Photo: Greg Gorman
John Waters
John Waters, who hails from Baltimore, has been that city's most famous cinematic son, portraying his home town in films from Pink Flamingos (1972) and Hairspray (1988) to Cecil B. Demented (2000) and A Dirty Shame (2004). In addition to his directorial career, Waters is a celebrated gallery artist, photographer, and occasional actor. The film adaptation of the stage musical based on his film Hairspray is in theaters now.
Where does one go the movies in Baltimore?
In the city there are only five movie theaters. The Senator is a beautiful old art deco palace - I have had many premieres there. The Charles, which is five screens, is basically the Angelika [a New York City art house multiplex] of Baltimore. That is where one of the Hairspray premieres was, and it is a very beloved art house cinema. Then there is the Apex, which is the one porn theater that is still running. And finally there is the Rotunda, which is a twin art cinema owned by the Senator – a good little art house. Coming up next is the Landmark theater, which is opening a big multiplex in the city that will cause havoc inside the art movie house business in Baltimore. But hey, I am friends with all of them. I make movies.
Bengie's Drive In
Where you were kid where did you go to the movies?
I grew up in suburbia, so I went to the Towson theater, a second-run theater which was the closest cinema to me. Back then movies opened downtown at one theater and sometimes played for three months. And if they were commercial movies, they would then move to the suburbs and play there. And then I went to the Senator Two, which was downtown. And there was the Rex, which showed all the sex movies, like, the nudist camp movies. Outside the city were all the drive ins, like Bengie's Drive In, which is still open. I shot Cecil B. Demented there. When I was young, the drive-ins showed gore movies and the most of the exploitation films. Today the drive-ins are just the opposite. They are all family friendly. Most won't even show R-rated movies. What I am most sad about is that the city's old porn theater, The Earle, is closing. There, on a good night, you could walk nude to the popcorn stand.
Was the Earle gay or straight or mixed?
It showed straight porn at 8 p.m., bi-sexual at 9 and gay at night. And I would say mostly it was an all gay audience, but sometimes men brought their wives there and people watched. Public sex like that in movie theaters is unheard of now. The Earle was there forever and ever, but now it's a church. I think that all those theaters become churches.
Where did you gain your art house appreciation?
When I was young, the Charles, even under different management, was where you went. Then there was the little theater, the 5 West (which is long gone), and the 7 East. Those theaters always had an espresso coffee bar, which made it feel especially arty. They always had foreign films and espresso.
Do you remember movies being made in Balitmore when you were growing up there?
There were no films made in Baltimore. The only thing that I ever remember is a great movie called The Goddess with Kim Stanley. They shot her funeral in Ellicott City, which is outside of Baltimore. In Hitchcock's Marnie, Baltimore is just a set backdrop. The big long shot of Baltimore is fake – just a big painting.
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