I’m sure you’re right Larry. When I think back, I have to reference the time I spent in the Military (Apr 64-Sept 68). Much of that time was spent in a fog anyway and I had little contact with folks in BG. As I mentioned before, my Dad left Martin Theatres for a while to work for Cresent Amusement Co. (the previous owners of the BG theatres.) That would have been sometime around ‘62 or '63 (I was away in college.) I don’t know exactly when he came back with Martin’s but I do remember he worked for a few months managing theatres in Columbia, TN before coming back to BG as city mgr. but I’m not sure what year that was. I do know it was before I got back stateside because when I returned in '68, I managed the Riverside Drive In for him while I finished up at WKU. I believe Happy was still managing the State at that time. I left BG again in '70 but came back after Happy died to help Dad out and managed the State for a couple of years. That would’ve been around '73 or '74. Two movies that I remember presenting during that time were “Jaws” and “The Exorcist”… both sold out the house and lines extended around the corner and down 10th street! That’s best record my memory allows. Later, in my career as a teacher, I encouraged students to keep a daily journal because I had always wished I had.
I remember Happy Hardcastle well. He was assisant mgr at the Capitol when my uncle John lived and worked the projection booth there for many years. Timelines have faded a little in my memory but when Cresent Amusement Co. sold to Martin Theatres my dad went with Cresent for a couple of years to manage the Cresent Lanes bowling. He came back to Martin’s as city manager when the Martin Theatre opened in what was then the “new” mall. I believe it may have been during that period that the Capitol closed and Happy came to the State. Happy probably knew more about the projection booth than anyone. We were never sure that breathing all that acetone glue didn’t contribute to his latter health problems… great guy.. I actually remember when his hair was “blondish” but for the last 40 yrs of his life it was snow white. I believe at the time Larry worked there, they were still using the old carbon-arc lamps. I want to think the projectors were RCA but my memory is foggy on that. They were later replaced with Xeon lamps and platter systems but I believe the heads were retained at least for a while.
The State Theatre opened in 1949 on the site of the old Diamond Theatre. It was operated at the time by Crescent Amusement Co. (of Nashville, TN)and was sold along with the Capitol and Princess Theatres to Martin Theatres (Fuqua Industries,) in 1961 pursuant to a federal antitrust lawsuit. It was aquired by Carmike Cinemas in 1982 and closed shortly thereafter. My uncle, J.P. Masters managed the Capitol Theatre and my dad, William F. Scates managed the State from opening day until he retired as city manager for Martin Theatres in Bowling Green in 1978. I grew up in the three magnificent Bowling Green theatres and knew every corner of each. I started working in the State Theatre’s concession stand at age 12 makeing 25 cents/hr and held every job in the theatre, (including manager when my dad became city manager,) until I went off to college and later military. The comment about the ‘10’ marquee and ‘lazy manager’ is unwarranted. At that time theatres were struggling with overhead and marquee letters that were broken were hard to replace. I well remember planning how we could scrimp together enough letters, broken pieces of letters (and/or numbers used for letters,) to get the next marquee up. The marquee letters, like downtown theatres, were dying on the vine and along with them the downtowns of small towns. Sad.. No days like the ‘heydays’!
I’m sure you’re right Larry. When I think back, I have to reference the time I spent in the Military (Apr 64-Sept 68). Much of that time was spent in a fog anyway and I had little contact with folks in BG. As I mentioned before, my Dad left Martin Theatres for a while to work for Cresent Amusement Co. (the previous owners of the BG theatres.) That would have been sometime around ‘62 or '63 (I was away in college.) I don’t know exactly when he came back with Martin’s but I do remember he worked for a few months managing theatres in Columbia, TN before coming back to BG as city mgr. but I’m not sure what year that was. I do know it was before I got back stateside because when I returned in '68, I managed the Riverside Drive In for him while I finished up at WKU. I believe Happy was still managing the State at that time. I left BG again in '70 but came back after Happy died to help Dad out and managed the State for a couple of years. That would’ve been around '73 or '74. Two movies that I remember presenting during that time were “Jaws” and “The Exorcist”… both sold out the house and lines extended around the corner and down 10th street! That’s best record my memory allows. Later, in my career as a teacher, I encouraged students to keep a daily journal because I had always wished I had.
I remember Happy Hardcastle well. He was assisant mgr at the Capitol when my uncle John lived and worked the projection booth there for many years. Timelines have faded a little in my memory but when Cresent Amusement Co. sold to Martin Theatres my dad went with Cresent for a couple of years to manage the Cresent Lanes bowling. He came back to Martin’s as city manager when the Martin Theatre opened in what was then the “new” mall. I believe it may have been during that period that the Capitol closed and Happy came to the State. Happy probably knew more about the projection booth than anyone. We were never sure that breathing all that acetone glue didn’t contribute to his latter health problems… great guy.. I actually remember when his hair was “blondish” but for the last 40 yrs of his life it was snow white. I believe at the time Larry worked there, they were still using the old carbon-arc lamps. I want to think the projectors were RCA but my memory is foggy on that. They were later replaced with Xeon lamps and platter systems but I believe the heads were retained at least for a while.
The State Theatre opened in 1949 on the site of the old Diamond Theatre. It was operated at the time by Crescent Amusement Co. (of Nashville, TN)and was sold along with the Capitol and Princess Theatres to Martin Theatres (Fuqua Industries,) in 1961 pursuant to a federal antitrust lawsuit. It was aquired by Carmike Cinemas in 1982 and closed shortly thereafter. My uncle, J.P. Masters managed the Capitol Theatre and my dad, William F. Scates managed the State from opening day until he retired as city manager for Martin Theatres in Bowling Green in 1978. I grew up in the three magnificent Bowling Green theatres and knew every corner of each. I started working in the State Theatre’s concession stand at age 12 makeing 25 cents/hr and held every job in the theatre, (including manager when my dad became city manager,) until I went off to college and later military. The comment about the ‘10’ marquee and ‘lazy manager’ is unwarranted. At that time theatres were struggling with overhead and marquee letters that were broken were hard to replace. I well remember planning how we could scrimp together enough letters, broken pieces of letters (and/or numbers used for letters,) to get the next marquee up. The marquee letters, like downtown theatres, were dying on the vine and along with them the downtowns of small towns. Sad.. No days like the ‘heydays’!