American Graffiti, page 3
One of the funniest scenes in the movie was filmed at a used car lot on Petaluma Boulevard North that featured a giant rocking chair. An extremely high pressure car salesman unsuccessfully attempts to sell Toad a car. To see more locations, click here.
American Graffiti made Dreyfuss a star and boosted the careers of countless actors including Ron Howard, Paul LeMat, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips, Wolfman Jack, Harrison Ford, and the mysterious angel in the white T-Bird, Suzanne Somers.
Film critic Roger Ebert gave the film his highest rating of four stars and stated thatAmerican Graffiti was "not only a great movie but a brilliant work of historical fiction." The movie, which cost only $750,000 to produce 
in a mere 25 days, grossed more than $55 million. It was produced by Francis Ford Coppola, who returned on two other occasions to direct Tucker and Peggy Sue Got Married.
The film received Academy Award nominations for: BestPicture (it lost out to The Sting); Supporting Actress (Candy Clark); Director (George Lucas); Writing, Story and Screenplay; and Film Editing. Unfortunately it won no Oscars.
The 110 minute American Graffiti is rated PG. The movie is widely available on video/DVD, and is available at Netflix.
In May 2005, actor Paul LeMat (John Milner) returned to Petaluma with the two famous American Graffiti cars, Bob Falfa's black 1955 Chevrolet and John Milner's yellow 1932 Ford. For photos of the event, click here. In 2006, actors Candy Clark, Bo Hopkins, Manuel Padilla and Paul Lemat returned for a Tribute to American Graffiti. The following year, the same group again visited Petaluma, along with Cindy Williams.