For a chewing gum, Beemans has had quite the turn in showbusiness. As an aftereffect of its involvement in early American aviation, Beemans became the “lucky gum” for many of the more adventurous spirits out there, which in turn drew attention from celebrities and creatives alike. From the 1980s to the 2010s, Beemans was prominently featured at least 5 times on the silver screen, typically chewed by American pilots, individualists, and rebellious intellectuals.
Keep scrolling for a quick roundup of every star-studded cameo from the original Beemans gum:
The Right Stuff is a historical drama released in 1983 following the pilots of Project Mercury, the test flight program responsible for the first United States foray into space. At the beginning of each test flight, Chuck Yeager, played here by Sam Shepherd, would famously and dependly ask his crew member, “Hey, Ridley. Got any Beemans?”
The Rocketeer is a period-piece superhero film from 1991. Set in Los Angeles in the late 1930s, The Rocketeer involves an injured pilot who mistakenly stumbles upon a lost jetpack that sparks his career as a high-flying do-gooder. In this appearance, Beemans gum plays a pivotal role, both saving the hero and foiling the villain all thanks to one tiny hole in the pack’s fuel tank.
Hot Shots! is a goofball comedy from 1991 that is primarily a parody of Tony Scott’s Top Gun, as well as smattering of other American films from the 1980s. In this case, the Beemans reputation as a “lucky gum” is played to great effect as the chewing gum of choice for Pete “Dead Meat” Thompson, who experiences a long list of bad omens before embarking on his fatal flight–including misplacing his lucky gum.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is an old-style adventure film from 2008 helmed by series veterans Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford. In this feature, Beemans is the gum of choice for Mutt Williams, the fiercely independent “greaser” who acts as Indiana’s sidekick for most of the film until it is revealed they are actually father and son.
Tomorrowland is a science-fiction mystery film from Disney studios that was released in 2015. The movie stars George Clooney as an aging and rebellious inventor named Frank Walker who acts as the guide for the teenage protagonists throughout most of the movie. A pack of Beemans gum sits on Frank’s workbench when he is young and working on his first jetpack design.
