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Celebrity statuary: 10 towns that honor their famous residents

Carri Wilbanks
Special for USA TODAY
Thomas Wells | Daily Journal


Film buffs could center an entire vacation (or Instagram page!) around crisscrossing America in search of movie and TV star statues. From a replica of Andy Griffith and Opie walking to a fishing hole in Mount Airy, N.C.,  to the bronze statue of Rocky Balboa with fists raised in triumph at the base of the 72 steps leading into the Philadelphia Museum of Art, here are our 10 picks for the best celebrity statues in the USA:

Andy Griffith, Mount Airy, N.C.

Mount Airy, N.C. was the late Andy Griffith's hometown, and the fictional "Mayberry" featured in The Andy Griffith Show was patterned after the small town where he grew up. As such it makes sense that the town hosts a bronze statue of Andy and Opie walking to the fishin’ hole. It was donated to the town of Mount Airy by TV Land in recognition of the avid following The Andy Griffith Show has enjoyed over the years, and stands in front of the Andy Griffith Museum, which opened in late 2009 and draws more than 50,000 visitors annually. Also check out the Andy Griffith Playhouse, the restored elementary school auditorium where Andy made his singing debut, located just a few steps away.

John Wayne, Winterset, Iowa

Fans of Marion Robert Morrison – better known as John Wayne – will want to check out the 7-foot-tall statue of the actor that stands outside the museum dedicated to him in his hometown of Winterset, Iowa, where he was born on May 26, 1907. The 6,100-square foot museum is the only one in the world dedicated to Wayne and includes memorabilia from his life and motion picture career. The statue was donated by the Wayne family and was dedicated by Aissa Wayne at the 2010 John Wayne Birthday Celebration.

Sylvester Stallone, Philadelphia, Pa.

The 1976 film Rocky forever made the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art an iconic symbol of determination after fictional boxing star Rocky Balboa triumphantly scaled all 72 steps. This scene from the triple-Oscar winning film left such an impact that most people just refer to the stairs as the “Rocky Steps.” The image of Rocky with his fists raised into the air became immortalized in bronze in 1980 when Sylvester Stallone donated a statue portraying his character to the City of Philadelphia. Fans of the film can snap a picture with the statue at the bottom of the steps and recreate their own movie magic as they follow in the footsteps of Rocky Balboa.

Elvis Presley, Tupelo, Miss. 

Elvis was born in Tupelo, and the Mississippi town just south of Memphis has three different statues honoring The King. The “Elvis at 13” statue stands at the Elvis Presley Birthplace, preserving the young star at the age he left Tupelo for a better life in Memphis. The Birthplace is also home to “Becoming,” a piece that depicts a young Elvis sitting on a milk crate strumming the guitar that was purchased for him at Tupelo Hardware Co., while behind him stands his older self in full regalia at the height of his fame. Finally, Elvis’ 1956 Homecoming concert is memorialized in a statue in Downtown Tupelo’s Fairpark District, mirroring the iconic photo “The Hands,” by Roger Marshutz.

Mary Tyler Moore, Minneapolis, Minn.

Mary Tyler Moore’s groundbreaking television series, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, took place at fictional WJM-TV Minneapolis, where the character Mary Richards was a TV producer. She was the first never-married, independent working female TV character when the show ran 1970-1977. The acclaimed series won multiple Emmy Awards and other accolades. In 2001, TV Land erected a statue honoring this series and the actor, which it gifted to Minneapolis and placed on the corner of Nicollet Mall and 7th Street, near where Mary appeared in the opening credits of the program.

Dolly Parton, Sevierville, Tenn.

Dolly Parton has a bronze statue, sculpted by local artist Jim Gray, gracing the center of her historic hometown of Sevierville's downtown. It's been there since 1987 and is a popular photo stop for thousands of people each year.

Bob Hope, San Diego, Calif.

Bob Hope's legacy is commemorated by a statue next to the USS Midway in San Diego, which entertains the troops along the downtown Embarcadero. Titled “A National Salute to Bob Hope and the Military,” the interactive sculpture is a fitting tribute not only to Bob Hope but also to the legions of servicemen and women he entertained over the years including many in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.

Elizabeth Montgomery, Salem, Mass.

TV Land donated a Samantha Stevens statue to Salem on June 15, 2005, to commemorate the popular 1970s's TV show Bewitched. The sculpture was placed in Lappin Park on the corner of Essex and Washington Street, in the location where a series of episodes, known as the Salem Saga, were filmed for the show. These episodes highlighted many of the landmarks of Salem, including the House of the Seven Gables. Although only a few episodes were filmed in Salem, after a trip to the city during Halloween, TV Land Senior VP Robert Pellizzi decided that the statue belonged in Salem. Today the statue of actress Elizabeth Montgomery on her broom remains a popular spot for visitors to snap photos in the heart of Salem.

Lucille Ball, Celoron, N.Y.

Lucille Ball grew up in the village of Celoron in New York, and in August 2009 a statue of the actress was donated to the village by two residents as part of a real estate deal in which the residents agreed to sell a building in Jamestown, N.Y. to a sculptor to be renovated for his studio in exchange for the creation of a sculpture of their choice. The statue is located in the park on the shores of Chautauqua Lake. The park is the former location of Celoron Amusement Park, which had ballrooms where Lucille Ball attended performances.

Nicholas Cage Hands, Orange Beach, Ala.

If you've always wanted to hold hands with Nicholas Cage you now can in Alabama – so long as you're wearing scuba gear and diving in Poseidon's Playground off Orange Beach on Alabama's Gulf Coast. If so, you can check out the handprints of Cage and actor Cody Walker, set into a new section of the offshore Orange Beach diving reef known as the Reefs of Fame area. The idea came about after Cage and Walker filmed the to-be-released film USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage.

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