Tales from the (Movie) Theater Series

The following was a series of posts in 2013 that chronicled some of my experiences as movie theater projectionist, during 1976-7, at the Huntington Park Warner Theater. An independent theater that at one time the Pacific Theatres chain operated. Normally, theater chains employed union projectionists – most of those having gone through apprenticeships, professional training to reach their skill/pay levels/positions.

Independents, on the other hand, didn’t have to hire trained professionals. I, like my brother before me, was one of the byproducts of that practice. The following series a reprise and update from my former blog.

Tales of the (Movie) Theater Series

10 Responses to “Tales from the (Movie) Theater Series”

TMT: Bourne Again | It Rains... You Get Wet June 29, 2014

[…] I never intended to be one, it was by pure horny chance I’d come to this. My brief stint as a movie projectionist also may have groomed […]

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Forever Autumn: Year of Bests – 2014 | It Rains... You Get Wet October 2, 2014

[…] that I’ve crept up on 60, I still cling with some pride to the fact that once, in the 70s, I was a movie projectionist. So, any article that examines the state of this trade will always gather my interest. Michael […]

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Stay Frosty: Year of Bests – 2014 | It Rains... You Get Wet December 31, 2014

[…] covered a few years back, I was a projectionist in the mid-70s at the Warner Huntington Park. Of late, this venerable old […]

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The Soundtrack of My Life – The 70s | It Rains... You Get Wet February 16, 2015

[…] would be my start for the Bicentennial Year. “Better late than never.”, mom said. Embarked as a projectionist in the movie theater of my youth, with a new college girlfriend, to boot. Remarkable what fresh […]

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TMT: “Now that was really close!” | It Rains... You Get Wet January 22, 2016

[…] for one. Soon found myself in a different area in the city of my birth, too, and line of work. Stopped being a projectionist and started at a medical center because of a job listing I stumbled upon at […]

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Spring Fling: Year of Bests – 2016 | It Rains... You Get Wet April 1, 2016

[…] an old projectionist for a short time during the ’70s, video projects like the one Matt Dickey did will always warm my heart. Along with causing moi to […]

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TMT: “Live and die on this day.” | It Rains... You Get Wet January 6, 2017

[…] me of being given the reins of movie projectionist, with a scant week’s instruction, way back when. Not to mention, finding a way to make my bosses’ favorite fruit-flavored platform fit into […]

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Opening Titles and Song: What’s Up Doc (1972) | It Rains... You Get Wet April 21, 2017

[…] to project many 35mm prints, more than a few the rare “nitrate” variety. Warmed this old projectionist’s heart, even if they missed a changeover during a […]

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A Never Too Late for Spring Movie Quiz | It Rains... You Get Wet July 13, 2020

[…] as a child (living in nearby Florence), and a teen (after we moved to South Gate), and later when I was one of its projectionists in the mid-’70s. As it still holds the most movie memories, it’s remains my […]

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My Top 13 Favorite Pop Instrumentals of the 1970s | It Rains... You Get Wet October 14, 2022

[…] Lady – by the country’s bicentennial, was hired as a projectionist at the Huntington Park Warner Theatre and well into Jazz Fusion. So when I heard the single version of Westchester Lady being played on […]

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