After we posted an article yesterday about a Cricket Wireless commercial that showed “Gamehendge” and “555” references, producer Doug Shaffer tipped us off to another Phish-laden work in the TV/film industry. Shaffer told us that the Lifetime Original Movie Presumed Dead In Paradise is loaded with references to the beloved Burlington jam band!
Supported by Johnson Chan of Jorva Productions, Shaffer was able to subtly place these references within the script and scenes of the film. It aired in July of 2014, and was the #1 rated cable show at the time, bringing in 1.8 million viewers, all of whom were presumably unaware of the Phish references.
Shaffer was nice enough to point out the specific times within the film that the Phish references occur. The picture above shows the first one, a brief homage to “The Great Went” that appears on a character’s iPad. Check out Presumed Dead In Paradise with the references below:
2:12 – 2:15 – The Phish festival, “The Great Went,” is seen on Madison’s I-Pad.
17:24 – “Susan Greenburg” (paying tribute to “Suzy Greenberg” – a famous Phish song) is listed on Madison’s fake ID. We used the Vermont template for the license.
33:48 – 33:53 – The police officer says, “Susan Greenburg… is this you?”
40:38 – 40:42 – You’ll see on the sign it says “1999 Forbin,” referencing the Gamehendge song “Colonel Forbin’s Ascent”
43:12 – 43:24 – Two song references here. Taylor (the female character) says, “It’s an internet café at 2001 Marco Esquandolas Avenue.” “2001” is a Phish cover song and Marco Esquandolas is a well-known line from “Run like an Antelope.”
Keep up the good work Shaffer!