Steuart Baker can’t forget his big moment on the silver screen, in a movie shot in Mount Dora with a decidedly pink hue.
It came 35 years ago with the release of “Honky Tonk Freeway,” a film with a $24 million budget that included painting many buildings in the quaint downtown pink. Baker appeared in the film, which had an all-star cast that included Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn and Beau Bridges plus hundreds of Lake County residents as extras such as Baker — who appears for all of a second.
“It was a fun thing, I enjoyed it,” said Baker, 69. “Unfortunately Hollywood never came through with a rich-and-famous contract for me. Of course, the movie didn’t do much; it wasn’t the greatest.”
Critics agreed with Baker’s assessment, as the flick is widely viewed as a flop. The New York Times called it a “mess” and “uneven,” but locals still glowingly reflect on their brush with Hollywood.
Residents can relive it at dusk Friday during a 35th anniversary outdoor showing as part of the city’s Movie Under the Stars series at Elizabeth Evans Park.
A premiere party for “Honky Tonk Freeway” was held Aug. 21, 1981, at the Mount Dora Chamber of Commerce building. Gov. Bob Graham and others who were there then attended the opening-night showing at the Tropic Theater in Leesburg.
The movie told the story of Ticlaw, a small Florida town with a single attraction — a safari park. When the government builds a freeway nearby but fails to include an exit into town, townsfolk jump into action in hopes of rectifying the situation to continue to lure tourists. Efforts include billboards about a water-skiing elephant, giving away gas for free and painting the town pink.
Sam Sadler, a local contractor, was at the Lakeside Inn when an elephant was floated out on Lake Dora aboard two gigantic pontoons.
“It was the talk of the town,” he said.
Sadler, 69, got a more personal look at one of the film’s stars, William Devane, who stayed at the Tangerine home of his father, Buck Sadler, throughout filming. Fast friends, Buck Sadler and Devane fished in local lakes, and spent their nights — which typically started at a local piano bar Little Joe’s Hideaway — sipping whiskey.
After filming, Devane flew his buddy out to his Colorado home and down to West Palm Beach to watch a polo match. When Buck Sadler died in 1993, Devane was the first person Sam Sadler called to tell.
While not everybody got up close with the stars, attorney Del Potter said locals enjoyed the spectacle of seeing the film crew flood their city. He had a law office two blocks from downtown’s pink-plastered streets at the time and would frequently walk near the set for a glimpse at madness during his lunch break.
“I think some of the downtown businesses enjoyed the thrill of a movie being filmed downtown, and seeing all the stars,” Potter said. “It was an exciting time for the folks in Mount Dora.”
Baker, 69, agreed. He is the co-owner of the A.W. Peterson Gun Shop in Mount Dora, known as the nation’s oldest gun store, which stored fireworks for the filmmakers. In exchange, Baker and his camera got a peak backstage at the magic of movie making.
“I just enjoyed being in the atmosphere,” he said. “It was like a circus atmosphere.”
rygillespie@orlandosentinel.com; Twitter: @byRyanGillespie; Facebook.com/byryangillespie