Up the Academy

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Mad Magazine Presents: "Up the Academy"
Theatrical release poster.
Directed by	Robert Downey
Produced by	Danton Rissner Marvin Worth
Written by	Tom Patchett Jay Tarses
Starring	Wendell Brown Tommy Citera Ron Liebman Hutch Parker Ralph Macchio Tom Poston
Cinematography	Harry Stradling Jr.
Editing by	Bud Molin Ron Spang
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s)	June 6, 1980 (New York City, New York)
Running time	87 min.
Country
Language	English
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

MAD Magazine Presents Up the Academy is an American teen comedy film released in 1980, about the outrageous antics of a group of misfits at a military school. It was directed by Robert Downey, and starred Wendell Brown, Tommy Citera, Hutch Parker, Tom Poston, and Ralph Macchio. The movie was filmed entirely in Salina, Kansas, mostly on the campus of St. John's Military School,^[1]

1 Response
2 Trivia
3 Notes
4 External links

[edit] Response

The film was neither a commercial nor critical success when it was originally released, and was disowned by both the staff of MAD magazine and actor Ron Leibman (who had his name removed from the credits). MAD's publisher, William Gaines, paid Warner Bros. $30,000 to remove all references to MAD from the film when it was released on home video. However, the film developed a small cult following. Following Time Warner's purchase of MAD, all references to the magazine were reinstated on cable television. In 2006, the original version of the film was issued on DVD.

[edit] Trivia

Make up effects wizard Rick Baker designed the Alfred E. Neuman masks for the film.
The role of Col. Bliss was originally written for Robyn Hilton, who had played a minor bit part in Mel Brooks' 1974 film Blazing Saddles . Early drafts of the script, with Robyn Hilton in mind, gave the Bliss character a lot more lines. Writers also wrote several semi-nude and topless that would have played on Hilton's physique. Hilton read the script and passed.
Tom Poston plays a campy orderly.
In the tradition of MAD making fun of movies, the magazine spoofed their own film with "MAD Magazine Resents Throw Up the Academy". The parody mainly concerned Ron Liebman's name removed, and the teenage troublemakers being punished by having to star in the film. Unlike most MAD movie parodies which are often several pages in length, this one was only two, the reason being with a fake note attached saying that the entire staff of MAD has quit over their shame and the magazine is hereby discontinued.