1943 Pasadena, California

Susan Elizabeth Lattin (née Lundy)
1934
Pasadena, CA
Interviewed on January 30, 2022
by Lena Venkatraman

“Fantasia.” And that goes for your grandfather, too. Yes, he mentioned it first, and then I remembered I’d seen it too. I wish I knew when it was put out. I usually remember things by where I lived. So I have to move it up to…at least the fifth grade. I just don’t remember going to a movie until we moved to San Marino, which was in—when I was nine. Whatever I said, ‘43.

We didn’t go that often. I mean, I probably—until I started going out with Grandfather, which is when I was a junior in high school, I probably only saw one movie a year. My parents were not entertainment people—they didn’t go to the movies, they played bridge, poker, they went to dancing club. They played a lot of cards. I used to stand—when I’d come home from school, I’d stand behind Mother at the bridge table and watch her play for five minutes. Well, I was an only child, so fun was kind of lonely.

A neighborhood theater, no. Are you kidding? There wasn’t anything. There were two grocery stores, and a bakery, and a hardware store. No, it’s the same thing now, they don’t like businesses there. It’s just residential. I went to Pasadena.

No ushers, no. I think much earlier. Fast forwarding a long ways, when I was in a group that supported the Orthopaedic Hospital in Los Angeles, we gave a couple of benefits, and we would go to premieres of movies, very close to Hollywood—big movies, like “Around the World in 80 Days.” There weren’t ushers, but the theaters were like palaces. They were very fancy. I don’t think there were ushers, though. There might have—I don’t think so. Now, you just hope they’re clean. You can see a smashed carton on the floor somewhere.

I never, ever ate popcorn in a movie theater. No matter how many movies I saw, I don’t remember ever eating anything. I just am narrow-minded, I just go to the movies to see the movie. And—I do like popcorn. But it was always overpriced, and I was always eating what was healthy—Mother wanted me to be slim, she was slim. And I was only supposed to eat at mealtime.

I think there were a number—I should have reviewed it with Father, because he has a better memory. I remember something about witches, and that was scary. I think “Fantasia” has two or three different stories in it. Let’s just say, I only remember it was very entertaining. And there were some things that were scary. “Fantasia” had some—some Walt Disney kinds of things in it. Mickey Mouse, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”—yes, I think so! Yes, it just has magical things. There might have been a more modern version. There’s just a slight difference in our ages.

Oh, I’m having such a good time.

And then I remember another movie later. Let’s start with our first date. It was April 4, 1950. Yes, of course I know the exact date! I thought Bill Lattin was the cutest boy I had ever seen. I found an old high school kind of picture of him which I’m dying to show you when you come out here, and you’ll see why I thought he was so gorgeous. Okay, so we fast forward to April 4th, and we were—it was spring vacation, and on spring vacation many, many of us went to the beach. We rented a house for the week and went. And so I went. And—I don’t know how I did this. I was very, very wicked when I was young. I’m nicer now. I talked somebody into getting me to have a date with Bill Lattin, even though I was going steady with his best friend. Forget that!

So, we went to the movies. Movies, first date—movies. It was at the local theater in Laguna Beach close to where—it’s where a lot of us went to the movies when we were there for the week.

It was some war story, I don’t know. There were tanks, you know, in Africa. The US army is going through the desert in Egypt, or somewhere. And right when a gun went off, he leaned over and kissed me. On our first date. No, it wasn’t fresh, I thought it was wonderful! I think that was the last kiss of the evening, but that’s where it all started. At the movies.

It was fun, is what it was.