How to Celebrate “Back to the Future” Day this Thursday

The movie "Back to the Future" premiered on July 3rd, 1985. The movie was also about the year 1985, when Marty McFly (played by Michael J. Fox) meets Doc Brown (played by Christopher Lloyd). Doc Brown creates a time machine DeLorean car that goes back to the past -- 1955 -- and also jumps forward to the future -- 2015.

The date of the future time travel happens on October 21st, when McFly is sent to the year 2015. (It's still weird to me that the "future" back then was 2015, and now we are six years past the future!)

This Thursday, October 21st, it will be "Back to the Future" Day, and you can celebrate in a grand way at the Grand Rapids Public Museum. The museum will host an all-day celebration of the film. A the same time they will be unveiling their new travel exhibit called “POPnology".

So dig into the back of your closets and see if you have any old clothing from the 80s. Or maybe check out a secondhand store and see if you can find any vintage clothing. Does anyone have an orange down filled vest like Michael J. Fox wore in the movie? (You can actually buy a complete Marty McFly costume on Amazon!) Visitors to the Grand Rapids Public Museum on "Back to the Future" Day are encouraged to dress as their favorite “Back to the Future” movie character.

As for the new interactive exhibit -- it will explore science, technology, engineering and more. It also will feature the iconic DeLorean Time Machine from the movie. You will be able to get pictures of the classic DeLorean!

While experiencing the interactive exhibit, you will be able to do things like build a rocket to launch to Mars, race against time to see if you can work faster than a robot, get pictures in a photo booth and more.

During the "Back to the Future" event, all visitors will be offered a discount admission price of $2 per person for the event. If you dress up as your favorite "Back to the Future" character and show off your costume at the museum’s front desk you will receive free entry.

Here is the very first DeLorean time travel scene from the movie...

For more information on the "POPnology" exhibit, check out the Grand Rapids Public Museum's website.

The Grand Rapids Public Museum is located at 272 Pearl Street NW, right along the Grand River, in downtown Grand Rapids.