'1,200 people a day were standing outside my home' – how a cult 80s movie spoiled my suburban idyll

When Sandi Preston bought her home in the sleepy Oregon port of Astoria, it was like a dream come true. After all, it is the real-life setting for one of her favourite films, the 1985 adventure comedy The Goonies.

“I made my first trip to Astoria in July of 1991 and fell in love with the area,” she explains. “I had asked God many years ago to give me The Goonie House. The Goonies was our favourite movie when my children were young. We lived in San Diego when it was filmed and released, but I grew up in Maine and the location reminded me so much of there. I moved to Astoria in March of 2001 and then one day while walking, I saw a huge ‘For Sale’ sign attached to the porch.”

She leapt at the chance to own what was then just a minor local attraction, visited by only a handful of people each day. But that was before the rise of TripAdvisor, Facebook and Instagram, platforms that can turn a trickle of tourists into a deluge, and before a series of reunions and re-releases created new legions of fans.

“Very few people came to visit in the first few years,” says Sandi. “That all changed after the 20th anniversary reunion in 2005.

“It was difficult getting up the drive. People wouldn’t move, got belligerent, and left trash. They would get aggressive and entitled; their mantra is, ‘You shouldn’t have bought it’.”

The situation became was even worse after the 30th anniversary celebrations in 2015, when 10,000 Goonies fans, as well as cast members, visited the town over the course of a weekend.

“I had around 1,200 people a day standing outside my home,” Sandi recalls. During one incident she says a man came on to the property to take photos; ignoring ‘no trespassing’ signs. When she asked him to leave, he said no, and she felt there was nothing she could do about it. Upset, she briefly covered the house with tarpaulin to deter the selfie-takers.

The covers came down a few months later but visitors to the property today will see they have returned. Sandi claims this is due to maintenance work. Nevertheless, you can’t go inside, nose around, or park your car there. ‘Truffle shuffle’ re-creations on her doorstep will not go down well.

“I think many fans understand why I had to restrict access but there are still people who walk past all the signs,” says Sandi.

It is a tricky situation for the town of Astoria, which wants to protect the neighbourhood, and its residents, but also welcome fans.

“The overall effect of The Goonies has been positive,” says Bruce Jones, mayor of Astoria. “As the fishing and logging industries have declined, tourism has grown to become a significant cornerstone of our local economy, comprising nearly 20 per cent of GDP in a city of 10,000 people. The movie’s devoted fans have been a significant part of that growth.

“Having arrived in Astoria only in 2011, I was astounded at the thousands of visitors from around not only the United States but all over the world who took the time and expense to visit Astoria and reconnect with scenes from the movie, and connect with each other. Goonies fans have quite a bond and enjoy spending time together. Astoria, of course, enjoyed and benefited from the fans spending their vacation dollars with us.”

Nevertheless, in October last year an Enhanced Fine Zone was created to improve traffic flow and minimise potential traffic disruption around the Goonies House area. The Oregon Film Museum has also been created and promoted to draw traffic away from the house, and attracted more than 36,000 visitors last year, although “the museum has been seen by visitors as an additional film location to the house, rather than a substitute”, according to the gooniedocks.org website.

As if to channel the famous line in the film, “Goonies never say die”, the fans are going nowhere fast. TruffleShuffle.com does a steady line selling Goonie-inspired merchandise, while street art of Chunk can currently be seen on Camden High Road in London.

So what’s behind the film’s appeal? Jeffrey Rudski, Professor of Psychology, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA, says: “People become attached to movies because the movie itself is associated with something of meaning. The Goonies is a coming of age story, and such stories can carry a high degree of emotional relevance to people. The movie portrays maturation as accompanied by success. It also involves community and camaraderie. When the going gets tough, you have your friends to support you. Seeing successful transitions across stages of development, combined with a sense of community there to support you is a potent mix. The movie becomes associated with that, thus bringing comfort and connection.”

As for Sandi, she concludes: “I don’t regret buying the house, mostly because I’ve met so many profoundly kind and loving people over the years. Many are my friends today.”

But would she consider selling? “You bet; make me an offer I’d be unable to refuse!”