Events
are being planned for Pierre the weekend of July 18-20 to commemorate the 25th
anniversary of the first three days of filming of the Academy Award-winning
movie “Dances With Wolves” in the area.
Kevin
Costner, who co-produced, directed and starred in the movie, is not expected to
participate in this year’s events but will be invited and encouraged to
participate in next year’s 25th anniversary of the release of the movie.
Nearly
100 Pierre, Fort Pierre and central South Dakota residents were directly
involved in the making of the movie.
Bill
Stevens of Pierre, who was a production assistant and van driver during the
filming and is production coordinator of the planning committee, said the free weekend
will be an opportunity for those involved with the movie to come together and
share their experiences.
“We
have a wide variety of experiences represented with our speakers,” Stevens said. “Everyone who is interested
is invited to attend any or all of these sessions.”
Jay
D. Vogt, director of the South Dakota State Historical Society at the Cultural
Heritage Center in Pierre and a member of the planning committee, noted the
historical significance of the movie.
“The
commemoration of past events, such as the ‘Dances With Wolves’ 25th
anniversary of filming the movie, provides us with the opportunity to reflect
and gather the history of the event,” Vogt said. “The South Dakota State
Historical Society is careful about what we collect for the archives and
museum, and these types of events can bring to our attention new information
and material on a particularly significant event.
“Twenty-five
years ago, South Dakota was celebrating its 100th anniversary and
the State Historical Society was moving into the new Cultural Heritage Center,
and at the same time an Academy Award winning movie was being filmed in central
and western South Dakota,” Vogt added. “‘Dances With Wolves’ brought new
attention to our state, and we benefited from a better understanding of our
history and a draw of tourists to South Dakota.”
The
free event, at the Best Western Ramkota Hotel, kicks off Friday at 7 p.m. CDT:
· Welcome from Ramkota
General Manager Rick Murray, who also held that position 25 years ago when much
of the cast stayed at the hotel;
· Steve Nelson, who
worked for the state Department of Tourism at the time and assisted Costner and
Co-Producer Jim Wilson with site locations in central and western South Dakota;
and
· Stevens, who also
videotaped much of the production, will then show and discuss much of his
behind-the-scenes footage.
Saturday’s
tentative list of speakers, beginning at 9 a.m., includes:
· Tony Mangan, also on
the planning committee, then working for the Capital Journal, who will discuss
press coverage of the filming;
· Monte and Jay Curry, father
and son who worked on set construction and in the art department;
· Pearl Stone, a committee
member who was an on-camera American Indian villager throughout the film and who
also assisted casting directors with on-camera Lakota extras;
· Dave Hansen, who
worked on the locations crew at Houck Buffalo Ranch and also assisted with
construction;
· Jim and Jenny Wegner,
siblings whose business, Wegner Auto, provided vehicles for the cast and crew;
· Bill Markley, a committee
member and Civil War re-enactor who appeared in several scenes in central and
western South Dakota as both a federal and confederate soldier; and
· Jeff Mammenga, a committee
member and Civil War extra whose scenes were cut from the theatrical version.
Saturday
evening will end with any other members of the public being able to share their
experiences.
The
weekend will conclude with a Sunday morning trip to near the Houck Buffalo
Ranch southwest of Fort Pierre, where much of the film was shot, to see buffalo
and horses.
A
similar event may be held in Rapid City this fall, giving Black Hills-area
people a chance to share their memories.
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