I love movies almost as much as I love books and reading. Summer is a great time to see movies with your kids or without. 🙂 It is the time of the summer blockbuster film. I started my love affair with movies when I was a kid going to the movies with my dad who was a movie-holic. The first movie I remember seeing at the movie theatre as a kid was Diamonds are Forever/James Bond.
I was 10 years old when my parents divorced and my brother was five. My dad got us every other weekend and he had not a clue what to do with us. He had worked swing shift for all the years I could remember and we got to see more of him once the parents divorced than we had when they were married. His answer to the dilemma was all-you-can-eat buffets and movies. Unlike today, movies were usually the cheapest entertainment around.
One of my fondest summer memories was the movie marathons–at the movies, not on television. Today I’m going to see the newest Planet of the Apes movie and it has caused a wonderful flashback to seeing all five POTA movies at a theatre in Berkeley with my dad and brother one hot summer day in the ’70s. We sat and ate popcorn and hot dogs and watched the movies with my dad telling us all about the meaning behind the movies, how well or not well the costumes were made, and how they did special effects and sounds back then. I don’t remember all he told us, just how neat it was to spend all that time with dad doing what we all loved to do.
My dad even made it so I could watch horror movies and not scream like a girl. LOL We would watch Creature Features (local horror movie show) late at night and he would tell me all the secrets of how they made a movie scary when it really wasn’t. Tip: watch a scary movie without sound and see how not scary it is!!
Next to books, movies are my second favorite entertainment thing!
Jill James, contemporary and paranormal romance writer
Another great thing for summer! Our Weddings on Main Street boxed set is still 99¢
Authors of Main Street 
My favourite movie of all time is Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Fugitive is also on my list. Anything with Harrison Ford is great.
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Susan, I do love Harrison Ford! The Fugitive was an excellent movie.
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I saw a promo for the new Planet of the Apes movie and immediately thought of Charlton Heston. I wonder what he’d think of the special effects in this POTA version! Hope you enjoy this latest movie in the series.
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Sandra, I thought of Heston too. The special effects are amazing but the care to show apes as apes, but almost human was great too.
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When I was a kid, the old black and white horror movies were shown late at night on TV. I’ve seen clips of those movies that used to scare me to death, and today they are hysterically funny. So much for special effects back in the old days!
My grandmother used to tell me in German that I didn’t have any “sit-ability” in me. I guess I still don’t because tying me to seat in a movie theatre for 2 hrs is more that I can handle. 🙂 Hand me the DVD and maybe I’ll watch something. At least I can fast forward when I get bored.
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LOL I love movies. I love sitting in the theater, eating my popcorn and chocolate covered raisins and living the fantasy for 2+ hours.
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Most of the movies we saw at the theatre were westerns, because my brother loved them. Still does. I still love Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in “Sleepless in Seattle.” Oh, and “You’ve Got Mail.” Feel good movies.
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Oh, Sleepless in Seattle was so romantic. Made me cry happy tears.
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The kids saw PLTA this past weekend and loved it. I declined to go. Just wasn’t in the mood I guess. But I did watch some great Netflix: BBC series Sherlock–simply fabulous–and the documentary, Secrets of Highclere Castle–where Downton Abbey is filmed.
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Joan, sounds like you had a great watching time for yourself.
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I LOVE movies, Jill. Love movie marathons too! Right now I’m snuggled in with my kids watching the Harry Potter movies. May favorite movie of the summer so far is, How to Train Your Dragon 2. It was almost as good as the first which I watch over and over. I also love, Galaxy Quest which is now on Amazon Prime and I believe it’s still on Netflix. Others that make the list: The Quiet Man, all the Bournes, Skyfall, The Italian Job, Now You See Me….the list goes on!
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I love Galaxy Quest!!! Harry Potter was our family favorite for many years!!
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Jill, I remember seeing the original Planet of the Apes in the theater one summer very long ago! And to this day, my favorite all time job was working in a movie theater all summer as a candy girl!
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Candy girl at the movies! I’d probably eat my salary in chocolate-covered raisins!!
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My daughter has a Friday at the movies at home every Friday night. I enjoyed it with them once when I visited. She prepared popcorn for the girls. We watched a family movie. I acted as if I didn’t understand the plot and my granddaughters were delighted to explain every now and then. It was so cute.
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Mona, movie nights are fun family time. Sounds like you had fun.
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