50 Fun Facts About My Cousin Vinny

In what year was My Cousin Vinny released?

It was distributed by 20th Century Fox.

Which actor plays Vincent "Vinny" Gambini?

The studio first wanted Andrew Dice Clay, and considered De Niro and DeVito, before casting Pesci.

Who plays Vinny's fiancee, Mona Lisa Vito?

Lorraine Bracco was approached for the role but Tomei got it, and an Oscar with it.

Playing Mona Lisa Vito earned its actress which award?

A persistent urban legend that the wrong name was read out is false; she won it.

Which actor plays the judge, Chamberlain Haller, in his final film role?

Gwynne was best known for a 1960s monster sitcom.

The actor who plays the judge was famous for playing which 1960s TV monster?

He also played Officer Muldoon in Car 54, Where Are You?

Which young actor, fresh from The Karate Kid, plays the accused nephew Bill Gambini?

His friend Stan Rothenstein is played by Mitchell Whitfield.

Who is the prosecutor, District Attorney Jim Trotter III?

He presents a strong but entirely circumstantial case.

Austin Pendleton plays public defender John Gibbons, whose courtroom problem is what?

His nervousness and stutter undermine Stan's defense.

The trial is set in which fictional Alabama locale?

The Alabama scenes were actually filmed in Georgia.

The Alabama-set film was actually shot in which state?

The courthouse interior used the In the Heat of the Night set in Covington, Georgia.

How do the two accused students first get into trouble at the convenience store?

When the clerk is later found murdered, Bill assumes he is only being questioned about shoplifting and confesses.

Vinny discredits one witness's timeline using his knowledge of the cooking time of what food?

No self-respecting Southerner uses instant grits, as the scene famously establishes.

Mona Lisa's testimony proves the tire tracks came from which car, not the defendants' Skylark?

The Tempest's distinctive drivetrain and rear-end were the giveaway.

What two features of the 1963 Tempest does Mona Lisa cite as proof?

The defendants' Buick Skylark had neither, so it could not have left the marks.

What model of car do the defendants actually drive?

Vinny first gets the FBI analyst to admit its tyres are among the most common in the country.

What alias does Vinny use to convince the judge he is an experienced attorney?

He starts as "Jerry Gallo", then switches to "Callo" when the real Gallo turns out to have died.

For what does Judge Haller repeatedly hold Vinny in contempt, jailing him briefly?

Vinny's brash big-city manner clashes badly with the reserved Southern courtroom.

What legally correct process does Mona Lisa remind Vinny he can use to obtain the prosecution's evidence?

Vinny had at first tried to trick the prosecutor into simply sharing it.

Director Jonathan Lynn holds a degree in what subject, which shows in the film's accuracy?

His Cambridge law background is often credited for the film's realistic procedure.

Screenwriter Dale Launer got the idea from a real lawyer who passed the bar on which attempt?

That inspired the running joke of a barely-qualified Vinny defending a murder case.

Which Oscar-winning film did Joe Pesci finish shooting around the time he took the Vinny role?

He had also just wrapped Lethal Weapon 2.

Attorneys have praised My Cousin Vinny especially for its accurate depiction of what?

A federal judge even wrote an article calling Vinny's cross-examination a "textbook example".

A federal judge noted the film seemed to predict a Supreme Court ruling on which topic?

Mona Lisa's expert testimony neatly anticipated the Kumho Tire standard.

Which studio distributed My Cousin Vinny?

It opened on March 13, 1992.

Roughly how much did the film gross worldwide against an $11 million budget?

It was much more successful than anticipated.

In a 1998 comedy album, Joe Pesci reprised the character with a song titled what?

The album cover shows Pesci in a red suit like the usher outfit from the film.

What is the murder victim's job in the film?

He is found robbed and shot after the two students leave the store.

What is the full name of Vinny's character?

The middle name LaGuardia nods to the famous New York mayor.

The actress who plays Mona Lisa was born and raised in which New York borough?

She grew up in the Midwood neighbourhood there.

Bill mistakenly confesses because he assumes he is being arrested for what minor act?

His confession to the wrong crime is what lands him in the murder trial.

What is the name of Vinny's late mentor, who persuaded him to become a lawyer?

Mona Lisa later reveals she got Malloy to vouch for Vinny's fake résumé.

The surprise FBI witness, George Wilbur, is an analyst with knowledge of what?

His tyre-track testimony is what Mona Lisa dismantles on the stand.

Which author began a series of My Cousin Vinny novels in 2017, continuing Vinny's cases?

In the books, Mona Lisa works as Vinny's investigator.

Which of these actors was NOT among those first considered for the role of Vinny?

They wanted an Italian-American, which is why they landed on Pesci.

The trial's two young defendants, Bill and Stan, are from which state?

Their New York manner is the source of much of the culture-clash comedy.

Beyond this, his final film, the actor playing the judge also appeared in which Stephen King horror film?

My Cousin Vinny was his last film before his death in 1993.

Marisa Tomei's later Best Supporting Actress nominations were for The Wrestler and which other film?

So her Vinny win was the first of three career nominations.

Which country singer rewrote his song 'Bible Belt' so its lyrics reflected Vinny Gambini?

The song was originally about an adulterous assistant preacher; it is not on the soundtrack, which is Randy Edelman's score.

Which Supreme Court justice cited the film as an example that a client may choose his own lawyer?

The authors of Reel Justice: The Courtroom Goes to the Movies also gave the film their highest rating.

Lisa reminds Vinny of his promise to marry her once what happens?

She fears that day may never come. In the final scene, with the charges dismissed, the couple drive off still bickering about wedding plans.

Before taking on the murder case, Vinny practised what kind of law?

He had only just passed the bar after numerous failed attempts and had never tried a case, a fact he hides from the judge.

The jail scenes were filmed in a working prison, with extras who were what?

The location was Lee Arrendale State Prison in Alto. The courthouse exteriors were shot on the square in Monticello.

Which comedian did the studio originally want to play Vinny?

Danny DeVito, Peter Falk, Robert De Niro and Jim Belushi were also considered, but only DeVito and De Niro were the Italian American the producers wanted.

Dale Launer's shelved sequel script had Vinny practising law where?

After Tomei dropped out, the studio had the script rewritten without Mona Lisa, and the project was eventually abandoned.

Who plays Stan Rothenstein, the second wrongly accused student?

Stan briefly fires Vinny for the public defender, then rehires him once Vinny starts dismantling the prosecution's eyewitnesses.

Which future Attorney General hailed Vinny's 'master class in cross-examination' in 2019?

He was then Chief Judge of the D.C. Circuit and quoted a cross-examination scene at length in the opinion.

Which two actors were considered for Bill and Stan before concerns about Southern jails arose?

Producers worried about the optics of a Jewish and a Black defendant jailed in the Deep South, so Macchio and Whitfield got the parts.

The courtroom scenes were shot on a set in Covington built for which TV series?

Exterior filming was done near Greensboro, and the town square and courthouse facade belong to Monticello.

Launer modelled Vinny's style on which comedian's way of handling hecklers?

He based the bickering between Vinny and his fiancee on two friends who were dating and argued constantly.