INTERVIEW: ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ celebrates 40 years

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and the festivities in the coming weeks are numerous. Several venues, including the Tarrytown Music Hall in Tarrytown, N.Y., and the State Theatre in New Brunswick, N.J., will hold special October screenings. There’s also a convention planned in New York City this weekend, Sept. 25-27, with film stars Little Nell, Barry Bostwick and Patricia Quinn in attendance.

For newcomers, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a musical comedy starring Tim Curry and Susan Sarandon (and an early Meat Loaf). The movie, based off the successful stage musical by Richard O’Brien, tells the story of a young couple who find themselves stranded at a remote castle. There they meet a variety of characters, including Frank N. Furter (Curry). Screenings of the film have continued for 40 years, with almost every area of the globe hosting a midnight showing.

Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Larry Viezel, part of “The Home of Happiness” group that regularly performs a shadow-cast performance to the iconic film. He’ll be a main part of the convention and has been participating in screenings of the film for years.

Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.

What keeps The Rocky Horror Picture Show such an enduring film 40 years after its release?

Rocky Horror is always newly discovered by the next generation. [It has] become a rite of passage for outcast teenagers. So there are always new people joining the fan club as it were. And it’s the fans who keep the show going. We create the experience. We throw the rice, we yell the lines, we act out in front of the screen. That’s not to say the movie itself isn’t a draw — the story, the music — it’s a classic spring awakening story. But were it not for the fans expressing their creativity and creating the experience, it would be “just another” spring awakening story [40] years later.

Could you discuss the community feel of watching the film on a regular basis?

A thousand people who all love the same thing are converging in a theatre to celebrate that very thing they love. When convention time comes it’s like the greatest family reunion ever. We have friends we can talk to online and [that’s] great, but to all get together in a movie theatre and do what we do best — it’s just magical.