Elmore City, Oklahoma, was the inspiration for what movie?
The small town of Elmore City, Oklahoma, was the inspiration for the hit 1984 musical drama film, Footloose. The movie, starring Kevin Bacon as Ren McCormack, is based on a true story that made national news in 1980 when the town’s high school junior class successfully challenged a local ordinance that had outlawed public dancing since Elmore City’s incorporation in 1898.
The real-life student effort was led by junior Leonard Coffee, who convinced local church and school board officials that the dance ban was outdated. Screenwriter Dean Pitchford learned of the story, flew to Oklahoma to conduct research, and built his fictional town of Bomont around the real-life events. The town celebrates this successful fight annually with the “Footloose Festival” to commemorate the first town-sanctioned high school prom.
Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-50o2Yrjks
https://www.threads.com/@beliproduk.official/post/DRrqS8rkltI