50th Anniversary: Bigfoot Fest in Willow Creek

Fans of the hairy superstar will pay tribute to the famous 1967 Patterson-Gimlin film.

A LOT OF SUPERSTARS... rose to prominence in California back in 1967, what with the New Hollywood movement (see films like "Bonnie and Clyde") to the Summer of Love and its many celebrated, genre-elevating musicians. Art, too, was having a renaissance, transforming painters into household names. But another icon shot to the stratosphere of popular culture back in '67, though this celebrity didn't call one of our larger cities home. Rather, this much-talked-about celebrity was seen at...

BLUFF CREEK, right near the tippy-top of our state, and though he doesn't have a star on the Walk of Fame, yet, if he did it would say "Bigfoot." We are referring to the Patterson-Gimlin film, the 16mm snippet often referred to as "grainy" and definitely "compelling," as it seems to show a furry fellow in mid-stride, sauntering through the woods. It's a film that's been played again and again, debated, debunked, rebunked, and heartily saluted in several fictional and documentary TV series. It's the 50th anniversary of the film, and that center of Bigfootiana,

WILLOW CREEK, is celebrating on Saturday, April 29. Bob Gimlin, "...the cryptozoology hunter who filmed the famous 'Patti' Bigfoot near Willow Creek in 1967," will be there, and Animal Planet's "Finding Bigfoot" will be filming during the festival, too. No need to make your way to Bluff Creek, though, once you reach Willow Creek; just get to Veterans Park from 10 a.m. to 6 in the evening. And will there be a parade, one that surely boasts a few Bigfoot cameos? Or at least passionate fans wearing their favorite Bigfoot looks? You bet. Can you also make...

BIGFOOT FOOTPRINTS... at the fest, and try to summon Bigfoot through your calling prowess? Those are just some of the activities at the full-scheduled 50th anniversary party. Of course, sightings of unusual and rarely seen forest dwellers stretch way, wayyy back before 1967. But this film really brought Bigfoot to many, and into a new and prominent fold of popular culture. A star really was born back at Bluff Creek in the days of '67.

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