Nora Ephron on that unforgettable scene from 'When Harry Met Sally'

• Tweet

Late writer and filmmaker Nora Ephron was known for her witty and touching observations about human relationships in everyday life, and especially for her hilarious commentary on how men and women interact with one another.

The orgasm scene in Ephron's "When Harry Met Sally," in which Meg Ryan's character loudly fake's an orgasm in the middle of Katz's Delicatessen in Manhattan, remains one of Hollywood's most memorable big screen moments.

Though Ephron has said that Ryan wanted to film the scene in a deli, and Billy Crystal came up with the "I'll have what she's having" zinger, the idea for the scene originated in a conversation between Ephron and director Rob Reiner.

According to the Washington Post, Ephron told a book reading in 2006 that Reiner had asked her to tell him something men didn't know about women.

"It was almost like, 'I dare you.' And I said, 'Well, women fake orgasms.' And he said, ‘Not with me.'"

"And I said, 'Yes, we do.' Maybe not all the time, but sometimes. He still didn’t believe me. So we went thundering into the bullpen at Castle Rock Pictures where all the women work, and he asked them, 'Is it true that women fake orgasms?' And all these women nodded yes. What a shock that scene was for men."

Katz's Deli now hangs a sign in their restaurant that reads, "Where Harry met Sally...hope you've had what she's had."

(Photo Credit star5112/Flickr)