Interview: Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz

WHERE WERE YOU IN ’79?: A CONVERSATION WITH WILLARD HUYCK & GLORIA KATZ ON FRENCH POSTCARDS

Many people may not remember the 1979 French Postcards. Those that do, however, look back on this little film with loads of affection and nostalgia. The filmmakers, Willard Huyck (director) and Gloria Katz (producer) wrote this indie charmer, which was picked up by Paramount Pictures and filmed in the romantic city of Paris on an extremely low budget. The husband-and-wife team — who were also the scribes behind American Graffiti and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom — and I recently had a wonderful phone interview. Join us as we discuss the Paris shoot, working with the young actors (including a young Debra Winger), and howling about their cult masterpiece Howard The Duck!

Judge Christopher Kulik: Were both of you aware of French Postcards coming out on DVD?

Willard Huyck (briefly laughing): Nope, no idea!

CK: Really? You didn’t receive a letter or anything? (chuckles)

Gloria Katz (chuckling): Nope…we really had no idea!

CK: Well, Legend Films is a brand new distribution subsidiary of Paramount Pictures. In the past two months, they have released several lesser-known releases, including French Postcards. So, anyway, my first question regards the genesis of the film. What was the inspiration?

WH: When I was at USC film school, I saw an announcement/advertisement for a junior year abroad in Paris program. So, I spent my junior year going to a school like the one in the movie and that was really the inspiration.

CK: And, of course, this is several years after American Graffiti which had already become a classic. Was your primary intent with French Postcards to continue studying youth coming-of-age or did that just happen in the inspiration while writing the script?

WH: Well, it was both. It was based on something that happened to me and, due to the success of American Graffiti, it obviously helped us in getting this movie made. They were interested in this kind of film because we had written that one. We also knew we had to stay low budget.

GK: Yes, we wanted to do something that was cheap, with not a lot of studio interference, and also cast the way we wanted.

WH: Yes, with no movie stars… and it’s a real luxury to do that.

CK: May I ask what the film’s budget was?

GK: I think it was about 1.5 million or something.

WH: We shot it with an entirely French crew. And, it wasn’t even a traditional studio French crew. They were all our age, and…we really shot it like an independent.

GK: Yes, it was really a guerrilla film crew. We also didn’t have dressing rooms or anything you would have on a conventional film.

WH: It was really shot like a student film.

GK: Yes, it was just sort of shot on the fly.

CK: Ahhh, in that sense it was like how American Graffiti was filmed, with very few amenities for the cast and crew.

WH: Yes, it was very similar to that.

CK: In the end credits, you thanked the American Students of Paris, 1978-1979. Was this an organization which gathered students from different universities, or…?

WH: Oh, no, we just used a lot of American students who were studying there that year.

CK: I see… so a lot of them acted as extras?

WH: Oh yes… all of them.

CK: Wonderful… so it added realism to the whole project…

WH: Yes.

CK: And, of course, you shot on location in Paris…

WH: Yes, and we also went to the wine country to shoot the sequence with Mandy Patinkin and Blanche Baker, when they were in the Cadillac.

CK: Was Paramount very supportive throughout the international shoot?

WH: Well, it was great because it was such a small movie and the studio was more concerned with their bigger productions. So, we really didn’t have to worry about that.

GK: They had some big movie going on Germany so, to them, our film was really such an afterthought.

WH: We were really left on our own.

CK: Ironically enough, a couple months before French Postcards was released, the sequel to American Graffiti came out which, if I understand correctly, you had nothing to do with…is that right?

WH: Well, George [Lucas] wanted us to make the film, but we really wanted to do our own thing. In those days, especially, sequels were thought of much less than they are now. So, we basically said we weren’t interested. Well, we talked to George about it a lot, but we weren’t particularly interested in the time period as much and the switching of scenes. In the end, we suggested Bill [B.W.L.] Norton to make the film; he was a friends of ours and we knew him from film school.

GK: Also, American Graffiti was such as strong film that to follow it, it seemed (to us) kind of suicidal.

CK: As far as casting, did you do auditions both in America and Paris, or just in Paris?

WH: No, both. We did a lot of auditions in L.A., New York and even Chicago.

GK: Yes, the casting people went everywhere. Afterward, we then did some auditions in Paris for the French actors.

WH: But all the Americans were obviously found here.

CK: So, this was really your first film as a producer-director team…

WH: Oh, no…actually our first was an $80,000 horror film called Messiah of Evil. We made it in 1971, I think; it has a sort of underground cult following now and there are people currently trying to get it re-released on DVD. So, French Postcards was technically our second feature.

CK: Now, this was Debra Winger’s third theatrical film, after Slumber Party ’57 and Thank God It’s Friday. How did you find her?

WH: We had seen Thank God It’s Friday and I think that was part of the reason we cast her….she was wonderful in that movie.

CK: Oh, I see…so you saw her in that film and asked her to come aboard?

WH: Well, she actually read for the Blanche Baker part [the lead female]. And, we decided she was wonderful but not quite right for that role. So, we cast Blanche, but Debra liked the script so much. So, she actually called me directly soon after and asked if she could read for the friend, Blanche’s roommate. So, she ended up with the smaller part.

CK: What was it like working with her?

WH: She was…very intense. It hurt her a little because she had wanted to play the larger role and when she arrived in France, we had to remind her she had committed to the smaller part. Other than that, it went fine and the crew loved her.

CK: She’s one of my favorite actresses and it’s astonishing that the next year she would be in Urban Cowboy and become very big.

WH: Oh, yes. I actually talked to Travolta because a friend of ours was making Urban Cowboy and told him Winger would be great in that movie. And she was terrific.

CK: Just to let you know, I actually went to Paris on an exchange program when I was 15. It was amazing because I found myself identifying a lot with the Joel character, played by Miles Chapin. How did you discover him?

WH: Through readings, basically. We saw every young actor for the part, and many of them became movie stars. We liked Miles, and we thought he was perfect in the role. He was a character I identified a lot with too.

CK: Yeah, he had that kind of innocence and nervousness, trying to speak the language and…

WH: Yes, he was wonderfully funny. Very typically American…he was just a pleasure to work with.

CK: And I think the most charming actor in the whole film is Valerie Quennesson as Toni. I just fell in love her the moment I set eyes on her…

GK: So tragic…

CK: Yes, I only just recently read about her sudden death [back in 1989]. I had no idea she got killed in an auto accident… wow!

WH: Yes, it was awful. When we saw her, she had no experience, and Miles really helped her behind-the-scenes and pulled her through the film. She had no concept on matching or continuity. My friend [John] Milius later used her in Conan The Barbarian, and he really fell in love with her too. She was very lovely…

GK: It was really tragic. She was kind of a wild child, but she had really settled down and married this really nice guy. Then, right after she had a baby, she got killed in an motorcycle accident.

CK: In the film, she projected this kind of rebellious nature, yet also having a lot of charm under the surface…

WH: Yes, she was very lovely.

GK: I wanted to talk a little about the soundtrack to the film. We had a fabulous score and when Paramount released the film on VHS, they didn’t buy rights and changed the records.

WH: Yes, they really screwed up the soundtrack. We had chosen the music very carefully, and after French Postcards got on tape, Paramount really botched things.

[For a few minutes, we joked a lot about Paramount's misplaced wisdom back then in tampering with film soundtracks. They did the same thing with many other films in the late '70s/early '80s, including An Officer And A Gentleman].

CK: On that note, was there a soundtrack released?

GK: No, we had enormous fights. We had a deal with Casablanca records to put out the tracks and then they just pulled out. There was a screaming fight, and I got so mad with them that, after I left the meeting, I smashed my car! [Laughs]

CK (laughs): Wow! Well, in the film you utilize a lot of French actors and actresses such as Marie-France Pisier…

GK: Yes, we wrote the script with Marie-France in mind. We actually met her in the U.S., and thought she was just the most wonderful comedienne, great looking and really smart. She is so accomplished, and even wrote several novels.

CK: And, of course, you had Jean Rochefort…

WH: Yes, he was and still is one of the great French actors.

CK: On the set, were you in need of interpreters to assist the French actors if they had difficulty speaking English?

WH: Well, Marie-France Pisier’s English was very good. For Jean Rochefort, we actually brought a UCLA professor to Paris, also a friend of ours, and he actually worked with him on his English. And he worked very hard, and wanted to make sure he got the dialogue down.

CK: I now have a specific question for Ms. Katz. In the film, you have a cameo as Chief Sn–

GK: Snail! [Both of us laugh.]

CK: Would you like to comment on that?

GK: I loved the costume…

CK: Did you feel nervous in front of the camera, being your first acting role?

GK: Oh no, I’m a natural snail…[we both laugh]

CK: Was Marie-France Pisier nervous about doing nudity?

WH: Uh, no, she wasn’t…and in fact one of my favorite memories was during costuming when we had to pick out the underwear she would wear. And she was…

GK: Very French…

WH: …and very cooperative when we both showed her different types of underwear to choose from.

CK: So, from what you both remember, what was the critical reception to French Postcards?

WH: It was actually pretty good. We did get a very bad review in the L.A. Times, but overall, it was ok. And it seems to have lived pretty well in people’s memories.

CK: I know Roger Ebert gave it a very favorable review…

WH: Oh, yes, he loved the movie, and that really helped.

CK: Just before I close out the interview, I wanted to share with you both a little story you’ll probably find amusing. I was in the Navy for eight years and, back in 1999, I used to put movies in the ship’s media system so that everyone could watch them around the ship. One day, I brought in one particular movie and everyone got ecstatic. They loved watching the film and were going nuts over it…then, halfway through, the film just cut off. The Executive Officer (second in command) had called and demanded the film be shut off, saying it was terrible. Everyone was so disappointed and upset they couldn’t watch the rest. Then, seconds later, the film just came back on. As it turns out, the Captain of the ship ordered for it to come back on because he wanted to see the rest of it. And, yes, that movie was, in fact, Howard The Duck!

[Both Mr. Huyck & Ms. Katz laugh hysterically.]

WH: I love that story!

GK: That’s the greatest story! WE LOVE THAT SHIP!

WH: They should make that Captain the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff!

[We all laughed.]

CK: It’s just amazing that it’s become this huge cult film, and that leads me to my final, ultimate question: is there any hope we will ever see Howard The Duck on DVD?

WH (slightly surprised): They [Universal Studios] haven’t done it?

CK: No, they have not. And, believe me when I say I’m a patient person, but I’m prepared to contact the Dark Overlords of the Universe and have them ravage the studio.

[We all laughed again.]

CK: Actually, there is some good news…it was released on DVD in the UK for the first time back in February [Universal had nothing to do with it]. They boast it as the “full, uncut version,” because they originally cut out two scenes.

GK: Yes, they did cut scenes out of the original British release.

CK: Yes, one of the scenes was when Dr. Jennings had the snake come out of his mouth and he charged himself in the cigarette lighter. [We all laughed.] Love that, and I forget what the other one was…

WH: It was probably when she was in bed with the duck!

CK (chuckles): Maybe. Yet, as great as the UK release is, there are so many fans in the U.S. that I find it mind-boggling it hasn’t been released on Region 1 yet.

GK: Well, I think we better talk to George about it. He maybe our one hope to get it on DVD.

CK: That’s understandable. Well, my final question would be are you and Ms. Katz planning any projects for the future?

WH: Oh, yes, we’re still writing…actually we’re finishing a script right now, which is a big thriller.

GK: Hopefully, we should be getting it together soon.

CK: Wonderful! Well, that pretty much wraps up my interview. I just wanted you to know it’s been an absolute pleasure and merci beaucoup!

WH: Thanks, Chris, you did a great job…this has been fun!

French Postcards, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, American Graffiti are available for purchase through and other retail outlets. Keep an eye on DVD Verdict’s Upcoming Releases Page for information on Howard the Duck as it becomes available.

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