The characters of "Joliet Jake" and "Elwood" were developed by John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd respectively for a Saturday Night Live musical sketch. Who would have thought they could have ever made a movie about them? In the film, the two Blues Brothers are "on a mission from God" to raise money to save the orphanage in which they grew up. During this mission, both subtle and over-the-top comedy ensues along with some pretty great music, too. Here is the original trailer for The Blues Brothers...

There is a scene from the film that is highly ranked on one of my best and most popular lists, Best Dancing Scenes from 80s Movies. You should definitely click on that link and check out that scene along with the others on that list.

One of my favorite comic actors from the 80s is John Candy and he had a cameo appearance in the film as "Burton Mercer." There is a very short scene featuring Candy's character that has always amused me more than it probably should. Here is the video of that short scene...

Orange whip? There is another short little scene that also has always amused me more than it probably should. This scene is so random and odd, yet it makes me laugh every time and here is the video of this short scene...

Cheeze Whiz? In addition to hilarious performances by Belushi and Aykroyd, The Blues Brothers movie had quite the supporting cast including roles by Aretha Franklin, Carrie Fischer, John Candy (mentioned earlier), Ray Charles, James Brown and Cab Calloway among others. It even included a cameo by Steven Spielberg as the Cook County Assessor's Office Clerk. Much of the film was shot on location in Chicago and the surrounding area. There was a scene shot here in Milwaukee, too. Towards the end of the movie during the car chase, the "Illinois Nazis" drive off a freeway ramp which was actually filmed at the Hoan Bridge on Interstate 794 in Milwaukee. The Lake Freeway (North) was a planned but not completed 6-lane freeway and I-794 contained an unfinished ramp that worked perfectly for this scene. Every time I see the Hoan Bridge, even today, it reminds me of that scene from one of my favorite comedies of all time.

That'll do it for this issue of Kickin' it Old School. Hope you enjoy the "Preview Review" issues and please let me know if there are any 80s movies that you want to see me cover. Thanks as always for reading. If you are interested in reading any of my other 80s related issues, please click there for a summary of those. You can also always click on the Archives in the upper left hand column or use the Google Search Box at the top of the right hand column to find any other issues you may have missed. If you are a fan of Kickin' it, PLEASE CLICK ON THE FACEBOOK LOGO in the upper right hand column. This will take you to the Fan Page where I ask you to then click on "Become a Fan". Even if you are not a Facebook member yet, please consider joining and registering as a fan at that page. Let other 80s fans know about it as well! Peace and much love.

Check this out: I came across this soft drink label which included a warning that I thought was somewhat unnecessary. As you can read, it says "WARNING: Drink Then Swallow." Not quite sure how you swallow before you drink, but this warning amused me (as it was probably intended to do). Hope it amuses you as well...

Quote of the day: "I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty and common decency." -H.L. Mencken