Digressions: My Life in 500 Words or Less
I did a little time traveling recently.
On Friday, I caught my first glimpse of a new business under construction, and, while it made me anticipate the future, it also made me think back. The business in question was Crowne Pointe Theatre on Dolphin Drive here in Elizabethtown.
Though I knew construction has been underway for some time, until Friday I had not driven by the site to see any of the progress since the structure went up. And I hadn’t planned on driving by the site Friday, either, but I happened to be going to the post office, and upon leaving, I noticed the theater.
To be honest, the structure caught me be surprise. It looked as if its doors were ready to open to patrons.
At the end of September a friend of mine had mentioned Crowne Pointe Theatre was set to open in October, but I hadn’t given it much thought. I tend to defer any excitement of new businesses until I am sitting firmly in that business as one of its happy patrons.
But there it was. And I’ll have to say I felt a twinge of excitement.
The present state of cinema in Hardin County — not including Fort Knox — consists of one movie complex in Elizabethtown and one in Radcliff. Both have considerable wear on them.
Having grown up in Fort Knox Muldraugh and Radcliff, my memories include times when the post had four or five active theaters, Radcliff had two indoor theaters and a drive-in, and Elizabethtown had two indoor theaters and a drive-in. Things have changed quite a bit, and most friends and acquaintances have not been happy with the current offerings which have been around for some time now.
The truth of the matter is my partner in life, Rebecca Ricks, and I have reached a point where we don’t go out to movies but once or twice a year, if that much. I’m not sure if that has been a result of the limited venues available or a general lack of interest in the majority of cinematic offerings, but I tend to think it is a little from column A and a little from column B.
Regardless, the new venue has somewhat renewed my interest in going out to enjoy a cinematic experience, if even just to check out the new kid in town. While I realize movie-going has been on the decline in general over the years, I have been surprised Hardin County has gone so long without a new venue.
A new venue is long overdue.
The history of theater venues available in Hardin County might have been richer in the past, but here’s to the near future that’s about to change our present state.
