1 00:00:00,200 --> 00:00:13,920 Speaker 1: Hollywood Land is a production of Double Elvis. The stories 2 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:19,200 Speaker 1: about John Belushi are insane. He attacked an unruly theater 3 00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:22,720 Speaker 1: patron and nearly started a turf war in Chicago. He 4 00:00:22,800 --> 00:00:25,280 Speaker 1: tried to steal a boat from a marina with his 5 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:29,560 Speaker 1: blues brother Dan Ackroyd. He nearly died while performing one 6 00:00:29,600 --> 00:00:32,800 Speaker 1: of his final shows as a Saturday Night Live cast member. 7 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:36,680 Speaker 1: He was solely responsible for a punk rock Riot that 8 00:00:36,800 --> 00:00:40,600 Speaker 1: was broadcast on national television. And though he wasn't a 9 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: punk rocker, John Belushi was nonetheless a rock star of 10 00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:49,880 Speaker 1: the stage in screen, and he made great films, some 11 00:00:49,920 --> 00:00:53,400 Speaker 1: of the greatest comedies of all time. Unlike that clip 12 00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:55,120 Speaker 1: I played for you at the top of the show, 13 00:00:55,680 --> 00:00:58,520 Speaker 1: that wasn't a clip from a great film. That was 14 00:00:58,560 --> 00:01:01,320 Speaker 1: a fair use sample from the Library of Congress of 15 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:05,520 Speaker 1: the All Star Trio and their orchestra performing Vamping Rose 16 00:01:05,600 --> 00:01:10,240 Speaker 1: in nineteen twenty one. I played you that clip because 17 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:12,360 Speaker 1: I can't afford the rights to a clip from Mark 18 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:16,520 Speaker 1: Ridell's on Golden Pond. And why would I play you 19 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:20,319 Speaker 1: that specific slice of Grumpy Old Man Cheese? Could I 20 00:01:20,400 --> 00:01:24,600 Speaker 1: afford it? Because that was the number one movie in 21 00:01:24,640 --> 00:01:28,959 Speaker 1: America on March fifth, nineteen eighty two, and that was 22 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 1: the day John Belushi's body was found in a rented 23 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:36,480 Speaker 1: bungalow at the Chateau Marman, victim of a lethal speedball 24 00:01:36,680 --> 00:01:40,959 Speaker 1: at the age of thirty three. On this episode Unruly 25 00:01:41,040 --> 00:01:46,760 Speaker 1: Theatre Patrons, stolen boats, punk rock riots, lethal speedballs, and 26 00:01:46,920 --> 00:02:14,320 Speaker 1: John Belushi. I'm Jake Brennan and this is Hollywood Land. 27 00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:31,080 Speaker 1: It was nineteen seventy and life was just beginning. The 28 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:34,480 Speaker 1: blinders were off and the world was in focus. Life 29 00:02:34,639 --> 00:02:38,519 Speaker 1: was moving fast. For twenty one year old John Belushi. 30 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:42,960 Speaker 1: It was plenty to love, like Judy, his high school sweetheart. 31 00:02:43,480 --> 00:02:47,640 Speaker 1: He was mad about Judy. He loved her deeply. But 32 00:02:47,760 --> 00:02:51,639 Speaker 1: life wasn't just about love. There was also plenty to hate, 33 00:02:52,200 --> 00:02:55,120 Speaker 1: and there was no gray area. You love deeply, you 34 00:02:55,240 --> 00:02:59,560 Speaker 1: hate it deeply too. Nixon, for one, could fuck write off. 35 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:03,840 Speaker 1: Kent State was a tragedy war. What was it good for? 36 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:09,040 Speaker 1: Absolutely nothing? Did oh the cops, those contemptible pigs, the 37 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:11,119 Speaker 1: boys in Blue who knocked on the door of Blush's 38 00:03:11,120 --> 00:03:14,520 Speaker 1: apartment had a search warm busted for possession of twelve 39 00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:18,360 Speaker 1: pounds of good grass like the Glenn Allen Pde didn't 40 00:03:18,400 --> 00:03:21,560 Speaker 1: have anything better to do with their time. The cops 41 00:03:21,560 --> 00:03:25,200 Speaker 1: weren't any better than the greasers who liked the bully nonconformists, 42 00:03:25,320 --> 00:03:28,360 Speaker 1: or the also ran jocks who sat around catching a 43 00:03:28,360 --> 00:03:32,160 Speaker 1: buzz and talking about the glory days. Belushi was a 44 00:03:32,240 --> 00:03:34,600 Speaker 1: hell of a middle linebacker back in high school. Sure, 45 00:03:34,639 --> 00:03:38,480 Speaker 1: but that was then before his eyes were opened, before 46 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 1: he realized that it was all bullshit and not just 47 00:03:41,760 --> 00:03:47,440 Speaker 1: clinging to a pigskin in the not so distant past, peace, love, understanding. 48 00:03:48,040 --> 00:03:51,760 Speaker 1: It had all been a mirage. But hey, that's what 49 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,520 Speaker 1: comedy was for, to make the bad stuff more tolerable. 50 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:02,120 Speaker 1: Belushies scanned the newspaper every day, smoked some grass, and 51 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:04,120 Speaker 1: found things he could make fun of when he performed 52 00:04:04,160 --> 00:04:06,800 Speaker 1: on stage later in the night. And there was plenty, 53 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:11,120 Speaker 1: like the Honorable Richard J. Daly, Mayor of Chicago, you know, 54 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:13,840 Speaker 1: the guy they named the Plaza after. That's where they 55 00:04:13,880 --> 00:04:18,320 Speaker 1: got that Picasso. Politicians in general were easy fodder. Same 56 00:04:18,400 --> 00:04:20,600 Speaker 1: for the hippies, who didn't realize that their precious little 57 00:04:20,640 --> 00:04:25,000 Speaker 1: movement was doa. And then there were your parents. It 58 00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:27,080 Speaker 1: didn't matter who you were or where you came from. 59 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:30,600 Speaker 1: Mom and Dad gags were funniest shit. Belushi wasn't from 60 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:33,600 Speaker 1: a prestigious family like his friend Chevy Chase. He wasn't 61 00:04:33,640 --> 00:04:36,680 Speaker 1: born into money, wasn't tall and handsome. He was an 62 00:04:36,720 --> 00:04:42,640 Speaker 1: every man, but he felt like an outsider. Belushi's parents 63 00:04:42,640 --> 00:04:47,400 Speaker 1: were first in second generation Albanian immigrants. His grandmother barely 64 00:04:47,440 --> 00:04:50,760 Speaker 1: spoke in the English. He was weird by default. He'd 65 00:04:50,760 --> 00:04:54,120 Speaker 1: do anything to not feel that way, so the stage helped. 66 00:04:54,560 --> 00:04:57,919 Speaker 1: Performing in front of a live audience. His weirdness paid dividends, 67 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:01,440 Speaker 1: but it didn't pay the bills. Monthly rent for the 68 00:05:01,480 --> 00:05:04,120 Speaker 1: basement at the Universal Life Church in Chicago was one 69 00:05:04,160 --> 00:05:07,680 Speaker 1: hundred dollars. Belushi split it three ways. With two friends, 70 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:10,920 Speaker 1: Ny could cram about fifty people into the former coffee 71 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:13,440 Speaker 1: house for their quote unquote Blackouts, which is what they 72 00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:17,560 Speaker 1: called the Knights. They performed live comedy skits. Belushi came 73 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:20,920 Speaker 1: armed with that week's news, but the subjects of their 74 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:25,760 Speaker 1: performance generally fell into one of three categories, sex, drugs, 75 00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:29,600 Speaker 1: or violence. Admission was only one dollar, and you got 76 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:34,480 Speaker 1: all three, but not everyone was laughing and not everyone 77 00:05:34,520 --> 00:05:39,000 Speaker 1: was paying. The greaser demanding to be let into the 78 00:05:39,080 --> 00:05:42,080 Speaker 1: Universal Life Church coffee house this night was straight out 79 00:05:42,080 --> 00:05:47,000 Speaker 1: of Belushi's anti list. Bully conformist beer drinker Macho Fucko 80 00:05:47,080 --> 00:05:50,000 Speaker 1: wasn't getting inside until he handed over a buck. I 81 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:52,840 Speaker 1: paid my fucking money, he yelled at Belushi, who had 82 00:05:52,839 --> 00:05:55,600 Speaker 1: been summoned from backstage to deal with the confrontation at 83 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:58,760 Speaker 1: the front door. Are you calling me a liar? Yeah, 84 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:02,279 Speaker 1: Belushi responded, I am calling you a liar. Now get out. 85 00:06:03,279 --> 00:06:06,000 Speaker 1: The greaser didn't move an inch. He stood up straight, 86 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:09,960 Speaker 1: extended his chest, and got right in Belushi's face. Who 87 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:15,919 Speaker 1: the fuck are you? God? Now? Comedy doesn't solve any problems. 88 00:06:16,320 --> 00:06:17,920 Speaker 1: It can make some of the shittier things in life 89 00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:20,880 Speaker 1: easier to swallow. It serves as a relief a south 90 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:24,720 Speaker 1: but Belushi knew as well as anyone that some situations 91 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:28,760 Speaker 1: call for more than comedy. Some situations call for a punch, 92 00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:32,840 Speaker 1: not a punchline, and sometimes an asshole just needs to 93 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:35,760 Speaker 1: get his fucking face bashed in and Belushi grabbed the 94 00:06:35,800 --> 00:06:37,560 Speaker 1: guy with the shirt and pushed him to the doorway 95 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:40,400 Speaker 1: and out onto the street. The guy stumbled backwards as 96 00:06:40,400 --> 00:06:43,320 Speaker 1: a comedian gave chase. Belushi got hold of him again 97 00:06:43,360 --> 00:06:44,680 Speaker 1: and tossed his body out of the hood of a 98 00:06:44,720 --> 00:06:47,720 Speaker 1: car parked nearby, and the hood crackled and creaked as 99 00:06:47,720 --> 00:06:50,480 Speaker 1: it dented. And then before the guy could even think 100 00:06:50,520 --> 00:06:54,440 Speaker 1: about pulling himself back up, why Lusi punched him square 101 00:06:54,480 --> 00:06:59,120 Speaker 1: in his greaser nose. The guy's face crumpled, blood spurted everywhere, 102 00:07:00,120 --> 00:07:04,760 Speaker 1: fist ate like hell. Comedy was great and all, but fuck, 103 00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:07,880 Speaker 1: this might be even better. Living life to the fullest, 104 00:07:08,040 --> 00:07:10,800 Speaker 1: living life in the now, in this moment, grabbing a 105 00:07:10,800 --> 00:07:13,960 Speaker 1: motherfucker by the collar and smacking him hard, the release, 106 00:07:14,320 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 1: the sudden, quick buildup of anger that just came out 107 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:20,600 Speaker 1: of nowhere. It came from deep down inside you, some 108 00:07:20,800 --> 00:07:24,000 Speaker 1: hidden place that you didn't even know existed. You felt that, 109 00:07:24,280 --> 00:07:26,080 Speaker 1: you felt it in your fist, and you felt it 110 00:07:26,120 --> 00:07:28,800 Speaker 1: where your heart was beating in your chest, and the 111 00:07:28,840 --> 00:07:31,520 Speaker 1: motherfucker on the other end of the punch felt to two. 112 00:07:31,680 --> 00:07:33,840 Speaker 1: Did it feel better than laughter and applause from a 113 00:07:33,840 --> 00:07:41,120 Speaker 1: half drunk audience, Maybe, But then Belushi felt something else, regret. Panic. 114 00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:46,280 Speaker 1: Dozens of greasers were slowly emerging from the shadows, friends 115 00:07:46,280 --> 00:07:48,120 Speaker 1: of this poor son of a bitch who was nursing 116 00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:50,560 Speaker 1: a broken, bleeding nose on the hood of some stranger 117 00:07:50,640 --> 00:07:53,960 Speaker 1: sedan and they were holding wooden boards and pipes. Some 118 00:07:54,080 --> 00:07:57,080 Speaker 1: real West Side story shit. Belushi tried to find the 119 00:07:57,160 --> 00:08:01,760 Speaker 1: humor in the situation, but it eluded him. He did manage, however, 120 00:08:02,000 --> 00:08:05,920 Speaker 1: to elude physical retaliation for the most part. Some of 121 00:08:05,960 --> 00:08:08,320 Speaker 1: the greasers did get their hands on him, but the 122 00:08:08,360 --> 00:08:11,000 Speaker 1: crowd assembled at the coffee house spilled out onto the street. 123 00:08:11,680 --> 00:08:15,200 Speaker 1: The brief standoff lasted only a few minutes, and then 124 00:08:15,280 --> 00:08:18,880 Speaker 1: the show went on. Belushi and his friends performed inside 125 00:08:18,920 --> 00:08:21,800 Speaker 1: while a legion of revenge seeking greasers bang their fists 126 00:08:21,800 --> 00:08:25,720 Speaker 1: in the windows. Tough crad was an understatement, and the 127 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:29,600 Speaker 1: last didn't last too long that night, neither did future 128 00:08:29,600 --> 00:08:33,200 Speaker 1: blackouts at the Universal Life Church Coffeehouse. To continue at 129 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:36,559 Speaker 1: that spot with the newfound hostility, felt well a little 130 00:08:36,559 --> 00:08:41,040 Speaker 1: too dangerous, even by John Belushi's standards. Word travel, however, 131 00:08:41,080 --> 00:08:43,880 Speaker 1: and Belushi was soon offered a spot at Chicago's respected 132 00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:46,520 Speaker 1: Second City, which then led to a part in the 133 00:08:46,559 --> 00:08:50,040 Speaker 1: touring cast of National Lampoon's Lemmings, a live show that 134 00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:55,080 Speaker 1: skewered Woodstock. Lemmings was where Belushi's legendary riff on Joe 135 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:58,640 Speaker 1: Cocker was born. Long before Paul McCartney paid him six 136 00:08:58,679 --> 00:09:00,760 Speaker 1: grand to do the impression at his time birthday party, 137 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:03,679 Speaker 1: and it got to the core of what Belushi's comedy 138 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:06,880 Speaker 1: was about. To quote The New York Times, the real 139 00:09:06,920 --> 00:09:09,880 Speaker 1: message of the sixties wasn't peace and love. It was 140 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:14,280 Speaker 1: death from needles or bullets, take your pick. Death is 141 00:09:14,280 --> 00:09:17,559 Speaker 1: what Lemmings is all about. It is also implicitly about 142 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:21,240 Speaker 1: laughter as a vital life sign. It was like Bob 143 00:09:21,320 --> 00:09:25,320 Speaker 1: Dylan said, he not busy laughing, is busy dying or 144 00:09:25,360 --> 00:09:28,520 Speaker 1: something like that. Laughter got Belushi to New York City, 145 00:09:28,720 --> 00:09:31,360 Speaker 1: where they said he wasn't ready for primetime TV, and 146 00:09:31,520 --> 00:09:35,960 Speaker 1: it turns out they were right. In fact, John Belushi 147 00:09:36,600 --> 00:10:04,520 Speaker 1: wasn't ready for any of it. John Belushi fell into 148 00:10:04,520 --> 00:10:07,080 Speaker 1: the back of the limousine. A group of people piled 149 00:10:07,080 --> 00:10:09,640 Speaker 1: in behind him. Some he knew by name, Others he 150 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:12,600 Speaker 1: who the fuck was this guy? And this was his 151 00:10:12,720 --> 00:10:15,280 Speaker 1: new nightly routine nights that he wasn't locked in the 152 00:10:15,280 --> 00:10:19,560 Speaker 1: Saturday Night Live writers room until sunrise. That is Limo Club, 153 00:10:19,679 --> 00:10:23,360 Speaker 1: Limo Restaurant, Limo Private Party, and Odyssey. In New York 154 00:10:23,480 --> 00:10:26,079 Speaker 1: night life, you walk down the street and people yell 155 00:10:26,160 --> 00:10:28,920 Speaker 1: blue and pass you a handful of drugs, And what 156 00:10:28,960 --> 00:10:32,040 Speaker 1: the fuck is this snorted swallowed? Stick it up your ass? 157 00:10:32,200 --> 00:10:34,760 Speaker 1: Fuck if you know, you just ingest it wherever it feels, 158 00:10:34,840 --> 00:10:37,719 Speaker 1: right on the spot. The fans expect it would be 159 00:10:37,800 --> 00:10:40,040 Speaker 1: rude not to And by the time you get to 160 00:10:40,080 --> 00:10:42,880 Speaker 1: the door of the club, you're not blueto your blotto. 161 00:10:43,440 --> 00:10:45,800 Speaker 1: You know all the doorman by name, all the bartenders too. 162 00:10:46,160 --> 00:10:50,040 Speaker 1: That helps, especially when your words are slurring. Most places 163 00:10:50,120 --> 00:10:53,040 Speaker 1: love you, some don't, some have started to ban you. 164 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:55,600 Speaker 1: Fuck then doesn't matter. There's plenty of places to go, 165 00:10:55,760 --> 00:10:58,480 Speaker 1: just like this one. Your adopted city does not sleep, 166 00:10:58,840 --> 00:11:01,960 Speaker 1: and neither do you. The limbo pulled out into a 167 00:11:02,000 --> 00:11:06,760 Speaker 1: sea of yellow calves. Blushi was already exhausted. This week, 168 00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:10,199 Speaker 1: like all the other weeks, was insane, writing all night 169 00:11:10,280 --> 00:11:12,840 Speaker 1: every night with the rest of the SNL writers, guys 170 00:11:12,880 --> 00:11:15,480 Speaker 1: like dan Aykroyd, Al Frank and Bill Murray and his 171 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:20,200 Speaker 1: brother Brian. Soon they performed those skits over thirteen million homes, 172 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:24,280 Speaker 1: land sharks and cone heads and little chocolate donuts. That 173 00:11:25,000 --> 00:11:30,400 Speaker 1: was tomorrow. Tonight was Friday night. Tonight. John Belushi wasn't 174 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:34,200 Speaker 1: a comedy writer. Tonight he was a rock star, and 175 00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:36,280 Speaker 1: tonight he would party with one of the greatest rock 176 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:39,880 Speaker 1: and rollers of the mall, Ronnie Wood. Hitting the brakes 177 00:11:39,920 --> 00:11:42,520 Speaker 1: wasn't an option. What was he gonna do pass up 178 00:11:42,520 --> 00:11:45,600 Speaker 1: the opportunity to meet a rolling stone. He'd sleep when 179 00:11:45,600 --> 00:11:50,440 Speaker 1: he was dead. Belushi rested his head against the window 180 00:11:50,480 --> 00:11:53,560 Speaker 1: and watched the buildings pass by. His eyes got heavy, 181 00:11:53,800 --> 00:11:56,840 Speaker 1: his lid slid shut. He was back on a plane 182 00:11:56,880 --> 00:12:00,400 Speaker 1: the year before, traveling to Oregon the film A College, 183 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:02,920 Speaker 1: in which he played a toga wearing neuamus with a 184 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:07,800 Speaker 1: knack for near incomprehensible speeches. Belushi himself was dead sober 185 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:10,720 Speaker 1: when he made it director's orders. It was his first 186 00:12:10,760 --> 00:12:14,960 Speaker 1: real acting gig, serious fucking business. The limo hit a 187 00:12:14,960 --> 00:12:18,160 Speaker 1: pothole and Belushi came too For a split second, the 188 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:21,560 Speaker 1: lights outside just made him drowsy, or maybe it was 189 00:12:21,600 --> 00:12:24,480 Speaker 1: whatever he swallowed a few minutes before he closed his 190 00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:28,440 Speaker 1: eyes again. Now he was on another plane, this time 191 00:12:28,720 --> 00:12:32,480 Speaker 1: two years earlier, holding hands with Judy. It was Christmas. 192 00:12:32,880 --> 00:12:35,720 Speaker 1: They were visiting family. The trip was intended as an 193 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: opportunity for Belushi to recenter himself and his relationship, a 194 00:12:39,760 --> 00:12:42,680 Speaker 1: trip which would conclude not just with marriage, but with 195 00:12:42,760 --> 00:12:45,280 Speaker 1: his commitment to clean up after an intense period of 196 00:12:45,320 --> 00:12:49,120 Speaker 1: cocaine use mixed with his first taste of pure uncut fame. 197 00:12:50,280 --> 00:12:52,360 Speaker 1: The limo driver turned the volume up on the radio. 198 00:12:52,760 --> 00:12:56,000 Speaker 1: Belushi opened his eyes again. The vibrations from the speakers 199 00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:58,959 Speaker 1: echoed through his mind. His eyes fluttered and once again 200 00:12:59,080 --> 00:13:04,160 Speaker 1: close shut. Another plane four years earlier, now touching down 201 00:13:04,160 --> 00:13:07,959 Speaker 1: in New York, a new gig at National Lampoon. Nobody 202 00:13:07,960 --> 00:13:10,200 Speaker 1: from the Midwest, eager to make a name for himself, 203 00:13:10,440 --> 00:13:13,960 Speaker 1: eager to prove that he belonged. Judy joined him, as 204 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:17,240 Speaker 1: did his friends from Chicago from Second City, Gilda Radner, 205 00:13:17,440 --> 00:13:21,880 Speaker 1: Harold Ramis, Joe Flaherty. But Belushi couldn't shake the outsider thing. 206 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:24,880 Speaker 1: When he and his good friend Dan Ackroyd were hired 207 00:13:24,880 --> 00:13:27,280 Speaker 1: as part of the inaugural Saturday Night Live cast in 208 00:13:27,360 --> 00:13:31,679 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy five, they were picked dead last. Ackroyd had 209 00:13:31,679 --> 00:13:34,280 Speaker 1: a bad reputation as a no show, and Belushi made 210 00:13:34,280 --> 00:13:37,480 Speaker 1: it known that he thought television was fucking stupid. If 211 00:13:37,480 --> 00:13:39,400 Speaker 1: he sat any closer to the TV in his apartment, 212 00:13:39,400 --> 00:13:43,640 Speaker 1: he'd attempted to kick the fucking thing until it blew up. Suddenly, 213 00:13:44,040 --> 00:13:46,080 Speaker 1: someone next to belue she was gripping his arm and 214 00:13:46,080 --> 00:13:50,560 Speaker 1: shaking him. Hey got any more? Belushi opened his eyes. 215 00:13:50,880 --> 00:13:53,679 Speaker 1: He was back in the limo. He searched his pockets 216 00:13:53,679 --> 00:13:56,199 Speaker 1: and found a vial of white powder. The hands that 217 00:13:56,240 --> 00:14:00,360 Speaker 1: shook him away quickly snatched it away. Fuck needed to 218 00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:03,680 Speaker 1: wake up, He needed to be John Belushi. The open 219 00:14:03,760 --> 00:14:06,080 Speaker 1: vial was passed back to him. He shook out a 220 00:14:06,080 --> 00:14:08,160 Speaker 1: line on the back of his hand, like a bolt 221 00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:10,439 Speaker 1: of lightning. The coke brought him back to life. It 222 00:14:10,559 --> 00:14:13,360 Speaker 1: was better than mescaline, better than LSD, better than amphetamines 223 00:14:13,400 --> 00:14:17,720 Speaker 1: and paoti put together. Coke was necessary. Everything in New 224 00:14:17,800 --> 00:14:21,360 Speaker 1: York was heightened. The sensory overload of lights, camera action, 225 00:14:21,520 --> 00:14:24,440 Speaker 1: the stakes, the laughs, work hard, play harder. How the 226 00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:26,680 Speaker 1: hell did you even expect a show like Saturday Night 227 00:14:26,720 --> 00:14:29,320 Speaker 1: Live to get made, a ninety minute live show with 228 00:14:29,440 --> 00:14:32,840 Speaker 1: brand new material, funny material, week after week after week. 229 00:14:33,160 --> 00:14:38,440 Speaker 1: If it wasn't for cocaine. Belushi forgot about how tired 230 00:14:38,440 --> 00:14:41,840 Speaker 1: he was, about the expectations and the pressure. Forgot that 231 00:14:41,920 --> 00:14:43,680 Speaker 1: this vial in his hand was a rabbit hole he 232 00:14:43,720 --> 00:14:46,240 Speaker 1: had already gone down. Forgot that it nearly cost him 233 00:14:46,240 --> 00:14:49,440 Speaker 1: his relationship with his wife, and the limo stopped in 234 00:14:49,440 --> 00:14:52,440 Speaker 1: front of another club. A tall, lean figure with jet 235 00:14:52,440 --> 00:14:56,440 Speaker 1: black hair was standing outside. It was him, definitely him, 236 00:14:56,760 --> 00:15:00,560 Speaker 1: Ronnie Wood, waiting on a Friendshi. He opened the door 237 00:15:00,640 --> 00:15:04,120 Speaker 1: and stepped outside. The sidewalk stretched far into the distance 238 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:07,560 Speaker 1: for miles and miles, and there was no end in sight. 239 00:15:11,840 --> 00:15:15,240 Speaker 1: The next morning was brutal. On stage at Studio eight 240 00:15:15,560 --> 00:15:20,280 Speaker 1: h Belusi's head pounded, his shirt was drenched in sweat. 241 00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:24,280 Speaker 1: Holy fucked did those lights really need to be that bright? 242 00:15:25,240 --> 00:15:29,360 Speaker 1: He missed the line, and then another. How did Ronnie 243 00:15:29,400 --> 00:15:32,840 Speaker 1: do this shit? Beluci mumbled through his lines and continued 244 00:15:32,880 --> 00:15:35,480 Speaker 1: to drag his feet around the stage. He just wanted 245 00:15:35,480 --> 00:15:37,880 Speaker 1: to go lie down, just let him sleep, let him 246 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:39,840 Speaker 1: get a little time alone, and he'd be fine for 247 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:43,680 Speaker 1: the show. And the NBC doctors came to take his vitals. 248 00:15:44,200 --> 00:15:48,640 Speaker 1: The prognosis wasn't great, but Lushi was in terrible condition 249 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:51,880 Speaker 1: to go on stage that evening with risk making things 250 00:15:51,920 --> 00:15:57,040 Speaker 1: even worse. When Lauren Michaels, creator and producer Saturday Night Live, 251 00:15:57,520 --> 00:16:00,360 Speaker 1: saw the pale face of his star, his blood begin 252 00:16:00,480 --> 00:16:03,240 Speaker 1: to boil. He had grown accustomed to the antics and 253 00:16:03,280 --> 00:16:06,760 Speaker 1: rebellious streak of Blushy the TV Star. But this wasn't 254 00:16:06,760 --> 00:16:10,800 Speaker 1: Blushy the TV Star, not Blushy the Samurai or Blushie 255 00:16:10,880 --> 00:16:15,200 Speaker 1: the Weathermen. This wasn't no fries cheeps. This was Belushi 256 00:16:15,680 --> 00:16:21,640 Speaker 1: the Megastar. Animal House was the movie event of the 257 00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:24,840 Speaker 1: summer of nineteen seventy eight, and John Belushi was at 258 00:16:24,880 --> 00:16:28,000 Speaker 1: the center of it. The bozo with the college sweatshirt 259 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:30,440 Speaker 1: who took on the dean like a drunken underdog, the 260 00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:32,640 Speaker 1: one who saw a hippie storming and acoustic guitar and 261 00:16:32,760 --> 00:16:36,200 Speaker 1: smashed it on site, and justly so. But Belushi wasn't 262 00:16:36,240 --> 00:16:37,760 Speaker 1: just at the center of the number one movie and 263 00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:41,240 Speaker 1: the number one TV show in the country. John Belushi 264 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:45,080 Speaker 1: and dan Aykroyd released an album as their musical alter egos, 265 00:16:45,360 --> 00:16:49,359 Speaker 1: The Blues Brothers, a real band with real seasoned musicians 266 00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:53,200 Speaker 1: that was based on an SNL sketch. The album, Briefcase 267 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:55,840 Speaker 1: Full of Blues, featured a collection of R and B 268 00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:59,080 Speaker 1: and blue standards recorded live at a raucous performance opening 269 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:02,120 Speaker 1: for Steve Martin in LA and the record hit number 270 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:05,560 Speaker 1: one on the Billboard two hundred. John Belushi was a 271 00:17:05,600 --> 00:17:10,080 Speaker 1: certified triple threat, but right now, the only thing he 272 00:17:10,160 --> 00:17:13,840 Speaker 1: was a threat to was himself. Lauren Michaels looked over 273 00:17:13,880 --> 00:17:15,720 Speaker 1: at a star. It wasn't like he was the only 274 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:18,679 Speaker 1: one getting high the studio. Ah was coated in a 275 00:17:18,720 --> 00:17:22,000 Speaker 1: layer of coke dust, and this being the late nineteen seventies, 276 00:17:22,200 --> 00:17:24,359 Speaker 1: there was no rug to sweep it under, because at 277 00:17:24,359 --> 00:17:28,040 Speaker 1: the time it wasn't considered a problem. But even so, 278 00:17:28,680 --> 00:17:32,119 Speaker 1: everybody knew that nobody had appetites like John Belushi. He 279 00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:34,600 Speaker 1: ate like a king, drank like a king, and did 280 00:17:34,720 --> 00:17:38,320 Speaker 1: coke like a king. Two kept him going, kept him upright, 281 00:17:38,520 --> 00:17:40,480 Speaker 1: allowed him to fit years in the months and months 282 00:17:40,480 --> 00:17:43,920 Speaker 1: and a weeks and weeks and a days. Lauren understood 283 00:17:43,920 --> 00:17:46,600 Speaker 1: the pressures Belushi was facing, but he had a show 284 00:17:46,640 --> 00:17:48,960 Speaker 1: to run, and the doctor gave it to him straight. 285 00:17:49,359 --> 00:17:53,360 Speaker 1: Belushi could not go on. If he did, he could die. 286 00:17:54,040 --> 00:17:56,920 Speaker 1: Lauren wanted the odds. What were the chances John Belushi 287 00:17:56,920 --> 00:18:00,840 Speaker 1: would actually drop dead on live television? Fifty to fifty, 288 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:08,760 Speaker 1: the doctor said. Lauren looked at Belushi, sweaty, nauseous, devoid 289 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:11,679 Speaker 1: of color, ready to collapse, but not yet ready to 290 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:14,679 Speaker 1: throw on the towel. Lauren could live with those odds. 291 00:18:15,280 --> 00:18:17,800 Speaker 1: Belushi peeled himself off the couch and flipped the switch, 292 00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:20,199 Speaker 1: as he always seemed to do. He wasn't ready for 293 00:18:20,280 --> 00:18:23,440 Speaker 1: prime time. The fuck he wasn't didn't matter that he 294 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:27,000 Speaker 1: couldn't give one hundred percent. That particular episode of SNL 295 00:18:27,200 --> 00:18:30,760 Speaker 1: on February twenty fourth, nineteen seventy nine, hosted by Charlie's 296 00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:34,440 Speaker 1: Angel Kate Jackson, was the highest rated of the entire season, 297 00:18:34,880 --> 00:18:38,080 Speaker 1: and it was produced live with its star cast member 298 00:18:38,359 --> 00:18:42,560 Speaker 1: literally on death's door. John Belushi knew that he dodged 299 00:18:42,560 --> 00:18:45,200 Speaker 1: a bullet. It wasn't a question of if Saturday Night 300 00:18:45,200 --> 00:18:48,520 Speaker 1: Live would kill him, but a question of when. By 301 00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:51,280 Speaker 1: the end of the nineteen seventy eight nineteen seventy nine season, 302 00:18:51,760 --> 00:18:55,280 Speaker 1: John Belushi was gone, and he took dan Aykroyd with him. 303 00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:57,280 Speaker 1: It was one thing to be funny, to make people 304 00:18:57,359 --> 00:18:59,879 Speaker 1: laugh on TV, but John Belushi didn't want to be 305 00:19:00,080 --> 00:19:07,840 Speaker 1: comedian forever. John Belushi was a fucking rock star. We'll 306 00:19:07,880 --> 00:19:16,800 Speaker 1: be right back after this. We're We're, We're. The bolt 307 00:19:16,840 --> 00:19:19,920 Speaker 1: cutters snapped the section of chain link fence in two. 308 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:23,240 Speaker 1: John Belushi was a little surprised either at his own 309 00:19:23,280 --> 00:19:26,080 Speaker 1: strength or how easy it was. It was two in 310 00:19:26,119 --> 00:19:30,240 Speaker 1: the morning and Dan Ackroyd posted lookout and Ontario cop 311 00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:33,320 Speaker 1: car was crawling around in the darkness. Dan told Belushi 312 00:19:33,359 --> 00:19:36,359 Speaker 1: to hurry up. Belushi wasn't too worried. He didn't have 313 00:19:36,359 --> 00:19:40,239 Speaker 1: a record in Canada. Plus he was almost in a 314 00:19:40,280 --> 00:19:42,560 Speaker 1: warm breeze blew in and you could hear the waves 315 00:19:42,560 --> 00:19:44,840 Speaker 1: of the lake as they lapped against the dock of 316 00:19:44,880 --> 00:19:47,760 Speaker 1: the marina on the other side of the fence. Belushi 317 00:19:47,800 --> 00:19:50,720 Speaker 1: worked a bolt cutter some more. They bit the chain link. 318 00:19:51,080 --> 00:19:54,600 Speaker 1: Done easy. The section of the fence was pulled aside, 319 00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:57,120 Speaker 1: and Ackroyd backed his old Chrysler pickup to the dock. 320 00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:01,600 Speaker 1: It was nineteen seventy eight and Dan Ackroyd had some 321 00:20:01,720 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: land on a lake in Ontario. He also had a boat, 322 00:20:05,160 --> 00:20:08,400 Speaker 1: but the boat didn't have a motor. So Ackroyd had 323 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:11,440 Speaker 1: an idea. I'm gonna rob the marina. He told Belushi, 324 00:20:11,640 --> 00:20:15,400 Speaker 1: I want to come. Was it a stupid idea? Absolutely? 325 00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:20,160 Speaker 1: Did John Belushi care? Fuck No. Dan Ackroyd might be crazy, 326 00:20:20,200 --> 00:20:23,480 Speaker 1: but he was a friend, and Belushi would do anything 327 00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,560 Speaker 1: for a friend. They had a full tank of gas 328 00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:29,040 Speaker 1: in the truck, half a pack of cigarettes. It was dark, 329 00:20:29,240 --> 00:20:31,720 Speaker 1: and they were wearing sunglasses. What was the worst that 330 00:20:31,720 --> 00:20:35,199 Speaker 1: could happen? Belushi nodded at Akroyd and said, let me 331 00:20:35,240 --> 00:20:38,359 Speaker 1: get my smokes now. They were done at the marina, 332 00:20:38,600 --> 00:20:40,880 Speaker 1: having busted through a chain link fence, trying to hitch 333 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:44,040 Speaker 1: a boat to the back of Acroid's pickup and dismantling 334 00:20:44,080 --> 00:20:46,679 Speaker 1: the motor was just too much work. Easier to just 335 00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:49,320 Speaker 1: take the whole damn thing. And they wrestled with the 336 00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:51,800 Speaker 1: boat pulling it up to the truck's hitch. They struble 337 00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:54,119 Speaker 1: and makes sense of the bolts and the pins. Nothing 338 00:20:54,160 --> 00:20:56,760 Speaker 1: was lining upright. Fuck, this is going to be harder 339 00:20:56,800 --> 00:20:59,480 Speaker 1: than they thought. A car passed by in the distance. 340 00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:02,639 Speaker 1: Maybe it was that cop had been tooling around. Screw 341 00:21:02,680 --> 00:21:05,679 Speaker 1: it wasn't worth it. A board mission was all the 342 00:21:05,720 --> 00:21:09,200 Speaker 1: same to Belushi. Some missions were boondoggles born to fail 343 00:21:09,600 --> 00:21:11,480 Speaker 1: than others. You just had to see through to the 344 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:24,960 Speaker 1: triumphant end. Some were missions from God. The M sixteen unloaded, 345 00:21:25,280 --> 00:21:29,720 Speaker 1: firing round after round an ear splitting succession. John Belushi 346 00:21:29,800 --> 00:21:32,440 Speaker 1: and Dan Ackroyd were flat on the ground, covered in mud. 347 00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:36,080 Speaker 1: Belushi stood up slowly, he ran off a few rehearsed 348 00:21:36,080 --> 00:21:39,919 Speaker 1: lines from behind his dark sunglasses. He moved slowly towards 349 00:21:39,920 --> 00:21:43,159 Speaker 1: the assailant. She was no ordinary assailant. She was a 350 00:21:43,160 --> 00:21:47,720 Speaker 1: scorn lover and most recently, a princess, and the princess 351 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:51,520 Speaker 1: aiming them sixteen at Belushi. Her finger firmly gripped the trigger. 352 00:21:51,920 --> 00:21:55,439 Speaker 1: One shot and he'd begne Belushi fell to his knees. 353 00:21:55,600 --> 00:21:58,680 Speaker 1: He begged for forgiveness, for another chance, please, baby. Things 354 00:21:58,680 --> 00:22:02,360 Speaker 1: had gotten crazy, but he could change. Ye had to cut. 355 00:22:02,960 --> 00:22:06,679 Speaker 1: John Landis shifted uncomfortably in his chair. The movie he 356 00:22:06,760 --> 00:22:10,119 Speaker 1: was directing, The Blues Brothers, was quickly becoming one of 357 00:22:10,119 --> 00:22:13,720 Speaker 1: the most expensive films of all time, and although John 358 00:22:13,760 --> 00:22:16,399 Speaker 1: Belushi was on his best behavior through most of the shoot, 359 00:22:16,840 --> 00:22:21,280 Speaker 1: there were still hours, even days, lost to drugs. He 360 00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:24,480 Speaker 1: showed up late and sometimes not at all. The production 361 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:28,200 Speaker 1: burned money. When Belushi did show up, he was congested 362 00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:31,960 Speaker 1: from all the blow Today, however, John Landis wasn't worried 363 00:22:31,960 --> 00:22:35,240 Speaker 1: about getting Belushi to set. He was there. What John 364 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:38,240 Speaker 1: Landis was worried about was what Belushi would look like 365 00:22:38,280 --> 00:22:41,639 Speaker 1: when he finally took off his sunglasses. This was the 366 00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:46,000 Speaker 1: scene where Landis needed blushy straight, the only scene in 367 00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:49,320 Speaker 1: the entire two hour and thirteen minute film where John 368 00:22:49,320 --> 00:22:54,560 Speaker 1: Belushi removed those sunglasses. John Landis needed John Belushi clear 369 00:22:54,600 --> 00:22:58,800 Speaker 1: eyed the opposite of fucked up. But Belushi wasn't the 370 00:22:58,800 --> 00:23:01,639 Speaker 1: only loose cannon on that Landis had to worry about. 371 00:23:02,160 --> 00:23:06,440 Speaker 1: The scorned lover, the Princess with the sixteen Carrie Fisher 372 00:23:06,720 --> 00:23:09,800 Speaker 1: had been drug buddies with Belushi for years. They were 373 00:23:09,880 --> 00:23:13,399 Speaker 1: kindred spirits under immense pressure, the kind of pressure that 374 00:23:13,520 --> 00:23:18,480 Speaker 1: led to dependence, and that dependence didn't stop, especially not 375 00:23:18,560 --> 00:23:20,560 Speaker 1: on the set of the film they were currently shooting. 376 00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:25,680 Speaker 1: Cocaine was making Belushi's voice raspy. It made his nerves jittery. 377 00:23:26,040 --> 00:23:30,200 Speaker 1: He wandered from set, and Akroyd started calling him America's guest. 378 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:33,080 Speaker 1: After he walked into a stranger's home, asked for some 379 00:23:33,200 --> 00:23:36,200 Speaker 1: milk in a sandwich, and made himself comfortable on the couch, 380 00:23:36,920 --> 00:23:39,359 Speaker 1: the crew started calling him the black Hole because he 381 00:23:39,440 --> 00:23:43,680 Speaker 1: lost so many pairs of those iconic black sunglasses. Landis 382 00:23:43,920 --> 00:23:45,840 Speaker 1: was well aware of the degree to which drug use 383 00:23:45,920 --> 00:23:50,240 Speaker 1: was affecting John Belushi. Just weeks before he found piles 384 00:23:50,280 --> 00:23:53,600 Speaker 1: of the stuff in Belushi's trailer. John Landis grabbed it 385 00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:58,360 Speaker 1: in rage, underestimating Belushi's own proclivity for violence. Belushi threw 386 00:23:58,400 --> 00:24:01,200 Speaker 1: his body at the director, grabbing Laners's wrists and pulling 387 00:24:01,200 --> 00:24:04,880 Speaker 1: at the baggies. The struggle didn't last long. Belushi broke down, 388 00:24:05,200 --> 00:24:07,400 Speaker 1: and just like the scene they were now trying to film, 389 00:24:07,520 --> 00:24:11,160 Speaker 1: the one where Belushi as Juliet Jake Blues begs for forgiveness, 390 00:24:11,480 --> 00:24:15,639 Speaker 1: he was promising Landis that he'd turn it around. Landis 391 00:24:15,720 --> 00:24:18,360 Speaker 1: knew it was lift service. Glushi had said it himself. 392 00:24:18,560 --> 00:24:21,520 Speaker 1: He was like a shark. If he ever stopped, stopped moving, 393 00:24:21,560 --> 00:24:24,920 Speaker 1: stopped using, stopped everything from heightening, then he would die. 394 00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:28,840 Speaker 1: Landis had seen the straight Belushi before when Landis directed 395 00:24:28,920 --> 00:24:32,840 Speaker 1: him an animal House, Belushi was sober. Landis wanted that 396 00:24:32,880 --> 00:24:35,800 Speaker 1: guy to show up to the thick the cameras would roll. 397 00:24:35,960 --> 00:24:38,280 Speaker 1: He'd take those sunglasses off, the ones that had been 398 00:24:38,359 --> 00:24:41,320 Speaker 1: hiding his eyes, the portal to his soul, eyes that 399 00:24:41,400 --> 00:24:44,920 Speaker 1: didn't lie, and Landis would know immediately what Belushi's current 400 00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:49,000 Speaker 1: state of sobriety was, so would the audience. Landis put 401 00:24:49,040 --> 00:24:51,000 Speaker 1: his trust in Belushi that his eyes would be clear. 402 00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:54,840 Speaker 1: What else could he do action? Glushi began to plead 403 00:24:54,880 --> 00:24:56,560 Speaker 1: his case again, Please don't kill us. He knew I 404 00:24:56,600 --> 00:24:58,639 Speaker 1: love you, baby, I wouldn't leave you. It wasn't my fault. 405 00:24:59,480 --> 00:25:03,480 Speaker 1: He pulled off the sunglasses. His eyes were clear, his 406 00:25:03,560 --> 00:25:07,320 Speaker 1: voice was sincere and honest. It was just what John 407 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:11,680 Speaker 1: Landis was looking for. Belushi. He may have looked clean 408 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:14,120 Speaker 1: for the take, but he wasn't quite ready to clean 409 00:25:14,240 --> 00:25:17,439 Speaker 1: up for good. He knew he'd have to eventually. He 410 00:25:17,520 --> 00:25:20,520 Speaker 1: hired a bodyguard named Smokey to keep him off the blow. 411 00:25:21,080 --> 00:25:24,480 Speaker 1: At first, he regretted the decision because having Smokey around 412 00:25:24,480 --> 00:25:28,440 Speaker 1: meant losing direct access to dope. But it worked. Belushi 413 00:25:28,480 --> 00:25:31,080 Speaker 1: and Akroyd took the Blues Brothers on the road. The 414 00:25:31,160 --> 00:25:34,439 Speaker 1: tour wasn't just a success, it was a phenomenon. The 415 00:25:34,520 --> 00:25:37,480 Speaker 1: transformation from sketch to movie to a real live band 416 00:25:37,600 --> 00:25:41,719 Speaker 1: was complete, and Belushi was committed. He hired a trainer 417 00:25:41,720 --> 00:25:44,480 Speaker 1: to keep him in shape with cocaine. In the rear view, 418 00:25:44,600 --> 00:25:48,840 Speaker 1: he was exercising, eating healthy, even avoiding alcohol. He also 419 00:25:48,880 --> 00:25:50,960 Speaker 1: said no its the dozens of type casting roles he 420 00:25:51,040 --> 00:25:53,199 Speaker 1: was offered. He didn't want to be Bluto for the 421 00:25:53,200 --> 00:25:55,560 Speaker 1: rest of his career. He was cast in a film 422 00:25:55,640 --> 00:26:00,000 Speaker 1: called Continental Divide, a romantic comedy he was challenging himself. 423 00:26:00,720 --> 00:26:02,960 Speaker 1: Belushi spent the summer of nineteen eighty one in an 424 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:07,000 Speaker 1: idyllic daydream. He and Judy retreated to their favorite recipite 425 00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:10,240 Speaker 1: on Martha's Vineyard, where the salt water and ocean breeze 426 00:26:10,280 --> 00:26:14,880 Speaker 1: were known to work wonders. His performance, and Continental Divide 427 00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:18,960 Speaker 1: received positive reviews. Maybe this whole serious actor thing could 428 00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:22,639 Speaker 1: pan out after all. Belushi stayed clean, stayed calm, and 429 00:26:22,760 --> 00:26:26,639 Speaker 1: continued to look after his health. But then the summer 430 00:26:26,680 --> 00:26:30,639 Speaker 1: heat slowly faded into fall. The leaves changed color and 431 00:26:30,680 --> 00:26:34,840 Speaker 1: grew brittle and crisp, and John Belushi was consumed by 432 00:26:34,880 --> 00:27:00,760 Speaker 1: a new obsession, fear. John Belushi's struggled to get to 433 00:27:00,800 --> 00:27:03,520 Speaker 1: the front of the stage at Studio eight h. The 434 00:27:03,640 --> 00:27:07,560 Speaker 1: music was loud, aggressive, confrontational, and the volume kept getting 435 00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:11,400 Speaker 1: louder and the band kept playing faster. Everything was heightened, 436 00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:14,640 Speaker 1: just the way Belushi liked it. Punk rock was a 437 00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:17,119 Speaker 1: far cry from the blues trip he'd been on before, 438 00:27:17,680 --> 00:27:21,639 Speaker 1: but that trip was over. Belushi's stint as Joliette Jake 439 00:27:22,040 --> 00:27:24,000 Speaker 1: was as shattered as a record setting pile up of 440 00:27:24,000 --> 00:27:25,840 Speaker 1: one hundred and three cars left in the wake of 441 00:27:25,880 --> 00:27:29,040 Speaker 1: the Blues Brothers movie. Shadou Be as this old pal 442 00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:32,840 Speaker 1: Ronnie Wood would say, the rolling stones, and they were 443 00:27:32,920 --> 00:27:36,040 Speaker 1: far from Belushi's mind right now too. He was digging 444 00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:39,960 Speaker 1: the guys up on stage. Fear that's what they call themselves. 445 00:27:40,520 --> 00:27:44,520 Speaker 1: Fear what a name for her band? Hell. Belushi essentially 446 00:27:44,560 --> 00:27:46,920 Speaker 1: booked the hardcore band to play Saturday Night Live, even 447 00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:49,480 Speaker 1: though he was no longer a cast member. He told 448 00:27:49,560 --> 00:27:51,879 Speaker 1: Lauren Michaels that he'd appear in a guest spot on 449 00:27:51,920 --> 00:27:54,240 Speaker 1: the episode if they let the La Punk group play, 450 00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:57,840 Speaker 1: and that was a decision NBC would come to regret. 451 00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:02,120 Speaker 1: It was Halloween Knight nighteen eighty one. John Belushi brought 452 00:28:02,160 --> 00:28:04,520 Speaker 1: a Fear friendly audience with him just in case the 453 00:28:04,640 --> 00:28:08,320 Speaker 1: regular SNL crowd didn't get it. As a result, the 454 00:28:08,400 --> 00:28:13,479 Speaker 1: place went nuts. Fans crowded the stage, They threw themselves 455 00:28:13,520 --> 00:28:16,119 Speaker 1: into the air, They rushed the stage, They slammed their 456 00:28:16,119 --> 00:28:19,399 Speaker 1: heads in their bodies. Somebody smashed a pumpkin, and another 457 00:28:19,440 --> 00:28:22,840 Speaker 1: reveler grabbed the microphone and screamed, fuck New York on 458 00:28:23,040 --> 00:28:30,040 Speaker 1: live television. John Belushi wasn't playing dress up for Halloween. 459 00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:34,159 Speaker 1: This was his new baseline, the new status quo. The 460 00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:37,840 Speaker 1: days of idyllic summer bliss were a distant memory. Serenity 461 00:28:37,880 --> 00:28:42,160 Speaker 1: on Martha's Vineyard was short lived. He was frustrated, frustrated 462 00:28:42,200 --> 00:28:45,440 Speaker 1: with the creative direction of his latest film, Neighbors. He 463 00:28:45,560 --> 00:28:48,320 Speaker 1: was once again acting alongside his buddy Dan Ackroyd, with 464 00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:51,960 Speaker 1: the director John Avelson, the guy who made Rocky. He 465 00:28:52,040 --> 00:28:56,360 Speaker 1: didn't know comedy. Belushi's frustration led to anger, and that 466 00:28:56,520 --> 00:28:59,040 Speaker 1: anger he felt when he was first getting started back 467 00:28:59,040 --> 00:29:01,480 Speaker 1: in the basement of the Union Versus Life Church in Chicago, 468 00:29:01,960 --> 00:29:04,160 Speaker 1: the anger that bubbled up and shattered the nose of 469 00:29:04,200 --> 00:29:08,800 Speaker 1: a greaser asshole. That anger never went away. Now he 470 00:29:08,920 --> 00:29:11,360 Speaker 1: funneled it into the raw power of the punk and 471 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:15,800 Speaker 1: hardcore scene. And though John Belushi's musical taste may have shifted, 472 00:29:16,160 --> 00:29:18,960 Speaker 1: his taste for other things were still there. He was 473 00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:25,920 Speaker 1: doing cocaine again. The NBC Brass watched in horror as 474 00:29:25,960 --> 00:29:28,600 Speaker 1: the chaos unfolded with Fear at the Wheel, right on 475 00:29:28,600 --> 00:29:31,960 Speaker 1: their own studio, right on national television. During an episode 476 00:29:31,960 --> 00:29:36,600 Speaker 1: of Saturday Night Live. They'd never seen anyone slam dance before, 477 00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:40,480 Speaker 1: let alone even heard the words slam dance. They panicked, 478 00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:44,520 Speaker 1: and then they pulled the pluck. The three songs set 479 00:29:44,680 --> 00:29:46,920 Speaker 1: ended with a fade to stock footage and a promise 480 00:29:46,960 --> 00:29:50,200 Speaker 1: that the performance would never be aired again. Studio eight 481 00:29:50,360 --> 00:29:53,800 Speaker 1: h sustained twenty thousand dollars in damage, and the band 482 00:29:53,840 --> 00:29:57,360 Speaker 1: John Belushi had personally vouched for Fear was banned for 483 00:29:57,480 --> 00:30:03,000 Speaker 1: life failure. Ate away at John Belushi so to the 484 00:30:03,040 --> 00:30:06,000 Speaker 1: fact that Neighbors was a certified holiday flop when it 485 00:30:06,040 --> 00:30:10,360 Speaker 1: was released that December. Between that film and Continental Divide, 486 00:30:10,440 --> 00:30:13,720 Speaker 1: he was over two. In nineteen eighty one, scripts for 487 00:30:13,800 --> 00:30:16,560 Speaker 1: future projects that he was reading felt beneath him. If 488 00:30:16,560 --> 00:30:20,240 Speaker 1: he was being honest. The studios all wanted Blushi the oath. 489 00:30:20,480 --> 00:30:23,720 Speaker 1: They wanted Blueto all over again. They wanted a safe bet. 490 00:30:24,160 --> 00:30:27,320 Speaker 1: Now fuck that. Belushi agreed to appear in a film 491 00:30:27,360 --> 00:30:30,800 Speaker 1: called Sweet Deception, but not before he convinced Paramount to 492 00:30:30,840 --> 00:30:33,720 Speaker 1: allow him to rewrite it. He changed the story and 493 00:30:33,760 --> 00:30:35,920 Speaker 1: give it a new name. The film would now be 494 00:30:36,000 --> 00:30:39,680 Speaker 1: called Noble Rot. In it, Belushi would play the son 495 00:30:39,720 --> 00:30:41,880 Speaker 1: of a northern California wine maker who was sent to 496 00:30:41,920 --> 00:30:44,360 Speaker 1: New York to represent the family in a wine competition. 497 00:30:44,440 --> 00:30:48,480 Speaker 1: When he's older, more responsible brother gets sick. On the 498 00:30:48,480 --> 00:30:51,160 Speaker 1: flight east. However, he meets a wealthy woman who convinces 499 00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:55,040 Speaker 1: him to take part in a diamond fraud scheme. Belushi 500 00:30:55,080 --> 00:30:58,360 Speaker 1: worked tirelessly on the script. He knew the film would 501 00:30:58,360 --> 00:31:00,640 Speaker 1: be not only his return to form, it would be 502 00:31:00,640 --> 00:31:04,920 Speaker 1: his first real artistic statement. But when he received Paramount's notes, 503 00:31:05,200 --> 00:31:09,280 Speaker 1: Belushi was devastated. The studio hated it, and not only 504 00:31:09,320 --> 00:31:11,200 Speaker 1: were they not going to make it, they were parlaying 505 00:31:11,200 --> 00:31:14,960 Speaker 1: Belushi's agreement into another film, an obscenely juvenile comedy called 506 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:17,760 Speaker 1: The Joy of Sex, and they wanted Belushi to get 507 00:31:17,760 --> 00:31:20,840 Speaker 1: some cheap lass by wearing a diaper. Dan Ackroyd told 508 00:31:20,880 --> 00:31:22,720 Speaker 1: him to hang tight while he finished a script for 509 00:31:22,760 --> 00:31:26,200 Speaker 1: a new movie he was writing, called Ghostbusters, just picturing 510 00:31:26,520 --> 00:31:29,600 Speaker 1: Belushi strapping on a proton pack and blasting a Class 511 00:31:29,680 --> 00:31:33,800 Speaker 1: five full roaming vapor. But Belushi wasn't in a hanging 512 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:37,240 Speaker 1: tight mood. He was distraught. He was doing thousands of 513 00:31:37,320 --> 00:31:40,080 Speaker 1: dollars worth of coco week and in March of nineteen 514 00:31:40,120 --> 00:31:43,040 Speaker 1: eighty two, he rented a bungalow at the Chateau Armont 515 00:31:43,080 --> 00:31:45,920 Speaker 1: in Los Angeles. Two hundred dollars a day was a 516 00:31:45,960 --> 00:31:47,720 Speaker 1: drop in the bucket compared to the money he was 517 00:31:47,720 --> 00:31:50,360 Speaker 1: throwing in a drug habit. Judy was back in New 518 00:31:50,440 --> 00:31:54,800 Speaker 1: York and the place was a mess still. He had visitors, 519 00:31:55,360 --> 00:31:59,360 Speaker 1: Robert de Niro, Robin Williams, but that wasn't all. There 520 00:31:59,360 --> 00:32:03,560 Speaker 1: were others, others who weren't exactly famous, others who weren't 521 00:32:03,600 --> 00:32:06,840 Speaker 1: known by name, but take one look and you knew 522 00:32:06,880 --> 00:32:09,640 Speaker 1: exactly what they were there for. Take a good look. 523 00:32:09,640 --> 00:32:13,080 Speaker 1: In fact, just because the world isn't focus now doesn't 524 00:32:13,080 --> 00:32:18,320 Speaker 1: mean it always will be. Life it moves fast, sometimes 525 00:32:18,880 --> 00:32:26,200 Speaker 1: too fast. March fifth, nineteen eighty two, LAPD pulled over 526 00:32:26,200 --> 00:32:28,560 Speaker 1: a red Mercedes for driving the wrong way into the 527 00:32:28,560 --> 00:32:31,920 Speaker 1: one way exit at the Chateau Marman. The Mercedes was 528 00:32:31,960 --> 00:32:34,720 Speaker 1: a rental and it was rented in John Belushi's name, 529 00:32:35,280 --> 00:32:39,160 Speaker 1: but the cops didn't find John Belushi behind the wheel. Instead, 530 00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:43,120 Speaker 1: they arrested a Canadian woman named Kathy Smith on suspicion 531 00:32:43,160 --> 00:32:46,320 Speaker 1: of possession of narcotics. She was wearing a blue and 532 00:32:46,320 --> 00:32:50,040 Speaker 1: gray jogging suit. She cooperated fully. She handed over a 533 00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:53,800 Speaker 1: syringe in a spoon. The cops didn't press charges, but 534 00:32:53,840 --> 00:32:56,560 Speaker 1: they were interested in what she had to say because 535 00:32:56,600 --> 00:32:59,680 Speaker 1: the person whose car she was driving, John Belushi, was 536 00:32:59,680 --> 00:33:03,280 Speaker 1: found dead that morning in his messy two hundred dollars 537 00:33:03,280 --> 00:33:07,440 Speaker 1: a night bungalow. Initial reports chalked it up to natural causes, 538 00:33:07,880 --> 00:33:10,880 Speaker 1: but those who knew Belushi knew better, and the cops 539 00:33:10,880 --> 00:33:14,000 Speaker 1: thought Kathy Smith might know even more than his close friends, 540 00:33:14,520 --> 00:33:17,800 Speaker 1: and Kathy Smith might have an inside scoop because she 541 00:33:17,880 --> 00:33:21,920 Speaker 1: was the last person to see John Belushi alive. Smith 542 00:33:21,920 --> 00:33:24,800 Speaker 1: didn't offer up much, and when the coroner's report came 543 00:33:24,840 --> 00:33:28,120 Speaker 1: back that Belushi, just thirty three years old, had died 544 00:33:28,160 --> 00:33:31,280 Speaker 1: of an overdose of cocaine and heroin, Smith was in 545 00:33:31,400 --> 00:33:34,040 Speaker 1: charge with anything, despite the fact that she had been 546 00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:37,800 Speaker 1: found with drug paraphernalia that day and they let her go. 547 00:33:38,560 --> 00:33:41,720 Speaker 1: The papers didn't leave her alone. They followed her every move. 548 00:33:42,040 --> 00:33:44,560 Speaker 1: They knew that she knew more, and they wanted to scoop. 549 00:33:44,960 --> 00:33:46,360 Speaker 1: They wanted to know what it was like to hang 550 00:33:46,400 --> 00:33:50,400 Speaker 1: out with John Belushi, the rock star comedian. Kathy Smith 551 00:33:50,480 --> 00:33:53,640 Speaker 1: was tight lift the ten gram loosened her lips and 552 00:33:53,760 --> 00:33:56,480 Speaker 1: just a few months later, in June nineteen eighty two, 553 00:33:57,040 --> 00:33:59,640 Speaker 1: Kathy Smith gave a tell all interview to The National 554 00:34:00,440 --> 00:34:05,520 Speaker 1: with details of Joliet Jake's final days. In the interview, 555 00:34:05,880 --> 00:34:08,239 Speaker 1: Smith admitted that she was the one to inject Belushi 556 00:34:08,239 --> 00:34:10,719 Speaker 1: with a speedball on his last night on Earth, and 557 00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:13,240 Speaker 1: the interview led to an indictment by a grand jury 558 00:34:13,239 --> 00:34:15,960 Speaker 1: on one count of second degree murder and thirteen counts 559 00:34:15,960 --> 00:34:20,560 Speaker 1: of administering a dangerous drug. Smith pleaded no contest. She 560 00:34:20,719 --> 00:34:23,279 Speaker 1: served fifteen months of a three year sentence before she 561 00:34:23,400 --> 00:34:26,359 Speaker 1: was deported back to Canada. It didn't matter that she 562 00:34:26,440 --> 00:34:30,400 Speaker 1: was free. The truth was right there, immortalized in big 563 00:34:30,480 --> 00:34:33,360 Speaker 1: black type and a headline that stopped you in your tracks, 564 00:34:33,920 --> 00:34:37,960 Speaker 1: a headline that Kathy Smith was paid handsomely for. And 565 00:34:38,040 --> 00:34:43,040 Speaker 1: the cover of that magazine read I killed John Belushi. 566 00:34:44,160 --> 00:34:48,160 Speaker 1: Still headlines like that in rags like The Inquirer. Are 567 00:34:48,160 --> 00:34:51,160 Speaker 1: they real? Are they to be believed? Or are they 568 00:34:51,200 --> 00:34:55,160 Speaker 1: the kind of thing that ought to be in pictures? 569 00:34:56,160 --> 00:34:59,879 Speaker 1: I'm Jake Brennan and this is hollywood Land. 570 00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:16,520 Speaker 2: Hollywood Land was created by Years Truly and is produced 571 00:35:16,520 --> 00:35:20,400 Speaker 2: in partnership with Double Elvis. Follow Like rate and review 572 00:35:20,440 --> 00:35:22,719 Speaker 2: hollywood Land wherever you get your podcasts, and get in 573 00:35:22,719 --> 00:35:26,040 Speaker 2: touch with us on social media at double Elvis. If 574 00:35:26,080 --> 00:35:27,920 Speaker 2: you like hollywood Land, check out my other show, the 575 00:35:27,960 --> 00:35:31,000 Speaker 2: award winning Disgraceland, which looks at the world of music 576 00:35:31,000 --> 00:35:31,720 Speaker 2: through the lens. 577 00:35:31,560 --> 00:35:34,279 Speaker 1: Of true crime. Just search for Disgraceland or wherever you 578 00:35:34,320 --> 00:35:41,960 Speaker 1: get your podcasts. Good Double that