Combing through a new to me road side antique shop netted me a couple of DVD’s for the movie room and thankfully while rummaging through the shop I came across a box of old newspapers including the entertainment section for the Toronto Sun. This yielded a treasure trove of movie memories for me and I’m sure for those of you who were around during this era. If you were then surely you recall venturing out to your local theater to catch a few of these titles. Some memorable, some not. Hopefully you stayed the straight and narrow and out of the red light district’s choice of titles.
On with the task of picking our evenings entertainment for a night out at the movies and in doing so I’m reminded of the emphasis on just how long some of these titles were playing in local movie houses. Doesn’t work that way anymore.
Fondly recalling the days when James Coburn had a movie playing even if it wasn’t the type of role I preferred to see him in.
31 weeks and nearly 40 years later and I’ve still not seen this one.
Surely you’ve seen this hilarious comedy playing in it’s sixth straight month ….. come on now don’t disappoint me.
Another fine performance from Robert Duvall as The Great Santini should be on your dance card or perhaps the tradition of the Fiddler is preferred.
Everyone was talking about this one with Robert De Niro and I was mesmerized by the dreamlike black and white trailer but at the time was too young to see it. The VHS would rectify that and yes it is the BEST FILM OF THE YEAR. Even if the Academy says it isn’t. With all due respect to Ordinary People, ARE YOU KIDDING ME!
Cinema 1 or Cinema 2? Clint or Dolly? O.K. Clint or the ladies but in our house growing up it was Dolly.
As much as I grew to love Robin Williams, this one remains a major misstep for all concerned. In other words, it bombed.
Honestly, if the industry hadn’t changed and we never saw the marketing of home video etc. this Paul Newman cult favorite would still be playing movie theaters here in Canada.
And another one I’ve never actually seen. No reason other than I had no interest at the time of it’s release. Maybe it’s time to turn the clock back.
“We’re on a mission from, God.”
Scott vs. Brando. I really should revisit this one. All I recall is being shocked at just what Marlon looked like, ruining the image I had of the cool guy in the black leather jacket.
Here’s another I’ve yet to experience and something tells me I’m better off for it.
Got a crush on Goldie? Have fun.
No idea but apparently a Canadian production starring ….. yeah you see him there don’t yah?
Ah yes, every young guy in 1980 knew exactly who Bo Derek was and of course wanted to see anything she was in. Especially if she was in a hot tub.
I was eager to see just what exactly this foreign film was and my eventual intro came via the VHS tape and proved to be my first Kurosawa film.
And the hits just keep coming though I’m not too sure about that second feature.
Bodyguard
or Bette?
Count’em up. How many have you seen? I’ve seen 12 of the 19 titles. No I’ve never seen Cruising but I did see Hangar 18, Fu Manchu and Close Encounters at the theater when they were first released.
And on to the red light district…..
Heavy praise from Hugh Heffner makes this one a must see on the adult film circuit I suppose.
Perhaps a triple feature if more to your liking?
Now this title had me laughing and don’t forget to bring the add to save on the entry fee.
Now with Bo Derek not coming to Toronto to front for A Change of Seasons I guess you could venture into the Metro to see “actress” Carol Connors who will be there for a …. “meet and greet?”
Plenty of titles to choose from for a night on the town circa 1980. If I could turn the clock back I guess I’m off to see Raging Bull. If that’s sold out then I’ll take in The Blues Brothers. How about you?
Mike's Take On the Movies 
I was hoping I’d seen a movie on this date, but no such luck: two weeks earlier I saw Airplane!, and one week later I saw Popeye and Every Which Way You Can. I good time for me to see movies…the local sixplex had opened up that summer, so now I didn’t need to be driven to neighboring cities to see films…I could just walk! From the ads above, I also saw Raging Bull, The Blues Brothers, Seems Like Old Times, Sex Tycoon, My Bodyguard, and eight of the 19 titles from that last ad. And if I could back in time, I’d see whatever was playing at the coolest, old-time big-screen theater in Toronto. Or, if I have to choose now…Slap Shot, at the Odeon.
And don’t feel bad about never seeing Fame…I haven’t either. Nor have I see Dirty Dancing, Can’t Stop the Music, or Flashdance…but I just picked up the latter today for $1.50! I have a list of never-seen ’80s films that my library doesn’t carry, that I’ll buy cheap if I can find them. And that was the first…I still have a dozen or so others to track down. And…I finally saw ‘Flash Gordon’ not too long ago. Definitely bad, but fun in a ‘bad, cheesy movie’ kind of way. Plus, there’s the Queen soundtrack! “FLASH! AH, AHHHHH! He’s a miracle!”
I never actually saw Popeye till about 8 years ago with the boys and found it boring but plain to see a lot of money went into the sets. Most of these films I would have waited to see on VHS I guess not being old enough to pass for some of the ratings put upon us and the films here in Canada. Slap Shot played for years here and I did eventually see it on the big screen with the hockey team I played for on a night of partying even though we all knew the film by heart and could repeat most of the dialogue by that point.
And by the way, I was just kidding about Sex Tycoon!
Fame and Dirty dancing decent flicks. I love old movie ads this took me back to being a 10 year old seeing a lot of the films mentioned including some of the R rated ones.
I’m always on the hunt for pre 1990 movie sections in the papers. More so if I can find them from the drive in eras.
Yeah when was a teen i used to go to the public library when they still had microfilm readers and look at old newspapers to find movie ads from the 50s to the 70s. I have a book called Ad Nauseum that is all old horror film ads
Nice, I’ve got one that covers ads of the 1930’s called Coming Next Week.
Never heard of THE FORMULA so I’ll go see that one.
As I say, I need to revisit it and thankfully have a copy so might not be too far off.
3 explicit hits for only $2.50? What a bargain! 😉 My Bodyguard… “recommended as an adult entertainment…” that’s kinda funny!
I always get a kick out of prices on old movie tickets, groceries and products in general when I get a peek at an old newspaper or catalog. Haven’t seen My Bodyguard since it came out shortly afterwards on VHS. Might be time for a rewatch as I recall little about it outside of big giant guy and little guy bonding.