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| Movie page from the December 3, 1971 Journal |
For Clint Eastwood fans, Play Misty for Me would soon be opening at the Midway Cinema. The Journal included a special photo of Clint and Donna Mills to promote the movie, about a DJ (Clint) being stalked by an obsessed fan (Jessica Walter). I never did like Jessica Walter after seeing this movie.
"Planet of the Apes” fans (like me) were enjoying Escape From the Planet of the Apes, the third film in the series, at Amherst Theater. That’s the one where the two apes, Cornelius (Roddy McDowall) and Zira (Kim Hunter) travel back in time to our era and become celebrities – before eventually being deemed a threat to mankind’s dominance. It’s such a great movie.
The box office blockbuster Billy Jack was at the Apollo Theater in Oberlin.
Some movies that were a few years old were on other screens, including; 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) at the Palace; Cactus Flower (1969) was at the Capitol Theater in Elyria.
Then there was one of those odd Christmas movies that seemed to be from some alternate universe: The Magic Christmas Tree, at Midway Cinema and the Tivoli. Movies like this one would be promoted on TV, but it was always suspicious that they never featured any Hollywood actors. Despite the cartoons in the ad, this was a live-action movie about a little boy whose magic ring brings a Christmas tree to life. He also tangles with a giant.
The bill also featured an ancient Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer cartoon – apparently the very first animated version of it, from 1948.
As you can see, the drive-ins – Carlisle, Tower and Lorain – were still open, but mostly showing unsavory fare, along with the VL Cinema. At least Tower Drive-In put some thought into its double feature of Chain Gang Women and Girl on a Chain Gang.
Hey, I didn’t see any ads for the Ohio Theater on that page. Tomorrow, I’ll tell the story about the Ohio Theater’s reopening later that month.
