I recently started writing movie reviews. I go see a movie a week or so before it comes out. I judge the movie, giving it a thumbs up or thumb down.  They give me complimentary tickets if I post a review — good or bad.

If you’d like to read them, visit the Republic-Times website (www.republictimes.net). I’m hoping to do one a week if I can swing it.

Going to the movies has been something I have been doing since I was born. My parents would load me up and off we’d go with family friends on a Friday or Saturday night to see the latest flick at the Strand Theater up town.  In those early days, I remember very little about movies, other than trying to stay awake to see the cartoons.

Mom usually put me in pajamas when we went to the movies. I remember seeing a few cartoons (which they still showed before the movie in the late 1960s and early 1970s) and maybe having a bite or two of popcorn. There was a sip of Coke from the cardboard cups.  Then, I’d crawl up on mom or dad’s lap and I’d be out.

Later, as I grew older, I remember seeing Clint Eastwood flicks and Disney films like “The Aristocats” and “The Shaggy Dog.” Once in awhile, there’d be a special Saturday matinee. Most of the movies I saw must not have been very memorable, for whatever reason.

What I do remember is the food. The fresh popcorn, popped right there in front of us. The way Coke tasted.  There were great big pickles you could buy and all kinds of great candy. Most of the time, the popcorn and Coke would be enough. Then, we’d throw the trash on the floor. I don’t know why we didn’t just pick it up and put it in the trashcan. It was common practice to just crumple it up and throw it on the floor.

The theater was built in the late 1940s or early 1950s. At one time, our town boasted two movie theaters and a drive-in.  No fooling. By the time I came around, one of the uptown theaters was gone. It’s fun though, to think my little town was bustling enough to have two theaters. I’d like to visit “back then” for a couple of days.  Where’s my time machine?

It was a neat building. Pretty simple. It had green seats and two exits on either side of the screen. The lobby had been updated with a mid-60s “mod” motif. We drank Coke out of those cardboard, swirly-designed cups and popcorn out of red and white bags.

As I grew older, I’d go to the “show” as we called it with buddies. We would sit behind girls we liked and throw popcorn until we were caught by Mr. Dilges or Mr. Vogel. If we were really lucky, girls would come and sit behind us and throw popcorn. The latter did not happen as much as the former, I’m afraid.

I do remember seeing “Taps” in the early 1980s. A bit of a slow mover at first, the movie gets interesting after a teenager is shot during a mob scene. I remember the audience being a little rowdy at first, uninterested by anything happening onscreen. When George C. Scott gets his gun taken by an unruly teen and another teen is shot, the audience hub-bub ceased.  You could have heard a pin drop. After that, we were all “into” the movie a little more.

Ah, the power of cinema.

The “show” was where many of us had our first informal date in junior high and where many of us had our first kisses. I can still remember the thrill of going to the show. I think we were all caught up in being there more than the movie itself. It was for sure a social hot spot.

Our town lost the old Strand in the late 1980s or early 1990s.  It caught fire and burned down.  Boy, were we sad.  I think the last movie I saw there was “An American Tail,” the cartoon about mice. I was an adult by then, and I think I went with some old friends and new friends, just so we could show the new friends what our small town local movie theater was like.

When I went to Eastern Illinois, they had an old movie theater called “The Will Rogers.”. They had a big picture of Will Rogers in the lobby. It was on the square in uptown Charleston, frequented by several college kids. It was cheap entertainment, but for me, it held some charm and reminded me of going to the movies as a kid. I wonder if that theater is still there. Probably not.

Movies are still a thrill for me. If it’s a really good movie, it’s sort of a vacation. You can actually escape the daily grind and get caught up in a good movie. Adventure movies make us feel like we can go out and slay a dragon. Good, inspirational movies make us feel that anything is possible. A good comedy helps refresh us and rediscover our sense of humor.

Go see a movie this weekend! Check out our website first, though. You wouldn’t want to make any hasty decisions!