AMC Theatres officially announced the closing of its 16-screen movie theater in Johnston this week, its last theater in the Des Moines area. Most all of us could see this coming, especially when the for sale sign showed up in the front yard. It’s a sad day for movie-goers.

I remember when this theater first opened in the 1990s. It was a Wynnsong Cinema owned by Carmike at the time, which it remained as until 2016 when AMC purchased it and others. Jolene and I had many date nights at this theater, and we viewed a bunch of movies here with the kids later as well.

Like many of you, we used to go to a movie most every weekend in our dating years. Once married and with kids, when the discussion of new movies came up with others, I would ask, “Did Disney make it?” At that stage in our lives, if Disney didn’t make it, we likely didn't see it.

The kids grew up, and it wasn’t cool to go to movies with Mom or Dad anymore, so Jolene and I eventually ventured out for movie nights again, just not nearly as often. Blame it on streaming. Blame it on high costs. Blame it on a bad selection of movies today. You can point the finger of blame in a variety of places, but as the old saying goes, when you point one finger, three more are pointing back at you.

When we lived in the small town of Nebraska City, Nebraska, we had a wonderful movie house in town named the Pioneer Theater. It didn't have reclining seats, craft beer or pizza, but it did have charm, and we were fortunate to have it. My friend Scott O’Neil is a dentist in town and a regular at the theater. He told me years ago that he tries to go to a movie every week — whether it is a show he wants to see or not — to support the theater and help to ensure it will be there for years to come. Well, when I last looked, it’s still there, which is better than can be said in Johnston, or in Urbandale, or at Southridge Mall where AMC closed other theaters, too.

Truth be told, we haven’t supported our local theater like my friend Scott did. And this closure is a not-so-subtle reminder that we do need to support our local businesses or they won’t be here. Netflix will be just fine. So will Hulu and Disney Plus. To be fair, AMC Theaters still has locations in Sioux City, Council Bluffs and Dubuque. I know this because AMC sent me an email stating they updated my “Preferred AMC Theatre” to AMC Council Bluffs 17. Sure. I might as well go to Nebraska City.

In the meantime, I am going to make an even more concentrated effort to support our local businesses. I hope you will, too.

Have a wonderful Wednesday, and thanks for reading.

Shane Goodman 

President and Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305
www.thedailyumbrella.com

View Shane Goodman's archived columns from past issues here.