Factual error: When The Oneders are recording their song with Uncle Bob, there is an In-N-Out cup sitting by the recording equipment. There are no In-N-Out restaurants in PA.
That Thing You Do (1996)
Directed by: Tom Hanks
Starring: Tom Hanks, Steve Zahn, Liv Tyler, Ethan Embry, Johnathon Schaech, Tom Everett Scott
Factual error: When the boys go to the radio show in CA, the DJ says to the listeners to keep Saturday and Sunday, August 20th and 21st [1964] open. The 20th and 21st of August 1964 were a Thursday and a Friday.
Factual error: Several times during the film a Zildjian stencil logo can be seen on the bottom of a cymbal. Zildjian did not start applying logos until the 1970s.
Trivia: Throughout the entire movie, no one ever says the bass player's name. Even in the credits, he is listed as T.B. Player and The Bass Player.
Trivia: Another Beatles parallel in the film: There's a scene where you see the band members play on stage and Mr. White is watching them (while moving his head along with the music). There's a famous picture of Brian Epstein (Beatles' mythological manager) doing the exact same thing on The Beatles' famous Shea Stadium concert.
More trivia for That Thing You Do
Lenny: "Skitch", how did we get here?
Guy: I led you here, sir, for I am Spartacus.
Mr. White: You guys look great in gold, have I told you that?
Lenny Haise: Here's the thing, we're not "The Wonders" right now, we're "Cap'n Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters."
Question: Are the characters in this movie based on actual people? Is it a true story or a fictional story that was entirely possible?
Question: Does anyone know where I can get a transcript of this movie? Also, does anyone know if the song we hear in the movie is the original?
Answer: I don't know about the script, but the song was definitely an original - and nominated for best original song that year.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Answer: The movie was written by Tom Hanks and some what reflects the music industry during that time period. It is not about a real band, but shows how a lot of bands were treated at the time and how quickly you can rise and how you can fall even faster.
Bruce Minnick