By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The community of Wilson, where portions of the movie, "Paper Moon," were filmed will celebrate the movie's 50th anniversary on Friday and Saturday.
"Paper Moon," which was released by Paramount in 1973 stars Ryan O'Neal and his daughter, Tatum O'Neal.
Tatum O'Neal won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film, becoming the youngest actress to do so.
"Paper Moon" depicts the Depression era in Kansas and Missouri. It was shot in black and white by director Peter Bogdanovich and tells the story of father, Moze, and his daughter, Addie, as Moze takes his daughter from Gorham, Kan., to St. Joseph, Mo., to live with her aunt.
Eight locations in Wilson were in the movie. All of those locations in Wilson, as well as Dorrance, will be marked during the festival with photos of the original images from the movie, said Melinda Merrill of the Midland Railroad Hotel in Wilson.
Maps will be available on the local sites. The tourism agency also will have literature available that tells the history of the buildings in the community.
"It's really cool the pictures that we have of where they did the filming," she said. "It's cool to see and compare that. It brings back memories."
Merrell said many residents remember the filming. Classes were let out so children could watch the filming. Wilson residents worked as extras, she said.
Scenes were also shot in Gorham, Hays, McCracken, northern Ellis County, White Cloud and St. Joseph, Mo.
Rooks County had an event to celebrate the movie in Stockton on April 30. McCracken is planning a "Paper Moon" event for June 16 and 17 in conjunction with several events in Hays during the same weekend.
Defiance Brewing Co. will have a commemorative beer, which has yet to be named. Two free showings of the movie will be offered on June 17 and 18.
There will be special exhibits at the Hays Arts Council Annex along with the Summer Art Walk on June 16 and at the McCracken Historical Society. A full schedule of events for Hays and McCracken will be released soon.
In Wilson this weekend, all festival events will be free thanks to the Wilson tourism organization with the exception of the food.
The movie will be shown on the back of the Railroad Hotel for free on Friday. Popcorn will be served. In case of inclement weather, the movie will be moved indoors.
On Saturday, actors will be dressed in period customers, and visitors are welcome to join in with their own period dress.
Events start at 10 a.m. Saturday. The Coney Island Bar will serve hot dog meals for $5. That will be a fundraiser for the Feed the Children program.
There'll be a free exotic petting zoo, antique dealer, Hat Man Jack's from Wichita, a fried chicken dinner at the Railroad Hotel and free performance by the Kansas All Star Big Band at 7 p.m. on the hotel patio.
The McCracken Museum will be bringing some of its memorabilia from the movie.
Several owners also will be bringing their Model As and Depression-era vehicles for display. The Model T truck that was used in the last part of the movie is on display at the auto museum in Hill City.
Mugs Bakery will be selling kolaches. Reservations for the fried chicken dinner at the hotel are preferred. The cost is $14.99.
On Saturday, someone will be on hand to video record the stories of people who were in the movie as extras or watched the filming.
Merrill said as of May 21, rooms were still available at the Midland Railroad Hotel for the weekend of the festival. Call
785-658-2284 for more information.
Merrill said she hopes the event will not only celebrate Wilson and its history but drum up interest in other filmmakers using Kansas as a location.
You can find more about the event on Facebook on either the festival event page or Czech Out Wilson Facebook page.