The "You've Got To Love Those History Teachers" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Remembering back 50 plus years to when I enjoyed my photography classes that I took at Millersville State Teacher's College (now known as Millersville University).  For one of my first assignments as a photography student in college, I chose to document an old cinema near my hometown of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  The "Capitol Theatre" was the heart of my community - a place of understanding, education and exposure for new ideas.  Two years after I'd photographed it, the "Capitol" was torn down.  I started thinking about how closely our identities are tied to the places we grow up in.  That's why I started shooting other towns' old theaters.  This was in the '70s and '80s, when these places were just starting to disappear, often replaced by malls or even parking lots.  In 1982, there were about 13,000 movie theaters around the country.  By 2020, there were less than half that number.  I've shot close to 20 theaters to date that were in driving distance of my home and that no longer exist.  Every time I go to a new (old) theater, I get to learn about its history from the locals.  Documenting these community spaces has become a hobby, a never-ending passion project.  Even if these theaters are disappearing, there are still more than enough to last me a lifetime.  My hope is that people will see my stories and realize how important it is to have a community space for everyone, regardless of religion, identity or political view.  We need to preserve the kinds of spaces that bring people together, teach us to love one another in spite of our differences and anchor us to the places that we knew when we were much younger.  History can't afford to disappear!  Where would all those history teachers find work?  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.