Chapter 38

The festival was being held in Hollywood at the Arclight complex, which was a large theater and restaurant built around what used to be a dome-style movie palace. The dome still existed, although completely refurbished and updated, but around it had been constructed a high-end multiplex that was sometimes put to use as a venue for premieres and festivals. The girls and I loved the Arclight because it had this great institution known as “21+ Screenings,” which we referred to as “alcoholic cinema.” Basically, if you were twenty-one or over, you could buy a drink in the bar and take it into the theater with you. More than one craptastic movie had been made bearable by this wonderful innovation. No wonder so many other theater chains had caught on to the idea and started offering drinks as well, although our little group tended to be loyal to the Arclight.