Gone But Not Forgotten

I apologize for being a slacker on the blogs, but I kind of have an excuse - not that you want to hear it.  But the last few weeks have been really busy, I had to travel for work then my computer bit the dust.

So I'm finally getting around to posting a few long overdue blogs.  This one is a farewell to a piece of our family's past as well as a treasured "landmark" in the area where I grew up - Brenden Theatres closed their doors forever on April 15th after 22 years of serving the community.  This was the original Brenden Theatre - which has grown to several other locations in California, Las Vegas, Arizona and Colorado.  The lease was up for renewal and Brenden decided not to renew.

There was something to say for Brenden in it's glory days - which I like to think was when I worked there in high school and during a few college breaks - but it was the only place in town to watch a  movie for years.  It was a great atmosphere, the people who worked there were cool and it was about the only thing to do in town.

Thanks to a few former employees and Facebook, word got out about the closure and on April 15th, those of us who worked there from 1994-1996 were able to get together to say goodbye and catch one last show in Stadium 1.  It was like a high school reunion, but better!

There were roughly 50 of us - most of whom went to various high schools in the area - so we all caught up when we first got there, enjoying some of the foods from our favorite restaurants we often had on our breaks, had beers, saw a slide show of pictures of all of us from 18 years ago, and then watched Pulp Fiction - which was a popular flick while we all worked there. 

This place was amazing to work at back in the day.  While it was the "hot job" to have in town because all the "cool" people worked there and the movie perks were pretty cool - the management was also extremely patient and understanding of our studies.  As I mentioned virtually everyone who worked here was in high school others were in college - so we were all engaged in studies.  Brenden made it a priority to encourage good grades and allowed you to bring your homework to do during the "slow" times and even helped arrange tutors on staff if needed (I did use that for math my senior year).

 

L-R: The back of Matt's head, Anthony, Jenn, Heather, Jason 

 L-R: Amy, Aaron, Kendra, Danny

  

L-R: Brian and Brian

Jenn thinking she can still work the reg

 L-R: Me, Mr. E (who looks exactly the same as he did when he hired us) and Matt

Yes Brenden was a family affair - all three of us (Matt, Lisa, and I) worked at Brenden for a time.  Sadly my brother was even my "boss" for a summer and trust me he took full advantage.  If you've ever wondered about my Mom's email address - it stems from the fact we all worked at the theatre (she created the account while Matt and Lisa were still in high school).

 L-R: Jenn and Matt
Jennie's brother was actually the one who trained my brother on the police force.

This "reunion" was a great way for everyone to catch up and shoot the breeze for a few hours.

 Heather and Mr. E - I believe Heather is grabbing his ass, something we all wish we could've done back in the day.  And for the record while he could've had girl he wanted, Mr. E was nothing but appropriate with all the hormonal teenage girls.

As expected the theatre brought some couples together, and a few of them even got married!  But for the most part it helped create an amazing bond of friendship with so many of us.  

Jeremy using the broom and scoop cleaning up a popcorn spill for old times sake.

Since the theatre was going to be gutted for the new movie company moving in... some of us left our mark on the old arcade window.

Below is Mr. E signing...

 And a few of us even took souvenirs of the place - I only got a couple of movie posters for Dave (including the Avengers and my friend Fergal snuck in a Hunger Games poster).  You can see below Matt took a theatre sign - but he also had a movie reel.

L-R: Mr E., Sam (he ran projectors), Matt, Me, Brian, Heather, Fergal

It was a bittersweet night - to say goodbye and yet hello.  Thanks to Facebook many have reconnected again and there are plans for other gatherings in the future - maybe a poker game or two. 

But it appears my son will not be able to work at his Mama's "alma mater" theatre after all...

(that was in 2008 when Drew was 9 months old)

I can only hope he finds a great place to work in high school and a great group of friends just like I found.  While the original Brenden is gone, it will live forever in my memory and hold a special place in my heart.