol

Answer 9

Julie Andrews isn't as cool headed and sweet as she is hyped up to be. She swears alot!

Answer 10

in the movie theres a scene where they fall off the boat was actually an accident but they all lived upto the scene...