Chapter 6
BURT REYNOLDS: "HELP SAVE THE BRADLEY"
The Show Biz fund raiser went well. There were a few carnival rides as well as a live elephant for the brave of heart to ride. Angie dressed in the Billy Bob character costume much to the delight of the children and I ran a kiddie train around the parking lot.
"I sure appreciate your efforts to help us with the Bradley project," I told Ed while I was waiting for another load of kids to board the train.
 "Glad to do it," Ed returned. "Say, I may have another way to help you with another fund raiser. I used to work in a fried chicken fast food place in Atlanta while they were shooting Smokey and the Bandit. Well wouldn't you know, Burt Reynolds himself came in and bought a bucket of chicken one night after shooting. We struck up a conversation and talked for about 15 minutes."
I wondered why Burt Reynolds, a wealthy movie star, would buy his own chicken but I was willing to hear out any fund raising idea.
"Before he left he gave me his card and told me if there was anything he could ever do for me to give him a call. I think I'll give him a call tomorrow and ask if there's something he could do for the Bradley."
"Sounds like a good idea," I said. "Let me know what you find out."
With that I put the whole Idea out of my mind. Reynolds had just been voted one of the sexist men in America by some poll and I knew what the chances were of getting him to Columbus, much less the Bradley.
We made about $400.00 on the event but with the stroke of a pen it went to the mountain of bills that were piling up. We couldn't even pay the rent.
Entry from my journal, Sept 13th, "This is a sad day for me indeed. I just called John Huff and told him that we would not be able to pay the rent on the Bradley. He said that he would be sending me a notice of eviction. I guess you can only do so much. I have poured every ounce of my being into this project yet we can't get enough audience to pay the light bill. What more do I have to do? What have I left undone? What have I done wrong?"
About a week later Ed Skoda called.
"Hey John, I called the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theater in Juniper Florida and talked with Burt's secretary. I told him all about the project and that it was a non profit group and asked if there was anything that Burt Reynolds could do to help. He said that Reynolds doesn't make public appearances for fund raisers."
"Yeah, I kinda' figured that's what they would say," I said.
"Hold on. As the man was about to hang up he said by the way, how did you get this number. He said that the number I called was only known by those who worked closely with Reynolds. I told him about meeting Burt in Atlanta and that I had his card. Then he said if that was the case that he would take my number and get back with me in a few days."
"Really?" I questioned. "Well listen, if they need information give them my number or you can just call me. Keep me posted."
Ed had now gotten my attention. Boy, to have Burt Reynolds live on stage at the Bradley. That would solve our money problems.
September 2nd through the 4th we ran a double feature of "Just Imagine" and "Sleeper" to 66 patrons. The next showing was "Fiddler on the Roof". I had hoped that it would draw more than the 54 patrons that came.
The next Monday Ed Skoda called again.
"Hey, John. The Burt Reynolds people just called me. They said that Burt might be available sometime toward the end of September and they want to know what we had in mind."
"You're kidding!" I shot back. "Gosh, well let me think. Maybe we could show one of his films and have him sign autographs. Or maybe show a double feature and have him come on stage during the intermission."
"I'm sure Show Biz will help with any cost involved as long as we do this as a joint venture," Ed suggested.
"That would be great. Tell them we will clear any date convenient to them."
This was too good to be true. I knew that it was an answer to prayer and I had to tell Angie.
"Yeah, right!" she scoffed. "Burt Reynolds at the Bradley? That'll be the day."
"No I'm serious. It's not set in concrete but there is a possibility. Ed has his foot in the door and that's more than I've got."
"Well, don't get your hopes up. I'll believe it when I see it," she said. "I just hope he doesn't turn out to be another Conrad Hubner."
Conrad Hubner was a fellow who approached me back in July. He was going to raise all of the money we would need to save the Bradley. On his advice I quit Columbus Photo so he could show me all the ins and outs of fund-raising. He claimed he raised several thousand dollars, although we never saw the money. After a boat load of promises he disappeared leaving me with no money and no job. I was sure Ed Skoda was no con artist. Angie just didn't have any faith in people, that was all.
So many people called to say they had missed Gone With The Wind that we ran it again September 11th and 12th. When the four film cans arrived I recognized them as the ones I had received in July so I took them to the booth and left them unopened.
By 7:15 we had sold close to 100 tickets and I went to the booth to thread up the first two reels. I opened the first film can and pulled out reel number one and to my horror the first 900 feet of film was missing. I held the beginning of the film to the light and could see the scene where Gerald O'Hara is jumping a fence. I dashed downstairs to the office and called Benton Brothers Film Exchange in Atlanta. The phone must have rung twenty times. Finally someone answered. In one long sentence I rattled off my dilemma and wanted to know where the first 900 feet of film were.
"I don't know," answered the voice. "I'm just the security guard."
"Well, what am I supposed to do?" I shouted at the poor man. "I've got a theater full of people, some of them standing in the aisles ( I wish). I want the phone number of the manager."
"Oh, I can't give that out but I'll take your number and have him call you."
"What good will that do now? My show for tonight is ruined but I'd better hear from him tomorrow!"
I spliced a leader onto the first reel and threaded it into the number one projector. I then grabbed a copy of the GWTW screen play and ran to the stage
"Ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Bradley Theater," I announced as was my custom. "As I was getting the film ready a short while ago, I found that the first 9 minutes is missing and I don't know why. I have called the film exchange in Atlanta and they are also at a loss as to what happened. I apologize for the inconvenience but allow me to read the introduction from the book."
In as eloquent a voice as I could muster, I read the forward title from the screen play that would have appeared on the screen. As I finished there was a ripple of applause from the audience and I made my way back to the booth.
By Saturday night the film exchange manager hadn't called but in spite of it all, we had sold 219 tickets. That was a far cry from our first showing.
Monday morning I was pouring over the stack of unpaid bills. I was almost in tears and depression was setting in. Why weren't the people of Columbus supporting the Bradley I kept asking myself. I had really believed that the people would rally around the Bradley and want to see her alive again as I did. Miss Emily Woodruff was our biggest supporter. She had helped with the rent when one of our volunteers told her that Mr. Huff would be sending a notice of eviction. I was glad for Miss Emily's help but the Bradley had to stand on its own. Just then Ed Skoda called.
"I just talked with the Burt Reynolds people again," he said. "They said that they could possibly come to the Bradley on November the 29th."
"All right!" I shouted, my spirits suddenly lifted. "This is great! What do we need to do?"
"I'm not sure just yet. They said that they will supply the film of your choice and we'll work out the details later."
"This is too good to be true," I said with a sigh of relief. "I was just sitting here wondering how I was going to pay all of these bills. I just don't understand why the people of Columbus don't show any more interest in the Bradley than they do."
"Well John, there's one thing you've got to remember. A lot of the people in Columbus are not natives. Columbus is basically a military retirement town. Many of the people here grew up elsewhere and don't share the same sentiment about the theater that you do. They couldn't care less if it was torn to the ground," Ed explained. "Then you've got your mill people. The last thing they're interested in is anything cultural and the first thing is wrestling. Install a wrestling ring, serve beer, and you'll make a fortune. Now you might get some mill people to a country western show. That's about all the culture they can stand."
"My mother works at the Bibb Mill and she's where I got my love for classical music and good movies," I reminded Ed.
"Oh, well there's always an exception to every rule. I'll let you know what we need to do next for the Reynolds program. I may even have to go to Florida and meet with them," he informed.
"Well keep me posted and if you need me to meet with them, I'm ready," I said.
I immediately got on the phone to Beverly.
"Beverly, would WVOC be interested in getting involved in a little upcoming event in November?"
"What sort of event?" she asked.
"How about Burt Reynolds, live on stage at the Bradley?"
"My stars, you've got to be kidding!"
"Nope. He'll be here on November the 29th," I gloated.
"How? Why? Who?" was all she could get out.
"Remember Ed Skoda form the Show Biz Pizza fund-raise? Well, he had a business card given to him by Burt Reynolds. He called the number and talked to the people about the Bradley project and now they want to help."
"Oh, John. This is too good to be true. Are you sure he isn't just pulling your leg?"
"Well, he's been working on this for three weeks and he's made a bunch of phone calls. Even Ed's manager is trying to get Reynolds to make an appearance at the restaurant."
"Let my run this by Jerry Russell. I know he'll jump at the chance. I mean it's not every day that Burt Reynolds comes to Columbus."
I set to work clearing the calendar for the month of November. I cancelled a Columbus College student fund-raise and an all night sleep-a-thon. I knew that it would take a lot of work to get ready for our biggest fund-raise yet.
The next day I stopped by WVOC and met with station manager Jerry Russell. He was more than excited and offered to put his station at my disposal. Beverly suggested putting a message to Burt on the lighted rotating sign in front of the station. She said we could take a picture of it and give it to Ed for him to take to his meeting. I gathered up the sign's letters and spelled out "BURT REYNOLDS, HELP SAVE THE BRADLEY". As I took the picture I noticed people in cars rubber-necking to read the sign. Once I had gotten a good shot I removed the message from the sign but it was too late. From the few minutes the message was up, word spread like wildfire.
When I got back to the theater the phone was ringing off he hook. Everyone wanted to know if what they heard was true. Was Burt Reynolds coming to the Bradley? I would answer that such a program was in the works but there were a lot of details yet to be worked out. I was even getting phone calls at home that night.
The next weekend, September 16th-18, we ran "The Godfather". For the first time we had no customers the first night. The next two nights we totaled 34 patrons.
"Are you still open?" asked one caller. "I don't see anything about you in the papers anymore."
Part of the reason was that we could no longer afford to pay for ads in the movie section. I had called several different reporters and informed them of various upcoming events but they didn't seem interested. Soon it became obvious that we were being ignored so I called Jack Swift, the managing editor of the newspaper.
"Well, John. It's like this. We had a meeting with Martin Theaters and they asked the question, when does news stop being news and become free advertisement. At the end of the meeting they told us if we ran anymore stories on the Bradley, they would pull all of their advertising," Jack said. "I'm sorry but that's business."
They had struck again. No matter what good my father had done or what good I was trying to do, Martin Theaters was always lurking in the shadows. Why couldn't they see what I was trying to do? I wasn't their competition. They were in the day to day operation of a large theater chain and I was just trying to bring back a piece of history. What they didn't realize is that I was helping their business. Some of our older customers would tell me that they hadn't been to the movies in 25 or 30 years. They said that after they came to the Bradley a couple of times, and enjoyed themselves, they took in a couple of first run movies. My father always said that movie going was a habit. Once we brought them back to the theater and got them back in the habit, not only did we benefit but so did Martin. By hurting us, they were hurting themselves also.
On Monday I ordered the comedy film "Airplane" to run that weekend. Little did I realize that this would be the last film we would show. Our credit had run out with the film distributor and I was trying to raise money to pay the electric bill. The power would be turned off Wednesday if it was not paid. Once again Ed Skoda called.
"Hello, John. You're going to love this. I was talking to Mr. Gershenson, Burt's planner, and he said that Burt wants to bring Jerry Reed with him."
"Oh, I know you're kidding now!" I exclaimed.
"It's no joke. In fact he may even bring Loni Anderson with him if she is in Florida that weekend."
"I really need to talk to Mr. Gershenson," I said. "I need to get all of this information for the papers and I need to get special tickets printed."
"Well, he's a very busy man. It took me over an hour to get in touch with him and I know you don't have the money to pay that kind of phone bill. It would probably be best if only one person did all of the negotiating. I mean, he might tell you one thing and then tell me something else. Then we'd have to get together and coordinate our two conversations. It would just be best if I did all the talking."
"Ok, but please, please keep me informed" I begged.
I didn't hear from Ed for a week. In fact no one at Show Biz knew where he was either. Angie kept telling me that something wasn't right but that only served to make me angry. At the end of the week I got a call from Ed.
"John, I just got back from Juniper Florida. It was great!" Ed exclaimed.
"What were you doing there?" I asked.
"I went down to talk with Mr. Gershenson. Boy, you should see the setup they have down at the Burt Remolds acting school. They've got a complete television studio and they let me run a camera. They even put me up in their dormitory where all of the other actors stay. In the foyer there's a huge portrait of Burt with a plaque that reads, 'I can't act. I was just at the right place at the right time'."
"Well, how about November the 29th?" I asked.
"Oh yes, it's a sure thing."
"Good, If you'll give me the information I'll have the tickets printed."
"Let's hold off on that for a few more days. There are still a few loose ends that I need to tie up. I don't want to jump the gun and give you some wrong information," Ed cautioned.
For another week I couldn't get hold of Ed so on November 12th I decided to call Mr. Gershenson my self. Surely a few questions wouldn't hurt anything. The long distance information operator couldn't find a number for an acting school but she did find a number for the Burt Remolds Dinner Theater. I called the number and was told that Mr Gershenson was on the beach. I told the person on the phone what the call was in reference to and he immediately sent someone to him. After a few moments Mr. Gershenson answered. I introduced myself and told him that I needed some information for the November 29th Burt Reynolds benefit.
"The what?" he asked.
"The Burt Reynolds Save the Bradley Theater benefit in Columbus Georgia," I returned.
"Reynolds isn't going to be in Georgia in on the 29th of November," he returned.
"Sure he is. You know, the Show Biz pizza thing. You've been talking to Ed Skoda for a month," I reminded him.
"I'm sorry but I don't know what you're talking about," said Mr. Gershenson.
"Haven't you been talking to Ed Skoda with Show Biz Pizza in Columbus Georgia about a Burt Reynolds benefit to Save the Bradley Theater," I repeated not liking the way this conversation was beginning to sound.
"Wait a minute. A pizza place in Georgia?" he asked.
"Yeah, that's it."
"Yeah. Some guy called me a couple of months ago from some pizza place in Georgia about some promotion but I told him Reynolds doesn't do promotions."
I must have heard wrong. This is not what I expected to hear.
"Are you sure?" I muttered because my heart was in my throat.
"Of course I'm sure. Reynolds will be on the west coast during that time. He's getting married."
My mind rejected the very idea that the benefit was a hoax.
"Let me tell you what Ed Skoda has been telling me," I said hoping that the story would set things right.
I told Mr. Gershenson about all the phone calls I had received from Ed. I told him about Ed's trip to the TV studio and all of the details I had been given.
"The man is a liar!" Mr. Gershenson shouted into the phone. "There is no TV studio or dormitories here. The man is an absolute liar and you can't hold us liable for anything he said!"
My mind still wouldn't let me believe what I was hearing. After all, why would Ed lie to me. What would be the point? What would he have to gain?
"Are you sure", I panted because I was about to hyperventilate.
"Of course I'm sure. We have some of the best attorneys in the country. I'll get them on this right away."
"No. There's no need for that. I'll find out what is going on. Thank you for your help," I said hanging up the phone.
For a long while I sat and stared at the phone. I wanted to cry but I couldn't. I wanted to be angry but I couldn't. I was numb. What would be the purpose in creating such an elaborate hoax? If it was a lie, Ed had lied in depth, detail, and living color. I picked up the phone and called Show Biz Pizza and got the Manager. I asked him what he knew about the Burt Reynolds Benefit.
"Ed told me that Reynolds will come first to the restaurant but he cannot endorse us. He will just be a guest. Oh by the way, our company president will be here that day. Then Reynolds will rest up and then go to the theater", he stated.
I then told him about the conversation I had just had with Mr. Greshenson.
"May I have his number", he asked. "I need to hear this for myself."
I gave him the number and sat staring at the phone. Twenty minutes later it rang.
"John. We just fired Ed Skoda", said the manager. "He walked out the door saying that Reynolds will be here on the 29th."
"Why did he lie?" I asked.
"I couldn't begin to tell you", he said. "I think the man needs professional help."
"Let me ask you another question. Ed said that you were going to hire me as a public relations person. Is that a lie too?"
"Did he tell you that? I'm so sorry John. We don't even have a public relations position. I do all of that. How is this going to effect the Bradley?"
"I'm afraid the Bradley is finished. I canceled all of our upcoming events for November in favor of the Reynolds benefit. The lights have already been turned off and the rent is behind. Everybody wants money and I can't even pay my house note," I sighed.
Ed Skoda had done what Martin Theaters couldn't do. He had shattered all of my hopes and dreams with empty promises. Why had I been so trusting? Why hadn't I listened to my wife? Words could not describe the haplessness I felt. It was finished.
My journal, 18 November 1982: Well, I guess today was the end of it all. I had to turn the keys over to Plitt (theaters) at 5:00 today. Angie, Mother, and I moved much of our stuff out. I had no idea we had so much stuff in the theater. We'll get the rest of it Saturday. This would be my last entry concerning the Bradley for four years.
read the final chapter 7 "Save the Bradley" by John Gilbert, Columbus, Ga.
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John Gilbert >Save The Bradley 6