Watch: John Travolta, Beastie Boys, Harold & Kumar ALL went to White Castle
Add another name to the list of stars with Columbus roots. This one is a triple threat, too: movies, TV and music.
White Castle has provided not just late-night sustenance for generations of artists. It has provided inspiration, too. Twenty years ago today, the Columbus-based burger chain hit theaters nationwide in its biggest role to date, with co-billing in the title, even, of "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle."
The whole story: Why did Harold & Kumar go to White Castle? Here's how the 2004 movie came to be
Here's a collection of scenes and songs from the last six decades that have made White Castle a pop-culture icon.
(The clips with titles marked with an asterisk include mature language or themes.)
'Saturday Night Fever,' 1977
Jamie Richardson, vice president of marketing and public relations for White Castle, said he thinks this scene from the 1977 disco-era classic left some at the company wary of another movie appearance when "Harold & Kumar" came along.
The producers of "Saturday Night Fever" filmed at a real White Castle restaurant in Brooklyn. It's no longer there, though.
'Licensed to Ill,' Beastie Boys, 1986*
The Beastie Boys were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2012. It's still Richardson's dream to induct them into White Castle's Cravers Hall of Fame .
They deserve it. On "Licensed to Ill," the first rap album to top the Billboard 200 list after its release in 1986, the group had White Castle references in five of 13 tracks. Billboard called it "a virtually unprecedented amount of real estate" for a band that eschews its music being commercialized.
'White Castle Blues,' The Smithereens, 1986
Like "Harold & Kumar" writers Hayden Schlossberg and Jon Hurwitz, the four founders of the 1980s college rock group The Smithereens all had roots in New Jersey. The lyrics to "White Castle Blues" include: I think I'll get some crisp onion rings/To complement 10 of those little square things/An orange soda or a milkshake will do/I'm being hit by those White Castle blues.
'Wayne's World,' 1992
Wayne and Garth didn't go to White Castle, but they passed by one on their way to the fictional Stan Mikita's Donuts in the 1992 movie, "Wayne's World." Unlike the "Harold & Kumar" White Castle, this one actually did exist, reportedly in Aurora, Illinois.
'Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,' 2004*
Neil Patrick Harris would have to pull a little more cash out of his wallet to pay for Harold and Kumar's White Castle order today. In the 2004 movie, their meal of 30 sliders, five fries and four large pops each — it was cherry Cokes for Harold and diet Cokes for Kumar — came to $46.75.
We pulled out the White Castle app to run the numbers on the same orders. At 1111 S. High St. in Columbus, the grand total 20 years after the movie's release was $110.22.
'Amreeka,' 2009
"Amreeka" is a story about a woman and her son who leave Palestine to join family in suburban Chicago. Muna takes a job at a White Castle after she is unable to land a job as a bookkeeper, the field in which she has experience and multiple degrees.
The movie follows the family as they navigate life in the United States in the years after Sept. 11 and the start of the U.S. war in Iraq.
'Undercover Boss,' 2010
David Rife, White Castle's vice president of manufacturing and a great-grandson of founder Billy Ingram, took on a few jobs for his 2010 appearance on the CBS series, "Undercover Boss." In Cincinnati, the kindness and encouragement from night-shift manager Joe Brown led the company to start a leadership program for employees.
'Impractical Jokers'*
White Castle has been a frequent guest star on the hidden-camera comedy show, "Impractical Jokers," during its 13-year run on TruTV and TBS. The hosts of the show, who feed each other lines through earpieces and film how others react, have posed as White Castle workers and as horn-honking drive-thru customers.
"A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas," 2011*
John Cho, Kal Penn and Neil Patrick Harris returned for the 2011 "Harold & Kumar" holiday sequel, but White Castle made only a brief cameo.
Instagram: @dispatchdining
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: White Castle star turns: See the burger chain in movies and music
