Pittsburghers Invited Home for New Film Celebrating City

Pittsburghers Invited Home for New Film Celebrating City

Special Homecoming Event Part of Pittsburgh 250th Anniversary Celebration

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Pittsburghers everywhere are invited to come home this Thanksgiving weekend for a special red-carpet screening of the new film "My Tale of Two Cities." This special screening on Friday, November 28, 2008 at the beautiful Byham Theater in Downtown Pittsburgh is part of the Pittsburgh's Homecoming Weekend and 250th birthday celebration.

Organizers are hoping that as many Pittsburghers as possible return home to Pittsburgh for this special Homecoming Weekend which -- in addition to the film screening -- also includes the 101st "Backyard Brawl" football game between Pittsburgh Panthers and West Virginia Mountaineers on Friday, Nov. 28 and an "International Toast to Pittsburgh" on Sunday, Nov. 30, where people around the world will raise a glass at 4:15 p.m. EST, to drink a toast to Pittsburgh in honor of its 250th anniversary.

As part of the "My Tale of Two Cities" film screening, guests will come together to watch the movie, blow out the candles for Pittsburgh's 250th birthday, raise funds for a charity and join cast members including former Steelers Franco Harris and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood's "Mr. McFeely" in singing the city's unofficial theme song: "Won't You Be My Neighbor?"

The film, "My Tale of Two Cities," stars the city of Pittsburgh and is a heartfelt and often funny valentine to Pittsburgh in which "St. Elmo's Fire" screenwriter and Steeltown Entertainment Project co-founder Carl Kurlander asks the age-old question: "Can you go home again?"

To find out how his hometown of Pittsburgh -- which helped to build America with its steel -- can reinvent itself, Kurlander tosses a football with former Pittsburgh Steelers' Franco Harris on the city's North Side, goes cheese shopping with Teresa Heinz Kerry and has breakfast at a diner with former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Paul O' Neill.

Ultimately, the film is a "comeback" story of Pittsburgh, as it documents the city's resurgence and captures the spirit of Pittsburgh as articulated by its late Mayor Bob O'Connor (to whom the film is dedicated), who stated that, "If we work together and believe in ourselves, we can do anything."

"We're delighted that this film is a part of the Pittsburgh's Homecoming Weekend for the 250th anniversary celebration," said Joe McGrath, president and CEO of VisitPittsburgh.

For the movie, the filmmakers invited Pittsburghers -- from Times Square in New York City, to Beverly Hills in California to Pittsburgh's own Point State Park -- to sing "Won't You Be My Neighbor?"

Other Pittsburgh 250 Homecoming and Reunion events include setting a Guinness World Record for the most couples -- 624 to be exact -- to simultaneously renew their wedding vows, a reunion for people named "Jim Smith," and a George Westinghouse reunion, where 30 descendants of the famed Pittsburgh inventor gathered for the first time at the Senator John Heinz History Center, among other events.

The "Tale of Two Cities" event will benefit the Youth and Media Initiative of the nonprofit Steeltown Entertainment Project in conjunction with Holy Family Institute, a Pittsburgh nonprofit organization that provides a nurturing environment for young people facing challenging family situations.

Tickets are being sold in combination packages that can include the VIP Cast Reception, the Special Homecoming Screening and Pittsburgh's Homecoming Party.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Pittsburgh's Homecoming Weekend: http://www.imaginepittsburgh.com/HomecomingWeekend.asp;

"My Tale of Two Cities" - A comeback story starring the City of Pittsburgh: http://www.mytaleoftwocities.com/

Source: VisitPittsburgh

CONTACT: Carl Kurlander, +1-310-386-0059, Jodi S. Klebick of the
Steeltown Entertainment Project, +1-412-622-1325, or Lynne Glover of
VisitPittsburgh, +1-412-325-0295

Web Site: http://www.imaginepittsburgh.com/HomecomingWeekend.asp
http://www.mytaleoftwocities.com/
http://www.visitpittsburgh.com/

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