The fact and fiction in "Tommy Boy"

ouriel@sanduskyregister.comWhile being set in Sandusky, most locals and movie aficionados realize "Tommy Boy" wasn't filmed anywhere near the North Coast.Enough myths and misnomers are spoken and seen to make the heads of local historical society members swivel.Maybe the most glaring mistake: There is no Sandusky Municipal Airport, and if there was, it probably wouldn't offer flights to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, or Salt Lake City, Utah.After all, viewers must remember the movie is a fun-loving adventure tale.But the "Tommy Boy" team did make some concerted efforts to capture Sandusky's essence.For example, replicas of Sandusky staples, such as a city police cruiser and Register newspaper boxes, pop up during the comedic classic.Even real trinkets hailing from Sandusky, including a Cedar Point mug and Register newspapers, make quick cameos — a bonus, or Easter Egg, for hardcore viewers from the local area.At a recent screening, various Register staff members — including assistant managing editor Jason Werling, chief photographer Luke Wark, education reporter Alissa Widman Neese and Ottawa County reporter Patrick Pfanner — diligently watched "Tommy Boy" to point out and chronicle each Sandusky- and regional-related reference, whether it's fact or fiction.Here's what the news team spotted:• 1-minute mark: In a flashback scene, a "Sandusky Municipal Schools" bus drives by a young Tommy, feverishly sprinting away from a vicious dog.• 5-minute mark: An airplane carrying Tommy lands in "Sandusky, Ohio," as evident by a caption flashing on the screen. As Tommy gets off the airplane and greets Richard, a "Welcome to Sandusky" sign sits atop the "Sandusky Municipal Airport."• 6-minute mark: Tommy and Richard drive by a different "Welcome to Sandusky" sign, listing the city's population at 29,764, which is pretty close to an accurate count for the time. Several smaller signs — featuring the lake and business districts and for "Sandusky Information" — are located beneath the population figure.• 7-minute mark: The first sight of Callahan Auto Parts, later referenced as a major employer in Sandusky, providing jobs to 300 people. Before then, Tommy is a bit shocked and saddened the local muffler and tire plants closed down while he attended college.• 13-minute mark: When Rob Lowe's character, Paul, arrives to town, he gets off a Greyhound bus with a final destination of "Sandusky," shown on a sign in the front window. The scene also features the "Sandusky Post Office," several Register newspaper boxes and blue "Welcome to Sandusky" banners.• 16-minute mark: When Paul and Tommy first meet, they go out for a night on the town. When Paul asks what's there to do in Sandusky, Tommy lists off several options, including playing at the pitch 'n' putt, attending a livestock auction and schmoozing with the 4-H girls. After Paul said he wanted to do something dangerous, Tommy takes him cow tipping.• 20-minute mark: Michelle, a co-worker at Callahan's who also becomes Tommy's love interest, said the two both went to Chaparral High in Sandusky. The two sat next to one another in history class.• 21-minute mark: In high school, Tommy mentions how he and Michelle's brother Duane used to be friends. Together, both frequently visited the local Safeway and got caught when trying to steal doughnuts. Michelle then offers Tommy a doughnut from a box of Dunkin' Donuts, which didn't exist anywhere near Sandusky in the mid-1990s.• 23-minute mark: At his father's wedding, Tommy says Michelle is the prettiest gal in Sandusky.• 27-minute mark: Shortly after Tommy's father died, Tommy and Michelle are on a boat. Tommy recalls spending many moments with his dad on the lake, presumably Lake Erie.• 30-minute mark: Callahan Auto Parts started in 1925, when Tommy's great-grandfather laid the first brick at the Sandusky shop.• 32-minute mark: Tommy and Richard drive past a "Now Leaving Ohio" sign• 39-minute mark: Callahan Auto Parts sponsors an employee appreciation night at an amusement park-like setting, possibly resembling Cedar Point.• 50-minute mark: Tommy and Richard crash in front of the Prehistoric Forest, which mirrors the African Safari Wildlife Park in Port Clinton.• 1-hour, 2-minute mark: Tommy and Richard are driving in a car with an Ohio license plate of KIP 391. The plate also reads "Erie," as in Erie County.• 1-hour, 3-minute mark: On Michelle's desk, she has a Cedar Point mug with what appears to be images of the former Space Spiral and Corkscrew.• 1-hour, 8-minute mark: A framed Sandusky Register newspaper reads "Callahan Plant open for business."• 1-hour, 10-minute mark: At the Sandusky Municipal Airport, flights are offered to both Columbus (about 115 miles) and Cuyahoga Falls (about 80 miles). An airline employee offers to sell an airplane ticket to Michelle, in which she would fly from Sandusky to Columbus to Cuyahoga Falls.• 1-hour, 11-minute mark: A Sandusky police cruiser chases Tommy and Richard after Richard vomits when drinking beer inside their car, causing Tommy to swerve. On the cruiser's bumper, it reads "Sandusky, Ohio, and proud of it."• 1-hour, 13-minute mark: From Sandusky, Tommy and Richard need a flight to Chicago (about 290 miles). No more tickets for a direct flight are available, so an airline worker offers them tickets to connect in Salt Lake City (almost 3,100 total miles, when accounting for a trip from Sandusky to Salt Lake City and then Salt Lake City to Chicago).• 1-hour, 25-minute mark: A woman reads what appears to be a Sandusky Register newspaper. The front page features a story about Norwalk.• 1-hour, 25-minute mark: When on air for a local Chicago TV station, which is carried in Sandusky, Tommy says "Back in Sandusky, Ohio, there are 300 American workers at Callahan Auto. We make the best parts money can buy."