BACK TO THE MINES!

  SATURDAY, JANUARY 27TH., 2018
           BACK TO THE MINES!

      My wife and I went back to the mines
Friday. Sort of.
      The Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre has
begun a year long celebration of the former
movie theater's history. Each month the
preforming arts center will feature a classic
movie that has some sort of tie to the place.
       The series began with  a screening of
"The Molly Maguires," a story of a secret
Irish society that was said to have used
violence in an attempt to improve the
working conditions of coal miners in the
1800's.
        Most of the feature was filmed in
northeastern Pennsylvania, primarily
in the village of Eckley.
         The Kirby, then the Paramount, was
one of three area theaters that premiered
the movie in 1970.
          My Dad was business agent of
the theatrical union in Hazleton at the
time and spent many days working
behind the scenes on the movie. A lot
of Hazleton area residents were used as
extras in the feature. That was before my
own "movie career" got started!
           There's a burial scene in the movie.
My Dad an a fellow union local member
got to dig the graves. Twice!
           The director of photography
noted that the dirt piles beside the graves
were on "the wrong side" given the angle
of the sun so the dirt had to be moved.
            Dad also recalled having to place
small electric motors on the ground in a
picnic scene to keep snakes away!
            Among the photos my Dad left
behind after he passed away is a series
of shots from the top of the Breaker
built for the movie looking towards the
entrance to the mine as an explosion was
triggered to suggest the Molly Maguires
were sabotaging the coal company. There's
also a photo of him and his fellow worker.
Dad is pictured on the left.
              It was great to see the movie again,
especially on the big screen and in a movie
"palace" the likes of which used to be the
center on entertainment in most of the
communities around these parts! Lots of
memories in and about the feature!
              Hope you'll get to enjoy one of
these classics and that all your NEWS is
good!