Welcome Back, Kotter': 25 Things You Never Knew About the Sweathogs, Which classic '70s sitcom, one that launched the career of a Hollywood superstar and dropped several memorable characters and catchphrases into TV history, is being released as a complete series DVD boxed set?
Oooh-oooh-oooh, we've got the answer: It's Welcome Back, Kotter, the 1975-1979 ABC sitcom hit that marked the beginning of John Travolta's Oscar-nominated career, made the Sweathogs iconic TV high schoolers, and suggested that a nasal cavity was an appropriate place for an elastic gardening implement.
But how much do you know about Mr. Kott-air, Barbarino, Horshack, Epstein, Washington, and how the Sweathogs made it to primetime? We've got 25 facts that might surprise even the most devoted Kotter aficionado.
1. Welcome Back, Kaplan
James Buchanan High School, home of the Sweathogs in Welcome Back, Kotter, is fictional. But it was based on series star and stand-up comedian Gabe Kaplan's real-life experiences as a remedial student at New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn, where Kaplan's fellow alumni include DreamWorks co-founder David Geffen, Entourage star Jerry Ferrara, Scott Baio, Buddy Hackett, and Three Stooges brothers Moe and Curly Howard.
2. Arnold Horshack's a Real Dude
The series was more specifically inspired by Kaplan's high school friends, whom he described in his famous "Holes and Mello Rolls" routine. Three of the four Sweathogs' character names were tweaked from their real-world counterparts, but Arnold Horshack was the real name of the Kaplan pal who inspired Ron Palillo's beloved Kotter student.
3. Up Your Nose With a… Frozen Dessert?
The real-life Horshack also inspired one of the series' most popular catchphrases. Mello rolls were roll-shaped ice cream treats popular in the New York area in the 1950s, and when Horshack wanted to insult — or "rank" on, as Kaplan described it — someone, he would tell them, "Up your hole with a Mello roll." The phrase was considered too naughty for TV use, so the phrase was changed to "Up your nose with a rubber hose" when John Travolta's Vinnie Barbarino spouted his signature rank on Kotter.
4. "Up Your Nose With a Rubber Hose": The Single
In January 1977, Kaplan wrote and recorded a novelty song called "Up Your Nose," with lyrics that included, "Up your nose / With a rubber hose / Twice as far / With a chocolate bar / In your ear brother / With a can of beer sister / If you don't like that / Try a baseball bat." The tune peaked at No. 91 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
5. Vinnie Barbarino: Balladeer
Other Kotter stars capitalized on the show's fame to release songs, too. Travolta had a Billboard Top 10 hit in 1976 with the ballad "Let Her In," while Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs (Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington) released the tune "Fly Away (To My Wonderland)" in 1978. Hilton-Jacobs worked with Motown legend and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame songwriter Lamont Dozier ("Heat Wave," "How Sweet It Is (to Be Loved by You)," and "Stop! In the Name of Love") on the tune, and, he told Jet magazine in 2008, he later sang background vocals on Rick James's signature hit "Super Freak."
6. The Greatest TV Theme Song Ever?
Another Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, John Sebastian, had the series' real musical breakout. Not only did his theme song, "Welcome Back," hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but also it sparked a title change for the show. Kotter was the original title, but after Sebastian wrote the theme to so perfectly mirror Mr. Kotter's relationship with his students, producers changed the series title to Welcome Back, Kotter.
7. Everybody Loves Kotter
Casting almosts: Pre-Charlie's Angels, Farrah Fawcett auditioned for the role of Julie Kotter, which went to Marcia Strassman.
Oooh-oooh-oooh, we've got the answer: It's Welcome Back, Kotter, the 1975-1979 ABC sitcom hit that marked the beginning of John Travolta's Oscar-nominated career, made the Sweathogs iconic TV high schoolers, and suggested that a nasal cavity was an appropriate place for an elastic gardening implement.
But how much do you know about Mr. Kott-air, Barbarino, Horshack, Epstein, Washington, and how the Sweathogs made it to primetime? We've got 25 facts that might surprise even the most devoted Kotter aficionado.
1. Welcome Back, Kaplan
James Buchanan High School, home of the Sweathogs in Welcome Back, Kotter, is fictional. But it was based on series star and stand-up comedian Gabe Kaplan's real-life experiences as a remedial student at New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn, where Kaplan's fellow alumni include DreamWorks co-founder David Geffen, Entourage star Jerry Ferrara, Scott Baio, Buddy Hackett, and Three Stooges brothers Moe and Curly Howard.
2. Arnold Horshack's a Real Dude
The series was more specifically inspired by Kaplan's high school friends, whom he described in his famous "Holes and Mello Rolls" routine. Three of the four Sweathogs' character names were tweaked from their real-world counterparts, but Arnold Horshack was the real name of the Kaplan pal who inspired Ron Palillo's beloved Kotter student.
3. Up Your Nose With a… Frozen Dessert?
The real-life Horshack also inspired one of the series' most popular catchphrases. Mello rolls were roll-shaped ice cream treats popular in the New York area in the 1950s, and when Horshack wanted to insult — or "rank" on, as Kaplan described it — someone, he would tell them, "Up your hole with a Mello roll." The phrase was considered too naughty for TV use, so the phrase was changed to "Up your nose with a rubber hose" when John Travolta's Vinnie Barbarino spouted his signature rank on Kotter.
4. "Up Your Nose With a Rubber Hose": The Single
In January 1977, Kaplan wrote and recorded a novelty song called "Up Your Nose," with lyrics that included, "Up your nose / With a rubber hose / Twice as far / With a chocolate bar / In your ear brother / With a can of beer sister / If you don't like that / Try a baseball bat." The tune peaked at No. 91 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
5. Vinnie Barbarino: Balladeer
Other Kotter stars capitalized on the show's fame to release songs, too. Travolta had a Billboard Top 10 hit in 1976 with the ballad "Let Her In," while Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs (Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington) released the tune "Fly Away (To My Wonderland)" in 1978. Hilton-Jacobs worked with Motown legend and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame songwriter Lamont Dozier ("Heat Wave," "How Sweet It Is (to Be Loved by You)," and "Stop! In the Name of Love") on the tune, and, he told Jet magazine in 2008, he later sang background vocals on Rick James's signature hit "Super Freak."
6. The Greatest TV Theme Song Ever?
Another Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, John Sebastian, had the series' real musical breakout. Not only did his theme song, "Welcome Back," hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but also it sparked a title change for the show. Kotter was the original title, but after Sebastian wrote the theme to so perfectly mirror Mr. Kotter's relationship with his students, producers changed the series title to Welcome Back, Kotter.
7. Everybody Loves Kotter
Casting almosts: Pre-Charlie's Angels, Farrah Fawcett auditioned for the role of Julie Kotter, which went to Marcia Strassman.
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