Why has Harvard University kept Hollywood on the blacklist since 1970?
Harvard University is one of the most famous centres of education in the world. Founded in 1636 (which makes it over a century older than the United States itself), the Massachusetts institution has become a byword for excellence and has produced some of the finest minds in the world. Given its influence and cultural significance, it’s not surprising that Hollywood has come calling many times.
From The Social Network to A Beautiful Mind to Legally Blonde, Harvard has featured in a number of high-profile films, but none of these movies was actually filmed on location. The Social Network used nearby Wheelock College, A Beautiful Mind was shot in New York, and Legally Blonde was filmed in various locations around California, because, as it turns out, if you wanted to actually use Harvard’s campus in your movie, then you had a very short window.
The first movie that the university permitted to film on its campus was 1970’s Love Story, which centred around two students (Ryan O’Neal and Ali MacGraw) who overcome class boundaries to form a bond while studying at ‘The Yard’.
It didn’t take long for the university to regret this decision, however, as filming was extremely disruptive to campus life and even caused some damage to the historic site. This hasn’t stopped the college from championing the movie, though, as new students are still shown the movie every year.
Ten years later, director Rob Cohen made a film called A Small Circle of Friends, which followed the lives of three Harvard students and, once again, the university kindly let them film on their campus. Alas, twice bitten, they would never make that mistake again, with Joe Wrinn, writing in The Crimson, a Harvard student newspaper, revealing why this was one of the last major productions the college would let in.
“My understanding of the folklore is that the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back was the fact that in the late ’70s, lots of trees were damaged during the filming of A Small Circle of Friends by use of fake snow,” he wrote.
They were also unhappy with an anti-war memorial that was being used in a scene, as Cohen told The Crimson at the time, “The University’s action was totally predictable”, and within a week, they’d been asked to leave.
After this unpleasantness, Harvard severely cracked down on the number of movies that could use their grounds. Almost nobody has been given permission since A Small Circle of Friends, with the notable exception of Good Will Hunting, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s breakout film, which is mainly set at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), but features a few scenes at the nearby school. The production’s request to film there was initially turned down, but they were eventually let in when John Lithgow, a former Harvard student, vouched for the crew.
Movies are banned from certain locations for all sorts of reasons. Whether you think Harvard is justified in their hatred of Hollywood or just being overprotective, now you know that, when you’re looking at ‘Harvard’ in a movie, you’re actually being sold a lie.
