Ok, so I know I’m a little late, but Walk the Line was on this past weekend, and I’m embarrassed to say I had never seen it. I’m a huge Johnny Cash fan, and was immediately enthralled by both Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. Of course, now I can’t get it out of my head, so here’s some trivia for you all.
—Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon performed all of the songs themselves, without being dubbed. They also learned to play their instruments (guitar and auto-harp, respectively) from scratch.
—June Carter Cash died before production began. Reese Witherspoon‘s research included looking through Carter’s closet for inspiration.
—Johnny Cash approved Joaquin Phoenix to play him in the film because he liked his performance in the movie Gladiator. June Carter Cash also approved Reese Witherspoon for her role in the film.
—Reese Witherspoon and Joaquin Phoenix had vocal training for six months with music producer T-Bone Burnett.
—The scene in which Johnny Cash pulls the sink off the wall was not scripted; Joaquin Phoenix actually pulled it off the wall.
—When Johnny Cash wakes up on the tour bus, just after the Folsom Prison performance, he walks past guitarist Luther Perkins, who is passed-out with a lit cigarette in his mouth, and puts the cigarette out. Perkins died a few months after the ‘At Folsom Prison’ recording/performance. He fell asleep in his Tennessee home with a lit cigarette in his mouth, and died from injuries sustained in the resulting fire.
—After visiting many of Johnny Cash‘s old homes, production designer David J. Bombacreated 90 different sets for the film and tried to underline the contrast between Cash’s two lives, one that was close to earth and nature in Arkansas and Tennessee, and the other set in the fast-moving world of rock music.
—Joaquin Phoenix wears 56 different costumes. All were designed by Arianne Phillipsfollowing meticulous research within the Cash family’s archives and fans’ private collections.
—Johnny Cash really proposed to June Carter onstage. It happened in February 1968, at the London Ice House, a hockey arena in London, Ontario, in the middle of a performance of “Jackson.” She accepted, and they married a week later.
and the real Johnny and June
All trivia courtesy of IMDB
Photos courtesy of Google
I went and saw “Walk the Line” in the theatre, and couldn’t get over how good Reese and Joaquin did in their roles. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen the film, and your post makes me want to rewatch! Loved all the trivia you included.
Isn’t the movie so good! This is definitely one I go back to all the time.
Stay in the Lines
It was certainly well made. Loved the characters.
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My all time favorite movie! I love Johnny Cash! One of the greatest love stories of all time!!!
This is one of my very favorite films!
Great post for a great movie. And who doesn’t love some Reese Witherspoon?? 🙂
What a great post! Makes me want to watch “Walk the Line” again. 🙂
I can’t believe you hadn’t seen it. It’s so great. What breaks my heart is that he passed away a few short months after her. He couldn’t live without his June.
Too weird! I am literally listening to Johnny Cash right now. When this article popped up I was like, “AHHHHH!” Hahahah. 😉