Ambridge's Last Picture Show? Maybe Not...

I suppose it’s fitting that the 1971 film classic The Last Picture Show is playing this month on Sony Movie Channel. Aside from the obvious, almost trite use of the title to describe the gradual decay of small-town America in the years before and since its release, there is a sad irony to the timing of finding it on TV.

Last week, the owners of the Ambridge Family Theatre announced the closure of the small, intimate, aging movie house, due ostensibly to the failure of a plastic cam on their film transport table, a component of the equipment that enables them to use one projector with multiple reels of 35mm film, and to speedily rewind the large reels of film for placement back into the cans they come in.

The Ambridge Theatre site includes a well-written history of the place. Founded in 1967, Leslie and I have been familiar with the theatre since the 70’s. I first went there with my father to see Man in The Wilderness starring Richard Harris. Leslie took her kids there several times for the family-friendly movie fare. Most recently, Leslie and I braved threatening skies on a Sunday afternoon in July to walk there from Leetsdale, to catch the latest installment in the X-Men series.

To hear owners Rick and Glenda Cockrum tell the various media that came to report on the announcement, the old projectors run just great - there are just no parts to be had to keep the rest of the works going, what with a decided push by the movie industry to convert to digital projection.

I thought about that damaged cam that drives that transport table, and wondered why in the age of computer aided drafting and design, automated machine tooling, and 3-D printing, if a functional copy of that cam could be fabricated without a great deal of difficulty. However, the more I read the local media coverage, the more I realized that little part was a metaphor for what has been largely a labor of love for the owners, in both the literal and figurative sense.

The Cockrums admitted as much in the local reporting, the best of which came from the Beaver County Times and the hyperlocal news and events site Ambridge Connection. In both stories they cited their age, health problems, and other issues with the building - particularly with the roof - as contributing factors in their decision to close. This was noticeable on our last visit, with a visibly damaged ceiling and the last few rows of seats roped off.

The public response to the closure announcement was full of encouragement toward engaging in fundraising to obtain digital projection equipment suitable to the theater’s smaller-than-average screen, along with repairs to the building’s roof.

To that end, a crowdfunding effort is under way. A group spearheaded by Ambridge Connection co-founder Felicia Mycyk has established a campaign on gofundme.com, with a goal of raising $80,000. This effort has the endorsement of Rick and Glenda Cockrum, who re-affirmed their intentions in a post to the Theatre website:

We encourage your donations to the fundraiser. We want the theatre to continue functioning. It is an asset to the community. We want to be clear, though, that it will have to be in the hands of new owners. None of the funds donated will go to us, but to whoever is able to take the theatre over and continue it.

One question that has to be asked is what happens to these funds if new ownership does not step forward. I forwarded that question to the organizers of the effort this week - they replied that a few potential owners have stepped forward, and that whatever money raised will be used toward the desired upgrades, whether by new owners or the current ones.

I’ve followed the efforts to revitalize and support small town community theaters across the Pittsburgh region and elsewhere, especially in the wake of the film industry’s change to digital projection, and the considerable cost burdens to those facilities as a result.

Efforts are underway, continuing, or complete to create or revitalize community theaters in Sewickley, Oakmont, Mt. Lebanon, and Dormont, with at least one being transformed into a space for live performance as well. These proposed or existing facilities are seen as part of a coordinated effort to expand the existing vitality of the business districts in those communities. This is not something that is as present in Ambridge as it is in these other locations.

However, this has not impeded the continued popularity of the Ambridge Theatre, what with its movie programming that was geared toward families, and ticket and concession prices that were decidedly budget-friendly.

That’s an unfortunate difference between this little gem of a screening room and the rest of the target-marketed, business-planned iterations of the non-profit arts world. Rick and Glenda have been at the helm of a labor of love - from the sound of it, profit was important, but not the primary motivation.

Regardless of who may take it over, it will be difficult if not impossible to duplicate that kind of dedication.

Rick and Glenda have announced an Open House this Saturday. A chance to say goodbye, munch on some free popcorn, appreciate what was, and perhaps join in collective hope for a continuation of what has helped in a not-so-small way to keep a community together.

There is a post from the cartoon blog Zen Pencils that was published last year, not long after the death of the famed movie critic Roger Ebert. Using an old movie house as the setting for Ebert’s thoughts about kindness, artist Gavin Aung Than crafted something that has roots in the devotion and presence of Rick and Glenda Cockrum over these many years. It also offers what the future may hold for the foundation they helped to maintain for the Ambridge area.

Who besides God knows what is possible?

Heartfelt thanks to Rick and Glenda - we’ll miss you. Best wishes to those in the Ambridge community trying to keep a good thing going.

Gofundme page for the Ambridge Family Theatre

The opinions expressed in this weblog are solely my own as an individual and private citizen, and do not represent the opinion or policy of my family, my employer, or any other private or public entity.

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