C A L I G U L A

Franco Rossellini’s original idea was to have the selling point be PAUL MORRISSEY. Instead of writing his own script, Paul Morrissey brought his friend Gore Vidal on board and then the selling point became GORE VIDAL. When Paul Morrissey was booted out and the lead actor was hired, the selling point became MALCOLM McDOWELL. When Gore Vidal resigned, the selling point became PENTHOUSE MAGAZINE. And indeed, AFTER filming was well underway, Bob Guccione flew three Penthouse models to Rome to be added to the movie. The problem, of course, was that the casting was complete and there would be nothing for any newcomers to do, but they were added anyway. Then Guccione flew a dozen or so more models to Rome to be added, telling them that they were on their way to be used as background decorations in The Spy Who Loved Me. They were in for a rude awakening. There was even less for the remaining gals to do. From what I have been able to gather from my own observations and from chatting with folks who went to see it, the Penthouse “Pets” were indeed the principal selling point, without which this mutilated and orphaned film would have flopped miserably. So here we go. Here are some images of the selling points.