Triangle Park Scores a Sell-Out Premiere at America’s Packard Museum
Actors Von Farst and Vail Farst along with Director Allen Farst, Governor Mike DeWine, Executive Director & Curator Rob Signom along with Candice Farst.
On May 9, Triangle Park received a fitting hometown spotlight in Dayton with a sold-out premiere screening at America’s Packard Museum as part of Ohio Goes to the Movies, the statewide film celebration honoring America’s 250th anniversary. The free ticketed event, presented by America’s Packard Museum, was listed as sold out, underscoring the excitement around a film rooted in one of Dayton’s proudest sports stories.
With Ohio Governor Mike DeWine in attendance, the evening brought together film lovers, football fans, history buffs, and proud Ohioans for a story that began more than a century ago on a field in Dayton.
Triangle Park, written and directed by Dayton filmmaker Allen Farst, tells the story of what many football fans still do not realize: the first NFL football game traces back to Dayton, Ohio. The film’s official synopsis describes Triangle Park as a documentary based on the first-ever NFL football game, played by the Dayton Triangles on Sunday, October 3, 1920, in front of 5,000 fans. The Pro Football Hall of Fame records that on October 3, 1920, Dayton defeated Columbus 14–0 at Triangle Park, with Lou Partlow scoring the first touchdown in a game between Association teams.
That local history made Triangle Park a natural selection for Ohio Goes to the Movies, a Signature Event of America 250-Ohio. The program celebrates Ohioans, Ohio locations, and Ohio stories on screen through roughly 250 days of statewide movie programming in 2026. Ohio Goes to the Movies identified the May 9 screening at America’s Packard Museum as one of its 250-plus statewide screenings and noted the Ohio connection directly: “The first NFL Game at Triangle Park in Dayton is the subject of the film.”
The setting added another layer of Dayton pride. America’s Packard Museum, located at 420 S. Ludlow Street, opened its doors early so guests could tour the museum before the 7 p.m. screening. The evening’s event page described the program as “Lights. Camera. Dayton.” and invited attendees to experience a night where Ohio history met the silver screen.
The museum’s connection to the film went beyond hosting the premiere. Triangle Park includes cameos by two historic Packards and an appearance by America’s Packard Museum curator Stu Morris, bringing Dayton’s automotive heritage into the film’s celebration of football history. The museum’s leadership also reflects that same blend of preservation and storytelling. Robert Signom III, America’s Packard Museum’s Executive Director, was selected as Curator of The Citizens’ Motorcar Company, America’s Packard Museum, in 2019 and became Executive Director in 2022; his background includes more than 20 years in theatrical production, along with museum studies training at Harvard University was in attendance. Former Ohio State football player Jimmie Bell hosted the Q&A after the film.
That combination of film, football, automobiles, and local memory made the sold-out screening feel especially fitting. Triangle Park is not only a sports documentary. It is a story about place, legacy, and the people who keep history alive. Farst’s film looks back to a Sunday afternoon in 1920, when the Dayton Triangles and Columbus Panhandles helped launch what would become one of America’s defining sports institutions.
Director Allen Farst
The movie also brings national football voices into a deeply local story. Ohio Goes to the Movies notes that Triangle Park was filmed in Ohio and features Kirk Herbstreit of Centerville and Taylor Decker of Vandalia. The film’s official site lists appearances by football figures including Troy Aikman, Joe Buck, Cris Collinsworth, Tony Dungy, Larry Fitzgerald, Ben Roethlisberger, Joe Theismann, Kirk Herbstreit, Taylor Decker, and others, with narration by Emmy-winning sportscaster Michele Tafoya.
The May 9 premiere was a celebration of more than one movie. It was a reminder that some of America’s biggest stories started in places people pass every day. Before packed stadiums, billion-dollar broadcasts, and Super Bowl Sundays, there was Triangle Park in Dayton. Before the NFL became a national institution, Ohio communities were already shaping the game.
Through Ohio Goes to the Movies, that story now reaches a new audience. The program’s mission is to showcase Ohio’s contributions to film and moviemaking, including independent films, Hollywood titles, archival works, and special-interest films. Triangle Park belongs proudly in that lineup because it captures something Ohio knows well: innovation often starts locally, then grows into something the whole country claims as its own.
As America marks its 250th anniversary, Triangle Park gives Dayton, Ohio, and football fans everywhere a reason to look back with pride. The first chapter of the NFL was not written under bright stadium lights. It was written on an Ohio field, by Ohio teams, in front of Ohio fans.
And on May 9, at a sold-out screening inside America’s Packard Museum, that story came home.
