October 23, 2020 10.5k votes 1.7k voters 71.2k views
List Rules
Vote up the historic cameos that are more like historic cam-e-whoas.
Cameos have become a fun and expected trope in almost all new movies and shows. It's a visual shorthand joke; a quick wink to the audience. We have an already established relationship with this celebrity and now the juxtaposition of their appearance in the fictional world we were in the middle of is making a statement. Or the fact that there's just a bunch of cameos is funny by itself. See the later Austin Powers movies.
But not all cameos are created equal. While most are pop culture celebrities dropping by a friend's film set or the hot act of the day, there are some people that could qualify as legitimate historic figures: novelists, philosophers, film legends, members of all time great bands, actual royalty. This is what happens when cameos gets to the big leagues and historic names come to play.
As he hurries down a cold New York City block, Bill Murray passes a group of extraordinarily talented street musicians playing "We Three Kings." The band consists of Miles Davis, Paul Shaffer, Larry Carlton, and David Sanborn.
The legendary, larger than life Welles played Lew Lord, the head of World Wide Studios. In 1979, the same year the movie was released, Jim Henson, Frank Oz, and various Muppets appeared as guests on the Orson Welles' failed talk show pilot.
Monty Python member Eric Idle phoned his friend George Harrison when Life Of Brian lost its original financing. Harrison remortgaged his mansion, set up the company HandMade Films, and arranged financing for the movie himself.
