Page 31: Jones & Ford at Marshall College; or, More Monkey Brains!

My mention of an academic paper about monkey brains by “Jones and Ford at Marshall College” refers to Indiana Jones and the actor who portrays him, Harrison Ford. Professor Jones taught at the fictional Marshall College in Bedford, CT. All of this alludes to the following notorious scene from the notoriously bad Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), which introduced a whole new generation to the monkey brain urban legend (for the background of which, see yesterday’s post):

This scene from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) perpetuated the urban legend about monkey brains
by introducing it to a whole new generation. Source: YouTube, © Paramount Pictures/Lucasfilm.

The "monkey brain” urban legend, and the corresponding scene from Indiana Jones, are so well-known that there's even a punk/ska/metal band from Tallahassee, FL, called Chilled Monkey Brains.

Actress Kate Capshaw in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984),
© Paramount Pictures/Lucasfilm.

For Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull (2008), external shots of the fictional Marshall College of Bedford, CT, were filmed on the nearby New Haven, CT, campus of Yale University. Interestingly enough, one afternoon in 2007 while returning some books to Yale’s Sterling Library (as I had done dozens of times before), I stumbled upon the filming of Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull and literally walked right up to Harrison Ford as he exited from the back seat of his Escalade to grab a coffee from one of the caterers. Not until I was already in the middle of it (behind the cameras), with extras rushing up to the man standing next to me and calling out “Mister Ford!” did I realize what I had blithely stumbled into.

The trippiest part about this encounter was watching them shoot a scene featuring antique cars driving on the next block. When the director called “Cut,” all the cars drove backwards to where they started from to reset the scene. It was like watching real life in reverse! #LiberThIShARB.

In Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull (2008), exterior scenes of Marshall College were filmed
on the campus of Yale University...and I was there! © Paramount Pictures/Lucasfilm.

For me, the best part about Crystal Skull was watching those early scenes and spotting the familiar campus buildings and storefronts of my now-former backyard.

With all this said..."Jones and Ford at Marshall College" is another #MonkeyReference.