Page 11 - Newsletter Winter 2018

The studios have a lot of control over the movies and dictate when they will be shown and how long they will be in
the theater. The theater owner doesn’t know the cost of showing the film until the studio decides after the movie
opens. Obviously, they are more expensive to show when the film first opens. It’s a balancing act to select movies
that people in Houlton will want to see versus the cost. You never know what people will come to see. There are
times that people will drive to Presque Isle, Bangor or Woodstock to see a movie before it opens here. In these
days of Netflix and streaming and other viewing options, it is getting harder to get people to the theater. Even free
popcorn night doesn’t always bring people out. An interesting figure that Charlie shared with me - if just 24 more
people came to the movies each week, it would help it be successful.

Charlie is happy to be back in Houlton and running the theater. He is doing the best he can to keep the theater
going. He recently posted a video he made on Facebook that shows the Square over the 100 years history of the
theater. You can see all the changes of the businesses around the Square but the one constant is the Temple Theater.

Charlie still writes and is working on a new book now, always writing under a pen name. He is also working on a
plan to bring to the theater screen shows from Broadway, Lincoln Center and the Met. For those of us who can’t
frequently travel to New York, this would be a welcome addition to our cultural scene.

We have had the Temple Theater in our town for 100 years. As a community, we need to support the theater if we
want to see its continued presence here. Go see a movie!

NEWS FROM THE NET

By Fred Grant ’88

Hello from the NET! It’s hard to believe that the Class of ’88 (my class) just celebrated its 30th year
reunion. We had a great turnout, and as the one responsible for setting up the event registration online,
I thought it would be a good time to remind everyone of the features available to you which will make
your reunion planning easier.
Let me first start by telling you that I am here to help your class get your “online” presence setup and configured properly. When you’re
ready, give me a call at 207-532-3600 or drop me an email at fred@whoufm.com.

Calendar of Events – We can create your event on the Alumni website to hold the date of your reunion. Even if you don’t know the details,
it’s always a good idea to get on the calendar so that your classmates can start planning and have a basic idea of who to contact.

Registration – Once you have your dates locked in you can start taking registrations online. Your registration portal can be as simple as
allowing classmates to indicate they are coming or as complex as taking reunion fees online. Participants can pay easily online AND you get
the added benefit of having the money available to you BEFORE the event takes place.

Communication – You can send messages directly to your classmates either notifying them about the reunion and/or to keep them up-to-
date about the event and what’s going on.

Photos – A great way to build excitement about your reunion is to share “old” pictures from high school and/or from your last reunion.
Sharing them on your class page is an excellent way to reconnect before your reunion. After the reunion, classmates can upload their
pictures directly to the Alumni website class page. It’s a great way to share memories AND save the images and stories for the next reunion!
Archived Yearbooks – Don’t forget that your yearbook can be found on the website! If you don’t have a hard copy, you can print the pages
out to have at your reunion. What could be more fun than going back and looking at how much you’ve changed!

Remember – you’re not alone in this process! Pick up the phone and give me a call. I’m happy to help!
See you “online”

www.houltonalumni.com PAGE 11