Celebrating 1977’s Movie Magic And Wyoming’s Film Ties

1977 was an incredibly impactful year for my family, since I was born that year, and more importantly, for Hollywood movies. Some of the biggest and most iconic movies in film history were released in 1977, and many may not know about Wyoming's connection to two of the top three-grossing movies.

First, let me tell you about the top three-grossing movies of 1977.

The top-grossing movie launched a global frenzy that continues today and has a total of 13 movies in the franchise. Star Wars! The original movie, which was actually the fourth in the franchise, is considered one of the highest-grossing movies of all time. In 1977, the movie grossed close to $300 million, which at the time was one of the highest-grossing of all time.

Second on the list in 1977 was Smokey and the Bandit. The black TransAm became nearly as iconic as the world-renowned actor who drove it, Burt Reynolds.  The movie pulled in about $126.7 million.

Number three is Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The Steven Spielberg-directed movie grossed over $300 million worldwide, but it also cast a spotlight on Wyoming and has forever linked Devils Tower to the science fiction world.

I mentioned that two of these three films have strong Wyoming connections, and even though I tried, I couldn't find a solid connection for the third.

The top-grossing film, Star Wars, has fun connections.

• Harrison Ford, the actor who played Han Solo, has called Wyoming home for a long time and has even lent his own pilot skills to rescue lost hikers around Yellowstone.
• Carrie Fisher, who played Princess Leia, was in Wyoming quite a bit while visiting friends and family.
• University of Wyoming - There have been courses offered comparing Star Wars to literature.

READ MORE: Harrison Saves The Day In A Wyoming Rescue

The third-grossing film, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, is more closely connected to the movie than to its actual stars.

• Devils Tower is the location that becomes the obsession of Richard Dreyfuss' character and the landing of the spaceship.
• Unlike many movies that claim to be set in Wyoming, some scenes in this movie were actually filmed on location.
• The movie's popularity was a driving force behind Devils Tower becoming a household name.
• Nearly 50 years after its release, fans of the film and the "unknown" still impact the tourism industry in Wyoming.

Even though I tried to connect Smokey and the Bandit to Wyoming, I couldn't find any documented connections. The only one I could almost make is that the beer the Bandit and Snowman were bootlegging was Coors, and we drink Coors in Wyoming.