National Lampoon's Vacation Star Dana Barron Reveals Chevy Chase Wrote a College Recommendation for Her

By Russ Burlingame

Comedy legend Chevy Chase has a reputation for being difficult to work with, but at least for his National Lampoon's Vacation co-star Dana Barron, that has never felt like the case. During an exclusive interview with ComicBook.com in support of the just-released 4K UHD release of the film, Barron said that Chase has never been anything but kind to her, citing the time he wrote a college recommendation for her when he was at the height of his fame and she was no longer part of the Vacation franchise.

The actress also said that Chase had more recently provided a blurb for her book, 40 Years on Vacation, in which she connected with fans of the franchise to talk about their memories of the movies as well as their real-life vacation memories.

"Well not necessarily back when we were filming, but it's all in my book," Barron told ComicBook.com's Chris Killian. "I was a teen, wanting to eventually go to college. I went to NYU for business, so he wrote a recommendation for me for college...and it worked, I guess. The number one question [I get] is 'What is Chevy Chase really like? Because I hear...' But he has been amazing to me. He wrote a blurb for my book, saying it captured the Vacation spirit. This man is wonderful, but you just have to know how to parry with him, because he's very clever and very quick, so if you're not on your game, you're swimming in the water."

For those who don't know, the National Lampoon's Vacation franchise -- which spans six films, although one was a direct-to-video sequel that didn't star any of the original characters -- centers on the adventures of the Griswold family, led by Clark (Chevy Chase) and Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo), as they criscross the globe on a variety of attempts to have the best vacation ever. Originally based on a short story by The Breakfast Club director John Hughes, the franchise ballooned into a decades-long family odyssey, and a new 4K Ultra reissue today celebrates the 40th anniversary of the first movie.

Chase has appeared in all five theatrical releases, although a direct-to-DVD Christmas Vacation 2, which centered on Randy Quaid's character of Cousin Eddie, is otherwise unconnected to the larger franchise. During our interview, Barron also talked about a pitch she had to bring the original Griswolds back together in a legacy sequel.

"I have my personal pitch but I don't see it happening at this point," Barron told ComicBook.com's Chris Killian. "Wouldn't it be fun for them to be...Rusty and I stick then with our young kids -- the parents. Just 'Go and take care of them,' and they have their vacation running after little kids, and Rusty and I go to some club and be silly for a long weekend. It hasn't been done yet, and it's all about the script. If it's a really good script, I'm sure it would be considered, but right now, nothing has been written."

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