One of the most iconic coming-of-age comedies of this generation, The Sandlot is the story of a group of 12-year-old boys doing what pre-teen boys do. They love baseball, but find themselves in a conundrum when their ball goes over the fence into the yard of mean Mr. Mertle and his dog they call “the Beast.” Legend has it that the dog is massive and savage.
Set in 1962, the movie’s simplicity, cute plot lines, relatability, and innocent fun make it a must-see for viewers of all ages. But what was it like making a film like this in 1993 with a group of pre-teen boys at the center of the cast? Turns out there are some pretty wild and interesting facts behind the filming of the cult classic film.
The Boys Needed Incentive for Good Behavior
The actor who played Squints, Chauncey Leopardi, reportedly demanded something very specific in exchange for the kids behaving well on set: he reportedly asked director of photography Anthony Richmond for a copy of the current issue of Playboy.
Richmond has been quoted as saying that after he provided the boys with a copy of the then popular publication, all was good. Leopardi, for his part, doesn’t recall if that truly happened. Nonetheless, he admits that it “probably did.”
Smalls Had Baby Food On His Face
Remember that scene when Smalls (Tom Guiry) stars into the menacing eyes of “The Beast,” a.k.a. a large English Mastiff dog, fearing for his life? After what seems like minutes go by, the dog simply licks his face lovingly.
In order to get the pup to perform this action on cue, they spread baby food on the side of Guiry’s face that you can’t see in the shot. The delicious treat was too tempting for the dog to resist, and he performed like a seasoned actor, right on time.
The Boys Were Mesmerized by James Earl Jones
If you watched the film, you know that legendary actor James Earl Jones plays a small but major role as Mr. Mertle. At the time, Star Wars was as big as it is today, if not bigger. Jones, who voiced Darth Vader, had the kids reeling over the opportunity to work with him.
They have been quoted as saying how great he was to work with, even though he was only on set for a single day. Not surprisingly, they were very excited to get the chance to meet “Darth Vader,” in the flesh and appear in a movie with him.
Squints Was Based on a Real Person
Director David Mickey Evans used elements from his own childhood to create the iconic film, and one of these taken-from-real-life characters was Squints. Evans supposedly went to school with a boy who went by that same nickname and shared some similarities with the fictional Squints.
The man, Michael Polydoros, actually sued Evans and the rest of the team from the film, claiming that the character caused him to relive childhood trauma. The case was eventually dismissed, as the judge didn’t find enough similarities between the fictional Squints and the real man who once went by the same nickname to suggest that he was anything more than a character.
Squints Was Told to Keep His Tongue in His Mouth During the Kissing Scene
One of the most memorable scenes from the movie is when Squirts pretends to be drowning so the pretty young lifeguard, Wendy Peffercorn (Marley Shelton), his secret crush, would have to give him CPR. Naturally, as a pre-teen boy, Leopardi was pretty nervous to film the “kissing” scene.
Reportedly right before Shelton went in for the pretend CPR, Evans leaned in and told Leopardi to keep his tongue in his mouth. No funny business here – this should be all professional. The scene, of course, came out perfectly, right down to Squints’ sly smile to his friends when Wendy looked away for a split second. The 12-year-old boys were all crushing on Shelton in real life, too.
The Chewing Tobacco Was Made of Licorice and Bacon
Naturally, the kids weren’t really chewing tobacco in that scene when they shared a bag at the fair (then proceeded to vomit it up on a swirly ride!) So what was it? It was actually a child-friendly combination of licorice and bacon bits.
While both of those items individually are delicious, together, they don’t sound like a great combination. So chances are the boys still felt a little queasy after ingesting it anyway, helping them to perfectly portray the feeling of severe stomach upset for the scene. In fact, many of the actors actually did get sick from the fake tobacco. Incidentally, the vomit in the film is also fake, made from split pea soup, baked beans, oatmeal, water, and gelatin.
The S’mores Scene Required Many Takes
The treehouse scene with a heated discussion about s’mores is one of the most memorable of the movie with the line “You’re killin’ me, Smalls!” as Ham (Patrick Renna) explains in detail what a s’more is and how to make the perfect one (there’s a real method to doing it just right). But it was actually one of the most difficult scenes to film in the movie. Why? Because the boys couldn’t stop laughing.
Guiry said it took about 12 takes because once the giggles started with the boys, they just couldn’t stop.
The Pool Scene Was Filmed in Cold Weather
While the weather in Utah, where filming took place, was super hot for the majority of filming, topping 110 degrees on some days, it was ironically a unusually cold day when they filmed the pool scenes.
The water was a frigid 56 degrees or so when the boys were swimming inside. If you look close enough, in fact, you can see Squints’ teeth chattering while he’s staring at Wendy. This wasn’t part of the scene – he was just actually really cold.
The Boys Snuck Into a Theater To Watch Basic Instinct
You’d expect nothing less from a group of 12-year-old boys. During filming, the cast snuck into a movie theater to see a top film that year, Basic Instinct. Of course that movie, dubbed a neo-noir erotic thriller, is not suitable for kids. The film is rated NC-17 for sexual scenes and violence.
Nonetheless, that iconic legging-crossing scene featuring Sharon Stone must have had the boys just as googly-eyed as when they’d see Wendy Peffercorn. It’s a cute story that shows that, while acting as a group of coming-of-age boys in the movie, they really were just that in real life, experiencing some of the same types of shenanigans as their characters.
Connections Helped Film At Dodger Stadium
In the flash forward ending of the movie, we see that Benny grows up to become a professional baseball player for the Dodgers, and Smalls becomes a sportscaster. The filmmakers wanted to film this scene at Dodger Stadium but there was one problem: they couldn’t get the request approved.
Thankfully, cinematographer Anthony Richmond pulled some strings. He was apparently friends with team manager Tommy Lasorda, who managed to secure a date for the production crew to film the sequence. It definitely made a difference, adding to the scene’s authenticity.
