When Harry Met Sally Behind The Scenes

The famous org*sm scene was inspired by a conversation Rob Reiner had with the films writer, Nora Ephron. She told him that women often faked orgasms... a few weeks later, Reiner added the scene.

The scene was filmed in New York's world-famous Katz's Deli, and the woman who says "I'll have what she's having" after Sally's faked orgasm is director Rob Reiner's mother. Rob said about the scene: "I actually sat down opposite to Billy and acted it out and showed her what I wanted it to be. And I'm pounding the table and saying, "Yes, yes, yes!" And Billy describes it as having a date with Sebastian Cabot or Victor Buono having eaten Thai food or something like that. And I'm pounding away and having this fake org*sm and my mother is sitting there. So, it was a little bit, uh, nerve wracking for me!"

Director Rob Reiner said about the movie: "When we were working on the script, I had been single for 10 years. And that really was the basis for the whole movie, you know, trying to figure out how I could ever get with a woman again and my single life and making a mess of it. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out how I would ever be with another woman again."

The scene where Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) spot each other at a bookstore takes place in a branch of the small chain Shakespeare & Co., which was located at 79th & Broadway in New York City. This location was one of many smaller stores which went out of business around the time a Barnes & Noble megastore opened in nearby Lincoln Center. This store and the stores which went out of business around it would be a model for the activity in the 1998 Nora Ephron film, YOU'VE GOT MAIL. And the leading lady in that romance/comedy was once again-you guessed it-Meg Ryan!

The pecan pie scene was totally ad libbed by Billy Crystal. When he first begins, you can see Meg look off confused at the director who prompted her to keep it going.

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