1988 Massillon vs Altoona PA.
- Thread starter firewatch
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LaSalle2016
Active member
Honest question. Wasn’t Altoona the school that they made the Tom Cruise movie about?
firewatch
Well-known member
Not sure. In the movie the school was named Ampipe and was set in PA steel country, for some reason I thought they shot parts of that movie down around Steubenville. As far as portraying Altoona, it sure is possible. Altoona was huge in the railroad and is home to the Altoona Curve which was the track for trains hauling steel back in the day to get over the Allegheny Mountains.
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The movie “All the Right Moves” was filmed in Johnstown Pennsylvania , I’m pretty sure.
Your thinking of “The Deer Hunter” which portrayed Steel town of Clarion, Pennsylvania.
It was actually filmed in the Steel Mill towns of (Mingo Junction, Ohio & Steubenville, Ohio) 20 mins from Pittsburgh International Airport.
The Church scenes up in Cleveland.
Your thinking of “The Deer Hunter” which portrayed Steel town of Clarion, Pennsylvania.
It was actually filmed in the Steel Mill towns of (Mingo Junction, Ohio & Steubenville, Ohio) 20 mins from Pittsburgh International Airport.
The Church scenes up in Cleveland.
Irwin20
Well-known member
You are correct All the Right Moves was filmed in Johnstown. I played on that field twice in HS v Bishop McCort. Also it’s Clairton not Clarion (which is in North central Pa and home of D2 Clarion University)
Thanks for correction. I’m getting old .?
That movie really captured football in the 70’s and 80’s in the Pittsburgh (western penn) area.
Part of northeast Ohio & Ohio River Valley also because without State Lines dividing the region it’s the same culture.
I know I am posting a few years later but in case if anyone care. Yes the movie was filmed in Johnstown PA about 1.5 hours from Pittsburgh and less than 30 min from Altoona. The name Ampipe is an homage to Ambridge as Ampipe refers to the fictional company American Pipe in the movie. Ambridge is a real town in Beaver County which is a former corporate town for American Bridge. Now this is where it gets complicated. Ampipe used the uniforms of Ferndal HS in the movie. But the school/community of Ampipe was fictional representation of 2 WPA schools/communities Greater Johnstown and Aliquippa. Walnut Heights was also the fictional representation of 2 WPA communities. Westmont Hilltop (whose uniforms were used for Walnut Heights) which was the ritzy suburb of Johnstown and Mt Lebanon which was the old money rich neighborhood of Pittsburgh.
I do not know what the Johnstown schools (Greater Johnstown and Westmonst Hilltop) records back then, but in the WPIAL Mt Lebanon was on a run of either winning the WPIAL or being in the Championship game. There were no state titles in PA back then. Legendary Aliquippa Coach Don Yannessa (who played the Walnut Heights Coach in the movie) stated (I am paraphrasing from memory here ) that Mt Lebo was the poster child of the rich school. Kids driving to school in nicer cars than the teachers and most parents in many other less to do neighborhoods. They had Golf, Tennis, soccer, etc but they were still winning championships in what was supposed to be the blue collar man's sport of football. That burned a lot of people in the WPIAL. The 6-2 goal line defense as the base defense gameplan he camp up for when Aliquippa played New Castle sometime in the late 70's. They needed football talk in the movie, he was known for that game so they added it. He was the was the movie consultant for the football scenes and Coach Nickerson character.
I do not know what the Johnstown schools (Greater Johnstown and Westmonst Hilltop) records back then, but in the WPIAL Mt Lebanon was on a run of either winning the WPIAL or being in the Championship game. There were no state titles in PA back then. Legendary Aliquippa Coach Don Yannessa (who played the Walnut Heights Coach in the movie) stated (I am paraphrasing from memory here ) that Mt Lebo was the poster child of the rich school. Kids driving to school in nicer cars than the teachers and most parents in many other less to do neighborhoods. They had Golf, Tennis, soccer, etc but they were still winning championships in what was supposed to be the blue collar man's sport of football. That burned a lot of people in the WPIAL. The 6-2 goal line defense as the base defense gameplan he camp up for when Aliquippa played New Castle sometime in the late 70's. They needed football talk in the movie, he was known for that game so they added it. He was the was the movie consultant for the football scenes and Coach Nickerson character.