Some time back in the dim mists of history — farther back than I really want to admit — The Girlfriend and I discovered this neat little place called The Organ Loft. I’ve written about it before, but for those of you who are just joining us, I should explain that The Loft is an unassuming little building in South Salt Lake wherein resides an unexpected treasure: one of the few surviving theater pipe organs of the type that were designed and manufactured in the early 20th century to accompany silent movies. Now, I’m the sort who would be satisfied if the organ had simply been preserved for people to look at, but the really cool thing about The Loft is that its owner puts it to use. Once or twice a month during the fall, winter, and spring, you can see silent movies there with live music (and sound effects!) played on the Mighty Wurlitzer, just like you would have experienced if you’d been around in about 1925.
It’s great fun, and for several years, Anne and I were regular fixtures around the place. We went frequently enough that we — or at least I, since I was the one who always made our reservations — got to be known by name. Every time we walked through the door, the owner and host, Larry Bray, would greet me with a jaunty, “Good evening, Mr. Bennion.” It was curiously gratifying to be recognized like that; it made us feel like we had a personal investment in the place, like we were in a friend’s entertainment room rather than an impersonal movie theater. It made us feel like, well, somebodies instead of just run-of-the-mill nobodies, like everyone else.
Sadly, life has a way of interfering with established habits, and Anne and I stopped going to The Organ Loft several years ago. I don’t recall exactly what happened — we were busy for a couple of shows, then there were a couple that didn’t particularly appeal, and then… well, then, three or four years had passed. You know how it is. We’ve talked many times about how we needed to start going again, but we just haven’t managed to make it happen until this year, when I realized that The Loft’s annual screening of Lon Chaney’s Phantom of the Opera was upon us once again. That film — upon which Andrew Lloyd Webber based his immensely successful stage musical — had been our introduction to The Organ Loft and it’s a particular favorite of ours. It was our October tradition for several years until we lost the habit, and we’ve both missed it. So this year, we decided to mark the day in our calendars and try to re-establish our tradition.
And wouldn’t you know, as soon as we walked in the door, Larry Bray looked at us and said, “Good evening, Mr. Bennion. It’s been a while since we’ve seen you two…”
I couldn’t help but smile and say, “It’s good to be back.”
That must have felt really good. And doubly good to know that the place is still going. I don’t take advantage of our local “Silent Movie Theater,” which doesn’t have an organ but does show classic films.
I’ve heard of the LA Silent Movie Theater. Wasn’t the original owner murdered a few years ago? Seems like I heard something about that…
Silents are something of an acquired taste, I find. Even I have a hard time with some of them — the stagey appearance of many early films, the melodramatic performance style, even the subject matter in many cases, is just so far removed from where we are now. Still, the comedies of Chaplin and Keaton are timeless, and I enjoy the Doug Fairbanks swashbucklers. And Phantom, of course — it’s a bit of a mixed bag, campy in places, genuinely creepy in others, but Lon Chaney was such a brilliant performer. I never get tired of watching him.
You really ought to try one out sometime, where you’ve got a venue so near by…
I love that place. 🙂 It’s been a while since we’ve been there.
For us, too – it really was fun to go back. One interesting development: Blaine Gale has recorded soundtracks for a couple of silent-movie DVDs, which were, of course, on sale at The Loft. I picked up Trapped by the Mormons, which I’ve never seen, but I guess is a hilarious camp masterpiece, and he’s also scored a collection of Chaplin shorts that looks good. That’s going on my Christmas wishlist. 🙂
Irvine Auditorium at the University of Pennsylvania hosts the Curtis Organ, one of the oldest pipe organs in the country (or was it the biggest? I dont’ know the particulars – only that as is typical of the Ivy League, things tend to have superlatives heaped upon them).
Anyway, every Halloween, they’d show Phantom and play the pipe organ. Being the arrogant, naive college students that we were, I remember heckling the show like was Rocky Horror….
Such a waste. I should go back…
Well, to be fair, Brian, there are aspects of Phantom that are plenty heckle-able. Acting in silent movies was becoming more naturalistic by the time this film was made, but to modern eyes, many of the performances are still very broad and stagey, very much the stereotype of silent stars over-emoting and clutching their bosoms and such. Mary Philbin and Norman Kerry as the young lovers are pretty silly in several of their scenes.
What really sells the movie for Anne and myself, though, is the atmosphere (frequently very creepy), the amazing production values for a film of this age (the Paris Opera House set is basically a life-size replica of the real thing, and it’s my understanding that it still exists on some Hollywood backlot somewhere), and Lon Chaney’s charismatic portrayal, which walks a fine line between sympathetic and flat-out loonie. It’s too bad he’s not as well remember now as he used to be…