You're close, but you're not thinking disgusting enough. In the DVD commentary track for the 1984 comedy classic "Ghostbusters," producer-director Ivan Reitman reveals that the marshmallow that covers downtown New York after the team busts the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is actually shaving cream.

Richard Edlund, who did the visual effects work on the movie, collected huge, 500-gallon barrels of the stuff to dump on the set -- and on cast members, some more than others.

William Atherton, who played the villainous Environmental Protection Agency inspector Walter Peck, was hit with so much of it that he asked the director ahead of time if it was going to hurt. The director said he didn't know. They reportedly tested it on a stunt man first and he was knocked off his feet.

That's the kind of hands-on, practical effects work you don't always see in films today. It's possible that if/when they blow up something huge and gross in the upcoming remake (featuring an all-female ghostbusting team) it'll all be done with computers.

Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Personal replies will not be provided.