Yeah, sure, the City of Angels suffers from atrocious traffic, smoggy air, and a surplus of shallow, pretty people — and this is different from Salt Lake how? — but for a TV and movie lover like myself, the place also offers endless amusements that my home town simply can’t compete with. Like, for instance, a classic movie theater running a triple-feature of 1970s-vintage Battlestar Galactica movies this Saturday.
Darth Mojo has the details, but, in a nutshell, Universal Studios once tried to recoup some of the costs of the original Galactica by releasing several theatrical movies that were composed of edited episodes from the series and its bastard stepchild, Galactica 1980 (I shudder just typing those words…). According to Mojo, this will be the first time all three of these movies have been shown on the big screen in this country. Damn, how I’d like to be there! If nothing else, it’d just be cool to see in person that awesome Cylon graphic on the gorgeous old marquee shown above.
The theater that’s hosting this triple-threat, American Cinematheque’s Aero in Santa Monica, apparently shows mostly classic films; browsing over its current schedule, I think I’d probably be spending a lot of time there if I lived in the area…
Well, why not? For $365 you could fly out after work tonight and go back on Sunday evening (http://www.southwest.com/cgi-bin/showOrPrice). Seriously, what the hell?
Heh, it’s tempting, believe me, but I’ve got tickets for a concert tomorrow night, and I think the friends I’m going with would probably kill me if I abandoned them at this point. 🙂
I’ll have to keep watch on this place’s schedule, though, and come down for the next big deal they have. I see that they ran the old Sean Connery 007 movies recently, and had a special screening of The Abyss and Aliens that was supposed to be attended by James Cameron… no doubt shilling his latest project, Avatar, but still…
OK, let’s keep an eye on the schedule. The Aero is one of those enormous old theaters with a decorated ceiling, a giant screen, and great acoustics. They specialize in classic and independent films. Last year I saw Vertigo there, and it was spectacular.
What’s the concert?
American Cinematheque’s Aero in Santa Monica, apparently shows mostly classic films; browsing over its current schedule, I think I’d probably be spending a lot of time there if I lived in the area…
I would think so. Last time I did the tourist thing in LA, I heard repeatedly that the whole town is viewed as a movie set. Buildings with historical or cultural significance are torn down without much thought, in order to make room for whatever’s next. Just to find a non-residential building that’s more than 25 years old is, apparently, a challenge.
Given your affinity for “the good old days,” my guess is you’d hate LA with a passion…
Robert, the Aero sounds exactly like what I was picturing, much like The Castro in San Francisco. Seeing something like Vertigo there would be perfect! (Although I’ve always been more a fan of Rear Window and North by Northwest, myself.)
The concert is a chap named Marc Cohn. He had a pretty big hit in the early ’90s with a song called “Walking in Memphis,” which you may recall. He’s a singer-songwriter that I think the marketing folks have never been able to pigeonhole, so he’s remained somewhat obscure. Here’s his website, which has some music samples: http://www.marccohn.net/
Brian, you’re right, I would/do hate the lack of respect for the old stuff in LA, but I’m used to it. Salt Lake is the same way; our stock of historical buildings in the downtown area is rapidly dwindling and very few people seem to care. The prevailing attitude toward developers around here is very l’aissez faire, and preservation is a very tough sell.
Just look at it this way: L.A. is authentically inauthentic!