Bena Mae’s Kitchen: Ghost’s of theater’s past

Back in the early ‘50’s when I was a new bride, my husband and I were newcomers to Louisville where he had taken a job. Money was tight and television wasn’t to make a widespread appearance until sometime later.  So, Friday night (payday) was our big night out for entertainment.
First, we had dinner at the Blue Boar, famous for its excellent and cheap food, as many of you who have eaten there will attest. We always ordered the Blue Plate Special which consisted of one meat and two vegetables for 35 cents. Then we were off to see a movie.
Going to the movies back then wasn’t just about the films themselves. The movie theaters were quite an experience, each one having a personality all its own. The grandest, most opulent of them all on theater row on Fourth Street in Louisville was The Loews.  It was like entering a palace (which became its name in later years). The flowing fountains, the floating clouds and glistening stars overhead, made the patrons feel they had been transported to an elegant place. No other theater in the row of theaters could rival it in glitz and luxury.
The old theater has gone through many transformations since it was called The Loews.  It is said that construction workers sighted the ghost of the original builder many times as they worked on the reconstructions that took place over the years. I don’t know what the status of the building is today, or even if it is still standing. I only know that it represented a wonderful era in movie-going.
Now flash back to an earlier time when I was a teenager in Corbin and movies played a big part in my life. If ever a building should have been placed on the Preservation of Historic Buildings list, it would be the old Hippodrome Theater on Main Street in Corbin.
I have written reams about the old theater and though it was not a particularly grand movie house, it was a trip that provided escape, entertainment, and a couple of hours away from the hum-drum of everyday living.  The stories widened our horizons, transported us to  places of enchantment, gave us toe-tapping musicals, made us cry and relive the movie all week until a new one appeared on the marque. It was an era where the big stars were put on a pedestal, where a role model like Gary Cooper was looked up to as a hero. 
For all we know, his ghost may still be wandering the old building that gave us so many happy memories. At least I’d like to think it’s so.
Thank you, Sgt. York.

Ummmmmm good!
German Chocolate Pie

STEP 1
2 2/3 cups sugar
1 ounce baking cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2/3 ounce cake flour
1/3 ounce cornstarch

STEP 2
2 2/3 ounces water
1 small can pet milk
10 1/2 tablespoons melted butter
3 large eggs

STEP 3
4 ounces flaked coconut
3 ounces chopped pecans

Mix each step separately, then mix all together.
Pour in 1 deep dish or 2 regular unbaked pie shells.
Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until set.