Celebrating city’s link to ‘American Graffiti’

Fifty years ago, a low-budget film – shot mostly at night in downtown Petaluma – captured the end of an era, that of hot rods and car-hops, and the beginning of another. “American Graffiti,” directed by George Lucas and produced by Francis Ford Coppola, went on to achieve lasting, worldwide fame, becoming one of the most profitable and beloved films ever made.

To mark the 50th anniversary, the Petaluma Historical Library and Museum has a new show opening May 18: “Celebrating 50 Years of American Graffiti.” Along with a collection of film memorabilia, the exhibit displays archival photos taken in Petaluma to show what teen culture was like here in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Solange Russek, collection manager for the museum, says the show will provide a comprehensive look not only at the making of the film but at related topics such as Petaluma’s car clubs, the “Cruisin’ the Boulevard” phenomenon, and Petaluma’s teen scene.

The lion’s share of the show comes from the collection of Susan Villa, past president of the museum. An inveterate collector of many things, she has a special love for the film because of its ties to Petaluma. She began collecting “American Graffiti” memorabilia about 20 years ago and has continued to do so sporadically ever since.

In fact, Villa, Russek and museum volunteer Terry Park have been preparing this show for about a year.

“I brought Terry and Solange to my property and we decided what to show,” Villa said, “everything from street banners to the original cast T-shirt.”

Villa’s collection includes “American Graffiti” lobby cards from all over the world — colorful, 8x10 cards that theaters once used to advertise coming features.

A special feature of the museum show will be a photo display culled from thousands of Argus-Courier negatives from the 1950s and early 1960s. According to Russek, the negatives were saved from destruction by local historian Ed Mannion, who served as a columnist at the Argus-Courier in the early 1960s. Many of the photos were taken by Mannion’s wife Chris, a part-time photographer at the Argus in that era.

Starting about 10 years ago, Russek began scanning the negatives, thanks to a patron of the museum who had donated a large scanner. She realized that the trove of images included a photo history of Petaluma’s teen culture of a different time.

Park has done the “heavy lifting” on the photo project, according to Russek. Among other tasks, he is writing the captions for the two-dozen photos selected for the show.

The show will include two previously created video reenactments of key scenes from the film — the vandalizing of a cop car by Richard Dreyfuss’ Curt and members of the gang The Pharaohs (shot in the vacant space next door to the Mystic Theatre), and the climactic drag race on “Paradise Road,” which Lucas shot on Frates Road.

The crucial role of radio in teen culture of the era will be represented by an exhibit case devoted to Wolfman Jack, famed disc jockey of the era. Born Robert Weston Smith, the Wolfman pervades the film and its iconic soundtrack.

“American Graffiti” was not the first film shot in Petaluma. There was a Western made in 1915. And in 1942, “The Farmer’s Daughter,” with Loretta Young, was shot off Adobe Road.

One reason Lucas’ film has remained so popular around the world is the presence of classic American cars from the era. On May 18 and 19, replicas of four of the film’s key vehicles will be on display outside the museum, thanks to the Graffiti Tribute Team, based in Oregon. The “star cars” include a 1932 coupe, a 1955 Chevrolet, a 1958 Impala, and a Vespa-like scooter that was driven by the character “Toad.”

Additionally, a pickup truck owned by Jim Bergstrom in Petaluma that was used in the film will be on display. Bergstrom’s truck is featured on the poster for the show.

“American Graffiti” is an homage to director Lucas’ memories of his teen years. His hometown of Modesto had changed too much to serve as his setting, so he chose San Rafael, near his production company. The film ended up being shot in Petaluma because after one night of shooting, San Rafael declined to shut down streets for any additional days. He looked around for a more congenial town and found Petaluma, where the mayor and city council were more than happy to cooperate.

The fame of “American Graffiti” turned out to be of practical benefit to Petaluma. When the city later sought federal funding for flood control, then-mayor David Glass went to Washington, D.C. hat in hand. He found that as soon as he identified the little town of Petaluma as the site of the film, he had the attention of government officials.

Petaluma got the money it needed.

Depending on the age of the visitor, the new exhibit will be either déjà vu or revelatory. To younger people, the items on display will provide a glimpse into a world that has passed away. To others, it will be a blast from the past.

“Older people, Baby Boomers,” Russek noted, “will say, ‘Yeah, I was a part of that.’”