SUMMER MOVIE SEASON

Ahh.. my favorite thing about summer. Movie Season. At some point in their lives, everyone in my family has worked in a movie theater. Everyone except me... who has reaped the benefits of free movies through the years. When I first met my husband, he was going to college and was a projectionist in a local movie theater. He kept that job through college, and worked it as his extra job through the early years of our marriage. The first projection booth had 2 projectors that ran one movie. The movies came several small reels that were spliced together and put on larger reels. The movie would be delivered on around 8-10 small reels in metal boxes with handles on the top. To this day my husband has hard strong muscles in his arms and legs from lugging the film canisters up 2-3 flights of stairs to the projection booth. They would be started on one projector using a carbon rod to strike a flame or a light that would project the movie to the screen. I don't really know how it worked. He would get a signal,a beep, and then would know just when to start the movie by watching these small dots embedded on the edge of the movie, to start the second projector so that the movie would seamlessly continue. The reels would have to be put on a rewind bench to rewind to the beginning for the next show. We used to sit my son on the rewind bench in his baby seat.

Later, with multiplexes, the films were set up on big platters, and I don't think that the projectors were carbon arc. They are moving on to digital now. This is my son spending time in the booth with dad. He got really good at threading up the projectors, and spent a couple of years as a projectionist when he was in college. As a family, we love movies. When they were free, I saw everything I could. No horror, to incredibly violent.. ie Scarface, Goodfellas etc. The kids and I would head off for a matinee every weekend. They would drag their little booster seats along. They learned at an early age to behave in the theater. We (I) liked to sit in the back row. When the kids were older, I would let them sit together wherever I could keep an eye on them. Usually the front.. ugh. Now we go to a theater with stadium seating. Although it is a climb to get to the back row, I love it there, right in the center where I can sit a couple of feet under the projection window and listen to the soft clicking of the film going through the projector.

Okay, summer movie season. I have finally realized that many of my favorite movies are science fiction or action. I pretty much can't stand message movies. I go to the movies as an escape. Today I saw 17 Again . It was pretty funny, and I could actually relate to the nerd friend. Sad. One line that cracked me up was "Are you now, or have you ever been a time-traveling cyborg?"

Speaking of this Terminator - Salvation They have moved on beyond Arnold in this one. It takes the sting out of the Sara Connor Chronicles being canceled.

Then, of course, there is Star Trek . Tomorrow is X MEN Wolverine and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past then there is ANGELS & DEMONS and Night at the Museum - Battle of the Smithsonian and The Taking of Pelham 123 and who can resist a chick flick with Sandra Bullock? The Proposal or the tear jerker?My Sister's Keeper okay.. about those message movies? I watched the trailer, and I love this actress, who was on 24 a couple of seasons ago. The Stoning of Sorayam and who could turn down Johnny Depp? Public Enemies or Harry? Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

I'm sure I will find other movies that I want to see. These are the movies I can think of right now.. I guess that is enough to keep me going.

This is a sewing weekend, I am going to dip into my vast movie collection for a PANDEMIC FILM FESTIVAL.. I only have two movies that would fit into this category The Stand and I am Legend . One of these is a miniseries so it is around 6 hours long. If I just plowed ahead and had an END OF THE WORLD MOVIE FESTIVAL, I could add several more movies to my viewing list. I guess I will have to commemorate that event at another time. ;)

Have a good weekend!!