Even More Shawshank Facts You Didn't Know

GIFs created by Lisa Aileen Dragan

It seems every day I see postings about The Shawshank Redemption.  The movie is a true American gem.  Because it is so popular, every bit of minutia is dug up.  And, truth is -- it's all kind of cool.

Archana Ram at yahoo.com posted an article today titled, "13 Things You Didn't Know About 'The Shawshank Redemption'

• Morgan Freeman’s son makes a cameo.  On Red’s parole papers, that’s not a picture of an extra, but Freeman’s son, Alfonso, who’d come to set often with his father. He also appears as a rowdy prisoner when Andy first enters the yard.
• What Happened to Rita Hayworth? (But I did know that)
• King never cashed the $5,000 check he got for the movie.
• Freeman suggested Robbins for the role of Andy.
• Remember when Red was white and Irish? Darabont made some changes.The director took some dramatic license, the most important of which was changing Red from an Irishman to an African-American. “Once I got over my preconception of what the character was, it became such a good choice,” Darabont says on the DVD. “[Freeman] has become indelible in the role.” (In fact, when Andy asks him why he’s called “Red,” Red quips, “Maybe it’s because I’m Irish.” Darabont chose not to change the line.)
• Real wardens played extras.
• Morgan Freeman pitched that baseball for nine hours.
• Robbins did some time in solitary for research.
• ‘Goodfellas' was one of Darabont’s inspirations.
• Freeman had to record his voiceover over again from scratch
• The opera scene was a memento from Darabont’s writing process.
• That water Andy crawls through was toxic.
• The final scene on the beach was a late addition.

The full article is at yahoo.com/movies