London State Theatre

Advance Tickets

2010-03-14T17:08:00.000-07:00

We have decided to donate the entire weekends ticket sales to the
Humane Society of Madison County. Advance tickets will be available at the HSMC offices Beginning on Monday, March 14th. The hours of operation are Noon - 5:00pm. The tickets will be available until Friday March 19th at 5:00. After that all remaining tickets will be available at the theatre box office. The HSMC will taking donation for the tickets in both cash and by items that are needed at the shelter. Please visit the HSMC website to get the Wish List of items needed. We have reserved a few tickets for walk up sales but, we advise everyone who wishes to attend to pick up tickets early. We believe that some showtimes will sell out and do not wish to turn anyone away. We are very excited about our Grand Opening and can't wait to share a movie with you.

Deco Details

2009-11-20T07:10:00.000-08:00

The detail work is commencing in the theatre. I'm very pleased with the way things are looking. It is rewarding to see your vision come to life. While most of it is still in my head, it's beginning to come to fruition.
More to come…

Rooms Lookin Good!

2009-11-16T08:20:00.000-08:00

The restrooms are coming along nicely. The new tile is beautiful and evokes the spirit of the original rooms. Tile takes a lot of time to lay, but the end result is worth the effort. The total effect of tile wallpaper and fixtures will create a look of a bygone era, yet still have all the modern conveinces.

Food Glorious Food! Hot Sausage and Mustard!

2009-11-01T14:57:00.000-08:00

I met with two food suppliers this last week. The choices are staggering. While I definitely want to expand the fare served in our concessions area, it's tough to know exactly what to settle on. Well to help answer that question the vendors are going to bring samples and let me and my employees try them.
Sometimes life is tough!

More to come

New Pictures are up

2009-10-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

I've put a few pictures and videos up on the site of the renovation. They should give you a good idea of the depth of the work being done at your hometown theater. Please take a few minutes and check 'em out!

Melody Drive-in

2009-08-29T18:32:00.001-07:00

I have always loved movies. When my family moved to London, OH, I was 4 years old. The first theaters I remember attending were drive-ins. We attended the Showboat and the Melody in Springfield. The Showboat is long gone but the Melody lives on. I love drive-ins. Very much a throwback to a different time. Families together watching movies. It's now mostly replaced by DVD or cable, but nothing replaces going to the theater. And going to the drive-in is even more unique.

Well since the London State Theatre has been closed I've been coming to the Melody more often. Talk about a throwback. This theater is exactly the way I remember it. Mostly because it's still layed out and decorated the same as it was in 1969.

Well my show is about to start, Halloween II and Inglorious Basterds, a great double bill on a great cool evening, so...

More to come…

Sneek Peek of things to come

2009-08-28T16:25:00.001-07:00

Just a quick sneek peek at one of the murals going in the theater. These custom printed murals depict classic beloved movies. The art pictured here is the poster from "Cassablanca", starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. This mural, aproximately 18 feet tall and ten feet wide is actually one of the smaller murals we created for the theater.

The mural was put in place and applied to the wall. If you've ever hung wallpaper then you're aware of all that goes in to hanging and aligning the pieces. Although usually in your home you don't have 18 foot high walls. But it all came together well. We are very pleased with the results. I won't spoil the Grand Opening by giving it all away, but let's just say that it will be beautiful and unique.
More to come…

Electric Dreams

2009-08-20T20:20:00.000-07:00

Almost all framing construction is done. Plumbing is finished except for attaching the fixtures, and we're starting to run the new electric. I know these pics don't always convey the extent of the work, but trust me the place looks completely different. It's time for me to make my final decisions on the styles of the bathroom fixtures and lighting fixtures. I'm getting closer to making up my mind. It's just that there are so many great choices. Not to worry though, it'll all come together. And it will be beautiful.

More to come.

Restrooms Progressing Nicely

2009-08-06T15:43:00.001-07:00

While it may not seem to be much to look at, in construction valance the Ladies Room is progressing very well. We will soon start to add the tile on the floor and walls. These new restrooms will be very beautiful and fully handicapped accesable. It's in keeping with our goal of modernizing the facility but also returning to it's beautiful 1930's Art Deco heritage.
More to come...

Cooking With the Stars: Vincent Price

2009-08-04T15:49:00.000-07:00

Mushrooms in Cream

This is from a Vincent Price cookbook: "A Treasury of Great Recipes". Use button mushrooms, or a mix of various fresh mushrooms, i.e. chanterelles, shiitakes, porcinis, etc. Makes a nice side dish.

SERVES 4

Ingredients

1 lb mushroom
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup light cream

Garnish

4 slices white bread, crusts trimmed off
3 tablespoons butter

Directions

Slice mushrooms.

In a skillet, melt 3 tablespoons butter. When butter is foaming, add sliced mushrooms; stir them well for 1 minute to coat thoroughly with butter.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Add cream and simmer gently for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

To make garnish, cut each slice of bread into 4 triangles.

Melt butter in a skillet and saute triangles on each side, until slightly browned.

Serve mushrooms in shallow, single-serving casserole dish and stand toast triangles around the edges, with points up.

Progress Report

2009-08-03T12:42:00.000-07:00

Just a few photos to show the progress of the theater. The concrete has been poured over the new plumbing and now the rest of the new walls can be built. We're waiting on a few more steel studs and it should go up fast. More to come.

Clayton "Sweater Zombie" Hill May 7, 1931 - July 26, 2009

2009-08-01T13:13:00.000-07:00

Clayton Hill passed away July 26, 2009. If you are a horror fan you'll certainly recognize Clayton Hill. His iconic image along with his wife Sharon Ceccatti's are among the most famous images for George Romero's Dawn of the Dead. Clayton's "Sweater Zombie" along with Sharon's "Nurse Zombie" are some of the most widely used images from the film.

I first met Clayton when he was a guest at a booth I sponsored for Origins (a gaming convention). He along with his wife and other zombies from Dawn of the Dead greeted customers and signed autographs. Clayton was a consummate gentleman and regaled everyone with stories of his film work and other life experiences. During the five days of the show I came to really enjoy his and his wife's company.

I had other occasions to meet and visit with them as they appeared at many horror and fandom conventions. I, being the movie geek that I am, go to many of these show to just be a fanboy. I was always pleased to see them and to see how gracious and genuine Clayton and Sharon were with their fans.

My sympathies and best wishes go out to Sharon and family.
I and many others will greatly miss this man.
George Peyton

Plumbing underway

2009-07-27T08:52:00.000-07:00

The first phase of the plumbing is complete and inspected. We are awaiting the fill gravel and then once that's inspected we can pour the concrete. Then the last of the framing can be done. Once it's inspected the real fun begins. That's when it all starts to take a recognizeable shape, when you can start to get a real feel for how it will look.
More to come.

Walk Thru

2009-07-23T11:26:00.000-07:00

This is a short video of a quick walk thru of the London State Theatre. The remodel is firmly underway. You can see in the video where the new concessions area is going to be and just how big the new lobby is. Keep checking back for more pics, and videos of how we are progressing.
More to come.

Wall to Wall… Walls

2009-07-19T07:16:00.000-07:00

And the walls come tumbling… up! Having been approved to start constructon recently, things are starting to move along. The first of the new interior walls are being put up now. There is some plumbing that must be done next before the final interior walls can be erected. I can start to feel the look taking shape. It's exciting to feel this old theater coming alive.
More to come

I'll huff and I'll puff.....

2009-07-14T13:47:00.000-07:00

There is a brick ventilation shaft that was built in the 30’s to carry cool air from underground into the theatre as a means of keeping it cool. It’s quite an engineering feat and worked amazingly well. But since the installation of air conditioning there it has not been of any use. Well, on the new plans it had to go to make way for new expanded and modernized restrooms. The shaft extended from the first floor to just below the roof. It all had to come down. Brick by brick... Hammer blow by hammer blow. The shaft is just about down now. A few sledge hammers and a lot of elbow grease does the job. Well, now that its almost down we’ve got to carry it to the dumpster... more to come

Dumpster diver... I mean driver

2009-07-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

The dumpster arrived today. The driver put it in the wrong location. It was supposed to go on Huntington Bank’s Drive thru lot. Instead it was put on the street, Not a big problem but just not quite ready for the street placement is all. The police informed us there were complaints about the caution tape across the sidewalk. Not much we can do about that. We try to keep the barricades down except when we’re actually carrying debris out to the dumpster. We work really hard to make sure that everyone is safe while we work, and that our remodel is as least disrupting as possible. But my Momma always used to say “you gotta break a few eggs.....”
More to come...