MovieChat Forums > The Buddy Holly Story (1978) Discussion > The Real Buddy Holly Story

The Real Buddy Holly Story

posted 12 years ago by tubescreamer-1
10 replies | jump to latest

This Gary Busey movie is okay, but has a truckload of errors and blatant fabrications. The people in Buddy Holly's life got to tell the real story to Paul McCartney, who not only bankrolled a more factual and in-depth movie about Buddy Holly, but does the interviews with the musicians that shared the bill, or shared the stage with him. It's hard to look up here on IMDB.com because of the way it's titled. Here's a couple of links: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0260768/ http://www.amazon.com/The-Real-Buddy-Holly-Story/dp/B0002VGTBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331612019&sr=8-1

For Buddy fans, it's the best movie there is.

[–] buddytesla-1 12 years ago

The OP is right, while a wonderful film, it is mostly fiction. This and La Bamba don't even come close to depicting what a horror show that final tour actually was.

[–] smokehill retrievers 12 years ago

It was ghastly, apparently. The bus wasn't just kinda cold, it was DANGEROUSLY cold. The tour drummer (since Jennings, Allsup & the drummer backed up everyone of the tour) actually got frostbite on his feet and had to be hospitalized. After that, the "substitute drummers" for the tour were whomever wasn't on stage at the time -- Buddy, Jennings, Allsup & a few others played the drums as best they could.

In the early days of R&R, even headliners had a pretty rotten traveling agenda, and the hotels weren't much better. Compare this with the over-the-top arrangements of top rock musicians today ....

[–] lostinthes81 11 years ago

actually the movie la bamba, while still using creative license, was still pretty accurate. more so than the buddy holly story.

[–] DracTarashV 11 years ago

Yes, it's a fine movie. But like most of these biography films, it was heavily fictionalized in order to please the audience. Busey, though, makes me forget about it.

Hey there, Johnny Boy, I hope you fry!

[–] badwithsports 10 years ago

What was fictional about this film? I'm honestly curious to know I'm not disagreeing I just have no idea. I do think Busey was awesome in it though.

[–] tubescreamer-1 10 years ago

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077280/goofs#factual_error

Scroll down to factual errors.

[–] oregon-5 10 years ago

What was fictional about this film? I'm honestly curious to know I'm not disagreeing I just have no idea.

Aside from the already listed errors. They left out Niki Sullivan, the other guitar player with The Crickets. Producer Norman Petty was left out as well.

Although Petty was an accomplished producer who had a modset studio in Clovis, New Mexico. It was Buddy's naivety that gave Petty manager duties as well.
Thus, when Holly moved to New York after he married Maria Elena, he was still owed over $75,000 from his recordings and concert tours. Money that Petty had kept in an account for all the Crickets but only he had access too.

Its a good theroy that had Buddy been well off financially, he would not have gone on the Winter Dance Tour.

I think the scene in Nashville was pretty accurate, except for it geting physical. i don't think the racist remark against Maria Elena (in the New York studio) actually happened.

[–] trigger-22 9 years ago

Due to a very progressive tax structure during this time, Buddy Holly did not have a great deal of money at the time of his death. In 1958, the federal tax rate for any income over $100,000 was very high ($100,000 – $150,000 89%, $150,000 - $200,000 90%, over $200,000 91%). I have no idea on what Buddy Holly’s earnings were, but if he had an adjusted gross income of $1,000,000 in 1958 he would have paid over $850,000 in federal taxes alone (remember he would also be progressively taxed on the first $100K he made).

[–] mikeflw1 8 years ago

Wow.
Can anyone say 'draconian'?

Things certainly have changed since then. However, those amounts of money were pretty 'obscene' when USA currency was still (backed with) silver certificates. (Even that was a change from being backed by actual gold before the change to silver certificates.) Gold was probably in the $30/ounce range then, compared to well over $1000/ounce these days. Dimes, quarters, half-dollars and dollar coins contained actual silver back then.
Just about ten years after that, you could buy TEN McDonald's hamburgers for one dollar! (plus sales tax of course)
The wage for people making and selling those hamburgers? Eighty cents an hour. Now the laws are headed to $15/hour... (that is 1,875% increase.) If you look at gold, even though $1000 is low, from 30 to 1000 is about 3,333% increase, so even $15/hour has no way kept up with 'inflation'.

[–] Jetfire1959 9 years ago

Here's a link to The Real Buddy Holly Story.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0260768/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_2

Superior intelligence doesn't necessarily equate to superior intention.