Metrograph

Before Star Wars, George Lucas made a small, personal slice-of-life movie—a kind of US West Coast twist on Fellini’s I Vitelloni—that became a pop phenomenon and one of the most profitable films of all time. A Modesto-set reminiscence of hot rods, drive-ins, rock ’n’roll radio, and one night at the end of summer vacation in 1962, with Wolfman Jack supplying the jukebox of a soundtrack and an ensemble cast filled out almost entirely by newcomers, including Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, MacKenzie Phillips, Harrison Ford, and Clark, whose role as the curly-headed sparkplug Debbie Dunham is perhaps the most iconic of her career, and earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

“You never knew what George was thinking. The actors were making scale, $350 a week or something. And happy to get it. Believe me, happy to get it! Before the film came out, George split one of his points with the whole cast. We each got one-tenth of one percent. Every year I still get a check from that. He’s very honorable. That’s the thing with George, he’s loyal and he keeps the same people around him. I don’t think he likes a lot of change.” —Candy Clark, Tight Heads

Q&A with actor Candy Clark moderated by writer Sam Sweet on Saturday, May 10th