Ok, we admit it. For years, we’ve wanted to convince “American Pie” screenwriter Adam Herz ‘91 to screen the movie in the Performing Arts Center and put to rest, once and for all, the rumors about what characters and incidents in the film are based on real people and events.
Tuesday night, at the Wealthy Theatre, Yesterdog provided the next best thing as part of its 50th anniversary celebration.
In front of a sold out audience, Herz was introduced along with Yesterdog owners Pat ‘91 and Lisa ‘93 Conner, before the movie, which Herz said he hadn’t watched in more than 20 years. The lead-in to the film was the world premier of a music video from Lisa's brother, Jeff Kagan '97, of his original song about Yesterdog.
During the showing, the audience, which included many East alumni, laughed along, and sometimes, as Herz noted afterwards, in anticipation of what was about to happen. The crowd always responded, for example, every time “Dog Years,” as Yesterdog was called in the film, was shown on screen.
East Grand Rapids is called “East Great Falls” in the film, but the amount of locally inspired detail is remarkable. The big lacrosse game is against a green-uniformed team referred to as Central. A massive mural dominates the upstairs of the high school. There’s even a baseball cap-wearing, smiling figure in a photo in a display case that must be a reference to Jimmy Gerken.
In a Q&A session with Wealthy Theatre director Chris Kotcher after the screening, Herz said set designers spent days at East Grand Rapids High School and in neighborhood houses to get just the right feel for the time and place.
Herz also took questions from the audience, and did his best to answer all of them. When asked about who the characters were based on, though, he remained reticent, saying only that they were inspired by different personality traits and experiences from different people.
He must be saving the big reveal for when the Foundation finally puts its event together at the PAC.
You can read our Virtual Cup of Coffee with Adam Herz ‘91 in our Alumni Profiles.
