I grew up in Northeast Salem’s Hollywood District and have many fond memories of those years and growing up in a time when kids from all over the neighborhood would come together to play at each other’s houses. I have very distinct memories of hopping into my mom’s Valiant and going to pick up the dry-cleaning, among other errands. One of the things I remember about these trips was the old Eagle’s lodge that stood on the corner of Broadway and Market Streets and asking my mom about it on just about every trip through that intersection.
Over time the neighborhoods of the Hollywood District have changed, and the Grant and Highland Neighborhoods have worked hard to overcome a stigma of drug houses and gang violence. Many of the buildings that surrounded the corner of Broadway and Market Streets have been vacated, and the Eagles Lodge was torn down, but what has appeared in its place is wonderful community resurgence and at the heart of it all is the new home of Salem Cinema; a fabulous Art Deco style theatre that has captured the essence of the heyday of film and promises a future of great independent film viewing for the Salem audience.
While I thought I would be sad when theatre owner Loretta Miles made the move from under the Pringle Parkade to this new venue, but her attention to every detail, including incorporating sconces from the old Bligh’s Capitol Theatre into her décor has made the adjustment easy. I wish her much success in her new location, I know I will be there to watch many films and I am glad to see the arts playing such a vital role in the revitalization of this neighborhood. For more information about the Salem Cinema and what’s currently being screened, visit www.salemcinema.com. Visit www.artsmartsalem.org for a listing of events for the current month and remember, “There’s Something to do in Salem”.
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