"Forrest Gump," which ran onto the big screen on July 6, 1994, was based on the book written by Mobile native Winston Groom. Like many movies based on books, the screenplay doesn't follow the book. Writer Eric Roth made the love story primary and Forrest Gump's adventures secondary. Roth also added Gump needing braces as a child and his run across
the United States. However, in talking with Groom, he doesn't appear miffed at the liberties. He is delighted that Forrest Gump captured so many hearts, and said not a day goes by that he doesn't receive a message about Forrest Gump. "It's a story that somehow hung in there," Groom said. Groom said there are plans to celebrate the film's 20 years with a re-release of his book along with a re-release of the movie. He said the book's re-release will include a special edition
cover. In honor of the 20th anniversary, we offer 20 fun facts you may not know about the movie. 1. Groom said Warner Brothers bought the rights to make the movie "Forrest Gump" while the book was still a manuscript. 2. Groom was tapped to write the screenplay, but his versions were scrapped and other writers called in. Eric Roth wrote the final script. 3. Groom said a Daily News reporter broke the news to him that Paramount bought the movie rights from Warner Brothers
while he sat in a New York restaurant.
4. Groom said location scouts did make a trip to coastal Alabama. Groom offered his ideas including where Forrest's home should be. However, Mobile's inclement weather kept the movie makers from setting up shop.
5. Greenbow, Alabama doesn't exist, but Bayou la Batre is real and strong in shrimping history.
6. Tom Hanks' daughter, Emily, and director Robert Zemeckis' son, Alexander, both deny Forrest Gump a seat on the school bus. Emily is the red-haired girl, and Alexander is the first boy that won't let Forrest sit down.
7. Tom Hanks' brother also played a part in filming. Jim Hanks doubled for him in many of Forrest Gump's running sequences.
8. And about that run. One of Forrest's famous quotes was inspired by 16-year-old Louis Michael Figueroa. Figueroa ran from New Jersey to San Francisco in 1982 to raise awareness about cancer. In an interview about his run, Figueroa said, "when I got tired, I slept. When I got hungry, I ate. When I have to go to the bathroom, I go."
9. The necklace Lt. Dan wears isn't just something from the prop closet. The rosary with a Saint Christopher medal inscribed "Protect Us In Combat" was worn in Vietnam by Gary Sinise's brother-in-law, Jack Treese, in 1967-68.
10. The Vietnam scenes of the film were shot on what is now the Ocean Creek Golf Course on Fripp Island, S.C.
11. If you go in search of Forrest Gump's home, you won't find it. The home was built for the movie on private property in Colleton County, S.C, but the home wasn't built to code and it had to be torn down after the filming.
12. The shrimp boat hurricane scene was shot at the Port Royal S.C. Ports Authority Terminal and used a jet engine to simulate the wind.
13. Forrest's shrimp boat once belonged to Beaufort, S.C. shrimper Jimmy Stanley. The boat is on display at Planet Hollywood in Downtown Disney in Orlando.
14. Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Restaurant & Market did not exist before Forrest Gump showed on the big screen. The first opened in 1996 on Cannery Row in Monterey, Calif. Now, there are at least 39 locations worldwide. The closest to Mobile is in Biloxi, Miss.
15. Forrest Gump's awards and decorations, as worn on his Class A uniform, are: the Medal of Honor, Purple Heart, Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Infantry Shoulder Cord, Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Badge (probably for rifle), and Meritorious Unit Commendation.
16. Jenny's last name is Curran, but you have to pay attention to catch it. The name is never mentioned in the movie. It's only seen on the back of an envelope Forrest mailed to Jenny while he was in Vietnam, on her mailbox when she is a child, and on the letters that are returned to him in the hospital.
17. The line, "My name is Forrest Gump. People call me Forrest Gump," was not written in the script. Tom Hanks ad libbed it while filming and director Zemeckis liked it and decided to leave it.
18.The bus stop scene was filmed in Chippewa Square in Savannah, Ga. However, the famous park bench never existed. It was a prop built for the movie. The prop bench now sits in a Savannah museum.
19. The traffic flow around the square was reversed for the movie in order to have the bus doors open into the square.
20. Groom has autographed a number of replica benches, including one that sits in the AL.com/Press Register office.
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