<!-- Do not use the "dated prod" template directly; the above line is generated by "subst:prod|reason" -->

Allentown, Pennsylvania's national reputation as a rugged blue collar city has led to several references to the city in popular culture, including:

Music and musical theatre

Billy Joel's "Allentown"

The city is globally known for a popular Billy Joel song, "Allentown," which was originally released on Joel's The Nylon Curtain album in 1982. The song subsequently appeared on Joel's "Greatest Hits: Volume II" (1985), 2000 Years: The Millennium Concert (2000), and The Essential Billy Joel (2001) discs.

The song depicts the resolve of Allentonians, amidst the rough and hardened life that characterizes this East Coast, industrial city. "Allentown" also references nearby Bethlehem, home of then-declining (and now defunct) Bethlehem Steel.

In "Allentown," representing the challenges associated with the demise of traditional American industry for Allentonians, Joel sings: "They never taught us what was real. Iron and coke. And chromium steel. And we're waiting here in Allentown."

It should be noted there are no steel mills in Allentown and the title was chosen because its name sounded more American than neighboring Bethlehem, a steel town. He also feared that naming it "Bethlehem" would have religious implications. [1594]

42nd Street

Allentown features prominently in the famous Broadway musical 42nd Street. In the musical, up-and-coming chorus girl Peggy Sawyer hails from Allentown. As the plot unfolds, the talented singer and dancer yearns to leave Broadway and return to her native Allentown, but her director, Julian Marsh, tries to persuade her to stay.

Bye Bye Birdie

In the Broadway musical Bye Bye Birdie, the character of Rose ("Rosie") Alvarez (played in the original cast by Chita Rivera) hails from Allentown. In the 1963 film adaptation, the character was portrayed by Janet Leigh.

Frank Zappa's "200 Years Old"

The Frank Zappa song "200 Years Old" from his 1975 Bongo Fury album begins with the lines:"I was sittin' in a breakfast room in Allentown, Pennsylvania, six o'clock in the morning, got up too early, it was a terrible mistake... sittin' there face-to-face with a 75 cent glass of orange juice about as big as my finger and a bowl of horribly foreshortened cornflakes, and I said to myself: This is the life!..."

Irving Gordon's "Allentown Jail"

Songwriter Irving Gordon released the song "Allentown Jail" in 1951. The song is about a man who gets caught stealing a diamond for his girlfriend and ends up stuck in the Allentown jail because he cannot make bail. Various versions of the song were subsequently recorded by The Kingston Trio, The Lettermen, The Seekers and Jo Stafford.

Movies and television

Barney Miller

On the TV show Barney Miller, the character of Detective Arthur Dietrich is from Allentown.

The Florentine

The independent movie The Florentine (1999) was filmed in Allentown. The movie which stars Chris Penn, James Belushi, Luke Perry, Tom Sizemore, Hal Holbrook, Michael Madsen, Mary Stuart Masterson and Virginia Madsen, is about friends struggling with life in a Pennsylvania steel town.

Forensic Files

The Forensic Files television series (previously known as Medical Detectives) is filmed on location in Allentown. "Medical Detectives" aired on TLC from 1995 to 2002, and "Forensic Files" began airing on Court TV in 2000. On both shows, the production company utilizes local Allentown actors and locations for dramatic recreations of various crimes.

Hairspray

Amusement park scenes from the John Waters' movie Hairspray (1988) were filmed at Allentown's Dorney Park.

I Love You To Death

I Love You to Death, which stars Kevin Kline, Tracey Ullman, Joan Plowright, River Phoenix and William Hurt, and was directed by Lawrence Kasdan, is based on the 1984 attempted murder of Allentown pizza shop owner Anthony Toto by his wife.

The Phil Silvers Show

On The Phil Silvers Show, the character of Private Duane Doberman (played by Maurice Gosfield) was born in Allentown.

United 93

Allentown is mentioned in the film United 93, when air traffic controllers in Cleveland, Ohio observe out loud that the hijacked United Airlines Flight 93, one of four planes hijacked during the September 11, 2001 attacks, was passing over Allentown, just moments after two other hijacked planes collided with the World Trade Center in New York City. As United 93, which took off from Newark Liberty International Airport, passed over Allentown, air traffic controllers in Cleveland began to hear a physical struggle in the cockpit for control of the plane, which the hijackers were presumably attempting to veer south to crash into government buildings in Washington, D.C.. Such a crash never transpired, however, because the plane was ultimately driven into the ground in Shanksville, Pennsylvania by the flight's passengers, who successfully fought off the hijackers.

Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows

Scenes from Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows (1968), starring Rosalind Russell, were also filmed at Dorney Park.

X-Files

Allentown was the plot setting for two X-Files episodes, broadcast on Fox Television: "Nisei" (Season # 3, episode # 9; Original airdate: November 24, 1995) and "Memento Mori" (Season # 4, episode # 15; Original airdate: February 9, 1997). Neither episode, however, was actually filmed in the city.