America's Hometown Movie Theaters: Please Remain Standing - Hardcover

by Benita Vanwinkle (Author)

A celebration of the joys of the moviegoing experience, this enchanting visual journey pays tribute to the architectural variety and endurance of America's indoor movie theaters and drive-ins.

For more than 40 years, Benita VanWinkle has traveled the country photographing hometown movie theaters and drive-ins built before 1965 as part of her ongoing documentary project Please Remain Standing--a visual appeal to preserve these historic treasures. VanWinkle has recorded the astonishing range of these iconic structures, from repurposed Quonset huts to grand movie palaces. Her photographs depict magnificent Art Deco detailing and Mayan-style ornamentation, neon-lit theater marquees as well as the whimsical road signs that still entice moviegoers to once ubiquitous drive-ins. An impressive 512 full-page photographs, selected from the thousands VanWinkle has made to date, document 395 present and former movie theaters and drive-ins and conjure a time when Americans embraced the communal experience of going out to the movies--a few hours in which shared laughter and tears unite strangers. The book honors this beloved national pastime and highlights the continuing importance of movie theaters in preserving a town's sense of community.

Author Biography

Photographer Benita VanWinkle is associate professor of art at High Point University in High Point, North Carolina. She worked as a photojournalist for several years and earned her MFA in cinema and photography at Southern Illinois University. Her early training continues to influence not only the academic courses she develops for students but also the independent documentary projects she pursues outside teaching. Among her ongoing photography portfolios are Old Glory, about the American flag as she encounters it during her travels, and The View from Here, her observations of everyday life. Her most ambitious project yet is Please Remain Standing. Since 1982, she has documented more than 1,100 movie theaters. VanWinkle actively exhibits her work and lectures on documentary photography. Her website, benitavanwinkle.com, also showcases her love of bookbinding and mixed media work.