Silent Movies

Yesterday was one of those 19 hour days. Work, plus picking up kids, plus dyeing eggs, plus getting kids set up for an evening without parents, plus a drive to Provo, plus a silent move (The General with Buster Keaton), plus a drive back to SLC. Then I had to get up at 0200 today and drive in to work and do another 10 hour shift.

I won't bore you, but let's just say if it was foggy on the 20th, it was a blizzard on the 22nd!

But let me tell you about silent movies.

First thing they have is "entertainment". For us it was a couple dancing the Charleston. And a brass band playing some music from the '20's. Then we had a sing-along of songs that have been around forever. ( I knew them all.) At least since 1926.

Then, the silent movie.

OK, there's no sound coming from the film, that's true. That's why they're called "silent" movies. But there's this big organ in front, see, and the organist plays all the way through the whole movie, music to fit what's happening on-screen, and music designed to make you cheer or boo or hiss or laugh or cry. They gave us a little practice session before the film actually started, where they'd play music for the heroine and we'd have to make the appropriate sounds, and something for the villian, etc. It was at a University, so I'm surprised they didn't flunk us and kick us out, we were so dismal.

But then the movie started, and the music sort of carried us away into the story. That whole audience was cheering and boo-ing and laughing and hissing and crying and applauding til you could hardly hear yourself think! It was a blast! It was more fun than a circus. I wish we did movies that way now.