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I can’t say for absolute certain, but I am fairly sure this was never shot. It doesn’t take place in the book so it wouldn’t have been “highlighted in the book for Friedkim’s script.
Maybe they shot it but I doubt it. There are larger completists here that can be absolutely certain I’m sure.
I am not talking about anything that’s mentioned in the book. I am talking about a scene that people WHO HAVE NEVER MET ONE ANOTHER, describe where Burke death scene is shown.
They all agree that it was not the theatrical version, but a version they either saw on network television or on HBO.
Many of us are aware movies edited for television often have so much adult content removed, they replace the missing minutes with alternate/stock/cutting room floor/deleted scene footage that always trips you out if you are a hardcore fan of the movie.
Internet Movie Database is Infamous for not knowing about or cataloging such existing versions of films. One of IMDB’s successful examples of TV EDIT – Never-before-seen add-on clip is
SIXTEEN CANDLES:
Television version has an extra scene: right after Samantha says “I’d shit twice and die” (about anyone finding out she wrote the sex test answers about Jake), it shows Jake in the lunchroom reading the sex test he stole from the floor. It then cuts to Samantha and her friend, Randy, in line to get food, and Samantha exclaims she can’t believe she’s eating cafeteria burgers. Randy asks why Brenda (Sam’s mother) didn’t give her her carrot sticks. Samantha says, “She can’t remember my birthday, you think she’s gonna remember my carrots?” It’s then disclosed that Sam is eating the carrots because it’s supposed to make your breasts larger. Randy asks how it’s going, and Sam says she’s only gotten 1/16th of an inch improvement, a 1/2 inch if she takes a deep breath. They then go to find a seat. Sam sees Jake sitting at a table. She throws her food tray onto Randy’s tray and says that she has to leave because Jake is there, and “I don’t want him to know that I eat!” It then continues with the chin-up scene with Jake.I am 100% certain no Burke Dennings death was filmed, nor ever screened for he public in any way. This scene simply was never shot.
How these people claim to have seen it I have no idea. Are you sure they aren’t mistaking it for seeing Karras roll down the stairs at the end of the film? I’d think this is more than likely the case.
I am quite certain this was never, ever the case. If so, there would be some mention of it somehow in some version…or in some interview with Blatty.
That said, I have been writing what I have always envisioned as Burke’s death in 3 parts in the “fan fiction” forum. Part 3 should be here tomorrow. 🙂
I’m almost positive this was never shot. It would answer one of the greatest mysteries in the film and certainly take something away from it. Friedkin being the genius that he was at the time, knew this. I think people may have gotten this scene mixed up with the Merrin death scene from Exorcist II, which in my opinion almost ruins some of the best things of the first film. That to which you don’t see.
The “not seeing it” adds to what I think is the absolute most chilling shot in the whole film:
When a shadow passes the window of Regan’s room as Kinderman watches from a cab below.
My 2 cents :
– Ask people who have never met if it’s true that The Exorcist originally lasted 4 and a half hours and they’ll probably say yes. The same could apply to the existence of Burke’s death scene.
– The Merrin death scene from E2 is a very possible explanation or maybe Karras rolling down the stairs in E3.
– Or people mix up Burke’s DEATH scene with Burke’s MORGUE scene in which Kinderman see Denning’s body with it’s head turned completely around. It’s in the book and, if my memory’s correct, has been shot by Friedkin.
Here in Brazil, there´s a network that airs THE EXORCIST almost 50 times a year! Unfortunatley, I´ve never had the chance to see it on the television, I only saw the commercials. But, I know several friends who never met each other said that the network aired Burke´s death scene, it showed Sharon talking to Burke then, he would go upstairs and be killed by Regan. It´s one big mystery, just like people who say there´s a version of Rosemary´s Baby which shows the Antichrist´s face.
And I know a lot of people who have never met that think that if the scene existed and was aired 50 times a years, it would’ve at the very least ended up on YouTube.
Come on, the scene doesn’t exist. If it did, it would’ve jeopardized the rest of the movie.
You’re simply giving too much credit to the likes of You Tube, and Internet Movie Database. For example the ‘missing scene’ from Sixteen Candles isn’t even posted on You Tube.
These websites are still in an infant-like stage when it comes to expecting to find EVERYTHING THAT’S EVER BEEN FILMED or WATCHED. There is so much missing information on those sites it would be very silly to rely on them for the final say. (not to mention how much daily stuff is removed for copyright infringement.)To think that EVERYONE is a HARDCORE Exorcist movie fan and love it as much as US is extremely egocentric. It would take a combination of a HARDCORE exorcist fan/computer enthusiast who HAPPENED TO HAVE RECORDED it from television/ who would have to be aware that the scene is being debated online/ who would take the the time to do a DIGITAL TRANSFER from video tape/ and then POST it on You Tube for US… not very likely. Anyone who may have had the technology to record it on Video Tape when that version aired on TV, would probably just go out and purchase a NEW DVD of the MOVIE if they wanted to watch it again, rather than throw in their old RECORDED TV VIDEO TAPE and then conveniently compare and discover all the inconsistencies. Believe it or not, most people don’t do stuff like that, and are not interested in such things that sound reasonable to an Exorcist fan like us. Much less would this rare person be eager and willing to do a complicated upload to a computer from an old beta or VHS video tape.
Anyway. I found another person who remembers a Burke Dennings death scene from TV, and he just so happens to be a qualified, hardcore movie buff. He owns the record store where my roommate used to buy and sell used DVD’s. He always had these crazy, rare catalogs you could order movies out of which at the time were banned in the U.S. or super rare, like the uncut foreign copy of Dance With the Devil a.k.a. Perdita Durango, the Johnny Depp directorial, the Brave, the Japanese film, Guinea Pig 2: Flower of Flesh and Blood, They Call Her One Eye, a.k.a. Thriller, and The Professional, a.k.a. Leon. all the crazy, overseas/black market shit, that had once not been available here in the States.
We stopped by there and asked him about the Burke Dennings death scene, and he talked about it all casually -WITH NO COAXING, like it was nothing. He said it was aired on TV back in the day. I asked him if he was sure that he is not confusing the Father Karras scene, and he said he was positive. I asked him if he knew where to get a copy, and he agreed with me that it would have to be someone who had the technology to record a movie back when this version was still being aired, which wouldn’t have been very many people at that time.
He is of the opinion that someone should write an e-mail or a letter to Friedkin or Blatty and ask them.
By the way… I am in agreement that it would be LAME if this scene was actually shown in the movie, Then again, that is exactly why deleted scenes are deleted scenes.
Next I am going to ask a group of several different Brazilian coworkers. They are going to think I am “simply cunting mad”.
First of all, Blatty didn’t make The Beginning, that was Paul Schader. Second, Exorcist 3 is the best one of the whole series. It is funny and has great FX, plus the carp scene is one of the best performances in history.
Scrupulous, I know nothing about you, but I can infer that your taste in cinema leaves something to be desired if your posting name comes from arguably the second worst movie in the entire ouvre. You want to see a *real* Exorcist movie, you need to really sit down and watch “Exorcist: The Beginning.” I can’t speak for the masses but it’s by and large Blatty’s finest hour.
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