Trivia for
Knute Rockne All American (1940) More at IMDbPro »

• William Holden, John Wayne, Robert Young, and Robert Cummings were considered for the role of George Gipp, but only Dennis Morgan and Ronald Reagan tested for it, with Morgan having the edge until the last minute.
  
  
• James Cagney, eager to break out of gangster roles, lobbied hard for the part of Knute Rockne. But Cagney had signed a petition in support of the anti-Catholic Republican government in the Spanish Civil War. Notre Dame University had control over all aspects of the filming and would not okay Cagney for the role.
  
  
• One of only two movies to be filmed on the University of Notre Dame campus. The other was Rudy (1993).
  
  
• The football history portrayed in the movie plays fast and loose with a key element of college gridiron development. The film depicts Rockne developing the forward pass in the 'teens, as an undergraduate at Notre Dame. But the forward pass was legalized and used during the 1906 football season.
  
  
• The movie's line "Tell 'em to go out there with all they got and win just one for the Gipper." was voted as the #89 movie quote by the American Film Institute (out of 100).
  
  
• The unnamed disease that kills George Gipp is actually complications from strep throat.
  
  
• Elmer Layden eventually became the first to have the title Commisioner of the NFL after leaving his coaching job at Notre Dame in the 1940's.
  
  
• O'Brien, Reagen, and Crisp recreated their roles for a 12/2/40 episode of Lux Theater, but Gale Page's part was enacted by Fay Wray.
  
  
• Lloyd Bacon replaced director William K. Howard, who was discharged over a disagreement with the studio. Reportedly he wanted Rockne to convert to Catholicism in the film.
  
  
• A 1931 Universal film "The Spirit of Notre Dame" was also based on Rockne's life.
  
  
• Reagan once said of his role that though there were those who could've played it better, nobody wanted the role more than he did.
  
  

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