Lincoln Log: Virginia braces for wave of Spielberg fans
Statue of Lincoln and son at The American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar. Photo, Gretchen Kelly
Steven Spielberg premiered the global trailer for his new bio-pic, Lincoln today on Google Play and YouTube.
"We treat him as a man, not a monument," said Spielberg.
The film, starring Daniel Day-Lewis as Lincoln, was shot on location in and around Richmond and Petersburg, Virginia. Richmond is not only the site of UNESCO-pending listed buildings like the Virginia State Capitol (1795-98), it was also the site of Abraham Lincoln’s historic tour of the Confederate capital days after the war was won by the North.
On the same day as the trailer premiere, the Virginia Tourism Corporation toured a select group of journalists (including TravelMole) on sites from the film.
Virginia and Richmond tourism authorities told TravelMole today that they would be promoting both Lincoln, the man and Lincoln, the motion picture.
"We hope the film will bring travelers both to Lincoln and to the history behind the film here in Richmond and Virginia," said Tamra Talmadge-Anderson, Director of Public Relations.
Andy Edmunds of the Virginia Film Office told the press group that the film has already brought over $33 million dollars in revenue to the State of Virginia, through the actual filming alone.
Many insiders believe the movie will cull a lion’s share of Academy Awards nominations for performances by stars Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tommy Lee Jones after its nationwide debut on November 16.
The Virginia Tourism Corporation is getting ready for an onslaught of Lincoln-related travel with a companion film on location shooting and with upcoming Lincoln movie "trail" tie-ins.
Restaurants, hotels and attractions are already seeing traffic.
At the Arcadia Restaurant in the Shockoe Bottom District, for instance, an image of Day-Lewis dining out in full Lincoln beard went viral during filming.
Owner, John Van Peppen said that even though Lincoln doesn’t open until November 11, countrywide, he had already received calls and reservations from all over the world.
Gretchen Kelly
Editor, TravelMole USA
Gretchen Kelly
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