Highlights
- Happy Gilmore remains one of Adam Sandler's best and most memorable movies, with endless quotable lines and hilarious scenes.
- Bob Barker's surprise appearance in Happy Gilmore was perfect casting by Sandler, and his fight scene with Sandler became legendary.
- Barker had two non-negotiable demands: to beat Sandler's character in the fight and to perform the fight scene himself, thanks to training from his neighbor and friend Chuck Norris.
Adam Sandler is one of the most successful comedic actors of all time, and his extensive body of work helped make him a Hollywood legend. Sandler did things the right way by having fun with his friends while making movies, and at this point, he has nothing left to accomplish.
Sandler became a star in the 90s thanks to early hits like The Wedding Singer and Happy Gilmore - and a scene from the latter, featuring a cameo The Price Is Right's Bob Barker continues to be one of the funniest from the decade.
Barker was great in the role, but let's just saw he had a few stipulations before agreeing to be in the movie. So, just did Adam Sandler have to agree to, to get the legendary gameshow host on board?
Updated September, 2023: Sadly for fans of 'The Price Is Right' and 'Happy Gilmore', in August 2023, the TV icon passed away at the age of 99. In wake of his passing, Adam Sandler made sure to honor his late one-time colleague, as well as their iconic scene, in a sweet Tweet. "The man. The myth. The best. Such a sweet, funny guy to hang out with. Loved laughing with him. Loved him kicking the crap out of me," he wrote. Rest in peace to a legend of the small screen, and the big.
Happy Gilmore Is A 90s Comedy Classic
Back in 1996, Happy Gilmore made its way into theaters and was able to find a major audience in no time. The film, which starred a young Adam Sandler, had a simple premise that was executed brilliantly by the talented cast. It wound up being a success that helped establish Sandler as a comedy star.
Prior to the film's release, Sandler had already been on Saturday Night Live and had starred in movies like Airheads and Billy Madison. Happy Gilmore was a noticeable step up for the actor, and according to Box Office Mojo, it wound up netting more than $40 million worldwide. Considering its small budget of just $12 million, this was considered a major win at the time.
When looking at Sandler's body of work, Happy Gilmore remains one of his best and most memorable movies to date. Despite the fact that the movie is more than 25 years old, it still holds up as hilarious and still ropes in new fans each year. It has an endless amount of quotable lines, and some of the iconic scenes in this movie remain just as hilarious as they were back in the 90s.
The film's most memorable scene, though, is one which featured a rumble on the golf course. It also just so happened to feature one Bob Barker.
Bob Barker Made A Surprise Appearance In The Film
Seeing Bob Barker in Happy Gilmore came as quite a surprise to movie fans, as Barker was best known for his work on The Price is Right. The legendary Barker was already in his 70s when he made his appearance in Happy Gilmore, so you can only imagine how surprised people were to see him fighting Adam Sandler in the movie. It was perfect casting on Sandler's part, and it made the scene even funnier than it already was.
Barker, however, was not Sandler's first pick.
According to Sandler, "[Tim] Herlihy initially wrote Ed McMahon. I remember being so young and cocky then that we would literally say when we sent it to Ed McMahon, we thought, ‘Of course he’s going to do it. It would be good for him. It’d be good for his career to be in a movie with me and get in a fistfight.’”
McMahon never got back to Sandler. However, Sandler was determined to have an older performer join the cast, and continued to reach out. Thankfully, Bob Barker was willing to work with the young Sandler in what ultimately became one of the funniest and most memorable movie scenes from the 90s.
Even so, that's not to say he didn't have any stipulations, going into the experience.
So, just what were his demands?
He Demanded To Fight (And Beat) Sandler, Himself
According to USA Today's Golfweek, Bob Barker signed on to Happy Gilmore on the proviso of two non-negotiables. First, he would need to not just fight, but beat Sandler's character. Second - and this is where things get interesting - he needed assurance that he would be able to perform the fight, himself. No mean feat, given the tumbles he took during the iconic scene!
Unbeknownst to Sandler at the time, Barker lived right next door to one Chuck Norris. Yup, that Chuck Norris. And, as neighbors and friends, the two Hollywood legends had bonded over fight training, years prior. Understandably, the game show host was excited to show off what he'd learned from the iconic action star.
After agreeing to his stipulations, Barker was on board, and the film's legendary fight scene went off without a hitch. In fact, Chuck Norris is said to have continued training Barker right up until the night before the scene was filmed.
It's a good thing that Barker was down for the scene, because it was a memorable moment that had people buzzing after seeing it for the first time. It also gave way to the hilarious Sandler quote, Barker's show. The quote in question? "The price is wrong, b****!" Oh, and of course, Barker's final retort, after initially responding with a series of punches and a wild kick to the face. "Now you've had enough ... b****."
Unexpected, yet iconic. Shout out to Barker for being a sport, to Sandler for being willing to adapt the scene - and, of course, an honorable shout out to Chuck Norris!