Watch a Pre-Fame Quentin Tarantino Play an Elvis Impersonator... on The Golden Girls

Here at IGN we occasionally like to showcase something from geekdom's rich history -- a pop-culture Time Capsule, if you will, that gives us a peek in to the past, perhaps providing a new appreciation for previous projects. If you'd like, please check out the past few Time Capsules:

• The Rock kicking Seven of Nine's Borg butt on Star Trek: Voyager
• The Tom Waits interview that may have inspired Heath Ledger's Joker
• Christian Bale auditioning in Val Kilmer's batsuit from Batman Forever
• Kevin Feige's 2006 tease for the Avengers and the MCU
• Bill Murray's Peter Venkman Died in Dan Aykroyd's Ghostbusters III Script

[poilib element="accentDivider"] If you threw a party. Invited everyone you knew. You would see, the biggest gift would be from me. And the card attached would say..."Bad Motherf***er." Every famous face in Hollywood got their start somewhere. George Clooney was handsome. Brad Pitt was good looking. Rihanna was a hitman. Somehow though, they all broke through and made it to the big time. Famously, writer/director Quentin Tarantino worked at a video store. It's where he honed his skills of explaining '70s cinema to people who just wanted to quickly rent Last Boy Scout and leave. A lesser-known Tarantino fact, however, is that he also tried his hand at acting. And one of the few paid gigs he landed during this time was as an extra on an episode of hit sitcom -- and original Inglourious Basterds -- The Golden Girls. Unsurprisingly, given Clarence's Quentin's unabashed love for The King, his Golden role was playing a pompadoured goof amidst a gaggle of Elvis impersonators. Even more unsurprisingly, he's in the back just doing his own damn thing, grooving to a song in his own head. Here's the Oscar-winner explaining his Elvis gig to Jimmy Fallon, and why the success of this one particular wedding episode helped him survive on instant ramen long enough to make Reservoir Dogs. And yes, there is a clip of him as Elvis included (skip directly to 2:48 for that)... So you see, without the mailbox money this job provided him over several years, Tarantino might not have been able to make his first breakthrough film. Or even any other film after that. Yes, without Betty White there's no Jackie Brown. Without this pop faction there's no Pulp Fiction. Without these golden four there's no Hateful Eight. Without Rue McClanahan there's no...um...t-RUE Roma - never mind, I ran out of puns. The long and the short of it is, Tarantino owes St. Olaf a new revival movie house. His attempt at acting (which still continues to this day, one might say) gave him enough bells to stave off Tom Nook's goons, allowing him to focus on Reservoir Dogs. And, no doubt, the opening of that movie was based on the gals' late-night gab sessions over cheesecake. Just with the added problematic "Like a Virgin" explainer and a bonus Steve Buscemi not tipping. For even more context on this unforgettable GG moment, head here. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=quentin-tarantinos-most-notable-abandoned-or-delayed-projects&captions=true"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.

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