The dishes are done, man, in this exclusive look at the Don't Tell Mom The Babysitter's Dead house today
Film Features Don't Tell Mom The Babysitter's Dead
It’s been almost 30 years since Don’t Tell Mom The Babysitter’s Dead hit theaters, but the movie is still almost as popular as ever. It’s not only getting a reboot; fans still covet the clothes from the General Apparel West runway show and tell antsy bosses they’re “right on top of that, Rose!” Who can even really finish washing up their kitchen without at least thinking, “The dishes are done, man”?
That last line came courtesy of actor Keith Coogan, who played stoner brother Kenny in the film, and who teamed up with Wargod Records for the exclusive video above, in which he gives a tour of the original house from the film. It’s in celebration of the film’s soundtrack finally getting an LP reissue, and it’s a fun and interesting look at the location where so much—really, it’s a lot—of the beloved movie was shot. Coogan throws in lots of behind the scenes tidbits along the way, like about how they shot Walter’s fall from the roof, the temp music played on set during the aforementioned GAW runway show, and about his original audition for the Clown Dog hunk Josh Charles would later embody.
If you’re interested in the LP reissue, you can pick that up here. It comes on Clown Dog and I’m Right On Top Of That, Rose colored vinyl, all for only $28. Frankly, that sounds like petty cash well spent.
23 Comments
I always liked Keith Coogan back in the day, and was never sure what happened to him. I didn’t realize that this movie had a big cult following, though. He might as well milk it for whatever it’s worth.
Keith Coogan is a pretty cool name
Way to go, Keith Coogan’s parents and some Irish people hundreds of years ago!
Coogan Name Meaning. Irish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Cogadháin ‘son of Cogadhán’, a diminutive from a reduced form of the personal name Cúchogaidh, meaning’hound of war’.“Hound of war”? That is pretty fucking cool!
Jackie Coogan is a cool name, too. And he was Keith Coogan’s grandfather. And he was Uncle Fester on the Addams Family TV show. And he was the titular “kid” in Charlie Chaplin’s The Kid.
He was also the guy they passed the Coogan law after.
Cool fact. Nice catch!
This was an important movie in my teen years.
This was an important scene for my 12 year old self
Every summer my extended family would spend a week in the same house and one of the only movies there was Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead (one of the others was Ghost Dad). We watched it multiple times every year.
Yeah, it’s just one of those kind of movies. There’s an unwritten rule that Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead, Clue, or A Christmas Story have to be on in the background at our family gatherings.
I barely remember this movie, but I quote “dishes are done, mannnn” easily once a month.
How often to movies use the exterior AND interior of the same house for all the shots? That seems pretty rare,
Of course I agree that the dishes are done, but this film also had one of the most successful product placements ever, at least in my family. Mama Celeste Face Up? Mama Celeste Face Down? We trusted her with some big decisions.
One of my favorite “over the heads of the ostensible target audience” gags from Animaniacs is when Thaddeus Plotz says, “I haven’t been this upset since we made ‘Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead!’”
This was great!
Was this film far more popular than I have, until now, appreciated?
It’s definitely a movie that ended up being much better than the marketing suggested it was going to be.
Doesn’t David Duchovny play a typical sleezeball in this? Going off memory. Not looking up. Too lazy.
This video needs more jump cuts.
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I actually went and saw this in the theater when it came out.
I guess I was 12 when this came out so too young to see it then, and never went out of my way to see it since. Which is why I’m kinda surprised anyone gives a shit about the house it took place it. It’s like if you posted a video showing us the office building from that scene in Drop Dead Fred.