Lost in the Fifties - Lincoln Theater by Chuck Clegg

Friday nights in the fifties and sixties meant picture show in New Martinsville at the downtown theater. As the sun sat in the west, the glow from dancing theater lights welcomed dozens of eager townsfolk to the evening’s entertainment. The lure of fresh popcorn crept out of the open doors onto Main Street, tantalizing all those waiting to pay their 25¢ to enter the darkened theater. It was a time when theaters provided a path to adventures in the old west with John Wayne and Roy Rogers. Swashbuckling pirates took us on high seas adventures to Treasure Island with Long John Silver. And on those nights when monsters from outer space shared the screen with the Prince of Darkness Dracula, the walk home seemed even farther than normal.
For some young men, it was the place of their first date with a girl who wore her hair in a ponytail. Dressed in his finest high school jacket, he held her hand as they crossed the busy street. Their hands moist with anticipation that later a stolen kiss may be exchanged. Could it be their lips touched in the flickering light of the picture show?  In all likelyhood since the downtown theater opened, many a romance began in the balcony of the theater.
Beginning in 1920, the theater brought Hollywood’s finest entertainment too untold numbers of movie goers. That was until 1967 when the projectors went dark, and the aroma of popcorn faded. When it first opened its doors, the big screen was filled with silent moving images. With the passing of time, the silver screen and images it once displayed have fallen silent. But the historic theater has not faded from being downtowns entertainment center. Today, children’s plays and music shows can still be heard on Friday and Saturday nights.  For nearly a century the

Lincoln Theater has been an important part of our community’s culture and heritage.