REFLECTIONS- "Growing up in the50's"- Chapter 16- Saturday Afternoon at the Movies

Nostalgia Tidbit : Going to the movies for the first time ever was  an amazing experience. It is something I will never forget. This time period was before anyone I knew had ever seen or even heard of a TV. The Big Screen became a great place to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Chapter 16

Saturday Afternoon at the Movies

In the early 50s, the downtown movie theater in

Auburndale was the only entertainment hotspot

around. The indoor theatre was called “The Auburn

Theatre” and the drive in theatre in town was  called

the “

Dale Drive

In”.     Get it? The Auburn and the Dale

were appropriate for a town called Auburndale. At the

time I thought that was really creative!

The first time I went to the movies, I can remember

being frightened to death once I saw the moving

picture on that big screen. I know it was a western

and a lot of loud shooting going on. I don’t recall the

name of the movie. 

All I know is I had my eyes closed and fingers

in my ears the whole time.

Keep in mind, seeing a moving picture for the first

time ever was a major experience. At that point, I had

never seen or even heard of a TV. Books and radio had

been it.

Finally, I adapted to the wonderful experience of

watching movies. Saturday afternoon’s became one of

the great highlights for the entire gang.

It was about a two mile walk to the downtown theatre

and we did it many times on Saturday afternoons over

the next several years. The cost of admission was 15

cents. 

You could sell three cola bottles and you had your

ticket to the movies.

Popcorn and candy were reasonable as well.

An afternoon at the movies always included a double

feature, a cartoon, and lots of previews. There may

have been some advertisement but I don’t remember

any. This was a super bargain for 15 cents.  You could

even stay and watch the re-runs as many times as you

wanted. We did many times!

Movies of that era were primarily westerns. I can

remember watching numerous horror films too. I came

a long way in a short time…from closing my eyes and

holding fingers in my ears to becoming a big horror

film lover. Two movies you may have never heard of

stand out in my mind…”The Creature from the Black

Lagoon”  and “The Hitchhicker.”

Nowadays, when we see the re-runs of a lot of the old

movies from that era, even the serious ones seem

almost like a comedy. Still, at the time it was great

entertainment for all of us who spent “Saturday

Afternoon at the Movies”.