Who doesn’t hear “Summer Nights” and immediately start singing? It doesn’t matter what generation you’re from; everyone knows Grease. It’s one of the films that helped take John Travolta out of the classroom in sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter and into stardom. Even though the film first came out in 1978, I love that we can still watch it with a Paramount+ subscription.
Travolta has gotten a lot of attention for dipping into nostalgia. I was one of the many who loved seeing him dress up as Danny Zuko to attend a sing-along screening at the Hollywood Bowl. However, he’s not the only Grease actor who has been reminiscing lately. Barry Pearl, who played the youngest of the T-Birds Doody, shares a delightful flubbed line that actually made it into the beloved musical. He talks about the moment in an interview with ReMind. He recalls:
When we’re in the bleachers, before we sing ‘Summer Nights, we’re making fun of Tom Chisum, Lorenzo [Lamas’] character. He’s running in his football stuff, and he puts his foot in his helmet, and we say, ‘You really put your foot into it this time, Chisum!'
Whenever the Grease actors share moments from set, it always brings me such joy, especially since several have since passed away. For instance, Olivia Newton-John died in 2022 at 73. Thankfully, she and Travolta were able to reunite in their original costumes before her death. While the scene on the bleachers didn’t feature Newton-John, it’s still fun to hear stories about that classic moment that we haven't heard before.
The actor shares how his co-star Michael Tucci, who is Italian, would use phrases such as “you’re a real gavone” when he put someone down. This had an impact on Pearl, who explains that the term is a way to refer to someone who is a nerd. And since he was playing an Italian character, he remembers how he enjoyed leaning into similar phrases that his fellow actor used. He says:
I loved that, and in the moment, because we did a lot of improvisation in many of the scenes, when it came time for us to be making fun of Tom Chisum, I wanted to call him, ‘You’re a real gavone,’ or ‘Hey gavone,’ at which point Michael actually said it, ‘What a gavone.'
It’s no surprise that the actors still feel sentimental. That’s how Pearl feels when he remembers how he caught himself starting to say "gavone,’"and quickly threw something else out instead. Who would have thought that the flubbed line would land in the film? He certainly didn’t. The actor explains:
At that point, I already had the 'G' coming out of my mouth. So, I said, ‘Gumdrops, man.' It’s not a put-down, it’s nothing! And that’s the shot that they’ve got in the movie.
The easy camaraderie between actors is one of the many reasons why the film has remained a classic and one of the best 1970s movies. It's so beloved that it has spawned the prequel comedy series The Rise of the Pink Ladies, a live TV musical starring Julianne Hough and Aaron Tveit, and even the indigenous reimagining, a stage musical called Bear Grease.
No one is ready to forget about the classic musical, nor should they. It’s a film that will continue to be passed down through the generations.
