1954 Jackson Heights, New York

Julia Sherman

Born in 1948

Jackson Heights, New York

Interviewed on February 11, 2023

by Michael Lin

The first movie I ever saw was Brigadoon. This was in 1954. I was six years old, and my grandmother took me to see Brigadoon at the Jackson Theatre in Jackson Heights, New York. She lived close to the main street, so we just walked to the theater from her house. We got popcorn—of course, there was candy and stuff, but we always got popcorn. The theater had ushers who kept order. They didn’t seat you like ushers today, instead they kept order throughout the movie. Back then, the cost of a movie was the same as a loaf of bread. Theaters were smaller than today’s, and they used to charge more to sit up close. Almost all towns had a theater in the main area. My grandmother took me to a lot of movies over the course of my childhood. She would take us on summer vacation, so I saw at least one popular movie every summer.

What do I remember about the movie? The memories I have of the movie stand out in my mind but they’re pretty small. Brigadoon was actually a musical that was later made into a movie. It was a very uplifting movie, with lots of music, singing, and Irish dancing clothes. It took place in a fantasy land called Brigadoon. It was a great movie to take a kid to. Technicolor was the big thing, and Brigadoon was just full of bright colors that took advantage of the technology. Our TV at home was black and white, so I was surprised by the color. I remember coming home from the movie and dancing and singing all day long to the tunes from the movie.

I still prefer going to a theater than watching a movie at home. There’s a certain ambiance about going into the theater and having the dark room, everyone watching the same thing at the same time, the great sound system, no distractions. Total immersion. If you’re watching Netflix at home, there will just be so many other things influencing the experience. You couldn’t really watch a movie of your choice, either. When your movie came to town, you had a week to go see it before it disappeared. Next week, it would be a different movie. The movie industry made it so that it was an experience to go to the theater, not just a task to finish a movie. Couples would go together and would go out for food—there was a whole experience, both before and after, attached to moviegoing. Going to the movies took you away from reality, especially if you’re watching a fantasy or a rom-com. You go to the movies to get away from your everyday life, to situate yourself in a fantasy world.

Drive-ins were a whole different experience entirely. Back in the 1950s, drive-ins were far more common. Everyone had cars, so you could take your whole family to the movies and you wouldn’t be bothered by the people next to you. You could buy all kinds of food from the concession stand. Burgers, even, not just candy and popcorn. I remember going on hot summer nights—the drive-in was sweeter if you go with friends—and packing kids in the car, in the trunk just to see the movie. I saw Psycho and The Bridge on the River Kwai at drive-ins. Psycho scared the hell out of me—I saw it when I was 12.

Actors and actresses were treated similarly to today. People got their information about actors from movie star magazines that had reports about cinema and the actors. Even then, they ranked the hottest guy on screen, etc. and people had crushes on their favorite actors and actresses. I didn’t have a favorite actor at the time, but people like Cary Grant, Gregory Peck, Clark Gable, were all heartthrobs. Someone like Rudolph Valentino, you just wish you could meet him. The fantasy of it all, the fan behavior hasn’t changed. You see them on a screen playing a role and that’s part of the magic. They always saved the day at the end. They made you feel good.

Was there a particular movie that really resonated with you?

The Graduate. It was the late 60s, and we were making value judgements on how we wanted to live our lives. The Graduate is a movie that tells you a lot about corporate life and competing in the never-ending rat race versus living a life more attuned to the simplistic and important needs that we have. In the movie, Dustin Hoffman comes to realize that society is becoming overwhelmingly involved with material goods, corporate dominance, and an existence based on external drives. It was a sign of the times. I came out of the movie sharing some of those views. People in the late 1960s came to realize that the country was being pushed by wealthy people who wanted things their way and not necessarily their human needs. Hype was being sold to Americans during the Vietnam War. My generation rejected the draft. We would not fight a war that we created out of international greed. The Graduate stated a little bit of that and had some influence on these sorts of viewpoints, which uniquely struck my generation. Ultimately it had to do with how people were rejecting the status quo.

Do you think movies today are better or worse than they used to be?

That’s a good question. I think in every generation of movies, there are a few that are extremely well done. But there’s also a lot of mediocre stuff. A lot of times people think movies today are better with modern technology, but the measure of a movie is not just in the quality of the technology but the artistry. The lighting, how they task the actors, these things transcend the quality of the sound or picture. Casablanca is a good example of a movie that isn’t technically stunning but gets everything else right. The drama, the screenplay, all that. The old movies are really good at this. The best movies will stand the test of time because they deal with some universal truth: evil, loss, pride, that sort of thing. These kinds of movies and books never lose their value because these are issues that will affect humanity forever. It doesn’t matter when the film was made or when it is watched, their themes have been around for far longer. People will say movies aren’t art, but they are.

I really like independent movies. There’s a lot of great independent and indie cinema out there that doesn’t necessarily make it into the mainstream. If you find yourself really into film after this class, I’d recommend going to a film festival. There’s one in Toronto, you’d like it!