1954 Hempstead, New York

George Tiedemann

1938

Hempstead, New York

Interviewed on January 27, 2022

by Ashley Tauhert

To my knowledge, the first movie I saw was Frankenstein (1931), but besides the fact that I remember watching it alone in the basement while my parents were on a date and being terrified, I don’t remember much else. The first movie I saw in a theater though, I can tell you all about that. It was at the Calderone in Hempstead. None of the reclining, cushioned chairs like all the theaters have now, but The Calderone had its own charm. It was gorgeous – it had high ceilings, great acoustics, and these red, silky curtains. It hurts to say that it is no longer open. That night, the theater was packed, and I distinctly remember that because it was just a school night, and the theater was never packed on a school night. The ushers were even preventing people from sneaking in – that’s how packed it was.

The movie showing was Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. I loved it – I’ve seen it many times since. It was with Howard Keel, spelled K-E-E-L, and Russ Tamblyn and Jane Powell. This is around, when I would say, grade school – around eighth grade. I went by myself because I didn’t have any friends to go with. I’m dead serious. The only way to get there was on foot – it was the only way to get there. You had to walk about, jeez, two to two and a half miles. Of course, I had to get “Good and Plenty” – they still sell them today; it’s the liquorice candy. I wasn’t a big fan of popcorn, but I definitely had quite the sweet tooth. Occasionally I would get a soda, but I didn’t have any spare change that day. My father gave me sixty cents to go to the movie – and he told me never to tell mom. She would’ve thrown quite the fit if she found out I was going out alone. Yep, it used to only cost fifty cents for the movie and ten cents for the Good and Plenty, that was it. I find it pretty bizarre that you folks are paying more than ten bucks for a movie nowadays.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is a musical – you would definitely enjoy it. There were seven brothers and a widowed father, Howard Keel, that worked on a farm. One day, the father goes into town with the idea that he is going to come home with a bride, and that’s what he does. He sees this woman, played by Jane Powell, and next thing you know, she’s in the wagon with him and they are going to his farm! Damn, if only it were that easy. The seven brothers see that Keel has a woman, and the seven brothers are jealous. So, Keel brings the brothers into town with the hope that each one of them will maybe meet a girl.And sure enough, each brother meets a girl. Keel says, “Well, you know what? Why don’t we kidnap ‘em and take ‘em home with us!” They kidnap all seven girls and head home, but they know the fathers of the girls will be chasing ‘em, so they have to go through a canyon. Keel comes up with an idea that when they get through the canyon, they make the girls start screamin’ and hollerin’. The reason for that is because he wanted to create an avalanche of snow across the pass, which is what happens! The fathers can’t even get through until spring time, so now the seven girls are living with the seven brothers all through the winter. Basically in the end, they all live happily ever after.

Lots of songs in between – Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. I have seen it so many times, it’s really really good music. The acting was, you know, good? It was a good, honest, down-to-earth, family movie. I even recall going back to the theater and watching it again the following week.