Comments from chickadee

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chickadee
chickadee commented about Hampden Theatre on Jun 26, 2006 at 4:55 pm

I do not think the Hampden and Ideal were adjacent to each other, I think something was between them, perhaps the Arundel Ice Cream Store.

I spent many a Saturday at one of those two theaters. They had a feature film, serials (on Saturdays) and the newsreels.

If you were under a certain age (12 I think) it only cost twelve cents to see the movie. So for about thirty cents you could see the movie, get a soda and perhaps popcorn or candy.

Also, this was long before the time when movie theaters decided the best way to make a lot more money was to throw you out after one viewing, so many of us watched the movie over and over, we could blow in a whole Saturday at the movies.

There was a balcony and it was generally thought that those who wanted to “neck” would sit there. Also, way back then smoking was actually allowed in the theater. For a while you could just smoke in your seat. Then I think it was that you could only smoke in the balcony, then later at the back of the theater.

Sometimes, if you had a lot of nerve, you could sneak into the movie through the back door, when some patron would go out if you were waiting you could just come in that door. I never had the nerve for that.

There were actually ushers and they would show you to a seat using a flashlight so you would not trip and fall going down the aisle.

I remember one saturday (must have been in the winter) I went for the matinee. I left my brand new jacket on the seat when I went to the concession stand for a soda. When I came back someone had stolen my jacket. I can tell you, I got into a lot of trouble for that!

In those days I was vey much i
“in love” with the Durango Kid!! I also loved those Tarzan serials, and was sure that there really were buildings with walls that would close up and squeeze you to death, or huge plants that if a man stepped into them, would snap shut like a Venus Fly Trap and kill him!

Those were the days!