“I knew nothing”: how Harold Ramis “made a total fool” of himself on his first day as a director
It’s one thing to helm something as artistically challenging as a film, but it’s another to have to direct a whole crew of people in the process, where you need to be assertive and able to manage a big team of people, all of whom need to work together to bring your project to life; a terrifying premise, if you ask me.
While Harold Ramis had gained experience in the film industry as a screenwriter, having penned National Lampoon’s Animal House and Meatballs a few years before, 1980’s Caddyshack was the first time he was given the chance to sit in the director’s chair; however, he soon realised he had no idea what he was doing.
Not only do you have to direct your cast, but you’ve got a whole team of people, from cinematographers to makeup artists, who need to be told what to do. To realise just how tricky it is to be placed in such an authoritative position is a lot of pressure when all you really want to do is make a piece of art.
But we all have to start somewhere, and so with little idea of how to actually direct a film, Ramis arrived to his first day on Caddyshack and instantly made a “fool” of himself. In a letter that he wrote to his daughter, which she published in her memoir, Ghostbuster’s Daughter, the filmmaker said, “I walked on the set of Caddyshack and made a total fool of myself on the first setup”.
He continued, “The AD [assistant director] looked in the direction I was pointing and squinted. Apparently, he noticed something I hadn’t. ‘So you want us to move the generator, the catering tent and all the trucks ’cause they’ll be in the shot’.”
Evidently, Ramis hadn’t taken into consideration the technical aspects of directing, which is not something he had much familiarity with, so what was he to do? In the end, the crew working on the film came to “the understanding that I knew nothing and should not be consulted on anything technical”.
Finally, he settled into the process of directing others, and the comedy starring Chevy Chase in the leading role actually became a huge success, grossing $60million against a budget of around $5m, while comedian Rodney Dangerfield earned praise for his acting.
It might not have been quite as enduring as some of Ramis’ other films, but it certainly stands as one of the most beloved sports movies.
It was just the start for the newly minted director, though, who would next helm another ‘80s classic, National Lampoon’s Vacation, soon forgetting his worries when it came to assuming authority and taking calls, becoming one of the most prominent filmmakers of the decade. Not only that, he immortalised his work as the co-creator of Ghostbusters by starring in the film, too, playing Egon Spengler alongside co-writer Dan Aykroyd’s Ray Stantz.
