Just like the young boy in the movie “Cinema Paradiso” (discussed in Chapter 2), I established a home away from home at a local movie theater. My father was an Air Force officer and the military base where we lived had a movie theater. I was lucky enough to land a job changing the movie posters in a display case by the entrance to the base. My payment for doing this job was free admission to any movie I wished to see. The usual admission price was thirty-five cents. New releases were fifty cents. I considered myself to be incredibly fortunate and extremely well compensated!
Naturally, I wanted to see all the movies! What a stroke of good fortune that I could see any movie, without regard to the movie’s rating, because of my status as a posterer. Just like Toto, the young boy in “Cinema Paradiso,” I didn’t miss out on any movie kisses! I was always a bit nervous, but the ticket takers knew me by name and simply waved me in, even when a movie was rated R. I was favored by the movie gods right from the beginning!
Several movies from this time period really stick in my memory. “The Manchurian Candidate” was quite a shocker for a thirteen year old! I also vividly remember watching Clint Eastwood in westerns such as “A Fistful of Dollars,” “A Few Dollars More,” and “The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly.” Since that time, I have never seen an audience react the way that audience reacted to those movies! Other memories include watching all the Elvis movies and enjoying cartoons and newsreels before the main attraction.
I moved to Austin, Texas in 1978 in order to attend the University of Texas. I rented a mailbox at Blue Bonnet Plaza, which was located near the university. Blue Bonnet Plaza was an older, two story, wooden building which contained several small businesses. Les Amis, a charming sidewalk cafe, occupied a covered patio along one side of Blue Bonnet Plaza. The Varsity movie theatre was located just around the corner.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but there was definitely a “New Wave” in Austin movies happening around me. One afternoon, I headed to Blue Bonnet Plaza to pickup my mail. I climbed the wooden stairs which led to the second floor of Blue Bonnet Plaza where my mailbox was located. I was surprised when I encountered Godzilla coming down the stairs! Movie making was in progress!
Lee Daniels, the future cinematographer for the director Richard Linklater, was making a movie. He was assisted by the eight year old son of the proprietor of the mailbox rental business. They were filming a plastic Godzilla wreaking havoc at Blue Bonnet Plaza. Not long after this Godzilla incident, Richard Linklater’s first feature film, “Slackers,” was released. I discuss Linklater’s extraordinary “Before Sunrise” trilogy in Chapter 4.
Around this same time, I discovered the movie reviews in the Austin Chronicle, a free weekly newspaper. I have been reading the movie reviews in the Austin Chronicle for over forty years! In my opinion, there are only about a dozen movies released each year which are so good they simply cannot be missed. I rely on the Austin Chronicle movie reviews to make sure I don’t miss these important movies.
This time period preceded the widespread introduction of video cassettes. I remember thinking that if I missed an opportunity for seeing a movie like Ingmar Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night,” I might never have another opportunity to see that movie! What a blessing it is to be able to stream or purchase the movies you wish to see! Fear of missing out has been banished forever with regard to movies!
I watched countless movies at the Varsity Theater before it closed. The Varsity Theater is where I first watched Ingmar Bergman’s “Smiles of a Summer Night” and “Virgin Spring.” After I was introduced to Bergman’s films, I became a dedicated cinemaphile. For an English major such as myself, watching a Bergman movie was very much like reading Shakespeare. Movies became a transcendent experience!
Movies have played an important role in my romantic life. My first date with my wife Erica was to see Ingmar Bergman’s “Wild Strawberries” at the Varsity Theater. I have heard it remarked that going to a movie is not the ideal date because you have little opportunity to carry on a conversation. This problem can be solved, however, by going to an early movie and then going out to dinner. This plan has the advantage of giving you something to talk about while you continue to enjoy each other’s company!
“Wild Strawberries” worked its magic. My mind was a swirl with ideas about nostalgia, youth, love, regret, old age, and wild strawberries! I took Erica’s hand in order to steady myself! I felt like I was walking on air as we exited the theater and stepped into the city! This was such a lovely time in my life at the movies!