*THE TOWERING INFERNO* First Time Watching MOVIE REACTION

Enjoy my first time reaction to the movie THE TOWERING INFERNO (1974)! 📼 Sync up your copy with mine + we can watch together at: / towering-inferno-78921986
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🎞️ Reaction edited by the fantastic Steph G!
00:00 Intro
00:10 The Towering Inferno Movie Commentary
34:17 The Towering Inferno Movie Review

[@jenmurrayxo]

Comment DISASTER if you want more disaster movies! Poseidon Adventure: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aqDZaIKooNeHodE Backdraft: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nWPaiKqJoZypnJo The Sting: kzbin.info/www/bejne/p3ayep6ibM-geqs Butch Cassidy: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iJfanoh5jNaZnJo

[@DoctorStagger]

DISASTER 😁🥰🥰

[@dan_hitchman007]

DISASTER.

[@tomhoffman4330]

More DISASTER, Yes...and here are some of My own Top Picks: "Twister" "Dante's Peak" "Volcano" ('97) "The Core" "The Day After Tomorrow" "2012" "San Andreas"

[@smoothmove7566]

Heres a list of really good movies nobody has reacted to yet. Super 8, Dinner for schmucks, That's my Boy, Grandma's boy, Bewitched 2005 with will ferrel and nicole kidman, The Dictator, and A million ways to die in the west.

[@fritzkaraldo8452]

Can we comment McQueen, to see more Steve McQueen? I think you will enjoy/love The Thomas Crown Affair.

[@vincentsaia6545]

In researching his role, Steve McQueen hung out at a firehouse. As he was hanging out with the firemen the alarm went off and they asked him to come with them. He did and actually helped the firemen put out a fire. On the way back to the firehouse one of the firemen turned to Steve McQueen and said, "My wife will never believe me when I tell her about this." McQueen replied, "Neither will mine."

[@jenmurrayxo]

☺️👍🔥

[@PapaEli-pz8ff]

One of my all-time favorite actors!

[@user-fu3vg5cu8z]

@@jenmurrayxo Steve McQueen is Steven R McQueens grandfather. The guy who played Jeremy Gilbert on The Vampire Diaries. The guy who died wearing the wet towel was Robert Wagner who had a TV Show in the late 70s through the early 80s called Hart to Hart and he also played Number 2 on the Austin Powers movies. Paul Newman's girlfriend in the movie was played by Faye Dunaway who went on the do the cult hit "Mommy Dearest." The kid with the headphones was Mike Lookinland who played Bobby Brady on the original Brady Bunch TV show.

[@TheWebcrafter]

also... Wagner in 'It Takes A Thief' ('The Hustle'-like TV show), McQueen in 'Bullitt' (great soundtrack), Newman in 'Cool Hand Luke'' (great prison movie), Dunaaway in 'Bonnie and Clyde (great partners in love & crime movie), (@@user-fu3vg5cu8z

[@user-wn5uz6gt9v]

Mike lookinland said that was the first thing he did after the Brady bunch.

[@shainewhite2781]

One of my favorite disaster movies with an all star cast: Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Fred Astaire, Richard Chamberlain, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, Jennifer Jones, OJ Simpson, and Robert Vaughn.

[@Mr17051963]

THE CAST!!!!!! 😍

[@spacecadet35]

Originally they were making two star studded versions of this film, then they joined forces and made a REALLY star studded movie.

[@PapaEli-pz8ff]

Saw this when it first came out. So many of my favorite actors, great special effects, suspense.. I now have it on DVD. So glad you all enjoyed it 😊

[@JJ_W]

With so many big names, would it be easier to list who _wasn't_ in this movie? • Kevin Bacon was _not_ in this movie.

[@javix2013]

Music by John Williams.

[@jamesharper3933]

The 70's was the decade of disaster movies. Two other movies worth checking out are Earthquake from 1974 with Charlton Heston and Airport 1975, also with Heston. Newman, McQueen and Robert Redford were probably the top three lead actors during that time. Faye Dunaway was also at the top of her field.

[@flarrfan]

All of which led to 1980's Airplane!

[@jonbolton3376]

Earthquake is another i love too, besides the Airport films i mentioned above.

[@curtisbrack3398]

Ditto. Highly recommend "Airport '75". You've had the sea disaster and the land disaster. Now you need the air disaster for the trifecta!

[@javix2013]

Airport was a saga of 4 movies: "Airport 1970", "Airport 1975", "Airport 1977" and "Airport 1979: The Concorde", were they all good?

[@curtisbrack3398]

@@javix2013 I don't recall ever seeing Airport 1970 so I can't say. Airport 1975 is my favorite and Airport 77 is a close second. Airport 1970 was okay but not as good as they previous two, in my opinion. So, Airport 75 is first on the list and Airport 77 if you need a second dose of sky danger. And if you need the space disaster, another childhood favorite is :Capricorn One (1978). A mission to Mars where things go haywire before you even start, so what do ya do to keep your government funding? HA!

[@kriitikko]

I find it funny hearing you say the shady wiring guy has an evil face. He is played by Richard Chamberlaine who, believe it or not, was actually very popular for his hero and romantic lead roles in the 70s and 80s. This is one of the few times I know he played the bad guy.

[@jenmurrayxo]

Oh really! I thought he had the perfect villain face 😂😂

[@waterbeauty85]

@@jenmurrayxo Richard Chamberlain was known as "The King of the Mini-Series" because of how many romantic or romantic adventure TV mini-series he starred in. He originally gained stardom in the early 1960s playing the paragon of medical compassion and ethics Dr. James Kildare in the TV series "Dr. Kildaire." One of my favorite of his roles was playing Giacomo Casanova in the 1987 TV movie "Casanova." Speaking of Casanova, you should check out the 2005 BBC two part mini-series "Casanova" starring David Tennant and Peter O'Toole as Giacomo Casanova in his wild, adventurous youth and in his lonely old age. It's funny, touching, romantic and beautifully poignant.

[@hughdavidvisor1769]

Chamberlaine was also the original Jason Bourne in a late eighties miniseries.

[@karlmortoniv2951]

@@hughdavidvisor1769 Yeah, when the Jason Bourne story was about banking shenanigans! 😜 Chamberlain was a damn' fine actor when given half a chance. He was amazing in "The Music Lovers" and a TV version of "The Man in the Iron Mask."

[@RubyGB]

@@jenmurrayxo He always gave me the creeps like there was just something off about him...

[@HT-io1eg]

I went to see this with my mum 50 years ago. Old time movie theatre, with an intermission. Time just goes past so quickly

[@44excalibur]

The Towering Inferno set a precedent in Hollywood at the time it was made. Following the success of his previous disaster film, The Poseidon Adventure, producer Irwin Allen was developing a follow-up movie for 20th Century Fox based on a book he'd read called 'The Tower,' by Richard Martin Stern, about a burning skyscraper in New York City. However, Warner Bros. had already bought the rights to the book in the hopes of competing in the disaster film craze of the 1970s. Allen then purchased the rights to another book, 'The Glass Inferno,' by Thomas N. Scortia and Frank M. Robinson, which featured a similar story about a burning skyscraper. The two studios didn't want to compete against each other, especially since Fox would release their film ahead of Warner Bros. So Allen managed to negotiate a joint production where the two studios would make the film together, with Fox getting the domestic distribution profits and Warner Bros. getting the global distribution profits.

[@kendramalm8811]

I think I may still have my copy of "The Tower " somewhere- no happy ending in that one!

[@44excalibur]

@@kendramalm8811 Nope, no water tanks like in The Glass Inferno. Everyone in The Tower who didn't make it out via breeches buoy ended up dying.

[@matthewdunham1689]

Cool trivia! 😎 ❤️

[@robfinlay8058]

Two movies into one is also why you got the two biggest movie stars of the day, Newman and McQueen, co-starring together. They got diagonal billing so both could be seen to be top billed. And they got the same number of lines even though McQueen doesn't appear until about a third of the way in, which is why he's in the latter part of the movie so much more than Newman is.

[@SciTrekMan]

I still have both novels! I bought them both right after I saw this movie in 1974!!

[@FlyingTigress]

Fun fact. The painting used to represent nighttime San Francisco in one of the windows was re-used for Star Trek (outside of Kirk's apartment).

[@jondstewart]

I thought that was an actual photo!

[@Findo_Gask]

16:37 - This explosion was where they had an intermission in the theatrical release. This was very exciting when I saw it as a seven-year-old. This movie and 'Earthquake' were in a sort of head-to-head at the time. It was the beginning of the 70s blockbuster era where new special effects meant big tent movies were increasedly hyped up. Good times.

[@chrislaustin]

WOW, I haven't seen this movie probably since the late 70's or early 80's, but I do remember it being a quality film. If your a Paul Newman fan, you've got to give "Cool Hand Luke" a viewing, as that's one of his best films, and my personal favorite of the ones I've seen from his career. I actually met him as a young child, as my great grandmother & great aunt were housekeepers for celebs back in the day. So I got to meet him and two of his daughters at the time, and he seemed like a really nice guy, as were his daughters.

[@crawfb]

The irony is that Richard Chamberlain was a Paul Newman-level heartthrob of the small screen, first as Dr Kildare and later starring in 'The Thorn Birds'. He was playing against his squeaky clean cut image here as the 'villain' of The Towering Inferno.

[@gina7288]

Yes he was a heartthrob I was gutted when he fell screaming off the chair lift.

[@russellward4624]

All elevators immediately drop to the lobby and can't be used without a special key when any fire alarm goes off.

[@waterbeauty85]

4:35 Richard Chamberlain actually played a lot of heroes and romantic leads, especially in TV mini-series. Speaking of Chamberlain, he has a major supporting role as the dashing musketeer Aramis in Richard Lester's fun and exciting "The Three Musketeers" (1973) which had the tag line "One for all, and all for fun!" It's a movie you would love for the charismatic cast, the sumptuous settings and costumes, and the sword fights. It even has Charlton Heston (Hesty from "Planet of the Apes") as Cardinal Richelieu.

[@Cheepchipsable]

He was also Jason Bourne in an earlier adaptation of the Bourne Identity, and he was in a remake of King Solomon's Mines with Sharon Stone which was cheesy fun.

[@anathardayaldar]

I'll always remember him from the Shogun tv series.

[@anathardayaldar]

She will really enjoy Three Musketeers but the 1973 version. I'm not too impressed with the later versions. 1973's had Charlton Heston, Raquel Welch, Christopher Lee and other great names.

[@clarencewalker3925]

And "Dr. Kildare" in the 1960's.

[@alexvaraderey]

@@anathardayaldar Raquel Welch died earlier this week. RIP. I will always remember how well she wore her dress in The Three Musketeers.

[@lou6454]

The woman with Paul Newman is Faye Dunaway , "Chinatown" and "Bonnie and Clyde" . The guy that didn't want to stop the party , William Holden , lots of movies. this could lead to more movies for you to re act to . Never a bad thing , imo .

[@csmelen]

When I think of William Holden, I think of The Bridge on the River Kwai.

[@fritzkaraldo8452]

She was also in The Thomas Crown Affair along with McQueen.

[@phila3884]

See my latest comment about William Holden. He should be the subject of a new reaction list on his own. Jen?

[@chefskiss6179]

@@fritzkaraldo8452 She was also in the remake :)

[@phila3884]

@@HappyHarryHardon Right. See my comment.

[@waterbeauty85]

5:05 "Hey! Fred Astaire! Do a little jig." I love Jen sooo much! BTW Fred Astaire had a recurring guest starring role as Robert Wagner's father, the debonair professional thief Alistair Mundy, on the TV series "It Takes a Thief."

[@jenmurrayxo]

😂👍

[@MusicalBox]

So glad you watched that movie. I was among those who suggested it. The "chef fireman" is Steve McQueen. He was in a lot of great movies. Two comes to mind: "The Great Escape" a war/prison-escape movie, and "Papillon", based on the true story of a man spending almost his entire life trying to escape from a penitentiary in French Guyana. Two great classics

[@Rosedach]

Can't believe you left out "Bullitt ," with the best car chase.

[@lurkerrekrul]

Don't forget his great movie ever: The Blob. :)

[@MusicalBox]

@@Rosedach I didn't "leave it out" ;) I don't think I saw that one.

[@MusicalBox]

@@lurkerrekrul 😄

[@long-timesci-fienthusiast9626]

Two more Jen might like The Sand Pebbles (1966) with R. Crenna & R. Attenborough, in a U.S. Navy ship in 1920`s China. The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) with Faye Dunaway, in an unusual heist film.

[@crashdown903p]

Hi Jen, To answer you question about how to get water to floors that high up. The fire engine will connect to a hydrant, it will then connect hoses to a "Stand Pipe". These are pipes that run up the building, you usually see them in the stairwells on each floor of a high rise. The firefighters will then carry hoses up the stairs to the fire flood. Connect those hoses to the stand pipe, and the water will then flow fron the hydrant, to the truck which will pump it into the stand pipes. When the firefighers inside connect to the standpipe there will be water in it to supply their hoses. Im a firefigher, and running stand pipes is the worst, even on false alarms. The firefighters have to walk up many flights of stairs with all their gear, tools and an extra 50ish pounds of hose bundles on their shoulders.

[@Findo_Gask]

I am impressed that a young person knows about and is reacting to these famous disaster movies from the early 70s that are now forgotten by many. You are the first major reactor to react to this one, the biggest of the disaster movies. Congratulations.

[@toodlescae]

Yay! One of my favorite disaster movies. William Holden, Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, Richard Chamberlain, Robert Wagner, Rovert Vaughn, Dabney Coleman, Mike Lookinland, Susan Flannery. All were very well known in the 70's. Some from tv and some from movies.

[@Mr17051963]

You heard a tipical John Williams “danger brass” in the scene when the Firemen Chief is at the stairs 🎶 You can hear this too in other William ‘s soundtracks like Earthquake and Indiana Jones in The Temple of Doom. But mainly in a lot of Dr. Smith’s scenes from the old Lost in Space Tv series.

[@Daniel24724]

The only shame of "The towering inferno" is that John Williams is not in the opening credits ! 👀

[@phila3884]

Maybe the biggest star of the cast for me (and the most unsung today) is William Holden. Golden age legend, he starred in some of the most iconic Hollywood movies- "Bridge on the River Kwai" with Sir Alec (Obi-Wan Kenobi) Guiness, and "Sunset Boulevard", the perfect Hollywood movie *about* Hollywood, among others.

[@cruesome1971]

You have to watch Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke. It's a definite must watch.

[@mr.a8315]

♥🥚

[@danharris5999]

This was one of the epic disaster movies that were popular in the 70's & 80's. They typically had a star studded cast and also celebrities who were just getting their first notoriety or some, like Fred Astaire, who were icons in the entertainment industry for decades. The movie "Earthquake" was another one in a similar style. They were also easy targets for parody. The parody magazine "Mad" did a whole work up on The Towering Inferno, with Newman & McQueen debating whose eyes were more blue, and the fireman who McQueen's character saves on the scenic elevator having arms that were about 15 feet long by the time they reach the ground. Just to name a couple.

[@3dbadboy1]

The bad guy Roger Simmons played by Richard Chamberlain also was in an excellent version of The Count of Monte Cristo from that same 70s era, make sure to watch it!

[@MLJ7956]

He was also great in 'The Thornbirds' romance mini-series and in the 2 Cannon (Indiana Jones rip-offs) Alan Quatermain films ('King Solomon's Mines' & 'Alan Quatermain And The Lost City Of Gold') in the 80s.

[@waterbeauty85]

I love that version of The Count of Monte Cristo.

[@brianjones7907]

3dbadboy1 ,,, dont forget he also did The Three Musketeers , The Four Musketeers , The Man in the Iron Mask all around that time & returned 10 years later to do the Return of the musketeers ..

[@waterbeauty85]

@@brianjones7907 Yes!

[@3dbadboy1]

@@MLJ7956 Omg! I forgot about Shogun!

[@bradpriebe9218]

Great reaction. There was no CGI at the time so all the fire and water effects were real (the stuntmen were on fire for real for example) Airport, Airport '77 and Earthquake were other ones I remember from back then.

[@lightblueseaglass]

Airport (AKA Airport 1970) is a really good film. The explosive decompression looked so real, and still does even by modren movie effect standards.

[@matthewdunham1689]

The golden age of the stuntman!

[@kieronball8962]

Jen, I loved your reactions to this famous disaster movie, that was SO big, two movie studios had to team up to make it and which had two top billed stars in Steve McQueen and Paul Newman. :)

[@jenmurrayxo]

Thanks kieron! ☺️👍🔥

[@spacecadet35]

The two studios were each making their own version of this film and they decided "Why not join forces?"

[@mothermayhem3255]

Many, many more top billed actors besides Paul Newman and Steve McQueen.

[@YolandaAnneBrown95726]

And they had to have equal billing and amount of screen time!

[@jokerz7936]

Actually, funny story technically while their names appear at the same time Newman got "top billing" because his name appears higher in the text on screen. McQueen agreed to it on the condition that his name be on the left the sneaky reason was because he knew we read left to right meaning people would see his name 1st lol.

[@maineman9447]

"The fireman" was the legendary actor Steve McQueen. This movie has one of the most stacked casts you'll ever see, some of them getting towards the end of their careers. The cast included William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Fred Astaire, and Richard Chamberlain. All names you should get to know.

[@kermitlacock5930]

A couple of actors you might not have recognized. The boy you were worried about falling into the hole was Bobby from the Brady Bunch. The Fire Chief who tells Steve McQueen the people only have 18 minutes left is Dabney Coleman(9 to 5 and Tootsie).

[@michaelcoffman4185]

Dabney Coleman was also good in the movie Short Timer. Big laughs.

[@ScreamingScallop]

Felton Perry, one of the firemen, played Johnson, the only OCP suit to appear in all three of the original _Robocop_ movies ("Tastes like baby food!"), as well as "Dirty" Harry Callahan's unfortunate partner in _Magnum Force._

[@jondstewart]

One of the few roles Dabney Coleman not playing a smarmy, sheepish, or nervous person!

[@Skiergold]

Not sure if it's been pointed out yet, but Paul Newman's son, Scott, played one of the firefighters. This was the only film they ever starred in together

[@johnkennethwiseman5460]

RIP Dabney Coleman

[@3dbadboy1]

The young fireman who was scared in the elevator shaft was Paul Newman's son. Also, the fireman who was in the scenic elevator was the stuntman who made the epic fall in The Poseidon Adventure.

[@arkigabor]

This movie left a mark on me for life. It might be the earliest movie memory I have. I could have been 4-5 at the time and sick with a stomach flu, so I was staying up late while my parents have been watching it and I was allowed to watch along. But I didn't dare to watch most of the fire scenes. I don't think I've watched this movie since, yet I still remembered some scenes. Also, to this day, I'm afraid of faulty wiring and electric fire.😟

[@1MahaDas]

I had almost completely forgotten about 'Towering Inferno' since its release of 1974. This was a pleasant revisit of a feature film that was so imbued with big names in the film industry! Thank you for this brief return to yesteryear!

[@jenmurrayxo]

☺️👍🔥

[@justinplayfair4638]

When Lisolette dies falling out of the elevator, there was a ton of grumbling in the packed theater I saw it in... Jen, you've got to complete the Holy Trinity of 70's disaster movies by watching Earthquake with Charlton Heston!

[@mikedignum1868]

A great Faye Dunaway film is The Thomas Crown Affair. There is a documentary on how they made this film.

[@zmarko]

This movie used to come on TV in the late 70s or early 80s, and used to scare the crap out of me when I was growing up. Lol. Great movie though.

[@christopherleodaniels7203]

Excellent!! Not enough people react to this one.

[@konowd]

And Paul Newman was a terrific actor, and a good man. He raised a lot of money for seriously ill children, and God bless him for that.

[@rogers.5153]

Fun fact: the boy with the headphones was played by Mike Lookinland, who also was Bobby in the Brady Bunch tv series.

[@satyadasgumbyji8956]

OLD SCHOOL!!!🤘🌎❤

[@jenmurrayxo]

☺️👍🔥

[@shainewhite2781]

Nominated for 8 Oscars including Best Picture but won Best Original Song, We May Never Live Like This Again, Best Film Editing and Best Cinematography.

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

20:06 Mark! I found it to be quite fun, actually! In the 1980s, when I was an "ECU" student, the campus "ROTC" wanted to enroll more students, so they had a day of fun meant to attract us. One event was supervised repelling from the roof of their building! I scared the guy with me because he thought that I cracked my jaw when I didn't even touch the edge of the building with my head! A skinny blond guy kept asking permission to leap off the roof to the flagpole so that he could slide down it, as it was only a tempting six feet or so away! 😅

[@toodlescae]

DISASTER - Airport (1970) Airport '75, Airport '77 and The Concord - Airport '79. The last one you'll see 2 actors from Towering Inferno. Susan Blakely (builders daughter) and Robert Wagner (guy who tried to run thru fire with a wet towel). In the rest you have Charlton Heston, Dean Martin, Jack Lemon, Jimmy Stewart and a whole raft of older movie and tv stars. Volcano with Tommy Lee Jones and Dante's Peak with Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton are also not to be missed.

[@maschwab63]

The fireman is Steve McQueen, looks almost like Paul Newman. Earthquake is a really good one from this time.

[@kieronball8962]

Jen, for more William Holden please check out the movies Stalag 17 and Sabrina. For more Paul Newman, check out movies Harper and The Drowning Pool. For Fred Astaire check out Easter Parade, for Steve McQueen check out Bullitt and The Magnificent Seven and for Faye Dunaway, check out Three Days Of The Condor, as it also stars Robert Redford.

[@gerardfonz]

Steve McQueen was my favorite it's a shame he got cancer at a young age. I love the scene where he holds on to the fireman hanging from elevator. He also predicts a future disaster related to towers.

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

8:45 Mark! The 1970s! The mayor in "Jaws" didn't want to disrupt the festivities in that movie either! 😕 People preferred not to err on the side of caution! They feared looking like scared fools if nothing was wrong! Probably because of the story about "Chicken Little"? 😮

[@daveweston5158]

For a (short) time, theaters were showing this movie as a double feature with 'Earthquake' (another Irwin Allen disaster film). They called the double feature event 'Shake and Bake' (I wish I was making that up...)

[@jenmurrayxo]

😂👍🔥

[@philmakris8507]

San Francisco was the setting for so many epic films of the 70's which begs the question, when are you going to do the Dirty Harry films Jen?

[@jenmurrayxo]

They're on the list! ☺️👍

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

32:48 Mark! A lot of penthouse swimming pools are designed to be water sources for fighting fires, and this movie probably inspired that concept! 😊😎

[@wolfgar271]

Paul Newman was a wonderful person in his personal life. In addition to charitable work that he did publicly, he helped more causes than most people realize. My father was a board member of a charity for a summer camp for children with cancer. Newman made a deal with my father that he would give a substantial donation every year on the one condition that it be kept anonymous. He just wanted to help sick kids and wanted no recognition. This was back in the 80's when some celebrities were making a big deal out of charitable contributions and it seemed a lot of them were doing it for what we would today call virtue signaling. Newman didn't want to be perceived that way and only wanted to help...quietly. Of course my father agreed. He described Newman as a genuinely kind man and had tremendous respect for him, as did I.

[@kieronball8962]

Famous actors who some people may have missed: William Holden, Robert Wagner, Richard Chamberlain, Faye Dunaway and Robert Vaughn. :)

[@woodyg75]

The seventies made some epic disaster movies, this being one of the greats!! Check out the Airport series, you won't be disappointed.

[@MLJ7956]

I also like Earthquake (1974). That film also had an all-star (from films & television) cast Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, George Kennedy, Lorne Greene, Geneviève Bujold, Richard Roundtree, Marjoe Gortner, Barry Sullivan, Lloyd Nolan, Victoria Principal, Monica Lewis, Gabriel Dell, Pedro Armendáriz, Jr., Reb Brown, Jesse Vint, Alan Vint, Michael Richardson, Debralee Scott, Sam Chew, Lloyd Gough, John Randolph, Kip Niven,Scott Hylands, Tiger Williams, Donald Moffat & Walter Matthau. 😁

[@scottmackenzie62]

"Fireman guy" was played by the late great Steve McQueen. The big boss Duncan was played by another Hollywood great, William Holden. Paul Newman's girlfriend was played by Faye Dunaway, and Duncan's daughter was played by Susan Blakely.

[@fanmagicks]

The fire on set was REAL as were the explosions. The water was REAL but a lot of miniatures were used for the building. "blue screen" back then was having the background run behind the actors as it was pre-filmed. The fire stunts were AMAZING. Those stunt people were on fire for record breaking times.

[@mariacavanaugh1010]

Crazy 70s disaster genre! Fun to see you watching another of these "oldies." Richard Chamberlain (evil wire guy) became HUGE when he played a Priest who is tempted by an Australian debutante...THE THORN BIRDS was an epic adaptation of the novel in 1981/82.

[@markpekrul4393]

If you watched The Poseidon Adventure, the stuntman (Ernie Orsatti) who fell from the table into the skylight when the ship turned over is the same guy who played the firefighter who fell off the elevator car onto the air matress. Fun fact - his dad was a baseball player who was with the famous Gas House Gang Cardinals in the 1930s.

[@fergalhughes165]

Jen's advice: "Always feel the knob first!"

[@hartspot009]

One Newman trivia: in the early 80s he decided not to sign autographs, even for young fans. It wasn't because he was mean... he thought it was elitist for him to think his signature was better than anyone else's. He said " I'll go out for a beer, or an ice cream, and talk, but I'm done signing"

[@Cheepchipsable]

I heard it was because he went into the mens room at a restaurant and whilst he was relieving at a urinal himself a guy came up to him with a pen and paper - couldn't even wait until he had finished.

[@44excalibur]

You'll notice that Steve McQueen and Paul Newman's names appear side-by-side in the opening credits, with McQueen's name preceding Newman's from left to right, but Newman's name slightly elevated above McQueen's from top to bottom. This was to give both actors equal billing with neither being billed above the other. McQueen also insisted on having the exact same amount of dialogue as Newman, which forced screenwriter Sterling Silliphant to add additional scenes of dialogue for McQueen's character to ensure that McQueen had the exact same number of words spoken in the film as Newman.

[@jackprescott9652]

That was because, McQueen was offered the role of the architect first, but he choose to play the Fire chief instead, who was just another supporting character. Doing that, the film became an ode to the Firemen from all over the world.

[@44excalibur]

@@jackprescott9652 Yes, I know. Irwin Allen wanted McQueen for the role of architect Doug Roberts, but upon reading the script, McQueen felt that fire chief Mike O'Halloran would be a more showy role.

[@rxtsec1]

Originally Paul Newman had more lines than steve McQueen so he demanded they give him & paul Newman the same amount of lines. Also the 2 men argued over who would get top billing so the agreement was for both of there names to come up together. However each thought they got one over the other. Steve McQueen was happy his name was on the left & paul Newman was happy his name was higher up even though it was on the right

[@christophercurtis4131]

Thank you for reacting to this movie. This is my all-time favorite disaster movie. Great special effects, great stunts that are still amazing to this day, 49 years after this film came out. And a great musical score by the legendary John Williams. Such a great cast as well. Paul Newman, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Robert Wagner, Fred Astaire, Jennifer Jones, Richard Chamberlain, Susan Blakely; the list goes on. And, of course, my favorite actor, Steve McQueen, as the battalion chief in the San Francisco Fire Department, O'Halloran, trying to fight the fire and save the lives of the people trapped in the building. As for some of the special effects for the movie, they built several different sized models of the building to show the different stages of the fire; the tallest of these models was 18 feet high. Another actor in the movie, Ernie Orsatti, who played the fireman in the scenic elevator, came to Hollywood in the 60's to become an actor and became a professional stuntman. When he falls from the elevator into the airbag, that was him. Paul Newman's son, Scott, was also in the movie. He was a stuntman and played the firefighter who thought he would fall when they had to rappel down the elevator shaft. I have the special edition of the movie on dvd and it has a host of special features, including behind the scenes from the making of the movie, retrospective looks at the special effects and the stunts for this movie. It also came with a set of official lobby cards showing different scenes from the movie. I started a little tradition a few years ago where I watch this movie on the anniversary of it's release in 1974. I was 12 the first time I saw this movie, in 1983. And I have loved it ever since.

[@patron40silver]

"Always feel the knob first" I laughed🤣and☺blushed at the same time🤭.

[@jenmurrayxo]

😂😂👍🔥

[@philmakris8507]

Hey Jen like to check out Newman in The Hustler and the Color of Money. Newman was also a good amateur racing driver.

[@BlueBlazer47]

The lady presenting/reacting noticed the significance of the water-tanks, which was impressive. Her reactions were funny. Two years before this movie came out, we had a fire in the basement at school. We pupils fought the fire before the fire-brigade arrived! That was early-'70s Britain.😄 It was a boarding school and I'll be forever grateful it didn't happen at night.

[@stretmediq]

I saw this in the theater when it came out and at the time it just blew everyone's mind

[@dwayneholub7812]

DISASTER - Have a look at the Airport (movie). There are 2 more after the initial one. I know you did not plan it but nice touch with the fire over your shoulder 🔥.

[@jenmurrayxo]

Thanks Dwayne! 🔥

[@44excalibur]

Academy Award winning screenwriter Sterling Silliphant (In the Heat of the Night, The Poseidon Adventure) was hired to merge the two books The Towering Inferno was based on - 'The Tower' by Richard Martin Stern, and 'The Glass Inferno' by Thomas N. Scortia and Frank M. Robinson - into one composite screenplay, incorporating characters and events from both books into one film. Characters from 'The Glass Inferno' include architect Doug Roberts, played by Paul Newman (originally Craig Barton in the novel), Susan Franklin, played by Faye Dunaway (originally Craig's wife, Jenny, in the novel), and Lisolette Mueller, played by Jennifer Jones. Characters from 'The Tower' include electrical subcontractor Roger Simmons (originally Paul Simmons in the novel), played by Richard Chamberlin, and electrical engineer Will Giddings (originally the building owner's representative in the novel), played by Norman Burton. San Francisco Fire Department Chief Michael O'Halloran, played by Steve McQueen, is a composite of Assistant Fire Commissioner Timothy O'Reilly Brown from 'The Tower' and fire department division chief Mario Infantino from 'The Glass Inferno.' Building developer James Duncan, played by William Holden, is a composite of general contractor Bert McGraw from 'The Tower' and building owner Wyndom Leroux from 'The Glass Inferno.' Both books contained plotlines involving cost-cutting measures and the use of alternate and sub-standard building materials that contributed to the fire that were incorporated into the film. The scenes where some of the guests burned to death in the express elevator, and some guests were evacuated from the Promenade Room to roof of the adjacent Peerless Building using the "breeches buoy" were taken from The Tower, while the scenes where a helicopter attempted to evacuate guests from the roof, and the exploding of the water tanks below the roof of the building to extinguish the fire were taken from The Glass Inferno. One plotline from The Glass Inferno that wasn't used in the film was Newman and McQueen's characters were supposed to be long-time friends before the fire.

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

15:33 Mark! Don't forget! There's a kitty in the tower, too! 🙀

[@konowd]

Irwin Allen's movies and TV shows were great fun, he was nicknamed "the master of disaster."

[@suddenlyfrogs1906]

I decided to just browse my dvd wall and spotted 'Day of the Jackal'... 3hrs, amazing, a Bond villain you're about to meet is the good guy. Classic... Absolute classic that I hope reactors catch onto soon. :)

[@brianjones7907]

👌great movie to pick👍

[@javix2013]

When it was filmed with real fire, what a beautiful time and to see that realism, today everything would be done with CGI and it would look quite fake. The miniatures of the building, perhaps to today's eyes, do not seem so credible anymore, but at the time they did seem quite real, but everything that is set, filmed with real fire and then the waterfall at the end, AWESOME! !!.

[@jamesalexander5623]

Seeing Dunaway and Holden reminded me of "Network" .... The most prophetic film about the Media Ever! I've never seen anyone React to it! .... It Predicted everything TV would become!

[@belvagurr403]

I watched this in 1974, in the theater with surround sound. I fought every step Paul Newman took going down the stairwell. It was exhausting and as well as terrifying.

[@nomiau]

Great movie, I remember seeing it in the cinema with my Father (showing my age!) Steve McQueen was the fire chief, a few of his best movies, if you haven't seen them - the great escape, Bullitt and the Thomas Crown Affair

[@matthewmarcinko9157]

Hi, Jen! You may notice this film is similar to "The Poseidon Adventure". That's because, like that film, "The Towering Inferno" is running the "Irwin Allen disaster movie playbook" page by page. Cast a couple big stars, a slew of B list actors who WERE popular at one time, dump them into a disaster situation, and start picking them off, one by one. This was the format for most of the disaster films during the "Disaster Movie Craze" in the 70's, before Star Wars came along and became the New Thing.

[@SciTrekMan]

*Some Trivia:* The boy with the headphones is none other than Bobby Brady (Mike Loookinland) of The Brady Bunch! His “sister” is now a divorced mother of six children! Her name is Carlene Gower. The young fireman who was afraid to rappel down the elevator shaft is Scott Newman, Paul’s son. The mayor’s wife is portrayed by Sheila Allen, Irwin Allen’s wife. She also played the part of the Nurse in The Poseidon Adventure.

[@ernestoaranda717]

I hope now you understand a commont made by Matt Damon's character in Ocean's Thirteen. From Wiki: "In the film Ocean's Thirteen (2007) Linus Caldwell (played by Matt Damon) announces aloud to a catatonic Reuben Tishkoff that Rusty Ryan is doing an 'Irwin Allen' which is a reference to the fake earthquake they stage later in the story."

[@michaelceraso1977]

well TY for 1st reaction to this classic thriller. You missed Robert wagner who had a LONG career and fun TV shows- It takes a Thief, and the Fire CHIEF was Steve (mr cool) MCQueen who was in an epic western- THE Magnificnent 7 with a stellar cast and he was in THE Great escape too. THE bad guy-was Richard Chamberlain who pretty much got the mini series started.

[@awall1701]

Don't forget that Richard Chamberlain was Jason Bourne in the 1988 version of The Bourne Identity.

[@michaelceraso1977]

@@awall1701 I only saw Richard n a few films and I have no desire to see POS MATT Damon as I have seen & heard what hes really, like so NO to those Bourne films

[@awall1701]

@@michaelceraso1977 If I am honest I have only watched the first Bourne film with Matt Damon as I had watched the original Bourne Identity film with Richard Chamberlain in the lead role. I will have to google it as I don't know much about Matt Damon.

[@blanewilliams5960]

I Love a good DISASTER movie and this one is great, with an all star cast. "Earthquake" with Charlton Heston is another favorite of mine which I saw at the theater in sensurround, very cool. Loved your reaction, Jen. Thank You!

[@MRxMADHATTER]

I thought it was amazing how many times Steve McQueen's character (fireman guy) went up and down the building while everybody else couldn't even get out of the building. Irwin Allen's movies always went over the eop on special effects. He saved money by reusing props. All the panels with the blinky lights were used in many of his movies. Anothe "Disaster movie" that is my favorite is "Airport" with Dean Martin and Burt Lancaster. Really fun. Interesting note: Paul Newman and Steve McQueen were both great race car drivers.

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

3:59 Mark! Actor Cary Grant starred in the movie version of "To Catch A Thief" and Robert Wagner starred in the television series version. He is also in one of my favorite movies about life in an underwater city. The "City of Pacifica" is located in the Pacific Ocean. That isn't the movie title, though. "Hello, Down There!" is a Tony Randall comedy about a family living in an undewater house in a big bay or harbor. But I'm digressing! 😅 Robert Wagner was married to actress Natalie Wood. She co-stars with actor Sean Connery in the disaster movie "Meteor" and it only feels dated because now we know what would really happen to the "WTC" in an impact situation. Natalie is also in "Brainstorm"! A movie about recording dreams and then as it turns out, death experiences! 😳

[@jonm1114]

The lead firefighter was played by Steve McQueen. Another great Steve McQueen movie is The Sand Pebbles. It also stars Richard Attenborough and a very young Candace Bergen. The movie was nominated for Best Picture, and it is the only role for which McQueen received an Oscar nomination (Best Actor). You should definitely watch it even if you don't do a reaction video for it.

[@1wwtom]

Airport (1970) was the one that started off the Disaster Movie trend in te 70's. Earthquake, the Poseidon Adventure and more Airport movies followed. This film though was jam packed with more top Movie & TV actors than any of the others that followed.

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

6:18 Mark! This movie is as much a statement against messy workers who don't clean up after themselves as it is about shoddy workmanship and being cheap! 😮

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

6:29 Mark! Cute insert about spectacles! 😎🥸🧐

[@waterbeauty85]

I saw this at the Alexandria Theater in San Francisco back when it had a single big screen and was one of the venues of choice for visually epic movies.

[@michaelstach5744]

Me too! I wonder if we were at the same showing. To show how long ago that was people cheered when O.J. Came on the screen.

[@patron40silver]

This was one of the very first movies I saw in a theater. I think Airport was before this but JAWS and Earthquake were right around this time, too.

[@kalebhopkins248]

As a real life firefighter this is what we deal with daily basis but the difficult part is getting to the fire and plus this is why fire sprinklers are invented this reason and 2 climbing up the stairs is very difficult like it doesn't matter if you are in good shape or not you'll get wore out before you'll even get to fight the high rise fire and plus it's gonna take awhile to get under control and contained and exgushted the fire

[@foglight11]

I have been dying for someone to react to this film. It's one of my favourites!!! I am so excited, and thank you!

[@jenmurrayxo]

☺️👍🔥

[@robertwiegman1]

Me too. I was waiting, waiting for somebody to do this one. Jen rocks!

[@christopheryochum3602]

Jen! So impressive how you are even aware of these older movies. Can't wait to relive this (which I saw in a theater when I was a kid), as I watch you watch. :)

[@jenmurrayxo]

Hope you enjoy Christopher! ☺️👍🔥

[@stevetheduck1425]

This film was actually quite modern for it's time, most especially in 'action editing'. The flood toward the end re-starts several times to show how a short sequence of events plays out for several different people, some good, some bad. It was a trope of the time, and still gets used in modern films when a complex incident has to be shown several times, from different points of view.

[@suproliver]

Paul Newman's woman in the movie is Faye Dunaway. Faye Dunaway played the evil witch in the 1984 Supergirl film. Supergirl's nemesis. Supergirl is played by Helen Slater. Same universe as the Christopher Reeve Superman films to which he is referenced a few times in the movie. -OG

[@toastnjam7384]

At McQueen's insistence his and Paul Newman characters have the same number of lines. Since McQueen's character doesn't appear until 43 minutes into the film, Newman had used almost half his lines before McQueen enters.

[@stern12akachris32]

You need more Steve McQueen in your life !!!!! Might I suggest Bullett the movie that invented the Modern Car Chase . The other Disaster Movie of the ERA Is EarthQuake Filmed in Sensurround . They actually put more speakers in the Theaters so the seats would shake during the Earth Quake !!!!!!

[@williamnance1148]

I was 10 years old when his movie came out. I saw at at the theater in Christmas Eve. That was when I fell in love with Faye Dunaway. For more disaster movie of the 70's you need to see Airport as well as Airport 1975 and Airport '77.

[@JimmieRayGiboney]

5:49 Mark! Actor Richard Chamberlain is also in the original "NBC" miniseries "Shogun" based on the James Michner novel of the same name. It broke a taboo when his character said "piss" as in "Piss on you!" rather than "I'm pissed!" 😮 The Samurai was not amused, so they held RC's character down so that the Samurai could urinate on him! Another television first! 😮 I think most of JM's novels got adapted, including "Centennial" that was required reading for one of the high school classes/courses that I wasn't in. I didn't read it, but I did read "Space"! It had a map inside that impressed me by being able to fit in a fictional state without displacing others, if I recall right. I saw that miniseries. Kevin James and another comic actor play firemen who fight to get a legal same sex marriage despite not being in love as homosexuals but as heterosexual friends who need the health benefits. Richard Chamberlain had just come out, and he played in the movie as a city councilman who had to vote on whether or not to approve it all!

[@MadScheib]

For more amazing Paul Newman-performances, you might want to check out THE HUSTLER from 1961, the follow-up THE COLOR OF MONEY from 1985 (co-starring a very young Tom Cruise) and NOBODY'S FOOL from 1994. I consider especially the latter a small gem, a wonderful dramedy. If I think about it: Paul Newman is one of the very few actors who NEVER made a bad movie.

[@shanemoran8260]

Its a few years since i seen that movie its a Excellent movie thanks again for another video❤Love from dublin ireland🇮🇪

[@jenmurrayxo]

Thanks Shane! 🔥

[@shanemoran8260]

@@jenmurrayxo your welcome anytime👍🇮🇪

[@robertjewell9727]

I'd like to recommend A NIGHT TO REMBEMBER (1958), about an historical event I'm sure you're quite familiar with, brilliantly directed and acted.

[@cathleencooks748]

Robert Jewell I'm in 100 % agreement with you. A Night To Remember is a more factual movie about the sinking of the Titanic because they used the book by the same name by Walter Lord who was a historian. A connection to this movie would be David McCallum who played one of the telegraph operators on the Titanic. He later went on to co-star with Robert Vaughan on the TV series Man From UNCLE

[@user-il5oq5df6l]

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER is a classic! It stars the late, great British actor Kenneth More, whom I best remember for his starring role in SINK THE BISMARCK.

[@richardsanders4567]

Here are a few disaster/survival films: 127 Hours (2010), San Andreas (2015), Frozen (2010), Room (2015), Everest (2015), The Book of Eli (2010), All Is Lost (2013), Apocalypto (2006), Eight Below (2006), Contagion (2011), The Road (2009), The Day After Tomorrow (2004), Last Night (1998), Outbreak (1995), 2012 (2009), The Flowers of War (2011), Circle (2015), The Grey (2011), Alive (1993), The Tower (2012 South Korean film)

[@Jompani42]

About the special effects, here's what I found on IMDB: "The building used in the film was a series of miniatures and matte paintings. Only sections of the building were actually constructed for the actors and stunt people to perform their scenes. Interior shots of the building were of San Francisco's Hyatt Regency. Exterior shots used the Bank of America building (at 555 California St.) with an additional 50 stories of matte paintings added. "