Pop into the Hollywood shop The Record Parlour on any given day, and you will probably run across the soundtrack to the cult aerobic ’80s film “Perfect” starring John Travolta and Jamie Lee Curtis. The intimate store has all the vibes vinyl heads crave: boxes upon boxes of vintage records, along with some new releases mixed into the neatly organized sections.
It’s my go-to. I know I will always find something to scratch my collector itch among its copious piles. Just the other day, I was heading to my friend’s Diane Keaton-themed birthday party (yes, you read that right) and needed to find a gift that somehow would work for that… enter The Record Parlour and, low and behold, an original copy of the “Looking for Mr. Goodbar” soundtrack.
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So among the many, many nostalgia-laden sparks of joy I felt watching “Freakier Friday,” perhaps the greatest burst of feeling for me came when Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan wandered into The Recrod Parlour in search of its owner, in the movie played by Chad Michael Murray. In real life, its run by Chadwick Hemus, who was thrilled to have his store (located at 6408 Selma Ave. in the 90028 zip code) play a starring role in the movie.
The Record Parlour is no stranger to film and television. In its 12-year history it has also appeared in “This Is Us,” “Bosch,” “The Rookie,” “Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways,” “Bel-Air,” and a Tate McRae Maybelline promo, among other projects. This, however, was by far one of the highest-profile productions to use the shop. Locals in the know love the store, with its literal thousands (meaning like 8 figure thousands) of records. Solange even threw a private birthday party there and, according to Hemus, “her somewhat famous sibling has danced on our little stage.”
Now “Freakier Friday” isn’t just a nostalgia trip for Disney-loving kids of a certain age — it’s also a warm hug for Los Angelenos, with The Record Parlour among a wealth of recognizable shooting locations featured throughout the movie. Sadly, not all of those survived the January wildfires, including the Coleman house (also used in 2003’s “Freaky Friday”) — but the prominent vinyl store is as vibrant as ever.
This is particularly important considering the struggle the city has had to keep productions local, as lucrative tax incentives and cheaper filming costs have driven big-budget films to other places, particularly Atlanta, a city that largely played Los Angeles in the new “The Naked Gun.” But Jamie Lee Curtis fought to use L.A. — her hometown — as a character in the film.
“The movie is a love letter to Los Angeles and the original movie was a love to Los Angeles. We shot in the original house and we shot all over the city of Los Angeles,” she told Deadline.
“Los Angeles is the backdrop and backbone of American Cinema, all aspects of the industry are well entrenched here, and you’ll not find a a higher concentration of skilled and experienced talent anywhere in the country. Or planet for that matter,” Hemus said. “We’re talking real life experience that comes both from bootstrapping through low budget runs as well as containing and juggling the most extravagant productions. Another, very important, aspect is that the greater Los Angeles area is so versatile that most location needs can be met within the county lines.”
In ‘Freakier Friday,’ Curtis and Lohan — who play Tess Coleman and daughter Anna — are bodily swapped with Anna’s soon-to-be-stepdaughter Lily (Sophia Hammons) and her daughter daughter Harper (Julia Butters). In attempt to break up Anna’s impending marriage to Eric (Manny Jacinto), they have decided to try and woo Anna’s ex Jake (Murray) — but Jake is more interested in Tess (or Lily… it’s confusing). Lohan gets a plum opportunity to show off her slapstick chops as she physically flirts with Jake atop a table stacked with records.
The shoot came about in quite a typical manner for L.A. “Location scout popped in, shot some pics and the rest is cinematic history,” Hemus said. While the scenes take up just a few minutes of screen time, Hemus said, “Filming was actually a full week, takes lots of prep to make the movie magic happen. Crew had to remove and move a lot of records, which weigh a ton and have to be returned in correct order. Considering the scope of the project, it all went very smoothly and we’re quite impressed at their ability to keep the essence of the store intact.”
Fans scoping out the Parlour should know that there is no coffee bar in the actual store, as there is in the film (they can get their caffeine fix across the street at Caffe Hub). That spot on the floor is actually the check-out counter. But otherwise, it looks largely on screen as it does in the movies… although on the shoot days, Hemus was disappointed that it wasn’t fully “Perfect.”
“I was so mad that the one chance I had to chat with [Curtis] coincided with the only day in the history of the store that I couldn’t find a copy of ‘Perfect,’ which I thought would be great to get signed,” Hemus lamented. “Any Freaky fans that enjoy 80s cheese should check out ‘Perfect.’”
He did have some recommendations for fans, however, including seeking out David Bowie’s song “Rebel Rebel,” which is performed by Tegan and Sara in “Freakier Friday.” “Not sure I would suggest the album it’s own though — ‘Diamond Dogs’ is a very dark record that doesn’t gel with the ‘Freakier’ vibe, so let’s go with [the compilation album] ‘Changesonebowie.’ And while we’re at it add Tegan and Sara’s ‘So Jealous’ LP, classic indie release from the aughts. The Donnas have a track in ‘Freaky’ so I think ‘Spend The Night’ would be a fun one to add. Joey Ramone’s ‘Don’t Worry About Me’ album has his version of ‘Wonderful World,’ which is also in the first film. The rest of the record is fantastic, a great addition to any Ramones collection. Add in the latest record from The Linda Linda’s ‘No Obligations’ and I think you’ve got a fab vinyl starter pack that leans into the rockin’ side of the ‘Freaky’ franchise… you’ll have to hit someone else up to cover the pop side of things.”
There are frequent special events and discount offers at The Record Parlour. On the weekend of August 15-17, the shop will celebrate its 12 anniversary with a special half-off sale, and on September 13 it will offer a limited 25,000 piece record collection legendary DJ Swedish Egil. “He was a mainstay on KROQ in their ’80s heyday so the collection is packed with original pressings of so much of the ’80s music people long for — The Cure, The Smiths, Depeche Mode, Siouxsie, etc,” Hemus explained.
As for finding the soundtrack to “Perfect,” I can attest to the fact that, at least as of August 9, there was a copy available in store. Maybe you can swing by and sign, Jamie Lee?
For information, visit The Record Parlour on Instagram.
