Today’s Ill-Advised Yet Truly Morbid Fact!
On the night of July 23, 1982, at Indian Dunes in Valencia, California, filming was underway on “Twilight Zone: The Movie.” Vic Morrow was the star of this particular vignette, playing an angry, bigoted man named Bill who finds himself transported back in time to various historical settings where he experiences firsthand the horrors of prejudice and war. One of the places he’s transported to is Vietnam, where he tries to protect two village children from American forces. Starring with Morrow were two small children, Renee Shin-Yi Chen and Myca Dinh Le, hired by director John Landis, who had failed to secure the proper permits necessary for employing underage actors. Additionally, Landis violated the rules by shooting the children’s scenes late at night. The scene involved Morrow’s character crossing a river on foot with the two children in his arms while a helicopter hovered close overhead. Landis had been warned that the stunt was risky but is reported to have shrugged it off with “We may lose the helicopter.”
With the cameras rolling, pilot Dorcey Wingo positioned his Bell UH-1B Iroquois about 25 feet above Morrow and the two children. Then he turned his chopper 180 degrees, bringing his tail rotor close to a mortar effect, which exploded prematurely, blowing off the rotor and sending the helicopter into an uncontrolled spin. It fell from the sky directly onto the three actors, killing them all instantly. Landis was the first movie director in the history of Hollywood to face charges relating to an on-set accident. The case dragged on for years, with Morrow’s family settling out of court and Landis being acquitted of all charges in 1987. The Twilight Zone tragedy led directly to major changes in the way helicopters were used in filming and to a general tightening of safety regulations in the film industry.
Culled from: Wikipedia
Submitted by: Aimee
Sometimes making the movie is scarier than the movie itself. – Aimee
And here’s video of the accident:
[tube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ru6I9Cc9XnE[/tube]
If I recall correctly, some imagery of the accident and of the media coverage afterwards is included in the opening credits of the movie