The director became part of the British peerage system as the 5th Baron Haden-Guest when his father died in 1995.
Christopher Guest is an American director, writer, actor, and musician known for his satirical documentaries often referred to as ‘mockumentaries.’
Christopher Guest first came on to the comedy scene in 1972 when he joined the comedy troupe The National Lampoon during the recording of their LP, National Lampoon Radio Dinner, and their off-Broadway revue National Lampoon’s Lemmings. During his time with the Lampoon, he became known as the man of many voices, and his talent for improvisational comedy shown brightly. He became a featured player during the 1984-1985 season of Saturday Night Live, joining the cast along with Martin Short and Billy Crystal before transitioning into the world of movies. It was also in 1984 when he paired up with Rob Reiner, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer to write his first feature-length film, This is Spinal Tap.
Spinal Tap Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
This is Spinal Tap Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
This is Spinal Tap Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
This is Spinal Tap A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
What sets a Christopher Guest movie apart from other comedies is that it is entirely improvised! While the characters and the scenes are heavily planned, it’s up to the actors to figure out what they will say. Since it takes a unique set of skills to improvise an entire movie, Guest often uses the same actors in all his films.
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
Waiting for Guffman Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
This is Spinal Tap Waiting for Guffman A Mighty Wind
Waiting for Guffman A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
Best in Show A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration
A Mighty Wind For Your Consideration Mascots
This is Spinal Tap follows one of England’s loudest bands, Spinal Tap, as they embark on a comeback tour across the United States. They are accompanied by fan and film director Marty DiBergi who documents the fateful tour’s ups and downs.
This is Spinal Tap marked the directorial debut for Rob Reiner, who would go on to direct the hit films, The Princess Bride and When Harry Met Sally.
Many early viewers mistook the film for a real rock n’ roll documentary and criticized the film-makers for not choosing a more popular band to follow.
In the film, the band is plagued with bad luck when it comes to drummers. Their first drummer John “Stumpy” Pepys, died from an unsolved gardening accident. His replacement Eric “Stumpy Joe” Childs, choked on someone else’s vomit. While both Peter “James” Bond and Mick Shrimpton spontaneously combusted while performing on stage.
This is Spinal Tap is the only film on IMDb to be rated out of 11 instead of the typical ten, a reference to Nigel’s classic line.
Waiting for Guffman tells the story of aspiring director Corky St. Clair and his amateur cast of actors. They go a bit overboard when they find out someone from Broadway might be in attendance at their regional theater production of Red, White, and Blaine, an original musical celebrating their Missouri town’s 150th anniversary.
Christopher Guest got the idea to make Waiting for Guffman while watching one of his children in a production of Annie Get Your Gun. He was inspired by the casts’ devotion to putting on the best performance they could despite their production level.
The film’s musical, Red, White, and Blaine, is the only part of any Christopher Guest movie that is fully scripted and rehearsed.
Parker Posey was offered the role of Dairy Queen waitress Libby Mae Brown after an informal interview with Guest. He believed she would be an excellent fit for the part after talking to her for only ten minutes.
In a bout of self-doubt, Christopher Guest removed Corky from the first cut of the film. It wasn’t until he showed the film to a friend that he realized he had made a mistake.
Best in Show documents the highly competitive and cut-throat world of dog shows as it follows five dogs and their owners as they prepare for and compete in the annual Mayflower Dog Show.
Co-writer Eugene Levy was hesitant when Guest approached him to write the dog centered comedy as he was unsure how to make a dog show funny.
With around 100 canines, you would expect many unwanted noises; however, there is only one stray bark in the whole film credited to a startled extra at the 54-minute mark.
To play dog expert Trevor Beckwith, Christopher Guest required Jim Piddock to read the American Kennel Club’s guidebook on dogs for an hour each night.
Jennifer Coolidge has gone on record saying that Sherri Ann Cabot is based on a woman she used to babysit for when she first moved to L.A. she described the woman as “very feminine” and “very fake.”
When Harlan Pepper was a little kid, he used to name every kind of nut. It would drive his mother crazy she’d always say, “Would you stop naming nuts!”
A Mighty Wind follows three folk bands as they prepare for a show to memorialize a recently deceased concert promoter.
Operating as The Folksmen, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer have opened for themselves at Spinal Tap concerts only to be boo-ed off stage on multiple occasions.
In For Your Consideration, three actors learn that their respective performances in the film, “Waiting for Purim,� are generating awardseason buzz.
Actor Ricky Gervais sites This is Spinal Tap as a direct inspiration for his awardwinning television show, The Office. So when he was offered the role of studio executive Martin Gibb, he jumped to work with Guest.
Mascots is a peek into the competitive world of sports mascots as they gather to compete for the highest award in the industry, The Golden Fluffy.
Ten years after For Your Consideration, this film sees the addition of fresh faces to play off of Guest’s usual cast of characters. Guest had worked some of the new kids in commercials and television while others were new to the director’s style.
When it came to the routines performed at the Golden Fluffy competition, Guest had professional dancers, stuntmen, and clowns under the mascot costumes.
Acting on a whim, Mascots sees Guest reprise his role as Corky St. Clair from Waiting for Guffman. Corky acts as a mentor to Parker Posey’s Cindy Babineaux.
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