PAYSON, Utah (AP) – Actor Kevin Bacon returned Saturday to the Utah high school where the cult classic movie “Footloose” was filmed for more than 40 years.
Bacon danced onto the Payson High School playground stage Saturday to greet students before what is likely the last prom at the school, which is scheduled to be demolished next spring.
“You convinced me that,” Coach Bacon said, according to a video posted by Salt Lake City’s ABC 4. He said, “It’s great to see that kind of commitment to anything, and I think it’s great to see the power that this film has” in bringing people together. ”
Bacon starred in Footloose as a Chicago teenager who moves to a small town and fights a ban on dancing. Payson High School students wrapped up their day Saturday with a “Footloose” themed prom, just as the movie ended.
Payson, about 90 miles south of Salt Lake City, is home to about 21,000 people.
Principal Jesse Sorenson said students had been trying to convince Mr. Bacon to visit for years.
Sorenson said what started as a light-hearted social media appeal has turned into a community-wide campaign to partner with bacon charities. The students agreed to help put together 5,000 care packages for the charity SixDegrees in order to convince Bacon to visit.
Sorenson said the students spent weeks writing hopeful messages for each care package’s eventual owner and working with the Utah Film Commission and Six Degrees to make the backpacks available. They collected donations and donations for cosmetics, clothing, and other items to be used in the event.
On Saturday, Bacon helped pack bags with what Sorenson estimated was about 700 students and 300 area residents.
Sorenson, who graduated from Payson High School in 1995, said the DJ always plays the song “Footloose” at prom and students recreate the iconic dance from the movie. Older residents say they were extras in the movie and are happy to point out Payson’s spots in the movie.
The principal said, “This is something the children can be proud of and it’s fun.”
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