Vermont Town Invites Kevin Bacon to Attend Local Bacon Festival

Lots of people love bacon, but the residents of Brattleboro, Vermont, take their appreciation for the breakfast staple to a whole new level. Each September, the municipality hosts its annual Baconfest—a day-long celebration filled with craft beer tastings, live music, a 5K run called the “Hog Jog,” and plenty of sizzling cured pork. This year, WCAX-TV reports, organizers hope to add a little star power to the small town event: They’re campaigning for Kevin Bacon to show up.

The third annual Baconfest will be held on Saturday, September 17. The day’s final activity is a movie starring the actor, screened at Brattleboro’s Latchis Theatre—and keeping with the pun, locals want to meet him in person, too. “Who better to come to Baconfest than Kevin Bacon?” Kate O’Connor, executive director of Brattleboro’s chamber of commerce, said in an interview with WCAX.

Organizers have planted life-size cutouts of Bacon throughout the town and extended festival invitations to the actor through social media. Vermont’s current governor, Peter Shumlin (who was born in Brattleboro), and state senator Patrick Leahy even joined the effort to bring the Footloose (1984) actor to town.

The actor has reportedly seen the Baconfest tweets, but O’Connor told WCAX that she believes there’s a “pretty much zero” chance he'll actually bring home the bacon and make an appearance. Still, she remains hopeful: “We thought it’s worth a try, and it’s sort of kooky enough that perhaps there’s a chance." And if he doesn't show, she says, the town will contact the actor again next year.

For more information on Baconfest, visit the Brattleboro Chamber of Commerce's website, or check out the event's Facebook page.

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