Very excited about the first screenings of my new documentary….
Welcome back. The motion picture business opened up the world for small town communities around the country in the early 1900s and many beautifully designed theaters were built to showcase a new fad called motion pictures. In the northeastern corner of Oklahoma several of these old theaters have been bought by local residents or civic groups trying to save a piece of Americana. As you regular readers know I’m currently on a book signing tour and added to that now I’m happy to announce a film tour mostly in these historic theaters. Entitled “Footprints in the Dew: The Last Ten Tapes”, the film contains never before seen footage from the interviews I conducted while writing “Footprints in the Dew: Chub Anderson and the Unsolved Mullendore Murder.”
The first showing will be at the Gregg Theater in Sedan Kansas on November 15th. Local businessman Roger Floyd saved and restored the theater and it is typical of early American movie theaters. The box office is in the front, then there is a concession stand and a spiral staircase leading to the projection room. The seating area is long and narrow and most of the original details in the building are still intact. The folks in Sedan are still treated to movies on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights just like in the old days. This will be the first Kansas showing of The Last Ten Tapes and advance ticket purchases are highly recommended. Tickets are $12 per person and they are available at the Bank of Sedan and at First National Bank of Sedan. With very limited seating, they tell me they are certain to sell out so please call 620-725-3408 for more information.
The next shot at seeing the film will be on November 17th at the Poncan Theater in Ponca City. It’s an honor to show the film in this historic theater which was built in 1927 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. Due to financial difficulties the theater was closed from 1985-1994 but an enterprising group of Ponca City residents took it over and it has been at the heart of the community’s art scene ever since. Folks, this show house is truly an Oklahoma treasure. It it beautiful to look at both inside and out, reflecting the elegance of a bygone era. The entire historic downtown area of Ponca City is a must visit and I’ll be hanging out there before the 7PM showing. A free wine and cheese reception for movie goers will be held inside the Cherokee Strip Company so come check it out. Tickets for the show are $12 per person and will be sold at the door.
On Tuesday, November 22nd I will be bringing the film to the Constantine Theater in Pawhuska for another 7PM showing. The Constantine is another historic theater that has been beautifully restored and cared for by a dedicated group of volunteers. This will also be a great chance to check out Ree Drummond’s new Mercantile and the other great shops along Main Street all of which are open till 5 or 6. This is a town that made history in the early days of the west and is also the hometown of one of my favorite people, Ben Johnson.
If these dates don’t work out for you, there will be a final showing in November at the Tulsa Historical Society at 7PM on November 29th and ticket information is available on their website www.tulsahistory.org The December calendar is filling up fast so stay tuned for those dates as well.
All you OU fans can catch me and Joe Washington this Friday back at Balfour’s in Norman from 2-4. Then it’s on to the big Wannamaker’s Gun Show at the Tulsa Fairgrounds on Saturday and Sunday. Advertised as the world’s largest gun show, they have a lot more than just guns making it a good place to do some early Christmas shopping.
Till next time I’ll see ya down the road……….
#