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First released in 1975 with stars Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon and Barry Bostwick, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is a sci-fi/horror/musical/comedy featuring Transylvanian transexuals. The movie was such a bomb for 20th Century Fox that the studio had to have three premieres before it found an audience in the midnight-movie circuit of the 1970s, according to the movie's Web site, www.rockyhorror.com.
Today, though, the film has grossed more than $139 million and is the longest-running theatrical film in movie history. It has been selected for preservation in the Library of Congress as part of the National Film Registry.
At the Waverly Theater in New York's Greenwich Village in October 1975, fans began dressing up in costumes to come to the theater, a tradition that eventually led to shows featuring live actors singing and dancing with the on-screen action and audience members tossing rice and rolls of toilet paper.
Millersville University graduate Kim Ryan remembers stocking up on the supplies needed for the show when it would come to the Millersville theater. She and her friends would dress in "costume" and be some of the first in line. The show appeared at the Skinny Mini throughout the late '70s and into the '80s. It was last shown there in 1989 when the theater changed hands.
"It's one of those things that there is nothing else like it in the world," Ryan said. "Back then it was a rather controversial show and would raise eyebrows. We thought it was just fun and zany, and (it) let us express ourselves."
The musical numbers throughout the movie have been adopted over the years by audience members and are now considered participatory songs. Audience members pop up newspapers over their heads during the rain scenes, throw toilet paper toward the screen during the appearance of Dr. Scott and light lighters during the tender moments shared by Brad and Janet, the movie's couple.
Andrew Kindig, who will play the transvestite Frank-n-Furter in 6-inch platform heels for the EPAC production, describes the "Rocky Horror" experience as one "you either get, or you don't.
"It's somewhat obscure and a little twisted, but in today's terms of twisted, it's pretty tame," Kindig said.A theater-follower for most of his life, 29-year-old Kindig has been a fan of "Rocky Horror" for years and is channeling all of his acting creativity into the part.
Kevin Samuels, a Lancaster resident, used to go to the midnight showing of the movie in downtown Lancaster as a teen in the early '80s and says the show helped him to realize that the world had all kinds of people in it.
"As campy as it was, the acting and all, it made you think a little bit," Samuels said. "It was one of the first times I understood what a transvestite was about. Through the music and big screen, it made it all OK, or at least more accepted.
"It pushed some buttons but in a good way," Samuels said.
Those buttons are still being pushed and local actors were excited to be a part of the EPAC production again, according to the show's director Ed Fernandez.
"We had hundreds try out for this," Fernandez said. "It really allows the actors to take things to different levels."
Although there are many movies that can be considered cult classics, "Rocky Horror" is one that taps into the mind and opens it up, Kathy Smiser of Quarryville said.
"The audience participation allowed us to be a part of it without being in it," Smiser said.
(273) (229) (207) (48) (32) (31) (31) (23) (20) (9) (7) (5) (4) (3) (3) (2) (2)As a student at MU in the '80s, Smiser would wait in line for the midnight show and would sometimes host a pre-party when guests would play "Horror" trivia or create costumes to wear to the show.
"It's just amazed me at how long the popularity of this show has gone on," Smiser said. It's likely "because of the interactivity and craziness of it. It's just two hours of fun."
It's a show that may take some preparation to fully appreciate …
Following are suggested props used used throughout an "interactive" showing of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show":
• Rice
• Newspaper (preferably The Cleveland Plain Dealer)
• Water Guns
• Lighter/Flashlight (NOTE: lighters are banned at most theaters because of fire codes)
• Noise Makers (Groggers)
• Rubber Gloves
• Confetti (or torn-up newspaper)
• Toilet Paper (preferably Scott brand)
• Toast
• Bells (or keys)
• Hot Dogs
• 8 Playing Cards
Source: www.rockyhorror.org
Video clips
Video for the "Time Warp" can be found on You Tube, www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdu7xoHU9DA
Video for "There's a Light": www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPjMl9u3qec
E-mail: cesbenshade@lnpnews.com
