What The Deaf Man Heard: 10 Awesome Facts About The Hallmark Hall Of Fame Film

Over 20 years since it first aired, the legacy of the TV movie What The Deaf Man Heard is still strong. The Hallmark Hall Of Fame movie had an interesting premise that revolved around a man that pretended to be deaf and ended up hearing plenty of secret conversations.

The film was nominated for plenty of awards. For his performance as the lead character Sammy, Matthew Modine received a Golden Globe nomination for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV.” While most viewers are familiar with the plot, here are other facts about the film they probably didn’t know.

10 It Holds An Important Record

What The Deaf Man Heard still holds the record for the highest-rated TV movie on any American network since 1991. 36 million viewers are reported to have tuned in to watch the movie.

The film was also received Emmy nominations for  “Outstanding Made for Television Movie”, “Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie” and “Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or a Movie.” It won the latter. At the moment, it can be watched on Amazon Prime.

9 Matthew Modine Stayed In Character

Matthew Modine is a talented actor with plenty of accolades to his name, including an Emmy for “Outstanding Lead Actor In A Miniseries Or A Special.” And for the role of Sammy in What The Deaf Man Heard, he didn’t hold back.

Apparently, Modine was so dedicated to the role that he remained in character through the duration of filming. Just like Sammy, he always rode his bike to various locations and never said a word. He also chose to communicate by writing requests and answers down on a notepad like his character.

8 The Musical Leitmotif At The End

The song heard at the end of the film as Sammy is listening to a music box has also become iconic. Viewers have always wondered what the song is because it isn’t from any popular band or solo singer. Was it composed for the film?

Well, the song “My Ship.” It was composed by Ira Gershwin and Kurt Weill for or the 1941 Broadway musical play Lady In The Dark. In the beginning stages of the film it is also sung by Helen Ayers (Bernadette Peters). Many covers of the song have been released in recent years.

7 Matthew Modine Accepted The Role Without Reading The Script

When Matthew Modine was approached to play Sammy, he was a little bit hesitant. However, when he was told that actors like James Earl Jones and Tom Skeritt had already signed up, he said yes.

Modine didn’t even insist on reading the script first. He was convinced that the cast would create an amazing project and they did. The movie is now considered a cult classic.

6 Writer G.D. Gearino’s Inspiration For The Character

What The Deaf Man Heard is adapted from a novel of the dame name by G.D. Gearino. Interestingly the novel was the first ever work of the now legendary author and journalist. But what inspired him to create the character of Sammy?

According to G.D. Gearino, the character was made from a story that his mother used to tell him about a man that lived in a bus station and knew many of the town’s secrets. He this came up with the idea of a man who knew secrets too which he had heard by pretending to be deaf.

5 On-Set Crush

Apparently, Modine had a crush on Bernadette Peters who played young Sammy’s mother Helen Ayers. Modine had liked her since the ’80s when she appeared as a Playboy cover girl. When he arrived on set, she told him how much she loved his work and this made his feelings for her surge even more. Sadly, nothing more came out of it.

Modine’s first day on set was also Bernadette’s last day on set so they didn’t get much time to interact. At the time of filming, she was also married to her late husband, the investment adviser Michael Wittenberg.

4 The Burning Church Wasn’t An Actual Church

There is a scene in the movie where a church burns down. But according to Director John Kent Harrison, this wasn’t an actual church. It was just a replica.

Even though the scenes before the burning moments were filmed at an actual church, a giant replica was constructed right next to the church. Together with a mixture of special effects, the burning ended up looking very real.

3 It Was Director John Kent Harrison’s First US Film

Harrison began his career in directing when he was the Assistant Professor of Film Studies at the Concordia University, Montreal. His first film was Beautiful Dreamers which was released in 1990. After that, he mostly directed Canadian films.

What The Deaf Man Heard turned out to be his first American made film. Harrison would go on to direct numerous other TV movies after that. Most of his films place greater focus on storytelling rather than fancy camerawork.

2 It Was One Of The Longest Running Hallmark Films At The Time Of Its Release

At the time of its release, What The Deaf Man Heard was one of the longest running films produced for Hallmark. It had a running time of 1 hour, 56 minutes and 33 seconds. Most Hallmark films at the time ran for around 90 minutes.

This would change in the future. There have been many recent Hallmark films with running times that go past the 2 hour mark. There have also been longer films overall with directors such as Martin Scorsese frequently reaching the 3 hour mark.

1 A Very Small Cast

The film also had one of the smallest cast for any TV movie or feature film. There are only 24 credited actors. This was possibly due to budget issues but luckily, everything turned out just fine. Or perhaps it was just a directorial decision to use as few actors as possible.

There are also two executive producers and one supervising producer. Most of the locations used are also simple ones. However, crowds can be seen on a few occasions, which means that the extras were never credited.

About The Author

Philip Etemesi
(1215 Articles Published)

Philip Etemesi is an author, journalist, screenwriter and film critic based in Nairobi. Kenya. As a child, he preferred watching movies like The Goodfellas instead of Home Alone. His girlfriend constantly has to pull him from the front of the TV but he just keeps returning. Stubborn dude! An animal lover, Philip also has a pet giraffe called Refu.

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