Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1538452
26 PROP CULTURE I FALL 2025 exist in the finished script. We just felt there was a section that did not have a big belly laugh. You could cut the pie scene entirely. You cut the setup of Jim saying, "What's it like?" "Warm apple pie," and then you cut Eugene Levy's ad lib, "Well, better than baked goods." All that you could lose, and it does not change a single character arc. It does not change the trajectory of the story at all. It is literally a nonnarrative element. But because it was so audacious, because remember, he gets humiliated at school, which impacts his prom dates because of what happens with Nadia, it has nothing to do with this pie scene. It is irrelevant. We had no idea what this was going to deliver. We just figured it is pretty gross, it is pretty funny, like you could see a teenage kid doing that. PROP CULTURE: So, it ended up becoming the thing everyone remembers, even though it wasn't part of the original plan. CRAIG PERRY: As Chris Call pointed out, there was a lot of debate about pies. But remember, we did not have a lot of time or money. So, we just had to be strategic, and I think that the Costco pie, where it landed, had several functions. There were multiples that all looked the same, so there was never going to be too much of a continuity challenge. And the way the lattice work was laid into the pie, you could imagine insertion without hesitation, if that makes sense. PROP CULTURE: And the lattice work gives it that classic 1940s grandma's pie-on-the-windowsill look, like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting. CRAIG PERRY: This is exactly why that was the right choice, because it had a nostalgic factor to it. It's his mom's pie, and he's going to … sordidly debase himself by wrecking it with his … well, never mind. You know what I'm saying! When you buy the Costco pies, they are cost-effective, because also, as Chris mentioned, there were many, many pies needed. PROP CULTURE: Are there any other props from American Pie that remain near and dear to you? CRAIG PERRY: You know, there are two things. I always loved this Sears catalog Levinson family photo with Jason and his mom and dad. But the prop that I wish I had was the sort of amalgamated hand version of the sex bible they had hidden underneath the floorboards. That's what I really wish I had a copy of. PROP CULTURE: You should have rescued that book before it got lost forever in studio storage! CRAIG PERRY: Now … I may or may not have the handmade hero death Nomicon book that was used by Stephanie in Bloodlines with the penny still taped onto the front page. That is real on screen. But when you pull it out and it actually is in front of people, suddenly that thing, the magic of movies, becomes real to them. I pulled out the book and there was an audience of 300 people that gasped. And to me, when a prop can elicit that kind of reaction from an audience when it is presented in reality, why would we ever want to have it in studio storage? PROP CULTURE: The Property Masters Guild has been participating at WonderCon and setting up a prop museum showcasing iconic props. It gives fans a chance to get up close and personal with real pieces of cinematic history. BOTTOM AND CENTER: FINAL DESTINATION: BLOODLINES NOMICON BOOK. PHOTO: RINGO AMERICAN PIE SEX BIBLE