Hot Dogs for Gauguin (1972) is a short film written and directed by Martin Brest, then a film student at New York University. The short film features Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman in her acting debut. Plot In this short film, DeVito plays a photographer who is determined to capture visual magic and fame. He concocts an intricate plot to explode the Statue of Liberty and sets his camera to record the Statue of Liberty's explosion as it was broken into pieces. It was filmed in New York City in black and white on 16 mm film. Rhea Perlman played the woman on a ferry, while Martin Brest played the man on a ferry. The scene of the Statue of Liberty's head exploding was incorporated during the final scene. Brest and Randolph Herr are credited with doing the special effects. This short film was inspired by the Hindenburg disaster on May 6, 1937. Reception In 2009, it was one of 25 films selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress to "be preserved as cultural, artistic and/or historical treasures." See also List of American films of 1972 Statue of Liberty Hindenburg disaster References External links Hot Dogs for Gauguin essay by Daniel Eagan In America's Film Legacy, 2009-2010: A Viewer's Guide To The 50 Landmark Movies Added To The National Film Registry In 2009-10, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, 2011, pages 135-138 Saturday Night Live: Hot Dogs for Gauguin – Three-minute version aired in 1980 1972 films 1972 independent films 1972 short films American independent films 1970s English-language films Films about photographers Films directed by Martin Brest United States National Film Registry films 1970s American films