May 23, 1973 –
Sam Peckinpah’s Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid, starring James Coburn, Kris Kristofferson, James Coburn and in his film debut, Bob Dylan, premiered in New York City, on this date. (While his acting as a knife-wielding stranger named Alias is derided, Dylan scores a hit with the Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door.)
A bent flange on a lens of one of the Panavasion cameras caused all the shots made with that one camera (all of them master shots) to be out of focus on the right side, and thus rendering them totally unusable. Because MGM had refused Sam Peckinpah’s request for a camera mechanic to be on duty during the shoot in Durango, and because all the footage was first sent back to Los Angeles for processing, the crew didn’t discover the problem for several weeks. Only after the faulty lens was replaced, did MGM send a camera mechanic down; and by that time, the film was several days over schedule, and several hundred thousand dollars over budget.
The Haus of Dcaligari 