The World Tonight: Space Odyssey Events:
Midnights at the Baxter 2001: A Space Odyssey, May 15th, 2010
By Christopher Dalton

Thirty years past (sometime in early 1980), my parents surprised me with a trip to the movies. It was on a Friday evening as I recall, and I remember my parents stopping at a local McDonald's to pick up some dinner (which consisted of three Filet O'Fish with tarter sauce, three large fries, and three drinks). Immediately following that, I asked my mother what film we were going to see. When she said the famous quote from 2001: A Space Odyssey ("Open the pod bay doors please, Hal."), I knew I was in for a treat.

Having seen the film some three years before, on NBC in 1977, I was in for a wonderous experience.

Watching the 1968 MGM science fiction classic was definately 'the ultimate trip', as the advertisement quoted.

Later on that year, a fellow classmate of mine showed me the LP soundtrack to the Stanley Kubrick film.

I even caught a book about the movie in my elementary school library, and noticed the LP once again at a local mall's record shop.

Fast forward to September of 1996 (some fifteen years later). When Baxter Avenue Cinemas first opened its doors, me and two of my friends attended the cinemas first showing of classic films. One of those films was none other than 2001. Watching it again on the big screen, for the second time, was a spectacular event.

I even purchased the 25th Anniversary copy of the film in letterbox the following day after, as an early birthday gift, since I received some early birthday money at the time.

Nearly fifteen years later(circa May 15th, 2010 AD), I had the chance to view the greatest science fiction film ever made, on the cinema screen, for the third time.

This time, at a midnight showing at Baxter Avenue Cinemas.

11:55 pm to 2:15 am was definately two hours and fifteen minutes well spent (and well worth it).

I'm still surprised that this was not shown to Wonderfest audiences when Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood were in town during the movie's 40th Anniversary. That would have been something special. Or as Dave Bowman said to Heywood Floyd in 2010, "Something wonderful."

While my wife was co-chairing a seminar at the University Of Louisville planetarium (which was about three miles away from Baxter Avenue's Location), I met up with Dale a second time(we had dinner two hours earlier with Scott Alexander and some other model-builders from Wonderfest) at the Cinemas, close to the film's start time.

While waiting in the front lobby of the cinemas, I took a few snapshots of the movie poster(which was the 1980 re-production of the late Robert McCall's artwork of Space Station 5 and the departing Pan-Am Shuttle). One of the movie usher's, who was a 2001/2010 fan, was gracious enough to snap a couple of shots of me posing next to the poster, and then give me all copies of the fliers advertising the film's midnight showing (the fliers were going to be disposed of, so I offered to take them off of his hands).

Midnights at the Baxter, Part 2

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