Ode to Cinema 70 (& General Cinemas)
I had another surreal enconter with my distant past this evening. On YouTube I found some clips of old General Cinemas ads, previews of coming attractions bumpers, and the like. I spent several years watching these clips at the long gone Cinema 70 in West Palm Beach, FL. One of my childhood theaters, a place where I spent many an hour from childhood through early college.
It began with STAR WARS. That was to be my intro to the place. At that time, it was still just one screen. But in the late 70s, the multiplex was taking over. Following suit, Cinema 70 was split into three smaller rooms around '80 or so. Through those years and beyond, I practiced a religion of sorts. STAR WARS began a lifetime of celluloid obsessiveness. Often a lonely pastime, the zeal of which I've only been able to share with a handful. Sure, most people love to go to the movies, but how many like to ponder over them, say, over a Coke at the also long gone S & S Cafeteria next door? Really serious analyses, not just "that was righteous!" And when you're only 9!? Not too many. So, Cinema 70 and I had a bond. I was a strange kid, make no mistake.
In the earlier years, my father or grandmother brought me. Only to G or PG films, natch. As the 80s wore on, I began to attend solo quite a bit, watching all manner of pop culture like GHOSTBUSTERS, SUDDEN IMPACT, ALIENS, SCROOGED, and many others I can't recall at this late hour. The theater became a second home. I never felt self-conscious about going by myself. Film watching obviously lends itself to this.
Then, around late 1989, it closed. I can still see the final marquee, advertising DANGEROUS LIASONS and some others. It stayed empty for several months before it was bulldozed. It was disheartening. Of course, this was a theme to follow me to this day (ref. previous entries). A part of me, as they say, had died. I could not share these feelings with anyone at the time, I thought. It seemed trivial in the grand scheme, but it affected me strongly.
So here we are in the 00s. YouTube has brought back a number a visual and aurals that were lodged deeply into my long term. Commercials, music videos, newscasts, they're (almost) all there. So odd to find yourself knowing every beat, every pause, like no time at all had passed. Beloved chestnuts from your youth, for years just hazy memories, now laid bare. I'm sure you've experienced it.
The General Cinemas spots proved to be especially startling. The spinning reels on the animated projector, the hypnotic percussion of themes, the familiar backgrounds. I was transported. So eerie. Little pieces of my history, still preserved. God bless those who upload these little gems. That little guy in the dark would never imagine that he would one day be reliving these ditties on a laptop computer. Isn't life funny.
It began with STAR WARS. That was to be my intro to the place. At that time, it was still just one screen. But in the late 70s, the multiplex was taking over. Following suit, Cinema 70 was split into three smaller rooms around '80 or so. Through those years and beyond, I practiced a religion of sorts. STAR WARS began a lifetime of celluloid obsessiveness. Often a lonely pastime, the zeal of which I've only been able to share with a handful. Sure, most people love to go to the movies, but how many like to ponder over them, say, over a Coke at the also long gone S & S Cafeteria next door? Really serious analyses, not just "that was righteous!" And when you're only 9!? Not too many. So, Cinema 70 and I had a bond. I was a strange kid, make no mistake.
In the earlier years, my father or grandmother brought me. Only to G or PG films, natch. As the 80s wore on, I began to attend solo quite a bit, watching all manner of pop culture like GHOSTBUSTERS, SUDDEN IMPACT, ALIENS, SCROOGED, and many others I can't recall at this late hour. The theater became a second home. I never felt self-conscious about going by myself. Film watching obviously lends itself to this.
Then, around late 1989, it closed. I can still see the final marquee, advertising DANGEROUS LIASONS and some others. It stayed empty for several months before it was bulldozed. It was disheartening. Of course, this was a theme to follow me to this day (ref. previous entries). A part of me, as they say, had died. I could not share these feelings with anyone at the time, I thought. It seemed trivial in the grand scheme, but it affected me strongly.
So here we are in the 00s. YouTube has brought back a number a visual and aurals that were lodged deeply into my long term. Commercials, music videos, newscasts, they're (almost) all there. So odd to find yourself knowing every beat, every pause, like no time at all had passed. Beloved chestnuts from your youth, for years just hazy memories, now laid bare. I'm sure you've experienced it.
The General Cinemas spots proved to be especially startling. The spinning reels on the animated projector, the hypnotic percussion of themes, the familiar backgrounds. I was transported. So eerie. Little pieces of my history, still preserved. God bless those who upload these little gems. That little guy in the dark would never imagine that he would one day be reliving these ditties on a laptop computer. Isn't life funny.
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