1967 Dayton, Ohio
Frederick Peavy
Born 1949
Dayton, Ohio
Interviewed on February 10, 2025
By David Acquaah-Mensah
David: What was the first movie you remember seeing?
Frederick: The movie that has stayed with me in my youth was a Sidney Poitier movie. To Sir, With Love.
David: How old were you when you saw To Sir, With Love?
Frederick: I was about 14 years old at the time (Note: he would have been around 17 or 18 years old).
David: And you saw it with a girlfriend?
Frederick: Yes, with my girlfriend. Her name was Theresa Wilson. I didn’t end up marrying her. My cousin Ronnie did. She’s passed on now.
David: Why did you decide to see this film with her?
Frederick: I knew it would be a good movie since Sidney Poitier was in it, and she agreed. It was my first date movie.
David: What town was this?
Frederick: I was living in Dayton, Ohio, at the time. I moved there from Kentucky in 1963.
David: What do you remember about the movie?
Frederick: It was a good movie. Poitier’s [character] was from South America, and he moved to London to be a teacher. The students would do what they wanted to do in the class. By the end of the movie, Poitier had the kids acting like law-abiding citizens.
David: Was the film in black and white?
Frederick: It was in color.
David: Do you remember what it was like watching it in that theater?
Frederick: It was a nice theater! We were integrated in Ohio, so we didn’t have to sit in the balcony. Good popcorn, anyway!
David: How did this compare to watching movies in Kentucky?
Frederick: [The Kentucky theater] was still nice. Being young kids, we didn’t really know nothing about segregation. It cost 35 cents to get into the movie [in Kentucky]. There would be an intermission in the middle with a short cartoon…giving us time to get more food and popcorn. In Ohio, it was different! I had to pay $4 to watch that movie with my girlfriend.
David: What did you think of the characters, actors, and story in To Sir, With Love?
Frederick: The man [Poitier] was well-spoken and took no crap from nobody. He was down-to-earth with his teaching. All the students in the class were white except a little black girl. By the end of the movie, he had them liking music, poetry, and everything he taught them.
David: Aside from the performances and the story, were there any other elements of the film you found memorable?
Frederick: It was shot in East London; I remember that part. It was the first movie I saw that was shot in a foreign country.
David: How did you get to the theater/venue?
Frederick: My father let me drive his Cadillac. I had my license then.
David: Do you remember the name of the theater? Were there ushers?
Frederick: I can’t remember the name of the theater right now. It was on North Main St, but I can’t recall the name. It’s probably torn down by now, but it was a nice theater!
David: What other movies did you watch in Dayton?
Frederick: I remember seeing a Robert Redford movie called The Sting with another girlfriend later on. I also remember seeing The Exorcist in Dayton. It was a strange movie, something I had never seen before. That movie theater was packed with people.
Note: Frederick is the elder brother of my Uncle Reginald. While Reggie was my initial choice to interview, he thought Fred would have more moviegoing memories.
