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Ponoka theatres were family affair for Somshors - Reflections of Ponoka

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The Empress (1912) and the Capital (1947) theatres stood side by side for many decades along 50th Street in Ponoka

Among my most cherished memories of growing up in Ponoka was the exciting mostly weekend treat of going to a movie with my family, my friends — and maybe even a few girls, once one got up the courage to ask.

Who could ever forget those wonderful two hour adventures, including rootin-tootin westerns, comedies, cartoons, romances, worldly adventures, tear-jerkers, newsreels, and many other screen gems, all for just 50 cents for adults, 30 cents for students, and 15 cents for us noisy kids?

Our community has had a long and colourful history of movie theatres and entertainment for all ages, starting as early as 1900, where they showed lantern slides above Peter Horn’s Blacksmith shop, and then evolving into the glitzy theatres along Railway Street.

In 1912 classy entrepreneur Bird Headley built the Empress Theatre and started out by presenting black and white silent movies, as well as featuring local musicians to open for such thrilling events as minstrel shows, boxing matches, concerts, auctions, town hall meetings and more.

As the motion picture industry came booming out of Hollywood with rough and romantic heroes, villains, and heartthrob character actors in super colour and sound, new modern theatres and outdoor drive-ins would become instantly popular throughout the world. After 35 years of active business and social activities in this community the Headley family left Ponoka in 1947, selling the Empress Theatre to Hector Labrie. The enthusiastic young businessman would soon build the international style Capital Theatre next door, later added the town’s first drive-in theatre and then continued to provide the very best screen entertainment available for the growing community and surrounding districts.

Welcome to the Somshor family

Ed Somshor was born and raised in the Wetaskiwin/Millet district then moved with his family to the Arbour Park district where they farmed for 20 years. In 1937 Ed married Violet Purnell, a young schoolteacher whose family would establish a highly successful chain of movie and drive-in theatres (Purnell and Sons) in Alberta and British Columbia, as well getting involved in the radio and television business for many years in Red Deer.

After taking over the Roxy Theatre in Coleman in 1946, Ed and Vi moved to Ponoka in 1954, purchasing the Capital/Empress Theatres and drive-in from Hec Labrie, then settled down to work and raise a family. Their daughters Del and Denelle vividly remember their ‘growing up’ years at those busy theatres, initially living in the palatial family suite upstairs at the Capital Theatre. They got to watch the movies through a big picture window in the master bedroom, likely more than a 1,000 flicks over the years, but if it was an adult film, the curtains were always closed.

The Somshor family later moved into a comfortable home on 48th Avenue across from the Diamond Willow School, enjoying a busy lifestyle that included an education for the girls, while Vi carried on her teaching career, and everyone worked at the theatres for the 7 and 9 p.m. evening shows, as well as the wild Saturday afternoon matinees. Sunday would always be family day for the Somshors and their siblings, spending time at Ed’s hobby farm in the country, sharing Grandma’s delicious popcorn balls or celebrating birthday parties at the theatre, a fun tradition that would continue for many years!

Del later married Herman Abt, settled in the Ponoka district, and they were blessed with two children, daughter, Florrie Lynn (Peter Purdon) and son, Mark (Gisele).

Denelle married Roger D. Walsh, and they would live in Edmonton. This hectic but mostly happy ‘family theatre’ tradition later included grandchildren Emma, Liam, Natasha, and Kendra, and would proudly carry on for 30 years. After selling their popular community entertainment business in 1984, Vi and Ed continued to enjoy retirement with family and friends in their hometown.

Ed Somshor died in 1986 at the age of 76 years, and Vi in 1990 at the age of 80.

I enjoyed a delightful afternoon visiting with Del and her daughter, Florrie Flynn, and Denelle and her husband, Roger, and together we will share some of these special memories.

• Their chores during and after each show included making popcorn, ushering, changing the fancy posters for the next picture, and of course cleaning up. Florrie Lynn fondly recalls that she and Mark had to flip up all the seats so that the cleaners could come in but they always made a pretty good haul from all the change that had fallen out of people’s pockets.

• Some of the countless local people that the Somshors hired at their theatres and drive-in included Irene and George Holben, Audrey and Bob Brooks, Ron Thompson, the entire Aikins family and a whole lot of teenage students.

• A massive supply of popcorn was made for every feature with real coconut oil and the fabulous lobby concession stand was always packed with all sorts of pop, chocolate bars, fudge, and sticky McIntosh toffee. The friendly but strict ushers carried a big flashlight to check on everyone in the dark theatre, or to help people to the bathrooms or into the ‘cry room’ if the baby was acting up. Occasionally they had to kick someone out for making too much noise, but then there was the time when Ed had just purchased a very expensive new screen, and someone threw a horseshoe through it.

• Many of you will still recall that the old Empress had a balcony, great for a high view of the movie, but mostly ideal for some secret smooching. At all the shows everyone usually tried to grab the front row seats, or those double cuddle (love) seats!

• We will all recall that the Ponoka Drive- In was a real blast. Thursday night was buck night where you could pack your vehicle full of rowdies for $1, and maybe even squeeze in a case of beer. There was a heated concession stand in the middle of the big lot. For some reason our car windows got fogged up and we always needed to keep a program so we could tell our folks what the movie was, and several times you likely drove away with the speaker attached to your window. At the downtown theatres there would be long lineups and standing room only for great movies such as: Gone With the Wind, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and Peyton Place, and back then Jonas Applegarth from Hobbema was a Hollywood star.

Today along Railway Street only the Capital Theatre remains, but the memories and the thrill of going to a good movie will always be the same for all of us.