One of the first things I did upon my arrival to Fargo, North Dakota was to go to the Fargo Theater to see the Coen Brothers movie “Fargo” again. Okay, I know I’m biased but it was even better than the first time, dontcha know!

The Fargo Theater

Built in 1926, the theater is celebrating its 100th birthday this year. What began as a as a cinema and vaudeville theatre, now the Fargo Theater is an art house theater that hosts special events, films and the Fargo Film Festival.

The “FARGO” marquee sign is one of the most photographed landmarks in the city and is replicated in artwork, souvenirs and marketing nearly everywhere you go in Fargo. But the theater itself is worth a peek inside, too, where you’ll find plenty of art deco. The theater has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, in part because of the Wurlitzer organ in front of the stage.

Why the Wurlitzer? Because when the theater opened in the 1920’s, movies were still silent. The Wurlitzer would dramatically rise from the floor to stage level and the organist would provide the score for the film until we finally got “Talkies” (movies with sound).

The Movie “Fargo”

If you haven’t seen the award-winning 1996 Coen Brothers movie starring Frances McDormand, William H. Macy, and Steve Buscemi, definitely check it out.

Against an almost completely white landscape, we follow Macy’s character, a down-on-his-luck car salesman who decides to have his wife kidnapped so that he can get ransom money from his rich father-in-law. Of course things don’t go as planned. It is pregnant detective Marge Gunderson, played by Frances McDormand, who pieces the clues together to figure out who has kidnapped the wife, where they are, and who hired them. Her logic is simple and straightforward, and McDormand is mesmerizing. In fact, the role earned her an Academy Award in 1997 for Best Actress is a Leading Role. While William H. Macy was also nominated for an Academy Award that year, he did not win. (He was robbed!)

The movie has become almost synonymous with the city of Fargo. One of the things I often heard before I left for Fargo was “watch out for woodchippers!” If you’ve seen the movie, you’ll understand why.

The Woodchipper

Can you see the woodchipper from the movie? You betcha! If you’re visiting Fargo, you can actually see the woodchipper used in the movie at the Fargo-Moorhead Visitor’s Center.

While filming the movie, all of the moving parts were removed to ensure safety on the set. They were replaced with PVC piping which certainly made the bloody scene much easier to film! The woodchipper scene took an entire day to film (in Minnesota, not ND). If you’re curious about how they came up with all that blood, here’s the Blood Recipe:

1 Large jug of RV Antifreeze

2 packages of Red Kool-Aid

1 box of Strawberry Flavored Jello

1 garbage bag of butcher shop leftovers (EW!!!)

After the movie was filmed, the Dolly Grip, Milo Durben, bought the woodchipper to — chip wood. He used it for a couple of years and then in 2011, he loaned it to the Visitor’s Center. It was such a huge attraction that the Visitor’s Center finally asked to buy it from him to display permanently and have added a fake socked foot sticking out of it.

You don’t have to come to Fargo, North Dakota to watch the movie at the Fargo Theater like I did, but after you watch it, you’ll wish you had.

Have you seen Fargo? What were your favorite scenes?