I have loved the movie Groundhog Day since I first saw it after its release in 1993, at which time it got lukewarm to generally positive reviews. But since then, the film has begun to find favor even more and more among fans and critics and has been elevated to the status of an all-time classic, even being selected for Preservation by the National Film Preservation Board. I don’t think I really need to sell anyone on the film; it’s one of my all-time favorites and that’s good enough. But it’s because I love it so much that I was hellbent on making a detour to scout the filming locations of the film during my weekend excursion with Dean to Chicago.
Dean and I had spent Saturday at the Wizard World Comic Con in Chicago and then had driven to the town of Woodstock, Illinios that evening. Unless you are privy to the fact that the film was not in fact shot in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, you might wonder what on earth Woodstock has to do with Groundhog Day. It has everything to do with Groundhog Day! Just about every frame of the movie was filmed on location in Woodstock, which now embraces its film heritage by not only celebrating the Groundhog holiday each February, but with carefully placed plaques around the town square to indicate significant film locations.
We drove from our Super 8 motel in Woodstock for about five minutes into town on the morning of Sunday, August 12, 2012, to try and see as many of these sites as we could on this sleepy morning, where people were as scarce as Phil’s shadow. We started at 8:30 in the morning, and completed our walking tour in just over 30 minutes. It was a quaint little town square which was charming in addition to being historical to the film world. They’ve embraced their legacy and have placed many plaques around town indicating the spots that were used prominently in the film. Here are the sites that we found in Woodstock, along with the relevant frame grabs from the film:
Phil and Rita work their way toward the Tip Top Cafe
Sadly the A.B.C. (Athenian Broiled Chicken) that took the place of the Tip Top is now closed
The news van makes it way into town and drives by the County Courthouse as it circles the Woodstock Square
In front of the courthouse
The van circles around and drops Rita off at “The Pennsylvania Hotel”
Phil would later try and commit suicide by jumping from the ‘hotel’
The opera house doubled as the Pennsylvanian Hotel
On the streets of Woodstock
Woodstock Square… where the groundhog day ceremonies were held…over and over and over and over…
The bandstand that saw some major Groundhog Day action and celebration. Rita and Phil would later dance under it.
Ariel shot in which we see Phil and Rita entering Woodstock Square, with the statue in the foreground and the bandstand behind it
Late night snowman building on Woodstock Square (with the Opera House / Pennsylvania Hotel in the background)
On Woodstock Square
Ned Ryerson approaches Phil. Note the clue in the background indicating in what town the movie was really filmed.
Ned stops Phil in front of the Tip Top Cafe
You may not remember me, but I sure as heckfire remember you…
Phil steps into the puddle… and then the camera pans up to expose the Tip Top Cafe
Watch out for that first step…
The plaque that reads “Bill Murray stepped here – Movie Groundhog Day 1992”
… It’s a dooozie!
As the news van enters town, the local movie theatre can be seen…
…disguised as the Alpine Theatre
Just down the road from the square is the very same theatre today
The bowling alley where Phil gets drunk with some buddies. The camera pans down…
…to reveal the guys stumbling out
The Bowling Alley was closed, but peeking in the window I could tell that they used this actual alley for the interior shots as well. Next door to the alley is a plaque indicating the fictional Dew Drop Inn, which can also be seen in the film.
The Cherry Street Inn as seen upon Phil’s arrival into town
Rita and Phil are seen exiting the now-snow-covered inn during the film’s finale
The Cherry Street Inn would become a real Bed & Breakfast known as the Royal Victorian Manor. It was only because each room only had a queen-size bed and no rollaways that we didn’t stay here.
Even the inn has a plaque indicating its use in the film
The house where Phil goes to get his piano lessons…day after day after day
The piano teacher’s house today also boasts a plaque commemorating its use in the film
We headed out of Woodstock just after 9am and headed back into Chicago. The Flashback Weekend Chicago Horror Convention was being held at the Crowne Plaza in Rosemont (the same location as the prior year), right across from where the Wizard World Comic Con was held. Dean is not much into the horror films, but he was able to shop for some other film-related items and he enjoyed meeting some of the celebs, Adrienne King and Erin Gray in particular. The only encounter that took any amount of time to get through the line was John Carpenter, the centerpiece of the convention. I met a nice guy named Mark who was a fellow (hardcore) collector while in line. In all, we were there a little over three hours, with Carpenter consuming over an hour of the time.
Adrienne King had this photo taken with Dean and me and then posted it on her website
As it was the year prior, it was a very low-key affair and I had virtually no wait for any of the celebrities, and plenty of time to chat with them. Dean got an autograph from Erin Gray and we chatted with her for a good 20 minutes. She really made over a picture of Silas and let out a guttural “Awwwww!” when she saw his face.
With artist Joel Robinson, whom I met during my last visit to Flashback when I was with Jason. He and Joel had known each other quite well back in Ohio.
With one of the more interesting attendees of the weekend, made more so by the fact that he never moved
Celebrities in attendance whom I had already met included Erin Gray, Linda Blair, Ted White, and Kane Hodder. Kim Darby had been scheduled to be there, but had cancelled. You can begin the trail of celebrities of the show here.
We left the show around 2:30pm, embarking on the long drive back home, losing the hour that we had gained along the way. I’d hoped to get us to another DD&D restaurant, but the GPS wasn’t cooperating, so we settled for stopping for Kentucky Fried Chicken around 6pm. After I had maneuvered my way out of the Chicago area, the drive was mostly smooth sailing. We got back home around 10:30 that night. Sadly, despite the title of the posting, the day did come to an end.
The free plastic cups that Dean had toted around the Comic Con all day Saturday remained in my car.
Follow the the trail of celebrities of the 2012 Flashback Weekend show here…
2012 will continue with another mini-road trip…
Very cool. And nice that Woodstock has made the effort to put out plaques.
Peter
December 20th, 2012