Interview with a Student

For my most recent source, I decided to conduct my first interview regarding the Kentucky Theatre.  I chose to interview a student at the university who is originally from Lexington, Kentucky.  Heidi Henderson, the interviewee, had very little to tell me about the Kentucky Theatre.  In some ways, this was surprising, in others, not so much.  However, she had at least been to the Kentucky Theatre, which is more than I can say for most students here at the University of Kentucky.  

Throughout the interview, I asked Heidi a series of questions that pertained to the fact that despite being from its host city, she had only been to the Kentucky Theatre one time.  I had to know why.  Why choose other theaters over this one?  Did she like it? Why doesn’t she attend the Kentucky Theatre more often? 

After talking with Heidi, she gave me some good insight.  She told me about how her and some friends attended the theatre this past summer for the first time.  They chose to do so because the theatre was hosting a special showing of the classic Mary Poppins.  She depicted the theatre as an amazing experience and emphasized how beautiful she thought it was.  In fact, she claimed, “the Kentucky Theatre was one of those things that you talk about how you and your friends will go all the time, but then stuff comes up that interferes.  Before I knew it college had come and we were all on our different paths and schedules.”  Heidi said that the biggest reason she does not attend the theatre more frequently is because it is very selective on the movies they show, and there is not always one playing that she wants to see.

Overall, I would deem this interview helpful, but I am still unable to conclude why the Kentucky Theatre is not nearly as popular as it once was or should be.  However, it does provide some reasons, such as college students are simply too busy for movies and that the theatre does not offer the movies people prefer.  There are still many other angles I would like to explore through other interviewees, such as the Kentucky Theatre’s lack of advertisement and location.   

Comment Link:

http://kailahnelsonwrd.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-kentucky-theatre-music.html?showComment=1413949662556

Gone With the Wind

I have been researching the Kentucky Theatre for over a month now, and in my early research I came upon a fact that continues to stick with me.  The Kentucky Theatre website said that in 1940 they showed Gone With the Wind for two weeks straight and it was sold out every time.  This amazes me.  That is thousands of people seeing one movie.  To me this is just a minor way to show the impact Gone With the Wind had on film history.   Soon, the film will celebrate its seventy fifth-year anniversary since the premier.  To honor this, the University of Texas will host a temporary exhibit that contains items such as the iconic dress the character Scarlett O’ Hara wore in the movie.

In addition to announcing the exhibit, this article discusses the controversy that went into the making of the film.  Given that the book is loaded with many overly racist attributes, was the film going to include these?  In the end it did end up cutting several racist aspects.  Selznick removed any use of the “N-word”, as well as references to the Ku Klux Klan.  While Selznick had no desire to produce an anti-black film, race is certainly a huge part of it.  His judgment in what to include from the novel and what to exclude is perhaps the only reason this film is not just another embarrassment from America’s race centered past. 

Overall, I found this article rather interesting.  I have never personally seen or read Gone With the Wind, but this article makes me think I should.  Any film that can have this much impact nearly seventy-five years after its release deserves further attention in my opinion.  Being that the Kentucky Theatre is also a part of film history, it seems only fitting that it showed Gone With the Wind in its prime.  By further researching the impact this film had on the United States, it contributes to the impact of this film on Lexington, and in particular, the racial issues that surround it.    

Sources:  

"The History of the Kentucky Theater." Web log post. The Kentucky Theatre RSS. The Kentucky Theater, 2008-2014. Web. 14 Sept. 2014. <http://www.kentuckytheater.com/about/the-history-of-the-kentucky-theater/>.

Smith, Lee.  "'Gone With the Wind' exhibit: Frankly, we still give a damn."  Cable News Network.  Turner Broadcasting System, 9 Sept. 2014.  Web. 20 Oct. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/09/travel/gone-with-the-wind-exhibit-75th-anniversary/>

The Kentucky Theatre Documentary

After Wednesday’s class, my research group and I gathered to watch a documentary we discovered about the Kentucky Theatre.  While the film was just short of half an hour, we have all been struggling to find sources, so finding it was like finding a gold mine.  Upon watching this film, it gave a rather extensive history of the theatre.  It did provide good information on the struggles the theatre has faced over the years, such as de-urbanization, civil rights issues, financial struggles, and the 1987 fire. 

A big issue this film brought into light was censorship.  After it was reopened, the Kentucky Theatre had some problems with government interference.  They attempted to show an X-rated film but charges were brought upon them for doing so.  They did not overly advertise the film and did not even have posters for it up in the theatre.  Once the local government banned the showing, it went to the media.  This was the greatest advertisement.  A worker from the theatre said that people began buying tickets for the film and not even going in to see it.  They did it merely to show their support for the theatre and protest government censorship.  This is the age-old debate of what the government should and should not be allowed to interfere with.  It is one I personally find very intriguing. 

Overall, in my opinion, this source was about half and half in terms of usefulness.  It gave a lot of information that I could gain by simply looking on the Kentucky Theatre website, which I have already done on multiple occasions.  At the same time, it provided minor facts that I had no previous knowledge of what so ever.  I wish it would have gone more in depth on these, but it provided me with some specific ideas to look for in other sources.  For me, the strongest aspects of this film were the interviews. They were extensive and contained a wide variety of people.  Also, they were interactive.  For example, instead of just sitting down and talking to the projection manager about the equipment, they were in the projection room and he was able to show them what he was talking about. 

This documentary left me with many new questions about the Kentucky and about film as a whole.  Again, I wonder about the racial issues.  How were ticket sales affected considering the Kentucky Theatre did not even have a black seating area?  In addition, how did the Kentucky’s censorship case affect other theaters even outside of Kentucky?  Finally, is the Kentucky Theatre currently struggling financially?

Source:  The Kentucky Theatre.  Dir. Ari Palos.  2003.  Dos Vatos Productions. VHS. 

Comment:  http://magidacamposwrd.blogspot.com/2014/10/how-to-know-if-you-are-depressed.html?showComment=1413390645444

Civil Rights Movement in Lexington

My latest source I found was an article about segregation in Lexington during the civil rights movement.  The statement that originally caught my eye was the preview under the link and read, “In 1960-61, CORE demonstrations were held to integrate the seating at Lexington movie theaters.  The first took place at the Kentucky Theater and involved seven demonstrators.”  Upon clicking on the article, I was unable to access the entire thing, but what I was able to read proved to be very interesting.  The article discussed the events that took place through the 50s and 60s that led to Kentucky to becoming the first southern state to pass integration laws.  It also includes a first hand account from various protests. 

This article proves to be very useful to my research.  It marks a path to a huge new angle for the project.  Considering the civil rights movement is one of the most influential time periods in all of history, this shows insight into its effect on the Kentucky Theatre.  How Lexington handled these protests in return parallels how the Kentucky Theatre would have handled them.  As the quote above says, African-Americans were confined to specific seating areas, and it was over forty years after the theatre’s opening until they were able to sit where they pleased. 

One thing I found interesting about the article was how it mentioned that Kentucky never really protested the integration.  The local governments and state government went along with the federal government rather easily.  This makes me wonder, did the citizens of Lexington go along as easily?  Did other cities integration process differ from Lexington?  If yes, how so?  And lastly, in what other ways did Kentucky differ from other southern states such as Alabama and Mississippi?  Further research on this could be a documentary all in its own.  This angle could also be taken at a broader approach by looking at the Kentucky Theatre and how it was affected by the different eras of the twentieth century, another big example being the Great Depression.

Source:

Gerald L. Smith. "Direct-Action Protests in the Upper South: Kentucky Chapters of the Congress of Racial Equality." Register of the Kentucky Historical Society 109.3 (2011): 351-393. Project MUSE. Web. 13 Oct. 2014. <http://muse.jhu.edu/>.

Link:

http://muse.jhu.edu/login?auth=0&type=summary&url=/journals/register_of_the_kentucky_historical_society/v109/109.3-4.smith01.html

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

In all honestly, the main reason I chose to research the Kentucky Theater is because it hosts the Rocky Horror Picture Show at least once a month.  Back in my hometown of Cincinnati, there was a theater called Esquire that showed Rocky Horror every other Saturday.   I have been a number of times and it is an activity that my friends and I quite enjoy.  So, on that note I decided to dedicate this entry to the Rocky Horror Picture Show. 

While searching the UK library, I came upon a journal article that was written about the Rocky Horror Picture Show.  Although this article focuses on a Rocky Horror viewing in Manhattan, it is in no way irrelevant to our project.  This article uses a narrative approach to describe the experience one would have if they decided to attend Rocky Horror at the Eighth Street Playhouse.  My personal favorite characteristic of this article was that it was written in 1985, otherwise known as Rocky’s prime.  It quotes famous lines, paints an image of the rowdy crowd and even goes so far as to describe the anticipation as a crowd gathers outside of the theater late on Friday night.  Everything about this article epitomizes Rocky Horror.

Due to the fact that it was written in the 80’s, this article provides an outlook on Rocky Horror that I will never be able to witness.  Since I definitely plan to attend the Rocky Horror Picture show at some point, preferably their infamous Halloween showing, I could use this article to compare my experience with the one it depicts.  This could answer many questions that I currently have.  Such as, how does the Rocky Horror Picture Show vary from theater to theater?  What is the difference between seeing the Rocky Horror Picture Show back in 1985 and seeing it next week?  While these are both questions that can be inferred with a simple compare and contrast, I also wonder a few other things.  What effect does Rocky Horror have on the Kentucky Theater?  Does Rocky Horror have any support from the local community given its raunchy nature? And finally, why do fans, beside myself, enjoy the Rocky Horror Picture Show?     

Source:  

Corliss, Richard. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Time 126.(1985): 22. Biography Reference Bank (H.W. Wilson). Web. 8 Oct. 2014.

http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.uky.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=7&sid=cafe5984-7f4f-4999-b5f1-82758a183c11%40sessionmgr113&hid=103&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=brb&AN=504565240

Comment:
http://kmcwrd.blogspot.com/2014/10/working-out-in-college.html?showComment=1412789060169 

Interview Possibilities

1) The current manager of the theater:  He has been the manager of the theater for many years now.  He has seen it go through many changes and through different eras of time.

2) A theater goer: Just to see why they chose to attend the theater.  Discover what it means to the average citizen of Lexington.

3) A local who lives near the theater:  Just to see their opinion of the theater and the effect it has on their everyday life.

Questions:

• What is the biggest change you have seen in the theater over the years?
• What effect do you think the theater has on the community as a whole?
• Why do you like/dislike the theater?
• What is your favorite showing you have seen at the theater and why?
• How could the theater improve?
• Do you see the midnight showings as a positive enhancement to the theater? Why or why not? 
• Why do you choose this theater over other theaters?
• What effect does the theater have on you personally?
• What do you take into consideration, if any, when hiring employees to work at the theater? (for the manager)
• In your opinion, what is the most historical event that the theater has undergone?
• What differs the Kentucky Theaters from other old theaters in close proximity? 

Promotional Truck

While searching for my next source, I stumbled upon this photograph on the Kentucky digital library’s website.  It is a photo of a promotional car for “the Phantom President” and was taken in 1932.  This photo originally came from Lafayette studios, the studio that originally built the Kentucky Theatre. 

I am not exactly sure what the purpose of this truck was.  I have never seen anything quite like it.  Maybe this truck was so people could vote whether or not this film should play in theaters.  I envision many different trucks driving around, each advertising a different film, and then at the end of a certain time period, whichever film got the most votes was played in the theater. 

While this could have been true, it is probably not.  It is much more likely that these trucks, and the Kentucky Theatre as a whole, were products of the government.  Voter turnout is a major flaw in the United States government and continues to be today.  It plagues the polls making it so only a small percentage of the population, the people who show up to vote, have more say in elections and other policy making.  This truck is evidence that the government sees this problem as well.  It is essentially bribing the American people to vote, and the truck is simply their way of getting the word out. The truck literally says, “ Vote and See the Phantom President”.  What we cannot tell from this picture is how they are going about this bribing.  Are they saying if you attend the polls you get a free movie ticket?  Or are they simply associating voting with something that people actually enjoy (movies)?  We may never know.  Also, while I cannot say whether either of these theories of this truck are correct or incorrect, the second option is definitely more probable.  

This truck lets me into a whole new angle about the Kentucky Theatre.  Just like pretty much anything in America, it has a political advantage to it, and one that the government is not hesitant to exploit.  Since there is virtually no background info on this photo, it raises many questions as well.  Was I right in guessing its true purpose?  Was this tactic useful?  In other words, did it work?  And finally, did it have any effect on voter turnout in Lexington?

Source:  http://kdl.kyvl.org/catalog/xt702v2c8t1s_1228_1/viewer