The December issue of "Fader" magazine is a film special that includes an article titled "An oral history of THE WARRIORS". Walter Hill, Sol Yurick, Craig Baxley, Michael Beck, James Remar, Deborah Van Valkenburgh, David Patrick Kelly, Terry Michos, David Harris, and Thomas Waites are among those who share insight into the making of the 1979 cult hit.

It is interesting to read how Hill envisioned the film, mounted after a western he'd written with Roger Spottiswoode failed to make a go - his big influence was his love of comic books, hence the film's stylized look. Yurick points out that his favorite part of the film was seeing his name in the credits - after that it sort of went downhill for him.

Hill also says that as far as he's concerned the version you saw in theaters is the way he wanted the movie to look. He says he hasn't seen the TV version (which includes the daylight prologue among other things), but asked Paramount about the extra footage and was told it doesn't exist anymore.

David Patrick Kelly, the ever-memorable Luther, describes using "Last Exit to Brooklyn" as one of his tools of inspiration. In lieu of his clinking bottles used to call on the Warriors originally it was supposed to be a pair of dead pigeons (!); the bottles were a last minute substitution and that great screechy cry of "War-riors...come out n' playyyyyaaayyyy!" was inspired by a neighborhood psycho who used to taunt him: "Daaavvviiddd.....Daaaaviiidddd....."

Among the other tidbits served up:

Walter Hill wanted to use Orson Welles for an opening narration

there was supposed to be a homosexual gang in blonde wigs, armed with Dobermans and led by Kevin Bacon

Terry Michos (Vermin) specifies that Tony Danza was originally to be cast in the role

Thomas Waites (Fox) was originally supposed to wind up with the girl, Mercy, but was dismissed several weeks into production and a stand-in was used for unfinished scenes

I met Thomas Waites in 1980 when he was doing AMERICAN BUFFALO with Al Pacino and Clifton James at the Long Wharf Theater in New Haven; he said then that he quit the film because he was unhappy with the glorification of violence. I used to see Waites a lot in my favorite bar in New York and he looks nothing like the rail-thin kid in that movie. He directs a lot of Off-Off Broadway theatre.

David Patrick Kelly was my neighbor on the Upper East Side of Manhattan for many years. We often walked together-- coincidentally, not as friends-- to the Vinegar Factory, a gourmet food shop on East 91st Street. There was a side of me that always wanted to let out with a "Warrrrrrriorrrrrrsssss..." But I'm not that way. DPK also writes and directs Off-Off Broadway theatre in New York.

I attended a double feature of THE WARRIORS with ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13 at the Egyptian Theater/American Cinematheque in Los Angeles last month and Walter Hill was in attendance and answered questions from the audience. Hill's a pretty lowkey guy but the stories were good. Too many members of that cast died young.

. . . THE WARRIORS certainly would have made a great western (too bad they are not trying this idea for the coming remake) . . . I remember at the time of release, Hill was saying the story was based on the ANABASIS of Xenophon, the Greek historian who accompanied and wrote about the Greek Army as they fought their way to the coast through "an unknown and hostile land", filled with savage tribes, after their defeat by the Persians at the battle of Cunaxa (401 B.C.) - probably the first "embedded" reporter . . . actually, Hill's comment did get me to read the book which I found quite wonderful - highly recommended . . .

Good to hear more from the always entertaining David Patrick Kelly. Aside from his WARRIORS role, I'll always remember him as Tommy Ray Glatman from DREAMSCAPE, T-Bird from THE CROW and (my personal favorite) Jerry Horne from TWIN PEAKS. It's a cliche by this point, but it's a shame that more prime cinematic roles haven't come his way.

Walter Hill brings this up in the article, and the purpose of his Orson Welles narration was to reflect this parallel with the story of The Warriors.

David Patrick Kelly talks about his theatrical background in the article. He was very funny in FLIRTING WITH DISASTER, and of course was on the receiving end of one of Schwarzenegger's better one-liners in COMMANDO. His character in Hill's 48 HRS. - also Luther - seems like an extension of his WARRIORS character had that character progressed a little farther in life. Still a violent punk, but one who is in over his head dealing with men badder than himself.

Some other tidbits:

Hill said that he wanted an all-black cast for the gang but Paramount vetoed that idea.

Michael Beck mentions he was cast after Hill saw a film he'd done in Israel called MADMAN. His fellow castmember Sigourney Weaver also benefitted by being cast in ALIEN, which Hill was producing.

One of Sidney Poitier's daughters (and my apologies, I can't remember which one) was cast in the film as Cleon's girlfriend. Excised from the theatrical print, her scene can still be found in the TV version's opening prologue.

I didn't realize that several of the film's cast members had passed on; I knew of one or two but evidently there were more than that.

WOW!

It's too bad that extra footage is lost; I really would have liked to have seen it. Also, too bad the DVD release has no director's commentary! This is such a great movie... I wish it got more respect from whoever is in charge of these things.

I know of four WARRIORS actors who died much too young, starting with Marcelino Sanchez, who played Rembrandt. After popping up briefly in Hill's 48 HRS, Sanchez died late in 1986, ostensibly of cancer, although it may have been AIDS, as a great many AIDS-related deaths were reported as such at the time.

Dannis Gregory, who played the righteous, scary second in command of the Grammercy Riffs, died of pneumonia in March of 1993. Later that year, Steve James (unrecognizable as one of the Basebull Furies) succumbed to pancreatic cancer.

Lynne Thigpen, who played the DJ ("Sorry 'bout that"), died suddenly and unexpectedly of a circulatory problem in March of 2003.

You can see the daytime prologue here if you haven't seen it before

http://warriorsmovie.co.uk/extrascenes/