Part 7 "A NEW BEGINNING IN AN OLD THEATER"

More than a dozen years had passed since I’d seen THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK at The AMERICAN Theater in Canton. Now, here it was July of 1993, and I was sitting in that very same movie theater yet again, only this time I was on a date, a first date in fact, with someone who would go on to become the Love of my life. I remember making sure that we would get there early, not too early, but just early enough so as to make sure that we had extra time to talk before the film started. (In case any of you are wondering what movie we saw on this momentous occasion, it was SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. A girly chick-flick, I know, but you have to lure the fish into the boat before you can whack it over the head with a paddle). Raechell Caron was, without a doubt, the most beautiful, intriguing woman that I had ever tried to whack. (I know that might sound dirty, but its’ not…trust me). One of the first things that she did, after we were seated, was to show me her uncanny ability to be able to stick her legs straight out and place her feet flatly against the back of the chair in front of us, without having to bend her knees. I was mesmerized. This was truly the one for me. By our second date, we had escalated to a slightly more exciting film, (at least to me, anyways). We saw JURASSIC PARK about a week later at the movie theater in Ogdensburg, New York. Having already seen it earlier myself, I knew just the right times to grab her shoulder and yell out some menacing growl. This served two purposes. Firstly, to further enhance her theatrical experience by providing her with a more startling “jolt” than what she otherwise would have gotten without the shoulder grab, and secondly, to simply make initial physical contact on my part. The ice was broken, and the fish was in the boat. Since our first date had been at The AMERICAN Theater in Canton, it seemed only appropriate to me that it should somehow play a part in my official proposal to Shelly as well. I made a date to take her there for a movie back in the middle of November, 1993. Unfortunately, there weren’t that many good films playing there at the time, so we ended up going to see LOOK WHO’S TALKING NOW with John Travolta and Kirstie Alley, (atrocious…absolutely atrocious). When we arrived, I made sure to park the car directly across the street from the theater. While we were inside watching the movie, someone who worked there changed the lettering on the overhead marquee to read; “I Love You, Shelly! Will You Marry Me?” After the movie ended, we walked back across the street to our car, where I casually turned her around to see the lighted message. (Fortunately for me, and for the several people standing across the road watching us as we kissed, she accepted). And the rest, as they say, is history. The AMERICAN Theater now held a whole new meaning for me. It is the place where my life truly began. Thank-you for saying “Yes”, Shelly. I will love you always.