Comments from jimlawrence

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jimlawrence
jimlawrence commented about Circle Theatre on Jul 29, 2014 at 1:08 pm

“Book ticket!” was the cry from the lady who would sell me book after book of 10 tickets for $10. I still have one or two books. Of course, each ticket would admit you to two classic films.

Bob, the loveable old ticket taker took a shine to me and would only accept a ticket every other visit. I felt like I lived there – often attending several nights in a row, year after year. I would even walk miles uphill back up to Glover park after a particularly good film to savor it instead of taking the 30, 32, 36 or 38 bus up Pennsylvania and Wisconsin avenues.

I must take issue with the original poster – the seats were comfortable – and the poster who said the screen was small. It was large (several times larger than the Biograph’s screen)and one of the larger screens in town at that time. I remember the Uptown and Avalon being larger.

After seemingly hundreds of nights in that theater I don’t remember any homeless people. They certainly weren’t making their presence known to me.

I truly loved that beautiful old theater and was sad to see it go.

It was the foundation of my film education and the beginning of my love affairs with Kurosawa, Fellini, Cocteau, Welles, Bergman, Allen, Coppola, Capra, Hitchcock, Bertolucci, Ford, Kubrick, Chaplin, Scorsese, Huston, Altman, Wertmuller, and dozens more.

Does anyone remember Mr. Henry’s across the street on the same block? Many wonderful meals discussing film there before and after the show.