Dave Knight is among smiling faces people see when they arrive to visit the Oregon Film Museum in the center of downtown Astoria.

His commitment to the cause is a story in itself.

Knight and his wife Heather lived in the Bay Area during the covid shutdowns, and like many had to ponder their future when jobs and just about everything else changed.

“We had to relocate and this was where we parachuted in,” he said. “This was us taking a chance. Never for one second did we think we could move here, but coming to visit Astoria has been a ‘bucket list’ item my entire life.” 

As a sales clerk in the museum gift store at 732 Duane St. in Astoria, Knight greets visitors and explains the scope of the museum, which includes the option of filming scenes in a back studio. 

A large segment of visitors are “Goonies” aficionados.

“I feel like an ambassador for all these fans coming from around the world,” he said. “I feel a really strong need to do something important, and this is it.”

Leaders at the Clatsop County Historical Society were being visionary when they saw the potential of turning the old Clatsop County Jail in downtown Astoria where the “Goonies” jailbreak scene was filmed into the Oregon Film Museum. It opened in 2010.

One of the most popular elements for any visit is a station marked “Leave a Note for The Goonies.” While it was intended to be temporary, it has become a must-participate project for visiting fans.

The jail at 732 Duane St. in Astoria incarcerated real bad dudes from 1914 to 1976. As well as “The Goonies,” it appears in “Short Circuit,” the cute 1986 robot story that provided a change of pace from Ally Sheedy’s “brat pack” movies, and a poignant Dennis Quaid World War II-era Japanese-American love story “Come See The Paradise” (1990). Other movies shot in Astoria include the Arnold Schwarzenegger comedy “Kindergarten Cop” (also 1990).

Details of films which have been shot elsewhere in Oregon are highlighted at the museum. These have included about 400, including “Animal House,” “The Shining,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” “Sometimes a Great Notion,” “Twilight,” “Rooster Cogburn,” “Stand By Me,” “Mr. Holland’s Opus” and “Paint Your Wagon.” Mount Hood is prominent in the 1952 James Stewart Western “Bend of the River.”

With all those classics filmed around the state, why is “The Goonies,” filmed in Astoria in 1985, so memorable?

“I was 12 or 13 when I saw the movie. It hit me like a ton of bricks,” Knight said.

“It is an extraordinary story of innocence, and adventure and hope. There is a big message of hope — ‘save the neighborhood!’ It is the perfect movie and it is going to be around forever.”

• The Oregon Film Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, May through September. Admission is $6 for adults and $2 for youth.