Fast Times at Ridgemont High arrived in theaters in 1982 and struck a chord with film followers, in half due to the characters. Stoner surfer Jeff Spicoli, performed by Sean Penn, is only one specific instance which helped to make the movie relatable to their very own highschool experiences. Because who did not know a “Spicoli” whereas going to high school?

It was an element that Penn took very critically — one thing which was to grow to be a trademark ingredient of his work — however at the time Fast Times was launched, he solely had a few prior movie credit to his title. “He was in character the whole time,” Cameron Crowe shared in a brand new interview with the Naked Lunch podcast, which you’ll be able to watch beneath. “He never said, ‘Hi, my name is Sean,’ until after the movie had wrapped. He came and visited us in a black leather jacket and introduced himself. I thought it was hilarious, but he played it so seriously that you couldn’t really tell and it was just so real, which of course, is the funniest stuff.”

The Moment They Finally Heard Spicoli’s Most Famous Line

Crowe remembers that he was on pins and needles, ready to listen to Penn ship what he says was his favourite line in the script, the second when Spicoli indignantly replies to his instructor, Mr. Hand, performed by legendary actor Ray Walford, “You dick!” Though he tried, Penn refused to ship the road previous to filming it. “I would always say to him, you’ve got to say the line, ‘you dick.’ I will die if [the line] doesn’t come out perfect, because it’s my favorite thing in the script. Just say ‘you dick,’” he advised hosts Phil Rosenthal and David Wild. The actor, after many requests, merely mentioned, “I’m not going to do it. You’ll know it when we do it.”

READ MORE: How ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High Revolutionized Teen Movies

The second of reality lastly arrived and quite a few folks have been available to witness it. Future Pearl Jam supervisor Kelly Curtis was behind the digital camera with Crowe, whereas his then-girlfriend and eventual spouse, Heart’s Nancy Wilson, was additionally in the room. All have been anticipating the supply. “Ray Walston, the only celebrity in the cast, is there and he set Sean up for the line,” he displays. “Sean goes, ‘you dick!’ We looked at each other and we’re like, ‘Oh my God, Eureka! It’s better than we even [expected]….it was spectacular.”

But the Famous Line Caused Drama on the ‘Fast Times’ Set

Walston, because it turned out, wasn’t happy. “[He] stomped off the set and said to [director] Amy Heckerling, ‘I won’t have a young actor talk to me like that!’ Sean was so confident. He was so on fire with [the line] that he would do a take where he’d say to Ray Walston, ‘You red-faced mother-effer!’ We would be dying behind the camera,” Crowe remembers “Ray Walston at a certain point was like, ‘I didn’t do all that I did in the business to be talked to by a 21-year old kid [like that]. I didn’t work with Bill Bixby and Billy Wilder to be told I’m a red-faced MF by this little guy who also calls me a dick!’ Meanwhile, we’re high-fiving behind the camera. Because this is our shot at Spicoli and that’s Sean. He knew he had it the whole time.”

Watch Cameron Crowe on the ‘Naked Lunch’ Podcast

Tom Petty Saw Himself in Jeff Spicoli

Once Fast Times at Ridgemont High was launched, Crowe discovered he had a really well-known fan of the film, Tom Petty. The second got here to gentle because the pair have been engaged on Heartbreakers Beach Party, his unintentional directorial debut, which just lately surfaced for its first-ever theatrical showings.

“[The movie] had just come out and the studio didn’t like the movie or believe in it. They cut [the number of] theaters [screening it] at the last minute. Basically, Fast Times was only seen by people on VHS later,” he shares. “It was bombing in the theaters, but he knew about Spicoli. He was [telling me], ‘I felt like Spicoli when I was in Gainesville. People would see me with my long hair and immediately assume that I was stoned and incapable of thought.’ That was when he said, ‘Pick up the camera, I’m going to play this song for you that you’re going to love’ and that was the beginning of my directing career. ‘I’m Stupid’ [in Heartbreakers Beach Party] is his ode to his own Spicoli-ness, which is crazy. I was going nuts when he was doing it. I’ll never forget how that felt.”

READ MORE: The Gift That Tom Petty Gave Cameron Crowe