Joel Best
A Jesus Story Nobody Tells
This would be the King Theater in Akron, Ohio.
This would be 1939 and a showing
of “Robin Hood,” starring
Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland,
also featuring popular character
actors Una O’Connor, known for her
humorous screentime
in “Bride of Frankenstein,” and Alan Hale,
father of Alan Hale, Jr.
of “Gilligan’s Island” fame.
This would be after Jesus was crucified and returned to life
in dramatic fashion to engage in a lengthy career
as Messiah, wandering the earth
for nearly two millennia
before landing in Akron,
in Ohio and the King Theater
at the corner of Elm and Oliver.
This would be an afternoon matinee.
This would be a rainy Thursday
when the streets became mirrors and
split into two worlds,
one in razor-sharp focus with buildings facing up
and another where invisible magicians
had summoned into existence
an inverted reality,
only they’d done a poor job,
everything from this down-pointing realm
in a state of rain-droppy waver, which
seemed wrong, maybe even insane,
but it is what it is, what can you do unless you’re Jesus,
who could do pretty much anything
with a wink and a nod. But didn’t because the theater
lights were growing dim. This would be a time
when Thursday afternoon matinees cost fifteen cents
and a ticket entitled you to two cartoons, a
newsreel, a short feature, the latest chapter of an
exciting serial and not one movie, but two, the first
being a B-picture, for example, “Exile Express,”
with Anna Sten and Alan Marshal, and a
second top-shelf film starring actors
held in the highest regard.
Say “Robin Hood.”
Say “The Wizard of Oz.”
Say “Goodbye Mr. Chips.”
Say “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.”
Say “Gone With the Wind.”
1939 was a pretty good year for movies.
This would be the third time Jesus sat through
“Robin Hood” in a darkened palace of dreams
brought to life. This would be Jesus wearing a jacket
and tie in the fashion of most men of the day.
This would be His fedora thoughtfully removed
so as not to obscure the view of the person
to His rear. This would be Jesus, eyes
half-closed as the cavernous room faded to black
and the proscenium’s huge velvet curtains
slowly parted. This would be His reverent silence,
this would be Him settling back into the best seat
of the house, tenth row center. This would be
the latest issue of Movieland in one hand
and a 5-cent Baby Ruth in the other. This would
be technicolor giants moving across a
screen the size of a parking lot. This would be
the Savior of the World, for a few hours able
to forget all about past, present and future
alongside the mortal humans He so envied
with the fullness of His blessed soul.