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Richard O'Brien -

Richard O’Brien, who played Riff Raff the creepy butler, was actually the writer and creator of 'The Rocky Horror Show’ (and later cowrote the screenplay for 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show').

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The beginning -

He was an out-of-work actor who began writing the songs to keep himself busy on winter evenings. He ended up creating a entire musical inspired by his love for science fiction and horror B movies.

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Gracing the stage -

It began as a small stage production once a director friend of O’Brien’s convinced London’s Royal Court Theatre to let it run for a few weeks.

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Growing interest -

They played for only a handful of audience members each night but eventually built up a small following! That obviously grew, as by 1975 the show had hit Broadway in New York.

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Riff Raff -

O’Brien wanted to play the character of Eddie, the motorcycle-riding zombie. But the director convinced him to play Riff Raff instead.

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Eddie -

Meat Loaf would end up taking on the role of Eddie in both the Broadway and film versions.

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Columbia -

‘Little Nell’ Campbell got the role of Columbia in an interesting way. The director of the ‘Rocky Horror’ musical heard there was a woman in a shop in London who would dance for her customers while serving them ice-cream.  She was cast almost straight away for her exceptional tap dancing skills.

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The Queen's English - The character of Dr. Frank N. Furter originally had a German accent. Tim Curry later heard an extremely posh woman speaking on the bus and decided Frank N. Furter should sound like the Queen of England.

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The intro lips -

The iconic lips that open the movie belong to Patricia Quinn, the actress who played Magenta. Quinn, Curry, Little Nell, and O'Brien are the only actors to have appeared both in the original London production and the movie.

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The movie deal -

Speaking of the film, director Jim Sharman (who had directed the stage version) soon began making a deal with 20th Century Fox to turn the musical into a movie. They offered him a big budget, but wanted him to replace the stage actors with popular movie stars.

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Saving the cast -

Sharman refused and instead accepted a much smaller budget so he could keep his original stage cast. There were only a few additions, like Susan Sarandon for the role of Janet.

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Mick Jagger -

The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger allegedly asked to play the lead role of Frank N. Furter, but they turned him down.

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Elvis Presley -

It’s also rumored that the studio wanted Elvis to play the role of Eddie, but he didn’t make the cut either!

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The beloved originals -

In retrospect, it’s believed that the decision to stick with the original cast was crucial in achieving the movie’s cult success.

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The mansion -

The creepy decaying mansion used in the film isn’t a set–it’s a real place! The set was being prepared at a studio outside London, but the set designer discovered that there was an old mansion nearby that had essentially been abandoned by the owners.

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The fire -

It was the perfect filming location, but it was also cold and leaky. They designated one warm room and filled it with heaters. The cast would crowd in there between takes, until the room caught on fire!

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Oakley Court -

The mansion has since been restored and is now a hotel called Oakley Court. They offer a 'Rocky Horror' experience package!

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Black and white -

O’Brien and Sharman actually envisioned that the first part of the movie would be filmed in black and white, to reflect Brad (played by Barry Bostwick) and Janet’s bland existence.

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The red lips -

The first injection of color would be Frank N. Furter’s red lips as he came down in the lift. But the studio rejected this idea and it was all filmed in color.

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Rocky couldn't act -

The eponymous hero, Rocky, was underwear model Peter Hinwood, who pretty much had no prior acting experience. Sharman ended up cutting all of his dialogue from the movie! Hinwood went on to become an antiques dealer.

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Meat Loaf can't ride -

Meat Loaf didn’t actually know how to ride a motorcycle, so they had to use a stunt double. In the close-up scenes, he’s actually rolling around on a wheelchair!

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A real surprise -

The cast didn’t know about the surprise waiting for them under the table during the dinner scene. Only Tim Curry and O’Brien knew that the body of Eddie would be revealed, so the shock from the other actors was genuine!

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The time filler -

O’Brien’s original musical was only 40-minutes long, so some of the most famous songs, including ‘The Time Warp,’ were added just to bulk it up.

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Makeup -

Famous makeup artist Pierre La Roche was hired to create the look for Frank N. Furter. He was the artist who created David Bowie’s famous Ziggy Stardust look.

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Makeup -

However, it reportedly took him four hours to apply the makeup, so Tim Curry ended up doing it himself.

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"Get over it" -

Tim Curry apparently wants people to get over the drag element of his character in ‘Rocky Horror.’ He’s quoted as saying: “Never think about it as drag, because it’s not. It’s just what people wear in Transylvania, so just get over it.”

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A royal fan -

Princess Diana was reportedly a big fan of 'Rocky Horror.' She asked to meet Tim Curry after one of his live performances in another production and told him that the movie had “quite completed her education.”

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The midnight screenings -

Midnight screenings of 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' began at the Waverly Theater in New York in 1976. These screenings grew more and more popular as fans began dressing up as the characters and shouting responses, and throwing things, at the screen.

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The legacy -

Even almost five decades later, there are still screenings at theaters and new productions of the musical taking place all over the world.

(Mental Floss) (Broadway) (MeTV)

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What next? - 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' is one of the best movies for costume inspiration! Check out this list of the 30 most stylish films of all time for more.

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