Cinco de Lebowski likely wasn't as crazy as previous Cinco de Lebowskis: no march, of course, plus rain and cold likely lowered the turnout. Around 8 p.m., the first wave of people got into the theater part of the Bagdad, because the theater arranged VIP early entry that you could pay $10 in advance for. I'd left for home by 9:00, when the doors open for the rest of the audience. Not as packed as it's been.
Yes, you heard right, I didn't attend a Cort and Fatboy Midnight Movie screening. Just hung out in the restaurant (visiting with Mike and Gina Russell and happily drinking my first-ever hot toddy), wandered a bit, peaked into the lobby, watched the various in-costume people (including the bottles), then boarded a bus for home. Then another bus, because transfers work, everyone. During dinner, Mike was amused by our server clearly checking out Gina -- she is impressive, y'know+ -- and I learned of another small-world connection, as one of the people I play trivia with Wednesday nights, a guy named Gerald, is a big fan of Mike's and met up with him to get personalized copies of Beware the Sabre-Toothed Vampire and Cort and Fatboy and the Secret of the Buried Unicorns. Gerald's one of the good guys, who's coming into a period of (we hope) good after a lot of bad he lived through this winter. He's kept his sense of humor.
So. With last night, my streak is over. I went home and did computer stuff and did some thinking, then slept. I'll return for next month's Midnight Movie, which will not be Raiders of the Lost Ark due to something falling through, but instead will be this unique treat: Richard Donner's 2006 cut of Superman II. Long story short, Donner was fired before he could finish the second Superman movie, and replacement director Richard Lester and his writers made significant changes to the final film that Donner didn't agree with, but last decade he got to assemble as close to a complete version of his own Superman II as he could manage. I've never seen this version. I'm looking forward to it. (And to July's film, but I won't say what that one is yet.)
Meanwhile, I'll close out with my few photos from last night...
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Rarely see Walt and The Jesus so civil towards each other... |
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Maybe by now The Dude uses iPhones. Or not. |
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Only slightly hidden Valkyrie! Yes, she had a full costume underneath that coat. P.S. It was slightly cold last night. |
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Me, not dressed up (as promised) |
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Parting shot Just to left of shot: my bus for half my trip home about to pull up to the stop. |
+ In one of my many Midnight Movie sum-up posts, I'd referred to Gina as "Mike's impressive wife." Later Mike told me that for the next week, he'd greeted her with "Well, it's my impressive wife!"