The Elephant Man Trivia

1980

“

I am not an animal! I am a human being! I ...am ...a man!

Trivia

Totally Trivia

Film facts for the 1980 Drama movie starring Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud

Wendy Hiller, Freddie Jones, Michael Elphick, Hannah Gordon, Helen Ryan, John Standing, Dexter Fletcher, Lesley Dunlop, Phoebe Nicholls, Pat Gorman, Claire Davenport, Orla Pederson, Patsy Smart, Frederick Treves, Stromboli, Richard Hunter, James Cormack Update Cast

We believe the following trivia is all legit. If it's bogus or you have additional info, please update us.

Rewind Archive

Update

Although he was called The Elephant Man, John Merrick did not suffer from Elephantitas. Merrick actually had a rare disease called Proteus Syndrome, which causes overgrowth of bone and other tissue, and has been recorded in fewer than 100 cases, ever.

Rewind Archive

Update

The Elephant Man's name was Joseph Merrick, not John Merrick. When Frederick Treves wrote his memoir he refered to him as John. His handwritten manuscript reveals that Treves knew that Merricks name was Joseph, and deliberately crossed out "Joseph" and replaced it with "John". Merricks surviving correspondence show he signed his name as Joseph and contemporary newspaper articles about his case refer to him by his correct name. Why Treves changed it is unclear.

Rewind Archive

Update

In real life, John (Joseph) Merrick often quoted this poem he wrote: "Tis true my form is something odd, but blaming me is blaming God; Could I create myself anew, I would not fail in pleasing you. If I could reach from pole to pole or grasp the ocean with a span, I would be measured by the soul; the mind's the measure of the man."

Thanks to Alain Lamothe

Update

In real life John Merrick wasn't beaten at all. He was a mountain of gold for his owners so they wouldn't have taken the risk of maltreating him. On the contrary, he was well treated.

Thanks to Darren

Update

The Elephant Man was shockingly not even nominated for Best Makeup, the reason why? Because the oscars didn' have a best makeup category then. However, because of the Elephant Man, the following year the Academy Awards decided to have a Best Makeup category which is still in the awards ceremony today.

Update

It was once rumored that Michael Jackson wanted to buy the real Elephant Man's Bones.

Thanks to Kara Cohen

Update

David Bowie played the role of Joseph Merrick on Broadway. However, he did not wear any make-up. The Elephant Man's deformities were conveyed to the audience by twisting his body and dragging his foot.

Thanks to Joshua

Update

As told on the Discovery Channel documentary, the real-Life Joseph Merrick was a "hawker" in his teen-age years. A "hawker" being defined as the near equivalent of a door-to-door salesman.

Thanks to gemma_ashcroft

Update

The elephant man also had neurofibromatosis.

Thanks to Patrick Fogerty

Update

Anne Bancroft, who stars in the film, is married to it's producer, Mel Brooks.

Thanks to LoverswithCassie

Update

Scriptwriters Christopher De Vore and Eric Bergen turn up uncredited as a pair of Lyre Box Players.

Add more trivia...

Bogus Trivia

There's often fake stuff floating round, y'know? -Like the 'ghost boy' that can allegedly be seen in "Three Men And A Baby".

But, nothing bogus that we know yet for "The Elephant Man".

Next: Behind The Scenes

Or use the menu to navigate

1980 Paramount Studios
1999-2020 fast-rewind.com
V4_27 Powered by Rewind C21 CMS