(Credits: Far Out / Alamy)
Mon 13 October 2025 17:45, UK
Comedians and cocaine have always gone hand-in-hand, with many of the all-time greats united by their love of the white stuff, for better or worse. Bill Murray used to be in that very same boat, which turned what should have been a straightforward movie shoot into a drug-addled nightmare.
Not for everyone, though, because all of the cast and crew members who spent the duration rubbered out of their collective cupboard probably had a great time. Spare a thought for the only actor who wasn’t permanently carrying around a rolled-up banknote, which left him as pretty much the only odd man out.
Harold Ramis’ Caddyshack will always be remembered fondly for a number of reasons. Not only was it the future Ghostbuster director’s first feature, but it gave a post-Saturday Night Live Murray his first major starring role in a movie, while the madcap golf caper has become known as one of the greatest sports comedies ever made. However, at the time, it was little more than a nonstop cocaine party.
There are always exceptions to rules, and in this case, it was Ted Knight. The veteran actor, in what turned out to be his final film role, was the solitary straight arrow. Chris Nashawaty, who spoke at length with all of the surviving key players, confirmed to Uproxx that “Ted Knight was definitely not taking cocaine.” In fact, “he was the one guy on the set who was not into partying at all.”
As for everyone else? “It was a cocktail of cocaine, marijuana, and booze.” Nashawaty pressed Murray, Ramis, and Chevy Chase for their recollections of making Caddyshack, and it quickly became clear that the filmmaking process was decidedly less interesting than what went on when the cameras weren’t rolling: “These anecdotes started coming out about what absolute chaos it was,” he marvelled.
Murray ended up improvising almost every line he says in the film, which is impressive in itself, considering he didn’t show up for the start of production because he’d stolen Lorne Michaels’ car and gone on a cross-country jaunt, leaving Ramis convinced he’d gone completely AWOL. After he finally arrived, he once woke up on a nude beach next to co-star Cindy Morgan after a night on the tiles.
He was also known to be occasionally discovered lying passed out in sand traps on the golf course locations after partaking a little too much, which potentially placed him in grave danger due to the countless unauthorised golf cart races that happened during breaks in shooting, which Chevy Chase described as “people whacked out having a good time.”
As a first-time feature director, Ramis tried his best to keep a handle on his wayward and coke-fueled cast, but even he felt the need to let loose once the arduous shoot was over. The only time he got wasted was at the wrap party, which he barely remembers because he had to be carried home afterwards. Everyone else had spent almost two months revelling in the hedonism of Caddyshack, an unassuming comedy classic that became a haven for some of Hollywood’s most infamous overindulging.
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