Every year on September 1, the City of Binghamton celebrates Thirty-Three Cecils Day. It’s a local holiday inspired by Everett De Morier’s novel Thirty-Three Cecils, a story deeply tied to both Binghamton and Erie, Pennsylvania. Since 2023, this day has brought the community together to honor life, literature, and the story that put Binghamton in the national spotlight.
From Page to Screen: Binghamton Story Becomes a Film
Published in 2015, Thirty-Three Cecils follows two very different men, Walker Roe and Riley Dutcher, whose lives collide through circumstance, mistakes, and the search for redemption. The novel is emotional, gritty, and set in real locations that locals know well. Now, it’s being adapted into a feature film set to begin production in Binghamton in 2026. The movie will be directed by Matthew Modine.
Two Troubled Lives Collide in a Haunting Story
Walker Roe is a former filmmaker and cartoonist from Erie who has just served time for fraud and counterfeiting. Divorced and living in an apartment complex nicknamed “Divorce Court,” he struggles to rebuild his life under the judgment of a community scarred by his crimes. He befriends Lester Bugby, the landlord of his building (who will be played by Dustin Hoffman in the film), until Bugby suddenly dies in a canoeing accident, sparking suspicion and whispers about Walker’s involvement.
Meanwhile, Riley Dutcher, known simply as Dutch, is a self-described drunkard trying to find his way to sobriety. His life takes a strange turn when an expensive bicycle mysteriously appears in his home. With no idea how it got there, Dutch sets out on a path that transforms him into a rootless traveler. Eventually, his journey leads him to Erie, where his life becomes intertwined with Walker’s…