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The story is loosely inspired by the year Cameron Crowe, then in his early 20s, spent impersonating a high school student at Clairemont High School in San Diego, California. He went undercover to do research for his 1981 book Fast Times at Ridgemont High: A True Story, about his observations of the high school and the students he befriended there.
Sophomore students Stacy Hamilton ( Jennifer Jason Leigh) and Mark Ratner ( Brian Backer ) are both looking for love, and they are helped along by their older classmates, Linda Barrett ( Phoebe Cates) and Mike Damone ( Robert Romanus ), respectively. Another character in the film is Jeff Spicoli ( Sean Penn in an early film role and one for which he is still often remembered), a perpetually stoned surfer dudeTraditionally a dude (pronounced 'dud', or 'dyud') is a dandy; a man who dresses flashily. But in recent years, the term has taken on a colloquial meaning at variance with that: it now means a male friend, comrade, or associate. Formerly, the word was ass who faces off with history teacher Mr. Hand ( Ray WalstonRay Walston ( December 2, 1914 January 1, 2001), USA actor, born in New Orleans, Louisiana. His television roles included the title character on the situation comedy My Favorite Martian''. His credits include: Star Trek: The Next Generation & Star Trek: V), who is convinced that all the students are on " dope."The film is most memorable to some for a nude scene fantasized by Stacy's older brother Brad ( Judge ReinholdActor Judge Reinhold stars in some movies such as Beverly Hills Cop and Ruthless People. Reinhold, Judge.) in which Phoebe Cates emerges from a swimming pool topless; he masturbates to the mental image until Cates accidentally walks in on him.
Although it is never explicitly mentioned as such in the film, Fast Times was filmed in the San Fernando ValleyThe San Fernando Valley or, simply, The Valley is an urbanized valley in southern California. Geography The San Fernando Valley is bounded by the Santa Susana Mountains to the northwest, The Simi Hills to the west, the Santa Monica Mountains to the south, of Los Angeles and many people identify the film with that area and the teen culture that existed there, or was perceived to exist there, in the early 1980s. "Ridgemont" is a fictional name, however; there is no California community by that name. Most of the exteriors of Ridgemont High School were shot at Van Nuys High School , and other scenes were shot at Canoga Park High School . The "Ridgemont Mall" shown in the film was actually the Sherman Oaks Galleria , with its exterior shot at Santa Monica Place .
The movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High inspired a short-lived 1986 television series called Fast Times, featuring Courtney Thorne-Smith as Stacey, Wally Ward as Mark, Claudia Wells as Linda, Patrick Dempsey as Mike, Dean Cameron as Spicoli, James Nardini as Brad, and Ray Walston reprising his role as Mr. Hand.