I wasn’t from the neighborhood there around the Village but I did go to school at Lanier Jr. High and then to Lamar High. I lived closer to the old Tower Theater back in the 50’s and 60’s and 70’s. But the most unforgettable night back then was when my older brother took myself, and my mother, and just about the whole family, to witness the first showing of the movie THE EXORCIST there at the Village. Never have I heard such screaming and emotional outcries from an audience that at the showing…it scared us all half to death!! I remember there being some big controversy about showing this film in any theater in Houston but the Village took up the torch and dared to show it and boy it was a smash hit for the theater. That is about the only movie I saw there but it was a nice little movie house. I now live in another state but I will never forget the movie houses of Houston.
I think that Houston certainly lost a treasure in letting the BIG THREE downtown theaters go..especially the Majestic. My best friend and I use to love going to the movies downtown on Friday nights throughout the 1960s and I remember the splendor of all three movie houses. I thought the Majestic was the most mysterious place to be out of all of them..with the box seating and the way the balcony was set up…I felt as if I were in some ancient place had witnessed live operas and who knows what all. My best friend’s mother worked at Foleys downtown and we would go downtown by bus so he could pick up his allownance and then it was off to the movies!! I saw every single one of the James Bond movies downtown and also the newer John Wayne movies and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
However, Houston destroyed so many historic buildings during the late 60’s and 70’s and early 80’s that it really should’ve been considered a criminal act by greed real estate goons and there should have been indictments handed down. That is how strongly I feel about losing the ability of being able to go to the old Houston Downtown and to get that “feeling” you got while ejoying the sites and the sounds back then. Now that has been destroyed and carted off to the landfill. Shame on the city fathers who allowed this to happen.
Some of my most vivid and happy childhood memories revolve around this old theater located at the entrance to the Heights section of Houston.
I think the first time I went there was in 1959 with my two older brothers and continued going there with them until the start of the Viet Nam war when they both got drafted and I began going alone.
The first movies I actually remember seeing there were the Elvis movies which were followed by the Surfer movies and the Horror movies and then the Hells Angels on Wheels type movies following later. The last movie I remember seeing there was the original showing of Bonnie and Clyde with Warren Beaty and Faye Dunnaway
..a true first run at that time.
I learned to twist at the Yale as Mr. Bodenhiemer (not Gugenhiemer), the manager, actually had a twist contest during the intermissions during the Saturday matinees programs (which consited of a cartoon, a re-run and then the main feature). Yes, Mr. Bodenhiemer would jump up on the stage there in front of the screen on Saturdays and thank us all for showing up and then go into his famous “I’ll give two movie passes for anyone who is wearing one red sock and one blue sock!!” And sure enough there would be a winner!! Then he would say “Alright Boys and Girls who can do the twist?” Come on up here and we will have a twist contest and the winner will get five movie passes and a free popcorn and soda from the conssecion stand!!“ Man it was the cats meow and the most hillarious thing I ever saw to see a line of 8 to 14 year olds up on that stage doing the twist to the old Chubby Checkers song…and I too even went up to try to win at the urgings of a girl I had met there that day. What fun those intermission activities use to be. Eventually Mr. Bodenhiemr even let area garage bands up on the stage to play two or three songs and Louie Louie and Wild Thing and Wooly Bully never sounded so good as being played by kids with out of tune guitars and missed drum licks..but you couldn’t tell as the kids were wild.
Eventually the lights Mr. Bodenhiemer would remind us how great we all were and that it was time for the next show and that good behaviour was the best way to stay for the next show…what fun we had at that theater. I learned to sing like Elvis, dance like I was at the Beach with Annette Funnichello, and kick like Billy Jack and ride my bicycle like I was a Hells Angel Unchained!! Yes the Yale theater was a classic and God Bless Mr. Bodenhiemer and his crew for allowing us kids to have such a good time on Saturday.
I wasn’t from the neighborhood there around the Village but I did go to school at Lanier Jr. High and then to Lamar High. I lived closer to the old Tower Theater back in the 50’s and 60’s and 70’s. But the most unforgettable night back then was when my older brother took myself, and my mother, and just about the whole family, to witness the first showing of the movie THE EXORCIST there at the Village. Never have I heard such screaming and emotional outcries from an audience that at the showing…it scared us all half to death!! I remember there being some big controversy about showing this film in any theater in Houston but the Village took up the torch and dared to show it and boy it was a smash hit for the theater. That is about the only movie I saw there but it was a nice little movie house. I now live in another state but I will never forget the movie houses of Houston.
I think that Houston certainly lost a treasure in letting the BIG THREE downtown theaters go..especially the Majestic. My best friend and I use to love going to the movies downtown on Friday nights throughout the 1960s and I remember the splendor of all three movie houses. I thought the Majestic was the most mysterious place to be out of all of them..with the box seating and the way the balcony was set up…I felt as if I were in some ancient place had witnessed live operas and who knows what all. My best friend’s mother worked at Foleys downtown and we would go downtown by bus so he could pick up his allownance and then it was off to the movies!! I saw every single one of the James Bond movies downtown and also the newer John Wayne movies and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
However, Houston destroyed so many historic buildings during the late 60’s and 70’s and early 80’s that it really should’ve been considered a criminal act by greed real estate goons and there should have been indictments handed down. That is how strongly I feel about losing the ability of being able to go to the old Houston Downtown and to get that “feeling” you got while ejoying the sites and the sounds back then. Now that has been destroyed and carted off to the landfill. Shame on the city fathers who allowed this to happen.
Some of my most vivid and happy childhood memories revolve around this old theater located at the entrance to the Heights section of Houston.
I think the first time I went there was in 1959 with my two older brothers and continued going there with them until the start of the Viet Nam war when they both got drafted and I began going alone.
The first movies I actually remember seeing there were the Elvis movies which were followed by the Surfer movies and the Horror movies and then the Hells Angels on Wheels type movies following later. The last movie I remember seeing there was the original showing of Bonnie and Clyde with Warren Beaty and Faye Dunnaway
..a true first run at that time.
I learned to twist at the Yale as Mr. Bodenhiemer (not Gugenhiemer), the manager, actually had a twist contest during the intermissions during the Saturday matinees programs (which consited of a cartoon, a re-run and then the main feature). Yes, Mr. Bodenhiemer would jump up on the stage there in front of the screen on Saturdays and thank us all for showing up and then go into his famous “I’ll give two movie passes for anyone who is wearing one red sock and one blue sock!!” And sure enough there would be a winner!! Then he would say “Alright Boys and Girls who can do the twist?” Come on up here and we will have a twist contest and the winner will get five movie passes and a free popcorn and soda from the conssecion stand!!“ Man it was the cats meow and the most hillarious thing I ever saw to see a line of 8 to 14 year olds up on that stage doing the twist to the old Chubby Checkers song…and I too even went up to try to win at the urgings of a girl I had met there that day. What fun those intermission activities use to be. Eventually Mr. Bodenhiemr even let area garage bands up on the stage to play two or three songs and Louie Louie and Wild Thing and Wooly Bully never sounded so good as being played by kids with out of tune guitars and missed drum licks..but you couldn’t tell as the kids were wild.
Eventually the lights Mr. Bodenhiemer would remind us how great we all were and that it was time for the next show and that good behaviour was the best way to stay for the next show…what fun we had at that theater. I learned to sing like Elvis, dance like I was at the Beach with Annette Funnichello, and kick like Billy Jack and ride my bicycle like I was a Hells Angel Unchained!! Yes the Yale theater was a classic and God Bless Mr. Bodenhiemer and his crew for allowing us kids to have such a good time on Saturday.