Flagstaff Pop Culture

Popular culture has carved a place for Flagstaff as a not-to-be-missed stop on Route 66 in the song ‘Route 66’ by Bobby Troup. Flagstaff is mentioned in Stephen King’s novel ‘Firestarter’ and is named the childhood home of Arthur C. Clarke’s fictional character Frank Poole, as detailed in ‘2001: A Space Odyssey.’ You’ll also catch references to Flagstaff in the movies ‘Midnight Run’ starring Robert DeNiro and the Academy Award-winner ‘Little Miss Sunshine.’ Both shot scenes in the area, as did the Oscar-winning ‘Forrest Gump’ and the Charlie Sheen movie ‘Terminal Velocity.’ In the 1940s and 50s when cowboy movies were king more than 100 westerns were shot in Oak Creek Canyon and neighboring Sedona. Scenes from the Oscar-nominated movie ‘Starman’ starring Jeff Bridges were shot at the nearby Meteor Crater as well as several documentaries. On the television front, the SciFi original movie ‘Sasquatch Mountain’ starring Lance Henriksen was also filmed in Flagstaff and neighboring Williams. Ellen DeGeneres named Flagstaff the “Wish You Were Here” contest winner on her show in December 2007.