Disney film tells story of legendary Secretariat - Albany Times-Union
Tom Keyser traces Secretariat's history at Saratoga back through clocker Sonny Taylor, who timed Secretariat's workouts before he ever raced, jockey Braulio Baeza, who rode against him and trainer Allen Jerkens, who saddled Onion to a monumental upset over Secretariat in the 1973 Whitney Handicap.
"When
Secretariat arrived at Saratoga in the summer of 1972, he was a good-looking
horse with promise -- nothing more. After winning three races in 27 days, he
left as one of the leading thoroughbreds in the country. One year later, he returned as perhaps the greatest thoroughbred
of all time. He had swept the Triple Crown with overpowering ease, winning the
Belmont by an astonishing 31 lengths. He had appeared the same week on the
covers of Time, Sports
Illustrated and Newsweek."
Secretariat articles
The Real Secretariat - A great piece in the Blood Horse by Steve Haskin.
Secretariat: The Beauty of Being Everything - Excellent Saturday Post article by Jennifer Wirth
Secretariat movie fun facts from Disney
IT TAKES FIVE — The production relied on five horses to play Secretariat—four thoroughbreds and a quarterhorse. Not only did they have to perform like the champion equine, they also had to look the part. To replicate Secretariat’s white signature markings, Lisa Brown (Horse Continuity) painstakingly painted the three distinctive white socks and the facial white stripe and star on to each of the horses each day.
NOSE TO NOSE — Nelsan Ellis (Eddie Sweat) experienced a very close relationship with all the horses—sometimes a bit too close. During the course of production he was nuzzled, bitten in the stomach and stomped on.
DISCOVERED — One of the horses that played Secretariat in the film, Trolley Boy, was discovered in true Hollywood fashion after winning a Secretariat Look-Alike contest held at the Secretariat Festival in Paris, Kentucky. According to Diane Lane, Trolley Boy brought his own special talent to the role. When shooting close-ups with Lane, Trolley Boy had a tendency to chew the bit loudly which often caused her to laugh and break character.
PUZZLED — The cast and crew of “Secretariat” were addicted to crossword puzzles, especially Diane Lane, John Malkovich and Margo Martindale. Lane was such a super fan of the brain teaser; she created her own crossword puzzle during production.
PEACHES — The fluffy blonde wig that Diane Lane wore in the film was playfully nicknamed Peaches.
INSPIRED — Make-up artist Julie Hewett used Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis as her style icon when designing the look of Penny Chenery in the film. Photographs of the former First Lady were plastered all over the walls of the make-up trailer.
UP CLOSE — In order for the audience to get the jockey’s perspective, director of photography Dean Semler attached small, lightweight digital cameras to sticks and positioned them close to the horses as they thundered down the track. The horses got used to these cameras being in such close range, but the same was not true for the actors. When recreating Ronnie Turcotte’s famous look back during the Belmont Stakes, Otto Thorwarth peered backwards and was startled by camera.
AUTHENTICITY — The production used the actual Triple Crown trophy, on loan from the Kentucky Derby Museum. The coveted cup was created by Cartier in 1978 after Affirmed won the Triple Crown in preparation for the next winner. It had to be handled with gloves and was hand carried back and forth between Kentucky and Louisiana.
DOUBLE DUTY — The head of the make-up department, Michael Mills, played a fellow golfer alongside John Malkovich’s character Lucien Laurin. Lead horse wrangler Rusty Hendrickson not only cast the horses in the film, but he also portrayed a fry cook in a diner scene.
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