KAREN     WHOOPI     KATHERINE     ROSIE     DOLLY     JOE BOB     DODGERS  25th ANNIVERSARY REUNION It was the Deltas against the rules... the rules lost!
National Lampoon's ANIMAL HOUSE turned twenty-five years old in 2003, and in celebration of the screwball hit comedy that spoofed campus life, Universal Studios Home Video hosted a special parade and cast reunion in Hollywood on August 21, 2003. Pictures from the 25th Anniversary Reunion and Parade August 21, 2003: A class reunion of the rowdy Animal House gang shut down Hollywood Boulevard with a parade today at noon, featuring a live elephant, an ROTC contingent, a cheerleading squad and an interruption by the "Deathmobile." Actors Tim Matheson, Karen Allen and Stephen Furst rode on a cake float in the procession, which recreated the 1978 comedy's catastrophic climax. The event, organized by Universal Pictures to promote the 25th anniversary DVD, culminated in a faux-foodfight between scores of extras sporting generic "College" sweat shirts worn by the late John Belushi (news) in the film. Otis Day And The Knights performed the song "Shout," getting a little bit louder, a little bit LOUDER now, and then a little bit softer before wrapping up the parade. The film, which became a surprise blockbuster and launched the careers of many of its young stars, chronicled the antics of the disreputable Delta House frat as it uses lust and alcohol to fuel a revolt against authority in the early 1960s. What made the film an enduring hit? "I think it's about wild rebellion and it's about kind of conventional conservative oppression up against rule-breaking," said Allen, who played Katy, the movie's comely voice of reason. "I'm here at my college reunion," joked Peter Riegert, who played the morally lax frat brother Boon. Asked if shooting the movie in 1977 was a crazy time, he responded: "Oh my God! Look at what we made! ... You can't be stoned or drunk and act, but you're done acting at the end of the day." Anthony Breznican, AP Entertainment Writer Videos and news articles about the LA and Cottage Grove Celebrations Video of the 25th Anniversary Homecoming Parade in Cottage Grove, Oregon "Old School" - LA Weekly, August 29, 2003 "Animal House/Vacation The Hollywood Reporter, August 28, 2003 "Cottage Grove reflected 1962 small-town for film" - Cottage Grove Sentinel, August 27, 2003 "Animal Zeitgeist embodies goodness" - Oregon Daily Emerald, August 20, 2003 "Animal House dishes timeless comedy" - Oregon Daily Emerald, August 20, 2003 "It's not gonna be an orgy; it's a toga party" - Oregon Daily Emerald, August 20, 2003 Copyright © 2003 Patrick Spreng.