The Long Beach Press-Telegram reported that Michael Oliver received $40,000 for portraying Junior in Problem Child and was guaranteed $80,000 for Problem Child 2 (1991, see entry). The National Committee for Adoption in Washington, D.C. Screenwriter Scott Alexander stated that other writers brought into the production wrote the lines denigrating adopted children. When Problem Child appeared on NBC Television, censors cut three pages of material, including lines ridiculing the lead character as “a secondhand kid” and “not a real kid, he’s just adopted,” the LAT reported. The American Humane Association rated Problem Child “acceptable” because of the “exceptional” treatment of the cat on the set, but “the promotion of this film … most definitely would be ‘unacceptable.’”ĭespite mostly negative reviews, Problem Child had a $10-million opening, the HR noted, and grossed $50 million in its first five months of release, according to the DV. The cat was treated well on the set and doubled by a fake animal in the rough scenes, but critics objected mostly to the poster display of the little boy smiling “malevolently” at the cat’s predicament in the dryer.
In television promotional clips and on a poster, the cat tumbles in a clothes dryer, although there is no corresponding scene in the movie as released. In one scene, “Junior,” the problem child, throws “Fluffball,” the family cat, across the room, and in a later scene the feline walks with a splint on its leg. What appeared to be animal cruelty created controversy from cat lovers, the American Humane Association, and the Toronto Humane Society, the Austin American Statesman and Globe and Mail (Toronto, Canada) reported.
Samson’s claws and front teeth had been removed many years earlier. įor a campfire scene, the producers used, but did not credit, “Samson the Wrestling Bear,” a tame 750-pound North American Black Bear with a nine-year history in show business, the Edmonton Journal noted. The original budget for Problem Child was projected to be $11 million, according to the NYT.ĭirector Dennis Dugan auditioned approximately 500 children during a two-month search in New York City, Dallas, TX, Chicago, IL, and Los Angeles, CA.įor a campfire scene, the producers used, but did not credit, “Samson the Wrestling Bear,” a tame 750-pound North American Black Bear with a nine-year history in show business, the Edmonton Journal noted. Principal photography began, but following completion, John Ritter and Michael Oliver were set to return to Dallas on for “two weeks of reshoots,” the DV and Long Beach Press-Telegram reported. Two hundred elementary school children were hired as extras to celebrate when the title character leaves the orphanage. Brutus” orphanage, and the Las Colinas Studios in Irving, TX, where interiors were shot. Other locations included the Lady of Victory Catholic Boarding School in Ft. Opening credits include a title card: “‘Problem Child’ performed by The Beach Boys.”Īccording to production notes in AMPAS library files, as well as the Var, Problem Child was filmed on various locations around Dallas, TX, including the Dallas Municipal Building and the Old City Jail. That’s me in the basket, and that’s my mother carrying me.” Apparently my birth is not considered a blessed event. The film is accompanied with voiceover by “Junior,” the title character: It begins with: “Nice night to be born, huh.