The Town Theater

Comprehension Questions

 

Author under Town’s Marquee (circa 2006)

(circa 1952 for the marquee and ticket sales booth)

 

 (Enter answers on the line to left of each question.)

 

            _______   1.  Jerry’s tone compares the Town to___.

a.       a war zone

b.      a Cub Scout meeting

c.       a dance recital

d.      a neighborhood bar

 

            _______   2.   Jerry inferred the owners were                                                           

                                    a.  hucksters

:                                   b.  dignified and respectful

                        c.  lustful and unseemly

d.  jokesters                                                                

            _______   3.  Teenage balcony patrons ____.

                                    a.  slept through movies

                                    b.  served as theater police

                                    c.  pelted people seated below

                                    d.  made inappropriate sounds                                                           

            ________  4.  Jerry was a victim of  ________.                                           

                                    a. Milk Duds on his seat

                                    b. the seat recoil

                                    c. a balcony bomber’s “oyster”

                                    d. a Coke “booby-trap”

 

            ________  5.  Balcony pranksters did not hide in:                                        

                                    a. the men’s restroom

                                    b. the front row, lower level

                                    c. the lobby

                                    d. the women’s restroom

 

            ________   6.Who did Jerry see do a wicked dance

                                       at the Town theater?

                                    a.  the owner’s wife, Mrs. Driskill

                                    b.  a vagrant

                                    c.  a woman in the balcony

                                    d. Sadie Thompson

 

            ________  7.   What did Jerry not  like about the Town?

                                    a.    the strict noise code

                                    b.    it being family oriented

                                    c.    its practical jokers

                                    d.   as a respected place for a date

 

            ________  8.  What affect did the cowboy  film have on Jerry henceforth ?

                                    a.  he always attended with a friend

                                   b.  he always sat near the exit

                                    c.  he brought a blindfold and earplugs

                                    d. he woke up screaming that night

 

            _________ 9. Why were small children a seating problem at the Town?

                                    a. they violated the quiet code

                                    b. they ran up and down the aisle

                                    c. they left refuse under the seats

                        d. the seat recoil “jack-knifed” them

 

            ________  10. How did small children overcome the seating handicap?

                                    a. sharing a seat

                                    b. buying a heavy box of popcorn

                                    c. standing in the seat

                                    d. putting a crossbar in place

 

            _________ 11. What did Jerry do when out-chalked by an arithmetic opponent?   

                                    a. threw an eraser at her

                                    b. claimed she’d cheated

                                    c. whimpered and cried

                                    d. secretly ate the girl’s packed lunch

 

            _________ 12. What did Jerry compare the Coke prank to?

                                    a. a guillotine

                                    b. the electric chair

                                    c. a hangman’s noose

                                    d. a  tripped landmine wire

 

            _________ 13. Why were his dad’s movies bad?

                                    a. they were underexposed

                                    b. they were spliced out of order

                                    c. they showed scenery but no people

                                    d. he had a cheap camera

            _________ 14. Why was the Coke crime perfect?                                        

                                    a. its alibi about the bathroom                                                

                                    b. it was the most destructive                                                            

                                    c. the prankster was absent                                                    

                                    d. Jerry had never been caught

                                   

            _________ 15. Why was Mrs. Driskill perfect for the movie House of Wax (3D)?

                                    a  her snaggle teeth jutted out in 3D

                                    b. she appeared frightening to Jerry     

                                    c. she wore Halloween masks            

                                    d. she was an actress

 

            _________ 16. Why did a Coke only cost 5 cents?

                                    a. it was an introductory offer

                                    b. inflation

                                    c. no one liked them

                                    d. the theater kept the price low

 

            _________  17. Jerry’s  “cheese cake” movie was about?

                                    a. the manufacture of cheese

                                    b. a dessert popular in 1953

                                    c. a scantily clad model

                                   d. a vacation film

 

            _________  18.  How did the Orpheum differ from the Town?                                                                   

                                    a.  the size of the seats

                                    b.  the “necking” incidents

                                    c.  the price of the tickets

                                    d.  both owners were hypsters

 

            _________  19. House of Wax was _____?  

                                    a. a miracle 1950s kitchen cleaner      

                                    b. a grotesque horror film

                                    c. an amusement park fright house

                                    d. a candle shaped like a house

 

            _________ 20.  The Orpheum theater owner ____?                                     

                                    a. was a shy businessman

                                    b. avoided amateur contests

                                    c. was a theatrical huckster

                                    d. employed usher police       

                       

*For extra credit compare the Orpheum to the Town,

or Mr. Doppler to the Driskills.

 

 

The Orpheum Façade

 

The Infamous Orpheum Balcony (Above)

 

The Town Vocabulary List

            Word                           Synonym

1.   inflation                       increase in price          

2.  facade                          front of a building

  1. lascivious                     lewd, lustful
  2. emporium                    large business or store
  3. persona                        speaker, actor, or talker
  4. impeccably                  flawlessly

7.  proprietor                     owner and operator

8.   anathema                     a ban, a curse

  1. provocateurs                trouble makers
  2.  obligatory                   required          
  3.  lament                                    crying out, wailing
  4.  accouterment              a dress accessory
  5.  bedecked                    worn, dressed             
  6.  illegitimate                 born of unmarried parents
  7.  chronology                 sequential history
  8.  robustness                  strength or vigor
  9.  vigilance                     awareness       
  10.  acrimony                    anger, resentment, ill will
  11.  torso                           body w/o head and limbs
  12.  apprehend                  capture, bring to justice