With John Larroquette making his return to the beloved role of Dan Fielding on the new Night Court series, the longtime actor is opening up about his early days in Hollywood and a persistent rumor that has been following him around for years. As film buffs know, Larroquette narrated the opening for the original low-budget version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre at the very start of his career. According to legend, director Tobe Hooper paid Laroquette in marijuana instead of cash, and the actor has finally confessed to the smoky exchange.
“Totally true,” Laroquette told Parade. “He gave me some marijuana or a matchbox or whatever you called it in those days. I walked out of the [recording] studio and patted him on the back side and said, ‘Good luck to you!’”
Hooper and Larroquette reportedly met in the summer of 1969 when the not-yet-actor was working as a bartender at a Colorado resort. Via Parade:
“I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life.” Hooper happened to be working in town on a project, and the two struck up a friendship.
Four years later, Larroquette had uprooted to Los Angeles to jumpstart his fledgling acting career. “Tobe heard I was in town and asked for an hour of my time to narrate something for this movie he just did,” he says. “I said ‘Fine!’ It was a favor.”
The Night Court star would go on to voice introductions for later installments in the Texas Chainsaw franchise, but for an actual paycheck. However, he also admits that he’s never watched a single one of them because he’s “not a big horror movie fan.”
Night Court airs Tuesdays on NBC with episodes streaming the next day on Peacock.
(Via Parade)