[6] Despite limited chart success, "American Girl" became one of Petty's most popular songs and a staple of classic rock.

"[7][8][9][10][11] It has also been used in several movies and television shows, often during a scene in which a character, much like the protagonist in the song's lyrics, is "longing for something bigger than their current existence.

They played it to close out the encore of their performance on September 25, 2017, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California, the final concert of their 40th Anniversary Tour.

Petty died of complications from cardiac arrest after an accidental prescription medication overdose on October 2, just over a week later.

The tempo is fast and "urgent,"[16] and is built on a repeated jangling guitar riff based on a "Bo Diddley beat.

"[8] Due to lyrics about a desperate girl on a balcony hearing "cars roll by out on 441," the song has long been rumored to be about a college student who committed suicide by jumping from the Beaty Towers residence hall at the University of Florida (UF) in Gainesville.

The 160 feet (49 m) dormitory is located on the edge of campus alongside US Route 441 and opened in 1967, when Petty was a teenager living across town.

[18][19] While the university did not historically keep records of on-campus suicides, a UF spokesman asserted that no one has died by jumping from Beaty Towers, which would be a difficult endeavor since the building has narrow unopenable windows but no balconies, and that Petty himself refuted the story when asked in person during a 2006 visit.

[37] The song has been featured in several Hollywood films and episodes of television shows, most notably FM (1978), Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Sopranos (1999), Scrubs (2001), Chasing Liberty (2004), Parks and Recreation (2009), Ricki and the Flash (2015) and The Handmaid's Tale (2017).

[39] Roger McGuinn of The Byrds (a major influence on Petty's music), released his own version of "American Girl" on his Thunderbyrd LP in 1977.

The similarity between Petty's record and The Byrds' musical style was so strong that when his manager first played "American Girl" for him, McGuinn asked "When did I write that song?

"[40] "American Girl" has also been covered by various other artists including: The Killers, The Shins, Jason Isbell, Green Day, Elle King, Taylor Swift, and Pearl Jam.