Trivia for
Malcolm X (1992) More at IMDbPro »

• The first non-documentary production that was given permission to film in Mecca.
  
  
• The trumpeter in the "Billie Holiday Quintet" is played by Terence Blanchard, who composed the music for the film, and is a frequent collaborator of Spike Lee.
  
  
• The speech that plays over the documentary footage of Malcolm X's life near the end is read by actor Ossie Davis who wrote and delivered the speech at Malcolm's eulogy in 1965.
  
  
• Spike Lee removed any mention of Louis Farrakhan from Malcolm X (1992) after receiving specific, direct threats from him.
  
  
• Spike Lee urged kids to cut school to see his movie, believing that "X" provides just as much (or more) education.
  
  
• The original director was going to be Norman Jewison but he had to withdraw from the project due to outside pressure demanding that the subject be made by a black film-maker.
  
  
• After the assassination all footage of Malcolm X is of the real man, most of it in black and white.
  
  
• The Elevated Train in the opening scene in Boston are actual New York City Transit Authority "D" type Museum cars that were built in 1927 and ran on the New York City BMT Subway Lines.
  
  
• The film's producer, Marvin Worth, had actually known Malcolm X in real life. This was instrumental in him acquiring the rights to tell Malcolm X's story in 1967, though it would take over 20 years for him to achieve that. In that time, Worth produced his own Oscar-nominated documentary on the subject, and commissioned numerous scripts, including one by David Mamet. At one point, Eddie Murphy was interested in one of the scripts. When Spike Lee came on board, he read all the different scripts and opted for the first one written by James Baldwin.
  
  
• The film's estimated budget was $34 million. Budget battles plagued the production from the beginning. Initially, director Spike Lee had requested $33 million for the film, a reasonable sum considering the size and scope of the project but far greater than his previous budgets. Additionally, his five previous films combined grossed less than $100 million domestically. As a result of this (and the studio's reluctance to fund black-themed material), Warner Bros. only offered $20 million for a two-hour and 15-minute film, plus an additional $8 million from Largo Entertainment for the foreign rights. When the film went $5 million over budget, Lee kicked in most of his salary, but failed to keep the financiers from shutting down post-production. Lee went public with his battles and raised funds from celebrity friends, such as Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, and Bill Cosby to regain control of his embattled project. Warner eventually kicked in more funds after a positive screening of a rough cut.
  
  
• Malcolm X once worked as a porter on the railroad as shown in the movie. Researchers for the film needed to find some equipment that was accurate to the time period when Malcolm worked for the New Haven Railroad. The Valley Railroad in Essex, CT was contacted for information on a Pullman car by name (Great Republic). Valley RR had one of the actual coaches that Malcolm X once worked on. From there they got involved with the VRR to do shooting in Essex, CT and also took a number of the coaches down to New York to do filming in the city setting. The coach Great Republic had been in the process of being restored, as the Valley RR had just obtained it from a train collector in Stonington, CT that had it in his back yard for decades. This coach that Malcolm once worked on, is now proudly serving as the First Class Parlor car on the Essex Steam Train
  
  
• The names of the three assassins charged with Malcolm X's murder are listed in the final credits for the film.
  
  
• It took almost 25 years to bring an adaptation Alex Haley's "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" to the big screen. Among the early screenwriters was James Baldwin.
  
  
• The film's 2nd unit filmed all the scenes at Mecca. Spike Lee did not accompany them as he is not a Muslim (only Muslims are allowed to enter the city of Mecca).
  
  
• James Baldwin's script was written over the space of two years, and completed after co-writer Arnold Perl death in 1971. Spike Lee shares on screen credit with the late Perl as Baldwin's family asked that his name not be linked with the film.
  
  
• Scenes of the Kennedy assassination are taken from JFK (1991). 'Vincent D'Onofrio (I)' is credited as playing Bill Newman in the footage taken from JFK. The stand-ins who played the Kennedys and the Connallys in JFK are also credited in this film.
  
  
• Angela Bassett also played Betty Shabazz in Panther (1995/I).
  
  
• At one point Oliver Stone expressed interest in directing this project as a follow-up to JFK (1991); Stone's first choice was Denzel Washington, who went on to star in the title role when Spike Lee came on board as director.
  
  
• The video you see at the opening speech, is the beating of 'Rodney King'. A taxi driver who became famous after his violent arrest by officers of the Los Angeles Police Department, and was videotaped by a bystander, George Holliday. The incident raised a public outcry among people who believed it was racially motivated.
  
  
• James Baldwin's original screenplay for this film has been published, under the title "One Day When I Was Lost." It begins with Malcolm driving to the Audobon Theater, and then telling his life through flashbacks.
  
  
• Al Freeman Jr., who plays Elijah Muhammad, portrayed Malcolm X in _"Roots: The Next Generations" (1979) (mini)_.
  
  
• Ed Herlihy's last film.
  
  
• The film shows a white student girl who offers her help to Malcolm X and then gets rudely denied. It's actually based on a real-life event about which after leaving NOI Malcolm X regrets saying "Brother, remember the time that white college girl came into the restaurant - the one who wanted to help the [Black] Muslims and the whites get together - and I told her there wasn't a ghost of a chance and she went away crying? Well, I've lived to regret that incident. In many parts of the African continent I saw white students helping black people. Something like this kills a lot of argument. I did many things as a [Black] Muslim that I'm sorry for now. I was a zombie then - like all [Black] Muslims - I was hypnotized, pointed in a certain direction and told to march. Well, I guess a man's entitled to make a fool of himself if he's ready to pay the cost. It cost me 12 years."
  
  
• Potato chips called "X Brand" chips (kosher processed and endorsed by non profit) were distributed after the release and success of "Malcolm X".
  
  
• Albert Hall would later play Elijah Muhammed in Michael Mann's film Ali (2001).
  
  
• The dancing scenes were consulted by Frankie Manning. He is considered an ambassador of Lindy-hop, the dance seen in the film.
  
  

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