Where were you in '62? That was the question of the day when American Graffiti first hit the silver screen in 1973. Not that anybody asked me, but, because I'm writing this story and I'm old enough to remember, the first thing that comes to mind for me is Stockbridge, Michigan, and it was the day Marilyn Monroe died. OK, so that's kind of a bummer. Let's move on to Jackson, Michigan, and my aunt Helen just took me to a hobby shop to buy an AMT 1/25th scale model of a '62 T-bird convertible. It was a pretty cool kit, because it came with that really neat optional tonneau cover Ford made to turn the 'Bird into a two-seater. White has always been a good color for T-birds. Who could forget blonde bombshell Suzanne Somers in her white '56 'Bird as she mouthed the lyrics to "Why do fools fall in love?"
There was a lot of great nostalgia that came to life in American Graffiti. It was filmed in Petaluma and San Rafael, California. Most of the important scenes that folks remember best were filmed in downtown Petaluma. For 2008 the city of Petaluma paid a 35th anniversary homage to George Lucas' classic with a weekend packed full of pure fun that included yanking the rearend out of a police car. There's a good chance the town of Petaluma will host the 36th anniversary of American Graffiti next year so they can pay for the rearend damage to their police cruiser.