Winchester and Castro

This morning we were up and out early once again. This time we headed to San José to check out the Winchester Mystery House. I am so not the touristy type, but I absolutely made an exception so as to check the place out. Our guide, Wayne, was marvelous. And I rarely use that word, but it completely describes him. He knew his stuff and made the tour fun and interesting.

After the Winchester House, we drove back to San Francisco, relaxed at the apartment for a bit, then cruised on over to the Castro to see the first of a double feature playing Jaws and The Towering Inferno. (We have an early day tomorrow and decided to skip The Towering Inferno. So sad...it's my favourite disaster movie ever!) Jaws is a classic summer flick that neither of us had seen on the big screen before. It was there in all its 35mm glory. The audience was wonderful. The man standing in front of us in line said that he feels about Jaws the way Trekkies feel about Star Trek. That he saw it in 1975 and it inspired him to become a diver.
The Castro Theatre was packed and everyone applauded; first when John Williams came up in the beginning credits, followed by Steven Spielberg, then Quint's first appearance, and of course when Chief Brody tells Quint, "You're gonna need a bigger boat." The crowd went ape shit at that line. I mean, whooping and hollering; they just lost their minds. It was soooo much fun! The applause didn't stop there, though, after Brody says "Smile, you son of a bitch" and fires the rifle and then finally when the final credits begin to roll. And everyone stayed seated til the very end. I love when audiences do that. Such a nice way to honour all the work that went into making the film. Seeing Jaws at the Castro was definitely in my top ten movie experiences.