SAXONBURG — The Hotel Saxonburg spent Monday being used as a movie set for a film about Prohibition.

Batpack Studios and War Entertainment, film and entertainment companies from Cranberry Township, picked the hotel as the backdrop for their newest production because of its authenticity.

The documentary was written by Little Chicago, another film company based in Allentown.

Corey May, chief performing officer for War Entertainment, based in Thorn Hill Industrial Park, said the Hotel Saxonburg has not changed much since it opened in 1832.

The documentary called, "Prohibition, A Historical Epic," focuses on the sociological aspects of the 18th Amendment, which banned alcohol in the United States.

"We wanted to look at how people reacted to Prohibition. The Hotel Saxonburg was picked as a filming site because of its historical value and the generosity of owner, Carolyn Gentile," May said.

Gentile, whose family has owned the hotel for 51 years, said Friday May had seen the rooms on the second floor, which have been renovated and decorated to period.

"She asked if they could film here, so I let them in around 11 a.m. and they were here until after 10 p.m.," she said.

This is not the first time the Hotel Saxonburg has played a starring role on the small screen, as "Mister Rogers Neighborhood" filmed an episode there in the 1970s.

"It told kids about how to eat in a restaurant. It still shows up on television from time to time," Gentile said.

As for May and her production, the crew and actors filmed the following scenes for the documentary at the hotel:

n A 1905 tea party of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union;

n "Joe sent me," the speakeasy entrance code;

n President Franklin Delano Roosevelt receiving a bottle of beer in the White House after the passage of the 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition in 1933.

Now the film goes through editing and production processes and should be completed this winter, May said.

"We hope to find academics who will show it to their classes, allowing for discussions about social behavior and the law," she said, adding that television is also a place where they hope to see the film, perhaps on such channels as The History Channel.