Comments on: If that ain't Lake Minnetonka in "Purple Rain," which lake is it?

Question: If that ain't Lake Minnetonka in "Purple Rain," which lake is it?

GaelFC — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 08:39:24 -0800

In 1984's "Purple Rain," Prince famously tells Apollonia to purify herself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka. They're standing by a lake, so she jumps in, and only then does he tell her "That ain't Lake Minnetonka." I believe it's not--I'm a native Twin Citian and Lake Minnetonka is huge and ritzy. But my question is: What lake IS it? Another Twin Cities lake? Something in L.A.? A soundstage pool? (Unlikely!) Does anyone have the definitive answer. You can watch the scene here, NSFW because she's topless.

By: Madamina

Madamina — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 09:03:21 -0800

One internet source (which I won't link to because the forums kept running crazy scripts) said that a) it was actually filmed in two places and b) that part was somewhere in Eagan Township.

By: sanka

sanka — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 10:17:38 -0800

In some of the wider shots it looks a lot more like a river than a lake.

By: kuppajava

kuppajava — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 10:29:16 -0800

Maybe this map will help. It would seem to indicate it *was* Lake Minnetonka, but hard to tell. His Purple Badness had a house on Lake Minnetonka at the time from what I understand. Probably easy to shoot on one's own property.

It is definitely in Minnesota, as the actress playing Apollonia had a hypothermic scare after shooting the scene a number of times. I doubt hypothermia would happen in LA!

By: zombieApoc

zombieApoc — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 10:51:14 -0800

I reminds me of part of the vermillion river near Hastings. But, it could easily be someplace else as well

By: librarylis

librarylis — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 21:23:35 -0800

I don't have the definitive answer but that looks way more like Minnesota than California to me (I'm a SoCal native living in NoDak so I get the two climates). Also I think his motorcycle plates are Minnesota. As for which lake, sorry. You people have way too many!