Fanspot
Empire State Building
“My flowers are beautiful”
Jérôme Gerber (Michel Galabru) practicing English with Ludovic Cruchot (Louis de Funès) – The Gendarme in New York (1965)
After a musical visit in the streets of New York, the brigade decides, before going to the congress, to go to the 102nd floor of the Empire State Building, in order to observe the magnificent view on the city, and to taste an ice cream giving colors to our gendarmes.
After the success of the first opus at the box office, the idea of a sequel was quickly considered. To renew the story, Louis de Funès had the idea of making Le Gendarme travel abroad, an idea supported by the producers knowing the success of the first film abroad. Mexico City and Tokyo were considered, but New York won out, being a city well known to screenwriter Richard Balducci. In addition, the Big Apple proved to be one of the few places familiar to the public in the 1960s, including the popularity of the 1933 film King Kong, which featured the Empire State Building.
After the success of this second film, a petition was launched by gendarmes to forbid the shooting of a new film, judging that their institution had been ridiculed by this series of feature films. Nevertheless, since the project was not successful, and in a spirit of appeasement, a warning message is presented in the opening credits of its two sequels: The Gendarme Gets Married and The Gendarme en balade.
The six films were released in 18 years. A seventh film entitled The Gendarme and the Emperor was in the works before being abandoned following the death of Louis de Funès. The script is on display at the Gendarmerie and Film Museum in Saint-Tropez.
Empire State Building
A true star of the New York skyline, the Empire State Building has inspired many authors and has appeared in numerous works.
One of his works stands out in particular and has left its mark on generations of film lovers: the film King Kong (1933). The mythical Art Deco building, inaugurated in 1931, is one of the most famous buildings in the world.
Its name comes from “The Empire State”, the nickname of the state of New York.
Having been the world’s tallest skyscraper until 1967, it is now New York’s third tallest (381 m and 443 m with its antenna), behind 432 Park Avenue (425 m) and the One World Trade Center (541 m).
The lobby of the Empire State Building reflects the image of the building: huge! It is the equivalent of three storeys high and is richly decorated in marble with an aluminium relief representing the silhouette of the monument. Its 86th floor observatory offers a breathtaking view of the metropolis.
If you visit during the day, please keep your ticket in your pocket, as it will allow you to go back up for free in the evening to admire the city in a different light.
Every evening, it lights up in different colours to celebrate a special event.
The Fantrippers Buying Board
Discover all the places The Gendarme on our map
By Damien Biju
Passionné par le cinéma, les séries d'animations et les jeux vidéo, il rêve secrètement de voyager à travers le monde à la recherche des lieux les plus emblématiques de la pop culture à bord d'une Delorean.