10 Hidden Details You Missed About The Main Characters In Rocky Horror Picture Show

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a musical from 1975, with a colourful, dramatic narrative which has been the theme for many parties and amateur productions. It was produced by Michael White and Lou Adler, with Jim Sharman as director.

The stories behind the show are intriguing, as are the stories of events which happened on set during the filming. Even more intriguing, however, are the characters which bring life to this larger-than-life production. Here are just 10 interesting facts and things you might not know about the production’s main characters:

10 Stage Legends Come Together

They say that the real measure of talent in acting is the ability to bridge acting on stage to acting on screen. Stage requires a measure of professionalism which being on screen evades as there are no retakes and acting has to be flawless.

The movie features requires several performers who also appeared in The Rocky Horror Show on stage. These include Richard O’Brien, Nell Campbell, Patricia Quinn, Tim Curry, Jonathan Adams and Meat Loaf.

9 The Contested Role of Eddie

The role for Eddie was a much-coveted role, with actor Richard O’Brien having fought hard to get the role of the motorcycle-riding character. The role eventually went to Meat Loaf, with the casting directors having thought O’Brien to be perfect for the role of Riff Raff the handyman.

O’Brien’s dreams of revving it up on a motorcycle might not have been realized but he definitely showed he can pull off a mysterious handyman with great skill and finesse.

8 A Whole Lot of Shaking Going On

In one of the scenes in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Janet shakes it up on the dance floor. This ‘floor show’ scene was one of viewers favourites scenes. Strangely enough, a lot of the shaking by actress Susan Sarandon, who played Janet, was not intentional. Broadway.com says she was actually sick with flu, possibly even pneumonia, at the time of the filming.So those sweats and those shakes had more than just to do with good music and happy dance vibes. Good for Sarandon for showing her dedication to the acting industry.

7 Talented In More Than One Way

It would seem Richard O’ Brien is more than just a good actor. Viewers will know O’Brien as the mysterious handyman who dazzles audiences with his strange and wonderful antics. Fans might not know this, but O’Brian was actually the one who wrote the script for the production, The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

This is not all, according to Buzzfeed.com, he also wrote the 1973 musical and book. Even though he didn’t land the role of Eddie as he had hoped, it seems O’Brien still did well for himself!

6 And Then There Were Two…

A problem arose during casting for the production, with Marianne Faithfull being encouraged to audition for the role of Frank N. Furter’s woman counterpart. Trouble was, the role had already been filled, by Little Nell. Without disappointing Faithfull, a new role was created for her; or rather, the role of Frank N. Furter’s female counterpart was split into two parts: Columbia and Magenta.

Viewers probably didn’t know the two characters were originally one character, but this strange multiplication of even stranger characters is not unusual for the bizarre narrative, full of twists, which is so typical of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

5 Dancing Her Way to the Top

Little Nell might seem an unlikely actress but she was cast chiefly for her tap dancing skills. By this, they mean that she didn’t even open her mouth to speak. Directors of the show heard that she was working as a waitress in London, and dancing while serving ice cream.

This happened to be the kind of eccentric, super-talented actress they were looking for. Director Jim Sharman traveled to see her perform. She did a tap dancing stint and before she could speak, she was given a contract to sign. The rest you could say, was history.

4 Just Like the Queen

The character of Frank N. Furter was supposed to have a distinct German accent, as in the original production of The Rocky Horror Show. Actor Tim Curry started off saying the character’s lines with a thick German accent. However, a bus trip and a decidedly posh passenger changed his mind.

He overheard a woman on the bus speaking with a British accent and knew then and there, Frank N. Furter should sound posh like the Queen.

3 Red-Haired Wonder

Fans would have noticed the bright red hair of the character Magenta. The hair is commendable and might have sparked a surge of Magenta wannabes and requests for red hair at hair salons from fans wanting to replicate the dashing red tresses. It would interest viewers to know that Quinn’s (the actress who brought Magenta to life) hair was never dyed – not once.

Instead, each day on the set, it was sprayed the trademark red which makes fans love the character so much. It’s amazing what a can of coloured hairspray can do. Gives the rest of us some bold ideas!

2 Fake Bike Stunts

So Meat Loaf landed the coveted role of Eddie, the motorcycle-riding legend who drives fans crazy. Problem is, he wasn’t able to actually ride one. This presented numerous challenges and eventually resulted in directors employing the services of a stunt double to do the more daring motorcycle feats.

This stunt double was used for the far away shots where Eddie is shown riding close to Frank’s laboratory. In the shots where Meat Loaf is shown riding the bike, he is actually being pushed around in a wheel chair so that the motion of a bike is simulated for the shots. Cheating?

1 From The Catalog To The Stage

Peter Hinwood, the talented actor who starred as Rocky, had an unlikely introduction to the stage. Broadway.com says he started out as an underwear model. Being used to sitting still, or standing still, in his designer underwear, he wasn’t used to speaking any lines, so acting was a completely new experience for him.

So was singing. It was probably a good thing then that his singing voice for The Rocky Horror Picture Show was dubbed by professional singer Trevor White. What’s next for the upgraded underwear model? Only time will tell.