Villa Theatre hold Senior Special Matinee; more to come

The Tin Man, the Wicked Witch of the East, Dorothy... and her little dog too ...from the 1939 Hollywood classic Wizard of Oz graced the silver screen at the Villa Theatre last Wednesday in Malta at a special showing of the movie as part of a Senior Matinee.

"I've never seen it before," admitted Ester Martin. "I hear I am supposed to get a lot out of it, and I hope its fun, but we will see."

Eva Robinson said that she remembers seeing the Wizard of Oz when she was a little girl and enjoyed it then.

"It's been so long, I mean, I'm old," Robinson laughed. "I hope it is as good as I remember."

Eva Oxarart was the first person in the Villa's theater on Thursday and had her spot all picked out and was waiting for Karen Salsbery, activities coordinator at the Hi Line Retirement Center, to return with popcorn and a soda.

"I have never seen Wizard of Oz because I grew up out in the country," Oxarart said. "But I think I am in for a good time."

She said the last time she was in a movie theater was probably over 20 years ago, but added she was happy to be back.

"I am looking forward to this and I hope to come back for more movies," said Oxarart. "But I can't hardly eat the popcorn because it gets in my teeth."

One of the seniors on-hand to watch the Wizard of Oz was a former employee of the Villa, "quite a few years ago" for a stint of about five years. Leo Woods said he was happy to be back in his old stomping ground, adding that he had seen the flick before, but never on the silver screen.

"I've seen it probably 18 times, but never on the big screen," he said. "The Lion is my favorite."

"I take great pleasure in telling the theater owner that we take great joy in coming to these matinees," Woods said. "We really, really do. I can't wait to come back."

Woods added that he would like to see The Bible – 1966 release staring the likes of George C. Scott and Peter O'Toole – at future matinee showings.

Vikki Truelove – who owns the theater with her husband, Jim – said that Karen Salsbery originally came up with the idea of hosting Senior Matinees. The first such event took place earlier this summer in which Heaven is For Real was screened.

The next Senior Matinee will feature And So It Goes – the 2014 film starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton – will be held on Wednesday, September 17 starting at 3 p.m. The Villa offers special matinee prices and is open to everyone.

"I just think this is a nice thing to do and gives these wonderful people something fun to do in the middle of the week," said Truelove.