Meet Your Projectionist

[Martin McCaffery]

Besides the kid looking about 12 years old, "just about RIGHT at all times" is one hell of a pitch line. Ahh, the high standards of our ancestors;>
For those of you not from the southeast US, the Martin chain evolved into the Carmike chain which eventually was consumed by AMC.

LaFayette Sun, June 3, 1953

[Armand Daiguillon]

The projectionists that the big chains had in the 90's are now a lost art. I was one back in the day. AMC trained and certified .... now, AMC also had "Union" projectionists for each market who did the maintenance and big mechanical fixes on a projector. That kind of job still lives on with today's service technicians. But for those of us who ran shows day to day in a 16 plex by ourselves - no one today compares. And while the union techs hated us - if something bad actually happened like a bad brain wrap or if a print fell on the floor - we were the ones who could take care of that best because we are the ones who actually ran shows day in and out. I do miss those days. There's nothing like getting a frantic call saying to "get here quick" and then you open up the booth door and see a literal sea of film 3 feet deep because a thick splice got stuck before it hit the sensors and all the film just dumped direct to the floor instead of the platter. - THOSE WERE THE DAYS !!!! (of course foolishness like that would never happen if I built the print, lol)

[Harold Hallikainen]

A nice story and video about the projectionists at the Sie Film Center in Denver is at https://www.rmpbs.org/blogs/arts-cul...colorado-35-mm . When I lived in the Denver area, I was able to do extensive testing of the QSC LSS-200 and IRC systems there.

[Martin McCaffery]

Working my way thru the LaFayette Sun, I fine that the above mentioned Leon Hurst later becomes the manager of the Martin Theatre.

[Ryan Gallagher]

A nice story and video about the projectionists at the Sie Film Center in Denver is at https://www.rmpbs.org/blogs/arts-cul...colorado-35-mm . When I lived in the Denver area, I was able to do extensive testing of the QSC LSS-200 and IRC systems there.

Thanks for sharing.

Seems I'd feel right at home at Denver's Sie. Century's + Strong lamp houses (in manual mode). Even the characteristic sound of the changeover foot-switch, which we still have too. Their peds and reel arms are different (we are the outlier here), and no mag head to deal with at Sie.

It's interesting that strong houses exhaust directly into the room, that seems uncomfortable, but Denver does have better weather than Austin. Our Christie dumps into the room, but that is just one lamp and not two.