From Country Classic to Ohio History: Harper Valley PTA
Ohio may not have the greatest history when it comes to movies, but even the Buckeye State has its collection of well-known films. One of the most famous films out of Ohio is “Harper Valley PTA”. The film was released in 1978 and has found much success, especially with people from Ohio.
The plot involves a mother getting revenge on a pompous and hypocritical PTA (parent teacher association) after her daughter is threatened with expulsion due to her mother’s behavior. The film is a comedy movie and even features an appearance from Woody Harrelson as an extra.
The film’s production began in 1977 and took place mostly in Los Angeles but had a famous week of on-location filming in Lebanon Ohio at multiple landmarks. It was directed mostly by Ralph Senensky, but following an argument with the producers, he was replaced by Richard Bennett.
It was released in six theaters across Ohio initially and made $16 million in 12 weeks. This financial success allowed it to get a further limited release outside of Ohio in Los Angeles in 1978 and later in New York in 1979.
The film stars Barbara Eden as Stella Johnson. Stella is a widow living in a small town, and one day her daughter Dee comes home with a letter from her school. The letter is from the PTA of Dees High School denouncing Stella for not following the strict societal rules of their community and threatening to expel her daughter because of it.
This angers Stella because the most influential members of the PTA don’t follow their own rules. Stella then goes on a quest to expose the PTA for their hypocrisy.
Harper Valley PTA was released to limited markets and found financial success but did not find similar critical success. The audience reviews are decent enough with 54% on Rotten Tomatoes. However the one critic who reviewed the film was not so kind.
Scott Weinberg rated the film a 1/5 saying “Worthwhile in an archival sort of way in that it’s fascinating to see what passed for comedy in the horrifically tacky era of the late 1970’s.”
Harper Valley PTA has become a local landmark of Lebanon, Ohio. With a feature from one of Ohio’s most famous actors and filming taking place at a landmark of Lebanon, it is a part of Ohio history. Readers who wish to watch Harper Valley PTA can find it on Amazon with the link below.