The Symbol Of 80's Greatness

Shot Out A Cannon: A Dusk Til Dawn Marathon

American Ninja / Masters Of The Universe / Breakin' / Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects
Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA
If you grew up in the 80's and 90's and watched a lot of films on home video, this is a logo that you've probably seen before.  Cannon Films was a studio that made movies in a way that few others have done before.  I won't claim to be an expert on their history, though I'm sure I'll get a lot closer after finishing Austin Trunick's books (more on those later).

I may be a bit off-base here, but my impression of Cannon Films is that they were a studio that made entertaining movies on a budget.  That's not a unique concept, but what set them apart from other low cost filmmakers is the effort that they put forth.  Ed Wood either didn't notice or didn't care if his films were crap.  Lloyd Kaufman seems as if he goes out of his way to deliberately make crap.  Cannon Films was cut from a different cloth.  When you watch one of their movies, you're going to hear a few corny lines and see a few cheesy special effects, but by the time the credits roll, you'll know that you just watched a movie made by a group of folks who sincerely did their best with what they had to entertain you.  Another thing that I think set Cannon Films apart is that they had the goal of becoming a major studio that could produce big budget films, but they didn't quite make it to that next level.  I fully admit that this is a half-educated opinion at best, but in the words of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, that's the impression that I get.

The poster for the show was created by artist Tom Bifulco.  It's not as detailed as most of his work, but I think the simplicity of this design is perfect for a night where we're celebrating the brilliance of Cannon Films.

Speaking of artists, our friend Donnie created two new pins that he was giving away to folks on the lot.  The one on the left features Rico from the Rico's Nachos promo that plays during intermission.  The one on the right is an inside joke for folks who were at VHS Fest for Mr. Nasty's fight for residuals on a novelty tape from the 1980's.

 

Author Austin Trunick was also on the lot to talk to introduce the films, to sell and sign copies of his books, and to meet and talk with fans about the pure insanity that was Cannon Films.  He's an extremely nice man and he knows a hell of a lot about this studio.  If you're at all interested in learning more about Cannon Films, check out his interview from July 12th, 2023 on the Mahoning Drive-In Radio Podcast, and then check out The Cannon Film Guide: Volume I and Volume II.  I'm only a few pages into Volume I so far.  I can't wait to dig in to the rest of it ,and I'm already looking forward to Volume III.

Show banner designed by Andrew Kern

Saturday night's event was a dusk-to-dawn marathon of four movies that are very different from one another, but they share two things in common: they all premiered during the 1980's and they were all produced and distributed by Cannon Films.  First up was the 1985 martial arts action film: American Ninja, followed by the 1987 superhero adventure: Masters Of The Universe, then the 1984 breakdancing musical: Breakin', and finally the 1989 Charles Bronson crime thriller: Kinjite - Forbidden Subjects.

I thought I had seen American Ninja before, but I realized a few minutes into the film that I must have mistaken it for something else.  It was a good film to kick off last night's quadruple feature because it encapsulates everything that Cannon Films is about.  It's Rambo meets Shaw Bros in a fun 95 minute flick.  It's currently sitting at 0% on Rotten Tomatoes, mostly from critics who completely miss the point of movies like this.  It's not meant to be a work of art that you enjoy at the cinema and then reflect on its symbolism and its deeper meaning.  It's a movie that you rent at Blockbuster and watch with your friends with a bag of microwave popcorn and a can of Pepsi.  It's a tasty cheeseburger with a side of crispy fries at a roadside diner that you'll never drive past again.  Some people can appreciate the joy that things like that bring into their lives, and I'm thankful to be one of those people.  If you're not, or if you choose not to be, hey man, your loss.

 

We sat outside for about the first half hour of American Ninja, but it started to rain so we packed up and watched the rest of the movie, and the next one, from inside the car.  It went back and forth between a steady drizzle and some pretty heavy rainfall complete with thunder and lightning, but it didn't hurt our enjoyment of the movies one bit.  I'm still recovering from the mosquito bites from Video Game Weekend, so a night in the car isn't the worst thing in the world that could have happened.

The second movie of the night was Masters Of The Universe, and its screening at the Mahoning has come at a very interesting time.  This movie is based on a line of toys sold by Mattel.  Back in 1987, a movie based on a toy line was the kind of thing that usually would go direct-to-video and no major Hollywood studio would invest their time or money in.  Fast forward 36 years and Barbie, which is also a movie based on a line of Mattel toys, is the #1 movie at the box office for the fourth consecutive week and has grossed over half a billion dollars to date.  It just goes to show you, some ideas that get dismissed and laughed at aren't necessarily bad ideas... some of them are just ahead of their time.

Despite the fact that I was a massive fan of both the Masters Of The Universe toys and cartoon when this movie was released in 1987, I never got to see this in theaters, and that all comes down to a weird quirk that I had when I was a kid that I still can't really explain.  I was perfectly happy to watch cartoons that were based on movies, like The Real Ghostbusters, Teen Wolf, and Ewoks, but for some reason, the 7-year-old version of me was not at all receptive to the idea of a live action adaptation of a cartoon.  I'd take one look at Dolph Lundgren and say "that's not He-Man", and that was all she wrote.  It took the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie that was released three years later to finally inspire me to give the live-action adaptations a chance.

I still haven't seen Barbie, but I think it's a pretty safe bet to say that it's of a higher production quality than Masters Of The Universe.  The stories that Austin Trunick told me about the production of this movie, particularly its final fight scene between He-Man and Skeletor, are every bit as entertaining as film.  In fact, the making of this movie could probably be movie itself, and I'll bet that it would be a damn fun one to watch!

This wasn't my first time seeing Masters Of The Universe, but I was very late to the party with this one.  I think I was in my late 30's the first time I sat down and watched the whole thing, and it's not nearly as bad as people make it out to be.  Don't get me wrong, it most certainly has its issues and your eyebrows are going to get a workout for how many times you'll be raising them to question what it is you just saw, but it's a fun family flick that fits in with all of the other Cannon Films that I've watched over the years.

As much as I wanted to stay all night and watch Breakin' and Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects, I just couldn't, and I mean that with absolutely zero percent sarcasm.  Musicals really aren't my thing, but I'm curious to know how the folks behind Cannon Films could take a movie like Breakin' from concept to the #1 picture in America in just 12 weeks.  Meanwhile, Kinjate looked like an interesting thriller, and since I've never even so much as seen a trailer for it, I'd be going in completely cold with no expectations, and those are always fun experiences at the Mahoning.

Unfortunately, the "dusk til dawn" aspect of this show came on one of the few Saturday nights that I just wasn't able to do.  Dad and I have Phillies tickets for this afternoon's game.  I live about two hours away from the ballpark, and the gates are opening at noon for Alumni Weekend, so if I was to have any hope of getting enough sleep to be able to make the drive there and back and enjoy the game, I had to call it a night after the first two features.  It was still a hell of a fun night, and who knows, maybe they'll screen Breakin' and Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects again sometime.  Whether they do or not, I am very hopeful that we'll get to enjoy Shot Out A Cannon II at the drive-in next season.

Who Me?

This photo should be printed as large as possible and hung on the outfield wall.

Side note: The fan didn't get arrested or kicked out.

Light The Candle To Open The Door

Talk To Me
Regal Cinema - Hazleton, PA

This is one of the best and most original horror movies that I've gotten to see in a long time.  I'm not crazy about the music, but you can chalk that up to the fact that I've reached the age where most new music is not going to be something I'm ever going to get into.  

Dolly's Cake Is Perfectly Moist

Dolly Parton's Southern Style Banana Flavored Cake Mix
Duncan Hines (2023)

There's a whole line of Dolly Parton branded products available from Duncan Hines.  We tried her banana cake and it turned out pretty well.

A Moment Of (Loren) Zen

Michael Lorenzen
Pitcher - Philadelphia Phillies

The newest member of the Phillies rotation is making a hell of an impression since he was acquired from the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline.  His first start in a Phillies uniform was on August 3rd in a road game against the Marlins.  He went 8 innings and gave up just two runs in the Phillies victory on that night.  Tonight was his first start at Citizens Bank Park since joining the team, and he wasted no time in becoming a Philadelphia legend.

In his first start in his new home ballpark, Michael Lorenzen pitched the 14th no-hitter in franchise history.  With this level of effectiveness and the ability to pitch deep into games, this is beginning to look like one of the best trades that the Phillies have ever made at the deadline.

Photo Source: Matt Slocum (Associated Press)

The starting pitcher wasn't the only member of the Phillies who got their first look at Citizens Bank Park tonight.

Weston Wilson was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2016, but never made it to the Majors.  The Phillies signed him as a minor league free agent this past winter, and he's had an incredible season as the Iron Pigs shortstop, batting .260 with 25 home runs, 69 RBI and 23 stolen bases through 100 games.  Finally, after 706 career minor league games, he was promoted to the big leagues on Sunday to replace Brandon Marsh who injured his knee and will be out of action for a while.  Weston made his Major League debut in tonight's game batting 7th in the lineup and starting in left field.

In the bottom of the 2nd, Weston Wilson hit a home run in his first MLB plate appearance.  He would end the night going 1-1 with two walks, a stolen base, and the home run.  The last time a member of the Phillies had a home run and a stolen base in their first game was back in 1901... 122 years ago!

If he can keep producing at the plate the way he has in Triple A, this dude could turn out to be a weapon, especially when you consider his defensive versatility.  You can plug him in just about anywhere on the diamond when you need him.

Overall, the future is looking pretty bright for the Phillies.  They've got the third best record in the National League at 63-52, and they'd be the top-seeded Wild Card team if the season ended today.  I think they're in good shape to push for a return to the World Series.

The Return Of Mr. Nasty

The Naked Gun
Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA

One of the funniest shows to ever air on television premiered on the ABC network in March 1982.  Police Squad, starring Leslie Nielsen, was a spoof on police dramas like Dragnet and Hill Street Blues.  It was praised by both fans and critics at the time, but the network cancelled the show after only six episodes.  According to Mr. Neilsen, the network president told him that the show was taken off the air because "the viewer had to watch it in order to appreciate it".  TV Guide called this "the most stupid reason a network ever gave for ending a series", and I couldn't agree more.

Six years after Police Squad was cancelled, the series was adapted into a feature film called The Naked Gun: From The Files Of Police Squad.  It grossed over $78 million domestically and over $152 million worldwide on an estimated budget of $12, and it birthed a trilogy of films that have grossed nearly a half billion dollars globally.

Show banner designed by Andrew Kern

This is another bucket list screening for me.  The Naked Gun was in its original theatrical run when I was eight years old, and there was no way that my family was going to take me out to see a movie with the word "naked" in the title.  It was rated PG, so I was able to rent it on VHS a couple of years later.  I was probably around ten years old the first time I saw it and I thought it was one of the funniest movies that I ever watched.

Three and a half decades have not changed my reaction to this film one bit, and judging by the reaction of the other folks on the lot, I am not alone.  This is a hysterically funny movie!  Leslie Nielsen's deadpan delivery and facial expressions are second to none.  Nancy Marchand is also brilliant in this film.  She's probably best known today for her role as Tony's mother in The Sopranos.  She plays the mayor in The Naked Gun, and her reactions to and scoldings of Frank Drebin are flawless.  I almost titled this post "Sexual Assault With A Concrete Dildo" after a line from the movie where she's listing all of the charges that Lt. Drebin has been charged with as a result of his investigation of Vincent Ludwig, but I'm guessing that would attract an audience that I'm not seeking out.

This screening also represented the return to the Mahoning screen of our old VHS Fest pal, Mr. Nasty.  In addition to filming direct-to-video insult tapes, Larry Pines had a few small roles in television shows and movies.  He played one of the drug dealers that shoot OJ Simpson at the beginning of The Naked Gun.  I'm guessing the residual checks came in for that one.

And that's a wrap on tonight's Tunnel Vision Tuesday screening of The Naked Gun, but before I go, here is the word-of-the-day, brought to you by the screen on the gas pump where I fueled up on the drive home from the Mahoning.  Use it in good health.

Drinking Shirley Temples With A Penguin

Neo Trios Menu
Friendly's (2004)
We found this framed kids menu from Friendly's Restaurant at Weil Antique Center in Allentown last week.  In 2004, children 12 and under cold get a meal with a drink and an ice cream dessert for $4.49.  Not a bad deal!  The artwork on the menu is what caught my eye.  Each item is represented by a little monster, robot, animal, or other character.  Below is a close-up of each of them, or at least as good of a close-up as I could get through the reflections on the frame.

The menu also has an Eye Spy game.  See if you can find the following items in the pictures: gas mask, scar, whiskers, lasso, goggles, bandanna, handlebars, sword, feathers, wings, a mustache, and a hat.  You should be able to find them pretty easily because they're not hidden all that well.

Video Armageddon At The Drive-In

Video Game Weekend 2023: Super Mario Bros
Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA

It's Video Game Weekend at the Mahoning Drive-In Theater, and this years event not only features one of the most notorious films ever made, but the lot is chock full of things that any gamer of any age or skill level would enjoy.

The poster for this weekend's event is pretty bad ass!  It was designed by artist Tom Bifulco in the style of box artwork of a Super Nintendo game, and it features drawings of Bob Hoskins firing the Super Scope.. er, I mean the de-evolution gun, and John Leguizamo holding a SNES controller while contemplating if it's hypocritical for an actor who isn't an Italian-American to accept a role as one while complaining to anyone who will sit still long enough to listen about any other performer who plays a role that doesn't mirror their lives off-camera.  That last part isn't really a reflection of something that Mr. Leguizamo is likely to have ever considered, but it should be.

 

The t-shirt for the weekend was also designed by Mr. Bifulco, and I like it even more than the poster.  It's designed to look like one of the original "black box" games that were released in the earliest years of the Nintendo Entertainment System.

In addition to the feature film, Video Game Weekend includes a vendors market, vintage arcade cabinets from the Retroware Arcade in Lansdale, and a tournament that would allow players to compete against each other on the drive-in screen.

There's also a traveling photo op in the form of my friend Louie, who dressed up as Mario on Saturday and Luigi today, and if you think he didn't do the character voices when he posed for photos with fans, you'd be wrong.  He also filmed a couple of videos as Mario and Luigi that you can watch on Instagram.

 

I'm not going to try to change your mind, dude, but... nooooo.  I did, however, approach the table to sign up for two of the video game competitions that were being held: the Super Mario Bros speedrun, and the Mario Kart 64 racing tournament.

I've got 37 years of experience playing the original Super Mario Bros game and I'm pretty darn good at it.  When I played it with my maternal grandmother when I was a kid, I would sometimes put the controller on the floor and play the game with my feet, just so that she'd get a turn to play in a reasonable amount of time.  I wouldn't say that I was good playing it that way, but I was able to get through 1-1 and 1-2 without losing a life, which amused my grandmother to no end. 

I practiced my speedrun at home in the days leading up to this event, and while I'm not nearly good enough to finish the game in under five minutes, I managed to clear the game a few times in a time that I felt was good enough to put in a respectable performance with a halfway decent chance of winning the tournament.

In contrast, I am absolutely terrible at Mario Kart 64 (and every other Mario Kart game for that matter), but I've been playing it since the month that it came out and it's a hell of a lot of fun, so I signed up for that one just for the opportunity to play it on the big screen at the Mahoning.

I didn't take any photos of the vendor tables, but I did find a few pretty awesome games at reasonable prices, including a boxed Tiger LCD Handheld Electronic Pinball game (center) and four Famicom cartridges: Kamen Rider Club: Gekitotsu Shocker Land (top left), Kinnikuman: Muscle Tag Match (bottom left), Seikima II Akuma no Gyakushū (top right) and Gradius (bottom right).

Seikima II is the one that I'm looking forward to playing the most.  It's a game that was released in 1986 that's based on a Japanese Satanic heavy metal band.  I didn't realize this when I bought it.  The label art made it look like it might have something to do with Kiss, but I'm pretty excited to play it and to learn more about the game and the band behind the game.

The entire lot was decked out in video game decorations and other memorabilia.  My favorite of these were the row of arcade machines that were lined up in the concession building.  They included Donkey Kong 3, Gradius, Atari RBI Baseball, Mr Do's Castle, and Popeye.  They were all set to free play, and I spent some time getting acquainted with a few old favorites, including a two player game against Gene's son, Ben, who had never seen or played Gradius before.

Our group of friends that came together this season spent most of the pre-show sitting in a big circle directly under the screen, which not only helped to provide some shade from the sun, but also gave us some space to spread out away from the hustle and bustle of the lot.  We moved our seats back to the center of the lawn before the movie started, which is quickly becoming my favorite place on the grounds to watch a movie.

Gene is known for bringing carrots that are peeled and individually wrapped in tinfoil as his snack at the drive-in.  In honor of this, Kate surprised him with his very own crocheted carrot which was given to him wrapped in tinfoil.

Joe La Scola and Sean O'Rourke from the Movie Dumpster podcast were on hand throughout the day to meet the fans and to introduce the film, including a clip that they played with Rodney Dangerfield executing the Triple Lindy dive through the warp zone from the 1993 Super Mario Bros movie.

At sundown, we all enjoyed a screening of an original 35mm print of the 1993 Super Mario Bros film.  I've said it before and I'll say it again - this is a terrible movie.  There are a lot of folks who have come out of the woodwork to retroactively defend this film, and quite frankly, I don't think that even these people believe what they say.  I will say that it's an enjoyable experience but it's fun for the same reason as movies like Troll 2 and Mac and Me are fun - the story is ridiculous and the writing is absurd on a level that few other movies can match.  It also bears only the most passing resemblance to the video game universe, which was the reason why literally no kid that I knew in the 90's... not one... had anything positive to say about it when it came up in conversation.

Having said all that, watching this movie in 2023 is a hell of a lot of fun.  It fits in perfectly with cult classics like Abraxas, Fortress, Pod People, or any other cheesy and over-the-top sci-fi flicks from the 70's, 80's and 90's.  If anything, I think that its association with the video game franchise holds it back from fans who have a hard time appreciating it for its wackiness without constantly asking themselves "what does this have to do with the game".  If you're a fan of movies that are so bad that they're good, I strongly recommend it.  If that kind of movie isn't your cup of tea, or if you want something that reflects the story of the video game series (even as it existed back in 1993), the 2023 animated film is the one that you want.

 

There was an intermission reel after the movie ended, followed by the Super Mario Bros portion of the video game tournament.  There was a pretty serious lag between the control inputs and the action that took place on the screen.  I probably would have done better if I was a little more slow and deliberate, but since this was meant to be a speed run, I was rushing through and couldn't get my timing down.  I managed to make it to World 4-2, which was respectable enough to win a prize, but not quite good enough to win the tournament.

I figured that we were just playing for fun and for bragging rights on the lot, so it was very cool of them to give us prizes.  I was given these nice New Super Mario Bros U figures, and a ticket book with five all-day passes to the Retroware Arcade.  Mike, Kate, Angie, and I are going to head down to the arcade later on this year after the end of the drive-in season.

 

Thankfully, they solved the controller lag problem for the Mario Kart 64 portion of the tournament by plugging four corded GameCube controllers directly into the Switch console that was hooked up to the digital projector.  I managed to finish in second place for the first race, but I'm not very good at all at Mario Kart 64, so I finished in fourth place for every other race after that.  It was still a hell of a lot of fun to race on the big screen at the drive-in.

The last game of the tournament was Super Smash Bros Ultimate.  I haven't played any of the games from this series before so I sat out of this part of the tournament but it was a lot of fun watching everyone play.  The first matchup of the tournament put Louie up against Ben.  The two of them had been engaging in friendly smack talk all day long, so the tournament bracket worked out perfectly.

Ben took the victory against Louie and he went on to win Round 2 as well, but it was nearly 3:00 am by that point and both he and Gene were ready to call it a night.  Next year, I think it might be a good idea to set up a few televisions with game consoles on the lot to allow many players to compete against each other at the same time, with maybe the semi-finals and the finals taking place on the big screen.  I don't think anybody expected it to go as late as it did, but it was still a hell of a lot of fun with a lot of laughs as we watched the tournament unfold.

Show banner designed by Andrew Kern

And that's a wrap on the 2023 Video Game Weekend at the Mahoning Drive-In Theater... at least for me.

The gaming market and the on-screen tournament is continuing today, and while they'll be playing different games tonight, the movie will once again be a screening of Super Mario Bros from 1993.  We probably would have gone again if they showed a different movie, like maybe The Wizard, or Joysticks, or even something on the newer side from the digital booth like Pixels or Free Guy.  However, for as much as I love this place, I can't think of any event that would bring me out see the same movie two nights in a row, especially when there are so many other options they could have gone with.  We'll be back on Tuesday for The Naked Gun.

A Double Bill Of Friendship, Fashion & Feminism

Rebel Rebel:  The Legend Of Billy Jean / Desperately Seeking Susan

Mahoning Drive-In Theater - Lehighton, PA

Show banner designed by Andrew Kern

Last night was all about female empowerment at the Mahoning Drive-In Theater with a double feature of classics from 1985 that starred several of the most talented women of their generation in stories that showed women seizing their power and taking control of their destinies.  However, this theme was not limited to the action that took place on the screen.  The night was programmed by Val, who not only selected the movies, but also filled the lot with classic 80's tunes as the pre-show DJ.

The poster for last night's event was designed by artist Sarah Karess.  She created the poster for Mondo Argento, which was one of my favorite posters of the 2022 season, and the poster for Rebel Rebel is definitely one of my favorite posters for the 2023 season.

Actress Helen Slater filmed a very nice introduction to her movie.  I'll always remember her best as Christy Willis in The Secret Of My Success.  She has also starred in Supergirl, Ruthless People, and City Slickers, but her most iconic role is the one that she played in the first film of last night's double feature, Billie Jean Davy, in The Legend Of Billie Jean.

I'm not sure how or why The Legend Of Billie Jean stayed off of my radar for as long as it did, because it is an absolutely incredible film.  I mean no disrespect to the movie for what I'm about to say, but I barely knew that this film existed.  The only time that I ever remember hearing about it at all was in a brief segment in the VH-1 series I Love The 80's 3-D.  My knowledge about the plot going into tonight's screening was limited to what was discussed in a short segment on that show, which is to say that I knew that it was the story of a woman fighting to defend her brother whose bike was stolen, and that the phrase "fair is fair" becomes her rallying cry.

In a way, I'm glad that I went into this screening with such a small amount of prior knowledge.  There are few things that I enjoy more than going into a screening at the Mahoning as a blank slate and experiencing a classic film for the first time the same way that many fans experienced it when it was first released.  In this case, that feeling of joy came with a side of guilt.  Why hadn't I heard of this movie before, or made more of an effort to watch it after seeing that segment on I Love The 80's 3-D?  It's a stone cold 80's classic that blew me away, and a movie that I would have no hesitation ranking alongside the most well-known movies of the decade, but it took me until 2023 to sit down and watch it.  I'd like to think that this was just my laziness and my habit of going back to watch the same movies that I've already seen over and over again, but I have to question whether or not I've had a subconscious bias to movies that feature a male lead.  I can't change the past, but you can bet that I'll strongly recommend this movie to anyone who will sit still long enough to listen to me sing its praises.

The second movie of Rebel Rebel was one that I had seen before when I was a teenager: the 1985 hit Desperately Seeking Susan.  It was directed by Philadelphia native Susan Seidelman and stars Rosanna Arquette and Madonna as two strangers whose lives become intertangled though a series of events that change their lives forever.  Well, it changes Arquette's character Roberta forever.  I have a hunch that Madonna's titular character Susan would keep marching to the beat of her own drummer along with whoever could keep up with her.

I was about 12 or 13 years old when I saw this movie for the first time.  I was living in South Florida with my dad, my stepmother, and my stepsister at the time.  Dad didn't have a huge home video library, but this was one of the tapes that was (and still is) in his collection.  My stepsister and I used to have movie nights in her room when we were growing up, and one of the movies that we watched together was my dad's copy of Desperately Seeking Susan.  I enjoyed it from the first time I saw it, but I was probably too young to pick up on everything that this movie had to say at the time.  It's a movie that I've grown to enjoy and appreciate more with each time that I see it.  One thing that hasn't changed since I first saw this movie is that I still can't help but to laugh out loud at every scene involving comedian Steven Wright.  The scene towards the end of the movie where he's so enamored with the magic show that he's completely unaware of what's unfolding around him gets me every time!

Desperately Seeking Susan has become a cult classic and a pillar of female empowerment in cinema for a number of reasons.  Its screenplay was written by Leora Barish.  It was produced by Sarah Pillsbury and Midge Sanford, directed by Susan Seidelman, and it stars two icons of film, music, and pop culture, Rosanna Arquette (who was the inspiration behind both Peter Gabriel's In Your Eyes and Toto's Rosanna) and the Queen of Pop, Madonna.  Last night, another important milestone became connected with this film, as it was the first movie in the 73 year history of the Mahoning Drive-In Theater to have been presented in its entirety by a female projectionist.  Krista has been training as a projectionist with Rob and Jeff, and she did an absolutely flawless job in presenting this 80's classic to the fans in attendance.

And that's a wrap on what has been one of my favorite nights at the Mahoning Drive-In Theater so far.

Video Game Weekend kicks off tonight with one of the worst movies I've ever seen: Super Mario Bros.  I don't mean the excellent animated film that was released earlier this year... I mean the horrendous 1993 movie whose trailer was so bad that it didn't convince me to go see it in theaters or even rent it on home video despite the fact that it was released when I was 12 years old and at the peak of my Nintendo fandom.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.  I'll have more to say about the poster child for "so bad it's good" movies tomorrow.