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Question on Original Serial Viewing
Topic Started: Jan 26 2018, 11:09 AM (462 Views)
AndyFish
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I don't know if anyone here is old enough to have been matinee attendees when serials were shown. In the 70s we had two local theaters that did Saturday matinees but one showed the Three Stooges as it's short and the other showed a serial like Flash Gordon.

Back in the day there must have been instances of two serials playing in opposing theaters and I wonder how kids of the day handled that? I.e. if I were a kid in 1943 and the Columbia Playhouse is showing Batman on Saturdays while the independent showing Republics is running Captain America I'd have to see both-- hopefully Cap runs on Sunday. My question is how hard was it to keep it straight? So many serials have such similar cliffhangers I'd imagine it would make remembering details difficult.

www.andytfish.com
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Sgt Saturn
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I am old enough to have seen serials on the big screen. One theater showed them Friday night and Saturday. At the age of 5 or 6, I attended on Friday evenings with my parents. The theater was too far for we to walk in those days; so, I did not attend Saturday mornings until much later. Basically, it was Hobson's choice, whatever serial was running we saw.
The Ol' Sarge
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Don Diego
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The one local theatre that screened serials just ran them at the Saturday matinee - it was quite an outing 3 movies usually a western a comedy and an adventure - often a second run of an A picture such as Knights of the Round Table. In addition there was often free comic book day - usually a Harvey like Sad Sack or Spooky and admission was 10 cents.
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Pa Stark
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As a kid I only saw one chapter at a theater, the last chapter of ZORRO'S FIGHTING LEGION. Starting when I was 18, some local theaters TV stations and film societies ran an occasional serial. It wasn't until 1973 when I started attending film conventions that I was able to see many serials. At Nashville 1975, I watched 69 chapters in the first two days. After that I burned out.
Honest and Lovable Pa Stark
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mort bakaprevski
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Looks like I’m the only one here qualified to answer this question (saw over 20 serials in theatres). We had 2 theatres in the adjoining towns of Newport Beach & Costa Mesa, both owned by the same family. Both had Saturday matinees & both matinees included a serial.

I don’t remember it being a terrible problem. Frequently, the Mesa would screen a serial which had already played at the Lido. If they were both playing serials which had been unseen before, there were certain elements which helped me decide which one to follow. If it was a straightforward western versus a non-western, I’d choose the latter. If one serial had a mystery villain & the other didn’t, I chose the mystery villain. I also eschewed serials which had government agents (men in hats) as the heroes. In addition, I preferred serials which featured heroes from other forms of entertainment (comics, radio, etc.). If these tests failed, I’d pick the serial with the most fantasy elements.

I’m sure other kids had a different set of criteria entirely.
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The Batman
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If I had been around way back then, Morty, I think I would have made my decisions using the same criteria as you did.


Always be yourself! Unless you can be Batman...then always be Batman!
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rodney
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If you haven't already wasted several hours here, I'd recommend it. It's a great way to see how the reissue cycle worked and what sorts of titles played when in a typical Southern small town.

http://www.mikeclinesthenplaying.com/

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AndyFish
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Thanks for the replies fellas, and Rodney that's a great site! I'm going to waste a lot of time there!
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Pa Stark
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The Batman
Jan 28 2018, 01:36 PM
If I had been around way back then, Morty, I think I would have made my decisions using the same criteria as you did.


Tell me Bats, how did you choose between THE PERILS OF PAULINE or EXPLOITS OF ELAINE? :P
Honest and Lovable Pa Stark
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marlin lee
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AndyFish
Jan 26 2018, 11:09 AM
Back in the day there must have been instances of two serials playing in opposing theaters and I wonder how kids of the day handled that? I.e. if I were a kid in 1943 and the Columbia Playhouse is showing Batman on Saturdays while the independent showing Republics is running Captain America I'd have to see both-- hopefully Cap runs on Sunday.
That might not have been a problem. Captain America is a good serial. But it is Captain America in name only.
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Laughing Gravy
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Thought you folks would enjoy seeing this... check out the two "movies" with an "all star cast" playing on May 29-30, 1958...

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"I'm glad that this question came up, because there are so many ways to answer it that one of them is bound to be right." - Robert Benchley
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