My husband and I recently rewatched the ’80s film Harry and the Hendersons (1987), which was filmed and set in Washington state. It’s a cult classic comedy starring John Lithgow and (surprise!) David Suchet. The film is about a family who (literally) run into Bigfoot while on a family camping trip, and they take him home. Hilarity and hijinks ensue. As one could surmise from the title font. 😉
In a short scene almost exactly halfway through the film, Lithgow goes to the public library and asks for information on Bigfoot. The librarian directs him to the section on fantasy, myths and legends.
Here’s how their entire reference interview goes:
Librarian: May I help you?
George: Yes. I’m on my lunch break, and I’m kind of in a hurry. Could you point me to some books on the, uh, Bigfoot?
Librarian: Sasquatch?
George: Sasquatch.
Librarian: Sasquatch?
George: That’s the one.
Librarian: Fantasy, folklore, myths and legends, basement stacks, take the stairs.
George: Thank you.
Librarian: You could also try children’s books.
The unnamed librarian is played by Peggy Platt, and the most memorable thing about her is… her spiky mullet hairstyle. Yikes. The ’80s indeed. Perhaps her hairdo was an homage to Bigfoot? 😉
The librarian fulfills the role of Information Provider in a Class III film. Granted, she doesn’t give much information, and her attitude is very dismissive. But this also serves a purpose. Her dismissive attitude of Bigfoot and Sasquatch as fantasy and in the children’s domain is also reflective of the common viewpoint of such legends. We are treated to several more different variations of this social dismissal of the Bigfoot legend throughout the film, jokes and laughter coming from a local policeman and a local television personality, among others.
The librarian’s directions, although minimal, obviously helped, as we see the family going through some a pile of materials later at home. One of the books he takes home is entitled Bigfoot One on One: A True Story by Oliver Dear.
Side note: Y’all KNOW I looked that title up in WorldCat, but no such book exists. But I noticed that the author, Oliver Dear, has the same last name as the film’s director, William Dear — and it turns out Oliver is William’s son! Both are still involved in the film industry, William Dear in directing and Oliver Dear in visual production.
George’s son is a born critic, declaring: “This book sucks!”
I’m sure his son wouldn’t say that about the film he’s in… 😉 It’s a mediocre comedy, to be sure, and a modest success when it was released. It’s become a bit of a cult classic since then, and a film thought of fondly around here, especially as it was filmed on location.
And Sasquatch in general is still a big deal up here in the Pacific Northwest. As evidenced by a shot I took while at the ACRL Conference this past spring:
Bigfoot lives! Sasquatch + librarians = ♥
Sources used:
- Harry and the Hendersons. Dir. William Dear. Perf. John Lithgow, Melinda Dillon, Kevin Peter Hall, David Suchet. Universal, 1987.
REEL LIBRARIANS 
Can you tell me which library this is? Part of it looks very similar to our closest branch, the West Seattle library.
Hi there, this was actually a discussion thread in the “Librarians in the Northwest” Facebook group! The consensus was that although the locale looks very similar to the West Seattle library, it’s actually the Green Lake library. I just went back and doublechecked that discussion thread, and it appears that the door arch, which can be seen behind John Lithgow in that scene, is the clincher that it’s the Green Lake library. Hope this helps! 🙂