1945 Morgantown, West Virginia
Robert Fike
Born in 1931
Morgantown, West Virginia
September 22nd, 2019
By Evan Blasy
I had a little money from a paper route that I was working so I was able to see a lot of movies. I probably saw a lot more movies than most. I was at the theater probably 3 times a week. Since there was no TV, that was the only way you saw movies. I went alone most of the time. Going to the theater was always a grand time with plenty of fanfare. I walked to the theater. It was close enough to do that easily.
The obvious choice at the theater was popcorn. I would almost always get some. At the movies, what else do you get? Even just walking into the theater itself was full of grandeur. There were always several ushers. They would take your ticket and walk you right to the seat. And when the movie had ended, they were there to shepherd you out to prepare for the next movie. A few times I was able to stay and see the one that showed after it, but I was only able to do that a few times.
Before I saw The Picture of Dorian Gray, I had seen plenty of movies but this was the first movie that really resonated with me. There are two main things that left the biggest impression of this movie. The first, definitely, was just the thought-provoking introduction of immortality. It is really fascinating to think about. I can only imagine it. With time passing and seeing those around you growing old and dying must take a toll on your health.
The second thing that got to me was the moment that Dorian Grey goes up to the attic. It’s the climax of the movie. He goes up to where the Picture is, where he hid it after his deal with the devil. He has covered it in a sheet because he cannot bear to see what he would look like at this point if he had not made that terrible deal. In a moment, he tears the sheet off of the Picture, and at that moment the film switched into technicolor. I remember gasping aloud, along with the rest of the audience. Seeing that picture of the character in vivid color was revolting. Then the film returned to black and white, but the shock of that moment had not worn off. It was incredible, what a flash of color could do.
I specifically liked going to movies because I had begun to act in school productions. At the time, movies were staged more like plays, with actors in a scene and moving about it as if it were on a stage. I found a lot of value in watching them acting because I was able to use that data in my own life. I loved seeing how the professionals did it.
The production of movies was extremely play-like so it was an easy synthesis from watching it. The dialogue was clearly separated and no actor would speak over another. The words were always enunciated. It wasn’t realistic acting but it was clear. That started to change but for the most part, the early movies I saw were all like that. I think when this changed it made movies a lot more accessible in that more people would go to see them because it was easier to relate to. So many of the movies were just about men and them proclaiming their love for beautiful women.
