LOOKING BACK: When Hollywood brought ‘Petaluma Pride’ to town

35 Years Ago

“Filming begins this week on “Petaluma Pride,” a feature-length motion picture that its creators hope will do for wrist-wrestling what “Rocky” did for boxing. About 150 locals are needed as extras this week, with 900 needed next week for a wrist-wrestling championship scene to be filmed at the Petaluma Veteran’s Building.” (Argus-Courier, March 26, 1982)

The film in question, written by Neal Barbera (son of Joseph Barbera, of Hannah-Barbera cartoon-making fame), starred Molly Ringwald and Paul Le Mat, the latter returning to Petaluma for the first time since cruising its streets as John in “American Graffiti.” The climactic wrist-wrestling championship scene was indeed filmed at the Veterans’ Building, with a huge crowd of locals cheering as Le Mat snaps a competitor’s wrist to win the title. The scene was shot 35 years ago, this very week, and if you lived in Petaluma then, you were probably a face in the crowd. And, yes, a real-life kind of “Petaluma pride” was indeed high in town for some time after, as Petaluma breathlessly awaited the release of the film. But despite the producers’ promises of “Rocky”-like fame - and a mainstream movie bearing our town’s name - the film was a disapointment. Eventually retitled “P.K. and the Kid,” it ultimately turned out so poorly the movie was essentially shelved until 1987, after Ringwald found fame in “The Breakfast Club.” “P.K” was released to poor reviews, and to date, is not currently available on DVD or BluRay (though apparently, some copies remain on VHS and LaserDisc).