DEAR FRIENDS,

It was the best of Oscar times. A nearly capacity crowd had a grand time at the Balboa’s Academy Awards party. Some dressed up in black tie and fashionable gowns that would have earned the envy of anyone on the red carpet. Others came dressed as movie stars and characters from the cinema.

Our host, Reed Kirk Rahlmann got things off to a rousing start with trivia questions and the start of an evening filled with prizes for everyone. He asked people to name an underappreciated film and throughout the evening asked them to tell why they loved those movies. More prizes. They are a mix of the classic, quirky, underrated and overlooked. You can look at the list here in our Lobby, the website’s Cinema Lounge and it is expected to be posted at the Le Video on 9th Ave near Lincoln.

But without a doubt the most fun part of the in-theater festivities was Reed’s “Tenuous Oscar Connections.” A few of the many told include:

-The woman who flirted with someone because "he looked like an environmentalist" and it turned out to be Robert Redford.

- Attending a Bar Mitzvah where the guests included Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn.

- The woman who knocked on the wrong door that turned out to be Dustin Hoffman's office and had a half hour conversation with him about natural childbirth.

-A woman who said, right after the John Hughes tribute, that she had played an extra in a Hughes film made in San Francisco. A young woman down front yelled out, “I was in it too!”

-The person who took a tour of the Kodak Theatre and found herself on its stage facing an empty theater and wanting to “thank” the Academy.

-And my wife, Cathy told about being in Jeff Bridges’ first movie when he rode a bike at her 5th birthday party and it is in the home movies. She also related getting an FBI file as a little girl when she and a friend stole mail from Susan Hayward.

We also enjoyed some choice comments from Reed such as:

“I did think it was odd that they had a dance number for Hurt Locker, and for a movie where the lead character is paraplegic.

And couldn't they have found better music for Katherine Bigalow than "I Am Woman"?

And the reason that Cameron made Avatar in 3-D was because his characters were so one dimensional.”

We got this note from Reed the next day:

A Letter from your Oscar Host:

Thanks for allowing me to host the best Oscar party in San Francisco!

It was great fun being with all of you. I loved hearing your Tenuous Oscar Connection stories and your opinions on movies.

It’s much more fun watching the Oscar’s with a bunch a friends, and on Sunday we had nearly 300 people at the party. As I said before, much more entertaining than being in your living room, and you don’t have to clean up after.

I’m compiling a list of the favorite films you wrote down. Look for some to be displayed at Le Video soon.

Thanks again. Let’s do it again next year.

Best,
Your Devoted Oscar Host
Reed Kirk Rahlmann

One attendee sent along her blog about the Oscars and she has some interesting observations at www.jenninelanouette.com

We hope you’ll plan to be with us next year.

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SPECIAL SHOWS COMING SOON

Meanwhile the REMEMBERING PLAYLAND show next Tuesday is a huge hit having sold out the 7pm show and on the way to also selling out 9:15 in advance. We are expecting to add a show on Saturday, March 20 at 11am.

We have several more special shows coming up, having just added THEY CAME TO PLAY about the International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs, hosted by The Van Cliburn Foundation. Two local contestants, Ken Iisaka of Mill Valley and Esfir Ross of Oakland will perform after the film. See below for complete details.

Sincerely,
Gary

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ONLY AT THE BALBOA- Win Great Prizes

Once again we are pleased to bring our audiences the chance to win prizes only available at the Balboa Theatre.

We’ll be giving away passes to enjoy classic movies at Oakland Paramount movie palace. Check out their schedule below.

The director of CRAZY HEART, Scott Cooper, has agreed to get some of his cast members to join him in signing a poster to be given away exclusively at the Balboa.

Just enter to win in our lobby. No purchase necessary. The random drawing will occur after the Oscars.

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Tuesday, March 16 @ 7:00pm (SOLD OUT!) and 9:15pm (SOLD OUT!): REMEMBERING PLAYLAND AT THE BEACH

Added shows Wednesday, March 17 at 7:00 and 9:15pm plus Saturday, March 20 at 12 noon.

Advance tickets here. Tickets are regular admission, $6.50 for Seniors (60+) and Children (11-), $9.00 General. All seats on Saturday are at our matinee price of $6.50.

The Balboa Theatre in San Francisco is proud to host the World Premiere of Tom Wyrsch’s newest film, REMEMBERING PLAYLAND AT THE BEACH. The screening will be a dozen blocks from the site of the beloved amusement park. The film screens on Tuesday, March 16 @ 7:00pm (SOLD OUT) and 9:15pm (SOLD OUT), Wednesday, March 17 @ 7:00pm and 9:15pm, and Saturday, March 20 @ 12 noon.

The full length documentary tells the history of San Francisco's famous 10-acre seaside amusement park, Playland at the Beach. Located next to Ocean Beach, it was torn down in 1972 to make way for a condominium development. Gone now for more than 3 decades, it remains one of the city's lost treasures. Go back in time to see Laffing Sal, the Fun House, the Carousel, the Big Dipper, the Diving Bell, Dark Mystery, Limbo, Fun-tier Town, and much, much more, all through the eyes of the people who were there. The first and only documentary ever made about Playland, it features 12 interviews, 20 minutes of archival footage, 187 photographs and original music. The film was written and directed by Tom Wyrsch who will answer questions after each screening.

To get the show off to a fun start, Dan X. Solo will discuss carnival game scams and present a mentalism act before the Tuesday night screenings.

Read an interview with George K. Whitney about his family’s operation of Playland. www.outsidelands.org/whitney-jr.php

Other articles and home movies on the Western Neighborhoods Site:
www.outsidelands.org/playland.php

Playland-Not-At-The-Beach is a wonderful museum of fun dedicated to the real thing. Find out about it at: www.playland-not-at-the-beach.org

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About This Week's Movies

GREEN ZONE (R)

Official site         View Trailer

Matt Damon and director Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum, United 93) re-team for their latest electrifying thriller in Green Zone, a film set in the chaotic early days of the Iraqi War when no one could be trusted and every decision could detonate unforeseen consequences.

During the U.S.-led occupation of Baghdad in 2003, Chief Warrant Officer Roy Miller (Damon) and his team of Army inspectors were dispatched to find weapons of mass destruction believed to be stockpiled in the Iraqi desert. Rocketing from one booby-trapped and treacherous site to the next, the men search for deadly chemical agents but stumble instead upon an elaborate cover-up that inverts the purpose of their mission.

Spun by operatives with intersecting agendas, Miller must hunt through covert and faulty intelligence hidden on foreign soil for answers that will either clear a rogue regime or escalate a war in an unstable region. And at this blistering time and in this combustible place, he will find the most elusive weapon of all is the truth.

R for violence and language. – 115 minutes.

"“An energetic, frenzied thriller -- Paul Greengrass-style -- set in Iraq in the chaotic post-invasion days.”"
- Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter

"Bourne goes epic. A wham-bam actioner, but its pointed political subtext ensures Damon and Greengrass deliver their most provocative mission yet."
- Mark Dinning, Empire

"Greengrass has crafted Green Zone as a high energy thriller. The level of tension starts out high and rarely lets up during the course of nearly two hours.....Damon's prior appearances as Jason Bourne make him credible in this role. There's never a disconnect to see him in this heroic, action-oriented part." "
- James Berardinelli, Reelviews

"You catch your breath only to have the wind knocked out by the mirage of the carefree scene around the Green Zone swimming pool."
- - J. Hoberman, Village Voice

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CRAZY HEART (R)

Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhall, Robert Duvall

Academy Award Winner: Best Actor (Jeff Bridges)

Official site         View Trailer

Four-time Academy Award® nominee Jeff Bridges stars as the richly comic, semi-tragic romantic anti-hero Bad Blake in the debut feature film "Crazy Heart" from writer-director Scott Cooper. Bad Blake is a broken-down, hard-living country music singer who's had way too many marriages, far too many years on the road and one too many drinks way too many times. And yet, Bad can't help but reach for salvation with the help of Jean (Golden Globe® nominee Maggie Gyllenhaal), a journalist who discovers the real man behind the musician. As he struggles down the road of redemption, Bad learns the hard way just how tough life can be on one man's crazy heart.

Rated R for language and brief sexuality. – 112 minutes.

"This show belongs to Bridges, who starts off as a magnificent train wreck and then takes a journey with the character."
- Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

"Some actors are blessed. Jeff Bridges is one of them."
- Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

"It's a mark of how fine a performance Bridges gives that it succeeds beautifully even though the besotted, bedeviled country singer has been an overly familiar popular culture staple for forever."
- Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

"Gyllenhaal and Bridges are marvelous together, playing their characters' cautious affection for each other as an alluring winding path that's actually laden with minefields."
- Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

"Crazy Heart, written and directed by Scott Cooper, is a small movie perfectly scaled to the big performance at its center."
- A.O. Scott, New York Times

Read interview with Jeff Bridges

Watch interview with Jeff Bridges

Watch interview with director Scott Cooper

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Coming Monday, March 22: THEY CAME TO PLAY @ 7:30pm

Live piano performances from Ken Iisaka and Esfir Ross on a Steinway grand piano courtesy of Sherman Clay.

Tickets are $12-$15. Advance tickets here.

“A documentary of outstanding merit…a brilliant multiple character study, an in-depth look at how music is made...” -- Janos Gereben, San Francisco Classical Voice

Life comes between us and our dreams. Sometimes, we are lucky enough to be reunited.

They Came to Play is a multi-award-winning, uplifting feature-length documentary chronicling the International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs, hosted by The Van Cliburn Foundation.

Top amateur pianists from all over the world, ranging from self-taught to classically-trained, aged thirty-five to almost eighty, convene in Fort Worth, Texas for a week of competition, music and camaraderie.

“They Came to Play is both entertaining and touching, with a marvelously quirky cast of characters that reminds you why documentary films are so much more surprising than fictional ones.” --Mark Harris, Oscar Winner, Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport

Entertaining and above all, inspiring, the film provides an intimate look into the lives of these colorful, multi-faceted competitors as they strive to balance the demands of work and family with their love of music. Years of dedicated preparation culminate in top-level performances before a professional jury and discerning audience during three nerve-wracking elimination rounds.

All of the film's heroes have made their careers outside of music in fields ranging from medicine to business, and professional tennis to education. For competitors who have faced such extraordinary challenges as drug addiction, AIDS, or political asylum, the competition is also a triumph over adversity. For all, it represents an overwhelming desire to express a deeper side of themselves, musically and otherwise.

“...a wonderful and inspiring chronicle of amateur musicians with a lust for life that is truly infectious.” --Bryant Manning, Chicago Sun Times

Commentary from noted American pianist Van Cliburn and gold medalists from the Foundation’s professional competition, along with outstanding performances of great classical masterworks—from Beethoven to Alkan and from Rachmaninoff to Barber—complement the action in a film that celebrates the creator and the competitor in each of us.

They Came to Play is an 88 Films production directed by Alex Rotaru, produced by Lori Miller, and executive produced by Ronnie Planalp. It features amateur pianists including Esfir Ross, Dr. Drew Mays, Clark Griffith, and Annette Dimedio. They Came to Play’s running time is 91 minutes.

“For moviegoers who love classical music, this is a great movie...for moviegoers who dont love classical music, this is a great movie.” --Tom Gallaher, Grants and Gov. Relations Seminole Tribe of Florida

PERFORMING LIVE AT THE BALBOA

Esfir Ross – a dental assistant living in Oakland, CA described as “jolly” by one film critic, was not always so. Prior to the competition she was battling depression, and felt a lack of purpose in her life. She said “I had no idea that the competition existed, and by chance while at a friend’s house I found out about it just before the submission deadline...”

She did not expect that “the competition would change my life completely. It gave me a great purpose – to practice and perform for an audience, and now I’m going around the world, playing in different competitions, meeting people. I could not imagine that I would shake hands with Van Cliburn, and play in front of such a jury which includes people like Veda Kaplinsky, the head of the piano department at Juilliard, and Richard Dyer, the renown music critic.”

Ken Iisaka – an investment analyst from Mill Valley, CA talks about the competition, and his participation in the film:

"I have been playing the piano since I was a young child, and music has been a very important part of my life. As a professional in a different field, I yearned to connect with other amateur pianists, and my passion led me to participate in the competition to share my love with others. It was a gathering of kindred spirits, and I made important life-long friends.

Alex and the entire film crew were a part of the kindred spirits. Their passion and compassion in the art of filmmaking inspired me through their retelling of our tales, something very personal to us.”

Details at www.theycametoplay.com.

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Coming Thursday, March 25 @ 7:00pm: CREATURE FEATURES PRESENTS: HORROR EXPRESS

RELIVE THE EXPERIENCE OF WATCHING A "CREATURE FEATURES" SHOW FROM THE GOLDEN AGE OF TV!

Advance tickets here. Tickets are regular admission, $6.50 for Seniors (60+) and Children (11-), $9.00 General. All seats on Saturday are at our matinee price of $6.50.

WITH HOST JOHN STANLEY, WHO PRODUCED THE SHOW AT CHANNEL 2, KTVU IN OAKLAND, FOR SIX YEARS

JOHN STANLEY INTRODUCED ON STAGE BY DENNIS WILLIS, KGO-RADIO

FILM REVIEWER AND AUTHOR OF THE NEW MOVIE BOOK "FLICK NATION"

HORROR EXPRESS (Spanish-British 1972) Starring Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Telly Savalas . . . A train speeding through the trans-Siberian wilderness is terrorized by a supernatural entity with blazing red eyeballs (someone from the IRS?) who mesmerizes his victims and turns them into corpses with bleeding eyeball sockets . . . It's enough to bring tears to your eyes.

Savor John Stanley’s classic four-part interview with actor/voice impressionist FRANK GORSHIN . . . Frank discusses his career and imitates several famous actors. See dramatic footage from TV's BATMAN, STAR TREK and "BETWEEN HEAVEN AND HELL."

See Bob Wilkins interview John Stanley on Market Street in downtown San Francisco . . . a rare treat not shown since it was first aired in 1977

For the first time in 30 years, John Stanley’s minimovie classic THE DEMON STRIKES BACK, a roller-coaster ride into a fantasy dimension from which you may or may not return.

Plus KTVU Station Promotions and Original Television Commercials . . . the kind they don’t make anymore.

More at Stanley Books

View Trailer

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Coming Thursday, April 1: A GUMBY TRIBUTE AT THE BALBOA

Featuring Tim Hittle’s Emmy award winning feature Gumby Dharma, plus shorts, and some of the artists in-person talking about working with Art Clokey (Gumby’s creator) who died in January. Gumby Dharma explores why a man would spend his 85 years on earth playing with lumps of colored clay. His world famous characters, Gumby and Pokey, and Davy and Goliath, echo the spiritual path of their creator. Art's journey takes us from the orphanage to inspiring adopted father, from the Seminary to the Hollywood movie business, and from traditional Episcopalian church values to Buddhism and Indian guru Sai Baba. It is a fascinating life and career in it's own right but also in how it gently influenced his characters and story lines for over 40 years. Clokey’s work is one of the few animation characters that have survived the test of time to become a true American Icon. Interviews with contemporary leaders in animation, including Director Henry Selick (Coraline, Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach) and special effects legend Ray Harryhausen (Jason and the Argonauts, Adventures of Sinbad), place Clokey’s work in perspective with the history of animation and explore stop motion’s future in a computer graphics world. And don’t forget April 1 in the annual St. Stupid’s Day Parade at noon.

Details at www.gumbydharma.com.

Tickets on sale soon.

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FREE POPCORN WITH YOUR "I’D RATHER BE AT THE BALBOA" DISCOUNT CARD!

Now, as an added treat for our most regular movie-goers, each discount card gets you one free complimentary size popcorn per card. You choose the visit that you would like to redeem it--just bring your card to the concession stand to receive your free popcorn on us. Thank you.

More Info

NEW ART IN THE LOBBY

Jim Rosenau was raised in a house with 5,000 books. He has been making and selling thematic bookshelves from vintage books since 2002. The idea occurred to him years earlier after reading an essay, “Books As Furniture,” by Nicholson Baker.

Given his background as the son and grandson of publishers, he assumed the reaction, should he make such a thing, would be furious. The work, once underway, proved him wrong.

His book furniture has since earned him a wide following with work sold in almost 50 states and countries. Primarily shown at closely juried shows, he is also represented by dealers from Vermont to Los Angeles. The work has been widely published in print and on the Internet.

Previously, he has been a carpenter, comedy writer, editor, software developer, planning commissioner and designed and built parade floats. His writing has been published in Fine Homebuilding, The New Yorker, ReadyMade, Salon.com and heard on public radio. He lives and works in Berkeley, California.

His functional art furnishings are made from vintage hard back books veneered over frames of salvaged lumber. The shelves are fully functional furniture and can support typical loads. He accepts commissions when time and material permit.

For more information visit Rosenau's site.

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PARAMOUNT THEATRE WINTER CLASSICS SERIES
SAVE 20% FOR THE SUNDAY MATINEE

We are blessed in the Bay Area to have a handful of true movie palaces still showing great movies...the Castro, Stanford and our favorite, The Paramount in Oakland. The theater will once again host a selection of great classics with cartoons, prizes and tremendous fun.

The Balboa will be giving away passes at weekend shows.

Next Show is FRIDAY, MARCH 26 @ 8:00 PM
CAPTAIN BLOOD
Running time: 119 minutes
Box Office opens @ 6:00pm | Doors open @ 7:00 | Curtain rises @ 8:00pm
All Tickets: $5.00

CAPTAIN BLOOD (1935) - Starring the great swashbuckling Errol Flynn as a doctor who is wrongly convicted of treason and sold into slavery, this is perhaps the best pirate movie ever made. Rafael Sabatini's brilliant historical novel receives incomparable treatment from director Michael Curtiz and his stellar cast. Captain Peter Blood's sardonic humor, cold nerves, and hot-blooded temper are so perfectly realized by Errol Flynn that it is impossible to think of any other actor in this role. Leonard Mudie as the heartless Lord Jeffries, Olivia de Havilland as the firey Arabella Bishop, Basil Rathbone as the French buccaneer Levasseur... This is literally an unforgettable cast. And you won't soon forget the story of Peter Blood, Captain of the great ship Arabella, virtuoso swordsman, and undisputed master of the waters of the Spanish Main.

2025 Broadway, Oakland ~ (510) 465-6400
Take BART and exit at the 19th Street Station

Paramount Schedule

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BUSTER KEATON’S COMIC MASTERPIECE AT THE PARAMOUNT
SAVE 20% FOR THE SUNDAY MATINEE

This month, the Oakland East Bay Symphony will present a unique event at the beautiful art deco Paramount Theatre in Oakland: a screening of Buster Keaton’s silent film classic The General, with live organ accompaniment on the Paramount’s “Mighty Wurlitzer” pipe organ. Acclaimed concert organist Christoph Bull’s original score to The General blends seamlessly with the train chases and breath-taking stunt work on-screen, adding color and excitement to Keaton’s comic masterpiece. Bull will also join the orchestra and Maestro Michael Morgan for the Organ Symphony by Saint-Saëns.

“The General is an imaginative masterpiece…One of the greatest of all silent comedies (and Keaton's own favorite).” – Filmsite

Friday, March 19, 8pm and Sunday, March 21, 2pm
Paramount Theatre, Oakland

Tickets start at just $20. Save 20% on Sunday matinee when ordering online with promo code BUSTER.

Click here for tickets

Image from The General courtesy Douris UK Ltd.

Paramount Schedule

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KIM SON VIETNAMESE RESTAURANT DISCOUNT

With Balboa ticket stub 10% off food at Kim Son. Our staff and customers think this Vietnamese restaurant in one of the best places to eat in the neighborhood. Want to eat there before the show? Buy your ticket at the box office first and then show it at dinner. Make sure you keep it to get into the theater. This is an ongoing discount so you can also use it on your next visit to the neighborhood. Kim Son is just a few doors away from the Balboa at 3614 Balboa St.

Read what others say.

BALBOA THEATRE INFO

3630 Balboa Street (37th Ave)
San Francisco 94121
(415) 221-8184
www.BalboaMovies.com

Bike Rack in front of the Balboa
Muni Bus #31 Balboa or #18 46th Ave stop at Balboa &37th., Also #5 Fulton and all 38 Geary Street buses stop two (long) blocks from Balboa.
Relatively easy Parking

San Francisco's Favorite Neighborhood Theatre
Voted by the Bay Guardian, SF Weekly, SF Gate's A List and San Francisco Magazine

General Admission: $9.00
Seniors (60+) and Children (11-) $6.50
Bargain Matinees: All Seats $6.50 for shows in ( )

SCHOOL NIGHT - Mondays are School Days and Nights. With proof of being a student, faculty or staff member, your admission is only $6.50 on Mondays.

On Your Birthday, You Are Our Guest.

The Balboa is Wheelchair and Handicapped Accessible.

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YOUR FAVORITE SNACK BAR

Great Snack Bar selection at reasonable prices. Your favorite candies including Dove, Toberlerone, and Ghirardelli chocolates.

We serve Caffe Trieste Coffees, fine Tazo teas, chai, hot chocolate, hot dogs, Aidells' poultry Sausages, Veggie Dogs, Dreyer's Dibs, and Delicious Cookies.

And of course fresh popcorn made with sunflower oil and real butter.

No More Naked Popcorn.

Have you tried our complimentary popcorn seasonings?

We have a wide assortment from Kernel Seasonings.

Try White Cheddar, Caramel, Parmesan, Garlic and more...

We also have Nutritional Yeast that has proven to be one of our most popular toppings. And now hot sauce!

NEIGHBORHOOD RESTAURANTS

One of the strengths of the Balboa is our neighborhood. Other than the bank, all the businesses are family owned and operated. The restaurants are especially wonderful. On the outer Balboa strip there are 24 eating establishments by my count. You can eat Chinese, Japanese, Egyptian, Italian, American, Mexican, Seafood and Vietnamese cuisines. The foods are fresh, distinctive and all reasonably priced. The media food critics have only discovered a few of them but the locals know a good thing. We encourage you to enjoy a meal at one of these fine eateries while visiting the Balboa. All are within easy walking distance. And please send us reviews and recommendations we can share with our other guests. Send reviews to balboafans (at) yahoo.com . (Change (at) to @. We are trying to avoid spam.)

We love it when you send us a review of a neighborhood restaurant you've enjoyed. We encourage you all to write about your culinary adventures in the Outer Richmond.

Check out the Menu Book in our lobby and our COMPLETE NEW RESTAURANT LIST.

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