13 Things You Didn't Know About 'Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure'
30 years ago, we were introduced to Bill S. Preston, Esq. and Theodore "Ted" Logan. These two lovable slackers were destined to save the world through the power of rock and roll, but only if they could pass history class first. Their most excellent message of peace and love resonates just as strongly today, so let's celebrate the anniversary of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure" with some fun facts you might not know about this sci-fi comedy classic.
1. While the movie is set in San Dimas, California, most of the filming took place in several different towns in Arizona. Bogus!
2. The iconic telephone booth was eventually given away as a prize by the magazine "Nintendo Power" as part of the promotion for the "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure" video game.
3. Earlier drafts of the screenplay included other historical figures who didn't make the final cut, including baseball legend Babe Ruth and Roman Emperor Charlemagne.
4. The film's release was delayed a year after original production company De Laurentiis Entertainment Group went bankrupt. Actor Bernie Casey (who played Mr. Ryan, the history teacher) was required to dub over one of his lines so that he said "1988" instead of "1987."
5. Originally, Rufus' time machine was going to take the form of a Chevrolet van, but this was changed in order to distance the film from 1985's "Back to the Future." Unfortunately, that merely invited comparisons to "Doctor Who's" TARDIS instead. Whoops.
6. The word "dude" is spoken no fewer than 70 times during the course of the movie.
7. The movie features an interesting temporal paradox. Rufus never actually introduces himself to Bill and Ted, instead allowing their older selves to introduce him to their younger selves. So how did Bill and Ted ever learn his name the first time around?
8. Director Stephen Herek saved money during the flashback to Napoleon's time period by reusing footage from 1956's "War and Peace."
9. The popular punk band The Ataris paid homage to the movie with a song called "San Dimas High School Football Rules!".
10.Brendan Fraser and Pauly Shore tried out for the roles of Bill and Ted, respectively. While neither actor either got the part, they did eventually team up for 1992's "Encino Man." Squeezin' the juices, indeed.
11. A popular rumor claims that stars Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter originally tried out for each other's role, but Winter has denied this. He did admit, however, that he and Reeves often got their characters confused because of their strikingly similar personalities.
12. Winter also shot down the rumor that the script for a proposed third "Bill & Ted" movie was reworked to become 1996's "Bio-Dome."
13. Fortunately, a third "Bill & Ted" movie is finally happening. Reeves and Winter are both returning for "Bill & Ted Face the Music," which began pre-production in May 2018.