Saving Private Wilhelm

I've only been aware of "The Wilhelm Scream" for a couple of months, so it's impossible to say how many times I may have heard this particular sound effect, unknowingly.

But now that I'm aware of it, it seems that a week doesn't go by without another chance encounter.

Not long ago, my youngest son and I were walking through our local multiplex and heard Pvt. Wilhelm's unmistakable cry from behind the door of another theater. That's right, from BEHIND THE DOOR! (My hearing is notoriously selective, so there was something faintly Pavlovian about this experience.)

More recently, we noticed it in a trailer for the movie "Blades of Glory," in a scene where Will Ferrell and Jon Heder inadvertently set fire to a costumed mascot.

Many thanks to sound designer Ben Burtt for rescuing "The Wilhelm Scream" from obscurity. In its own unique way, it provides a sly affirmation of what makes movies so important to us.