FILM 1990: HEARTBURN

FILM 1990: HEARTBURN 

TRIVIA: Meryl Streep's daughter Mamie Gummer was used as Annie the baby.

The film doesn't make this explicit, but in real-life, Writer Nora Ephron had been so upset by her husband's infidelity that she went into labor prematurely.

Meryl Streep was pregnant in real life during the making of the movie.

Tony Shalhoub's first feature film role. Shalhoub had a love scene with Meryl Streep, but nearly all of his scenes were cut. Shalhoub can still be seen, though, as a passenger on a plane sitting behind Jack Nicholson.

The movie is based on Nora Ephron's real-life marriage to, and divorce from, Carl Bernstein, and the birth of their two sons. The woman with whom Bernstein had an affair was Margaret Jay, who was the wife of the British Ambassador to the United States, and daughter of British Prime Minister James Callaghan. Jay became a Baroness in 1992, and rose to become the first female Leader of the House of Lords between 1998 and 2001.

Jack Nicholson replaced Mandy Patinkin as Mark Forman. Patinkin was originally cast as the male lead, but was suddenly replaced by Nicholson after two days of shooting when Director Mike Nichols realized there was no chemistry between Patinkin and Meryl Streep.

Jack Nicholson's performance of "Soliloquy" ("My Boy Bill"), from Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Carousel", is a nod to Writer Nora Ephron's parents, Henry Ephron and Phoebe Ephron, who wrote the screenplay for the musical film Carousel (1956), which was also produced by Henry Ephron.

In Everything Is Copy (2015), Jacob Bernstein's documentary about his mother Nora Ephron's life and career, he reveals that contentious negotiations over the movie adaptation of her novel "Heartburn" extended his parents' divorce for several years longer than most divorces take. Eventually, their divorce agreement included a stipulation that the movie was not allowed to depict the "Mark Forman" (Carl Bernstein) character as anything but a good, loving, and conscientious father (whatever his failings as a faithful husband were), and Mike Nichols had to be named as a legal signatory to the divorce.

FILM 1511: SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE 

TRIVIA: The scene between Tom Hanks and Victor Garber crying over the movie The Dirty Dozen (1967) was completely improvised during the take.

The silhouette of the couple on the box of chocolates in a shop window outside Annie's house is, in fact, a silhouette of Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

The role of Annie was originally offered to Julia Roberts, who turned it down. Kim Basinger was also offered the role in the early script process, but turned it down because she thought the premise was ridiculous. After Michelle Pfeiffer, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jodie Foster declined as well, Meg Ryan landed the role.

A pre-Seinfeld (1989) reference to the real-life "Soup Nazi": A male journalist is speaking as Meg Ryan enters an office at her newspaper, saying, "...he's the meanest guy in the world, but he makes the best soup you've ever eaten."

Jason Schwartzman auditioned for the role of Jonah Baldwin.

Garry Marshall was originally slated to direct the film. He is the brother of actor/director Penny Marshall, who directed Tom Hanks in Big (1988) and A League of Their Own (1992). She is the ex-wife of Rob Reiner, who plays Jay in the film.

Parker Posey was originally cast in the movie but later cut. She appeared with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks years later in You've Got Mail (1998).

This film's director (Nora Ephron) wrote When Harry Met Sally... (1989), which also starred Meg Ryan and was directed by Rob Reiner, who appears in Sleepless in Seattle (1993).

Demi Moore was considered for the role of Annie Reed.

Director Cameo: Nora Ephron: When Meg Ryan's character is in the kitchen in the middle of the night listening to the 'best of' radio callers, the caller 'Disappointed in Denver' is voiced by Ephron.

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