The Rocky Horror Picture Show

***The Rocky Horror Picture Show*** is a 1975 musical comedy horror film by 20th Century Fox, produced by Lou Adler and Michael White and directed by Jim Sharman. The screenplay was written by Sharman and actor Richard O'Brien, who is also a member of the cast. The film is based on the 1973 musical stage production *The Rocky Horror Show*, with music, book, and lyrics by O'Brien. The production is a parody tribute to the science fiction and horror B movies of the 1930s through to the early 1960s. Along with O'Brien, the film stars Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, and Barry Bostwick and is narrated by Charles Gray with cast members from the original Royal Court Theatre, Roxy Theatre, and Belasco Theatre productions including Nell Campbell and Patricia Quinn.

## Plot

The film starts with the opening credits for the main cast ("Science Fiction, Double Feature"). Then, a criminologist narrates the tale of the newly engaged Brad Majors and Janet Weiss ("Dammit Janet"), who find themselves lost and with a flat tire on a cold and rainy late night in November 1974. Seeking a telephone, the couple walks to a nearby castle ("Over at the Frankenstein Place"); there, they discover an ongoing Annual Transylvanian Convention, where they meet the Igor-like Riff Raff, his French maid sister Magenta, and a groupie named Columbia ("Time Warp"). Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a cross-dressing, bisexual mad scientist, introduces himself to the couple ("Sweet Transvestite").

In his lab, Frank claims to have discovered the "secret to life itself" and brings to life his creation: a tall, muscular, handsome blond man named Rocky ("The Sword of Damocles"); Frank vows he can improve Rocky into an ideal man in a week ("I Can Make You a Man"). Delivery-boy Eddie (half of whose brain Frank had used in the creation of Rocky) breaks out of a deep freeze riding a motorcycle, interrupting Frank, and gets the Transylvanians dancing and singing ("Hot Patootie"). When Rocky starts dancing and enjoying the performance, a jealous Frank kills Eddie with a pickaxe. Frank justifies Eddie's murder as a "mercy killing" to Rocky and they depart to the bridal suite ("I Can Make You a Man - Reprise").

Brad and Janet are shown to separate bedrooms, where each is visited and seduced by Frank, who poses as Brad (when visiting Janet) and then as Janet (when visiting Brad). Although each of them is initially against having sexual relations with Frank, each quickly relents. Janet, upset and emotional after having lost her virginity to Frank, wanders off to find Brad, whom she sees smoking a cigarette in bed with Frank on a video monitor. She then discovers Rocky, cowering in his birth tank, hiding from Riff Raff and Magenta, who were tormenting him. While tending to his wounds, Janet, upset that Brad slept with Frank, decides to become intimate with Rocky as Magenta and Columbia watch from their bedroom monitor ("Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch-a, Touch Me").

After discovering that Rocky is missing, Frank returns to the lab with Brad and Riff Raff, where Frank learns that an intruder has entered the building: Dr. Everett Scott, Janet and Brad's former science teacher. Dr. Scott now investigates UFOs for the government, which alarms Frank. Dr. Scott explains that he is there in search of his nephew Eddie. Dr. Scott assures Frank that his presence at the castle at the same time as Brad is a coincidence unrelated to UFO work. Frank, Dr. Scott, Brad, and Riff Raff then discover Janet and Rocky together, angering Frank and Brad. At this point, Magenta sounds the gong to summon everyone to dinner.

Rocky and the guests share an uncomfortable dinner, which they soon realise has been prepared from Eddie's mutilated remains ("Eddie"). Janet runs screaming into Rocky's arms, provoking Frank to chase her through the halls ("Planet Schmanet Janet"). Janet, Brad, Dr. Scott, Rocky, and Columbia all meet in Frank's lab, where Frank captures them with the Medusa Transducer, transforming them into nude statues ("Planet Hot Dog"). After dressing them in cabaret costumes, Frank "unfreezes" them, and they perform a live cabaret floor show, complete with an RKO tower and a swimming pool, with Frank as the leader ("Rose Tint My World/Don't Dream It, Be It/Wild and Untamed Thing").

Riff Raff and Magenta, now with new space-cadet attire and hairdos, interrupt the performance. They inform Frank that he has failed their mission; Riff Raff declares himself commander and Frank attempts to explain himself believing he'll be taken as a prisoner ("I'm Going Home"), but Riff Raff kills both him and Columbia using a pitchfork-shaped raygun. An enraged Rocky gathers Frank's corpse in his arms, climbs to the top of the tower impervious to Riff Raff's raygun beams, and plunges to his death in the pool below. Riff Raff and Magenta state they will be returning to their home planet Transsexual in the galaxy of Transylvania, warning Brad, Janet and Dr. Scott to leave immediately before the castle lifts off into space. The injured survivors are then left crawling in the smog and dirt and the narrator concludes that the human race is equivalent to insects crawling on the planet's surface: "lost in time, and lost in space... and meaning".

Two songs play as the film ends with the final credits rolling ("Super Heroes"; "Science Fiction, Double Feature—Reprise").

## Cast

Tim Curry as Dr. Frank
Susan Sarandon as Janet Weiss, The Heroine and Brad's Fiancée

Barry Bostwick as Brad Majors, The Hero and Janet's Fiancé

Richard O'Brien as Riff Raff, Hunch-Backed Handyman and Magenta's Brother

Patricia Quinn as Magenta, Maid and Riff Raff's Sister

Nell Campbell (credited as Little Nell) as Columbia, Groupie

Jonathan Adams as Dr. Everett V. Scott, Rival Scientist

Peter Hinwood as Rocky Horror, Creation (Trevor White as singing voice)

Meat Loaf as Eddie, Ex-Delivery Boy

Charles Gray as The Criminologist, An Expert

## Production

### Concept and development

Richard O'Brien was living as an unemployed actor in London during the early 1970s. He wrote most of *The Rocky Horror Show* during one winter just to occupy himself. Since his youth, O'Brien had loved science fiction and B horror movies. He wanted to combine elements of the unintentional humour of B horror movies, portentous dialogue of schlock-horror, Steve Reeves muscle flicks, and fifties rock and roll into his musical. O'Brien conceived and wrote the play set against the backdrop of the glam era that had manifested itself in British popular culture in the 1970s. Allowing his concept to come into being, O'Brien states "glam rock allowed me to be myself more".

O'Brien showed a portion of the unfinished script to Australian director Jim Sharman, who decided to direct it at the small experimental space Upstairs at the Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, Chelsea, London, which was used as a project space for new work. O'Brien had appeared briefly in a stage production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's *Jesus Christ Superstar*, directed by Sharman, and the two also worked together in Sam Shepard's *The Unseen Hand*. Sharman would bring in production designer Brian Thomson. The original creative team was then rounded out by costume designer Sue Blane, musical director Richard Hartley, and stage producer Michael White, who was brought in to produce. As the musical went into rehearsal, the working title, *They Came from Denton High*, was changed just before previews at the suggestion of Sharman to *The Rocky Horror Show*.

Having premiered in the small 60-seat Royal Court Theatre, it quickly moved to larger venues in London, transferring to the 230-seat Chelsea Classic Cinema on King's Road on 14 August 1973, before finding a quasi-permanent home at the 500-seat King's Road Theatre from 3 November that year, running for six years. The musical made its U.S. debut in Los Angeles in 1974 before playing in New York City as well as other cities. Producer and Ode Records owner Lou Adler attended the London production in the winter of 1973, escorted by friend Britt Ekland. He immediately decided to purchase the U.S. theatrical rights. His production would be staged at his Roxy Theatre in L.A. In 1975, *The Rocky Horror Show* premiered on Broadway at the 1,000-seat Belasco Theatre.

### Filming and locations

Set in the fictional town of Denton, the film was shot at Bray Studios and Oakley Court, a country house near Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, and at Elstree Studios for post-production, from 21 October to 19 December 1974. Oakley Court, built in 1857 in the Victorian Gothic style, is known for a number of Hammer films. Much of the location shooting took place there, although at the time the manor was not in good condition. Much of the cast were from the original London stage production, including Tim Curry, who had decided that Dr Frank N. Furter should speak like the Queen of the United Kingdom, extravagantly posh. Fox insisted on casting the two characters of Brad and Janet with American actors, Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon. Filming took place during autumn, which made conditions worse. During filming, Sarandon fell ill with pneumonia. Filming of the laboratory scene and the title character's creation occurred on 30 October 1974.
The film is both a parody and tribute to many of the science fiction and horror movies from the 1930s up to the 1970s. The film production retains many aspects from the stage version such as production design and music, but adds new scenes not featured in the original stage play. The film's plot, setting, and style echo those of the Hammer horror films, which had their own instantly recognizable style (just as Universal Studios' horror films did). The originally proposed opening sequence was to contain clips of various films mentioned in the lyrics, as well as the first few sequences shot in black and white, but this was deemed too expensive and scrapped.

### Costumes, make-up, and props

In the stage productions, actors generally did their own make-up; however, for the film, the producers chose Pierre La Roche, who had previously been a make-up artist for Mick Jagger and David Bowie, to redesign the make-up for each character. Production stills were taken by rock photographer Mick Rock, who has published a number of books from his work. In *Rocky Horror: From Concept to Cult*, designer Sue Blane discusses the *Rocky Horror* costumes' influence on punk music style, opining "[It was a] big part of the build-up [to punk]." She states that ripped fishnet stockings, glitter, and coloured hair were directly attributable to *Rocky Horror*.

Some of the costumes from the film had been originally used in the stage production. Props and set pieces were reused from old Hammer Horror productions and others. The tank and dummy used for Rocky's birth originally appeared in *The Revenge of Frankenstein* (1958). These references to earlier productions, in addition to cutting costs, enhanced the cult status of the film.

Costume designer Sue Blane was not keen on working for the film until she became aware that Curry, an old friend, was committed to the project. Curry and Blane had worked together in Glasgow's Citizens Theatre in a production of *The Maids*, for which Curry had worn a woman's corset. Blane arranged for the theatre to loan her the corset from the other production for *Rocky Horror*. Blane admits that she did not conduct research for her designing, had never seen a science fiction film, and is acutely aware that her costumes for Brad and Janet may have been generalizations.

> When I designed *Rocky*, I never looked at any science fiction movies or comic books. One just automatically knows what spacesuits look like, the same way one intuitively knows how Americans dress. I had never been to the United States, but I had this fixed idea of how people looked there. Americans wore polyester so their clothes wouldn't crease, and their trousers were a bit too short. Since they're very keen on sports, white socks and white T-shirts played an integral part in their wardrobe. Of course, since doing *Rocky* I have been to the United States and admit it was a bit of a generalization, but my ideas worked perfectly for Brad and Janet.
>
>

The budget for the film was US$1,600,000, far more than the stage production budget, but having to double up on costumes for the film production was expensive. For filming, corsets for the finale had to be doubled for the pool scene, with one version drying while the other was worn on set. While many of the costumes are exact replicas from the stage productions, other costumes were new to filming, such as Columbia's gold sequined swallow-tail coat and top hat and Magenta's maid's uniform.

Blane was amazed by the recreation and understanding of her designs by fans. When she first heard that people were dressing up, she thought it would be tacky, but was surprised to see the depth to which the fans went to recreate her designs. *Rocky Horror* fan Mina Credeur, who designs costumes and performed as Columbia for Houston's performance group, states that "the best part is when everyone leaves with a big smile on their face," noting that there's "such a kitschiness and campiness that it seems to be winking at you." The film still plays at many theatre locations and *Rocky Horror* costumes are often made for Halloween, although many require much time and effort to make.

### Title sequence

The film starts with the screen fading to black and oversized, disembodied female lips appear overdubbed with a male voice, establishing the theme of androgyny to be repeated as the film unfolds. The opening scene and song, "Science Fiction/Double Feature", consists of the lips of Patricia Quinn (who appears in the film later as the character Magenta and as 'Trixie the Usherette' in the original London production, where she also sings the song) but has the vocals of actor and *Rocky Horror* creator, Richard O'Brien (who appears as Magenta's brother Riff Raff). The lyrics refer to science fiction and horror films of the past and list several film titles from the 1930s to the 1960s, including *The Day the Earth Stood Still* (1951), *Flash Gordon* (1936), *The Invisible Man* (1933), *King Kong* (1933), *It Came from Outer Space* (1953), *Doctor X* (1932), *Forbidden Planet* (1956), *Tarantula* (1955), *The Day of the Triffids* (1962), *Curse of the Demon* (1957), and *When Worlds Collide* (1951).

## Music

Main article: The Rocky Horror Picture Show (soundtrack)
The soundtrack was released in 1975 by Ode Records and produced by English composer Richard Hartley. The album peaked at No. 49 on the U.S. *Billboard* 200 in 1978. It reached No. 12 on the Australian albums chart and No. 11 on the New Zealand albums chart. The album is described as the "definitive version of the [*Rocky Horror*] score"