It’s an interesting question. There may not be evidence of a direct connection, but both screenwriter Michael Sloane and director Frank Darabont were long-time locals, so it wouldn’t be out of the question that some inspiration may have occurred. Was Sloane aware of The Mayfair/Majestic? Sloane was actually a boyhood friend of Darabont. Both graduated from Hollywood High School, are almost exactly the same age (having been born only one day apart in the same year) and worked as theater ushers on Hollywood Boulevard at the Egyptian and Paramount movie houses during their student years.**
Any inspiration, if it indeed occurred, would have been solely in the realm of imagery, memories and ideas at best, as the screenplay doesn’t parallel the history of the Mayfair/Majestic.
Set in 1951 the Majestic of the film’s title is the name of an aging, neglected movie palace in the fictional California community of Lawson that is resurrected and restored to its former glory when this screenwriter fatefully arrives there after his accident. His appearance in the town touches the hearts of many of the local residents, who presume Appleton to be Luke Trimble, one of the their long-lost (and feared dead) WWII heroes. Darabont does not shy away from confessing his devotion to one of Hollywood’s early masters, and you could say his new film recalls Capra’s 1946 masterpiece, “It’s A Wonderful Life,†in its sensibilities and small-town setting.**
Does anyone know about what decade this theatre opened as the Majestic? A relative of my spouse lived in a house across the street from this location as late as 1919.
It’s an interesting question. There may not be evidence of a direct connection, but both screenwriter Michael Sloane and director Frank Darabont were long-time locals, so it wouldn’t be out of the question that some inspiration may have occurred. Was Sloane aware of The Mayfair/Majestic? Sloane was actually a boyhood friend of Darabont. Both graduated from Hollywood High School, are almost exactly the same age (having been born only one day apart in the same year) and worked as theater ushers on Hollywood Boulevard at the Egyptian and Paramount movie houses during their student years.**
Any inspiration, if it indeed occurred, would have been solely in the realm of imagery, memories and ideas at best, as the screenplay doesn’t parallel the history of the Mayfair/Majestic.
Set in 1951 the Majestic of the film’s title is the name of an aging, neglected movie palace in the fictional California community of Lawson that is resurrected and restored to its former glory when this screenwriter fatefully arrives there after his accident. His appearance in the town touches the hearts of many of the local residents, who presume Appleton to be Luke Trimble, one of the their long-lost (and feared dead) WWII heroes. Darabont does not shy away from confessing his devotion to one of Hollywood’s early masters, and you could say his new film recalls Capra’s 1946 masterpiece, “It’s A Wonderful Life,†in its sensibilities and small-town setting.**
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Does anyone know about what decade this theatre opened as the Majestic? A relative of my spouse lived in a house across the street from this location as late as 1919.