Now instead, a long white dock juts out from the lodge's famous gazebo, never reaching the water, while old boats sit up on dry land where the water should be. Walking its perimeter, you can still see the original basin and how high the water would be if it was at full pool. Although the lake is not what it once was, the area is still beautiful, especially in the fall, when it's flanked by multicolored trees waving in the crisp mountain air. He's been studying the lake for 10 years and has been interested in it since his undergraduate days at Virginia Tech. I first saw the lake in 2016, when I was living in Blacksburg, and revisited it in October 2019 with Radford University geologist Chester "Skip" Watts. What used to be a vacation destination for boating and swimming has had to refocuse its offerings to land-based activities, such as archery, hiking, a ropes course and "Dirty Dancing"-themed events. “Dirty Dancing” is part of a rare group of films that maintains fondness and devotion from fans that’s just as strong 30 years later.Today what's left of Mountain Lake belongs to the Mountain Lake Lodge, a stately hotel sitting on its south edge that played the role of Kellerman's in the film. When Swayze died in 2009, Grey fondly recalled working with him and “doing this tiny little movie we thought no one would ever see.” Some films earn big box office when they open, but then fade from memory. Three years after “Dirty Dancing,” Swayze had even greater success with the 1990 “Ghost,” co-starring Whoopi Goldberg and Demi Moore, which hauled in a mammoth $505 million. There were also a 1988 TV series starring Melora Hardin, Patrick Cassidy, and Paul Feig, two semi-sequels (“Havana Nights” and “Capoeira Nights”), a concert tour, stage adaptation, books, calendars, clothes, mugs, workout videos, books, endless spoofs, plus routines on “Dancing With the Stars.” And, of course, the TV remake.īut despite all these incarnations, there is no substitute for the original Baby and Johnny: Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze. 8, 1988, bragging that the soundtrack sold more than 5 million units and spawned a sequel album, “More Dirty Dancing.” The movie also chalked up then-impressive 375,000 video units and easily hit No. Six months after the film debuted, Vestron took out an ad in Variety on Feb. Although the two sites were hundreds of miles apart, the magic of Hollywood made them seem like one spot.īoth locations have benefited from their connection to the film, and mountain resorts in various states continue to have “Dirty Dancing” weekends to capitalize on the film’s popularity. The other location, Lake Lure, was a former boys camp, with less activity from tourists, thus easier filming. When the execs received a poster, McMillin reported, they decided, “By golly, we’ll just go right ahead and put it up” in the lobby. I think everybody in the county has seen the film at least six times,” he told Variety four months after the film opened.Īnd, of course, business increased at the resort. “It’s one of the greatest things that ever happened here. “Everyone in town loved it,” reported McMillin. They returned to Virginia with a thumbs-up, and there was a tentative sigh of relief.īut the biggest vote of approval came when the film opened at the Lyric Theatre in Blacksburg. McMillin said, “When the name ‘Dirty Dancing’ came out, we thought, ‘Uh oh, what have we been a part of?’”Ī local chamber of commerce meeting was held and in Spring 1987, two hotel representatives were sent to New York to see a rough cut of the film, to decide whether to exercise their contractual rights. McMillin, general manager of the resort at the time, told Variety in 1987 that the staff and locals were horrified when they heard the title change. The resort’s team thought the movie was to be titled “Dancing.” J.W. And attorneys included a clause that Mountain Lake could remove its name from the film if they didn’t like what they saw. When Mountain Lake’s reps signed on, their main concern was that filming would interfere with the activities of the guests.
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