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<\/p>\n‘Educate, entertain, enlighten’: 4 The Record learns about Hollywood history near Pittsburgh<\/p>\n
Host Lily Coleman visits the historic Warner Cascade Theatre Museum in New Castle, Lawrence County<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWELCOME TO. FOR THE RECORD, I\u2019M LILY COLEMAN. THE COUNTDOWN IS ON TO HOLLYWOOD\u2019S BIGGEST NIGHT. THE 98TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS AIRS TONIGHT AT SEVEN, RIGHT HERE ON WTAE, CHANNEL FOUR AND TWO OF THE TEN BEST PICTURE CANDIDATES HAIL FROM THE SAME MOVIE STUDIO. WARNER BROTHERS. THEY\u2019RE BEHIND ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, AND SINNERS, TWO FILMS THAT HAVE BEEN AT THE FRONT OF THE PACK DURING THIS AWARDS SEASON. WARNER BROTHERS HAS ALSO BEEN IN THE HEADLINES RECENTLY. IF YOU\u2019VE BEEN FOLLOWING THE SAGA IN WHICH THE DEAL FOR NETFLIX TO BUY THE STUDIO FELL APART, AND NOW IT APPEARS PARAMOUNT WILL BE ACQUIRING THEM. BUT DID YOU KNOW THERE\u2019S SOME HOLLYWOOD HISTORY JUST OUTSIDE OF PITTSBURGH IN NEW CASTLE, LAWRENCE COUNTY, WHERE THE WARNER BROTHERS OPENED THEIR FIRST THEATER, NEARLY 120 YEARS AGO, I PAID A VISIT TO THE HISTORIC WARNER CASCADE THEATER MUSEUM TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HOW THEY KEEP THE WARNER BROTHERS LEGACY ALIVE AND PROVIDE BOTH HISTORY AND ENTERTAINMENT TO THE COMMUNITY. LET\u2019S START WITH MY INTERVIEWS WITH THE MUSEUM\u2019S PRESIDENT, JERRY KERN. JERRY, LET\u2019S BEGIN. WHERE ARE WE SITTING? TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE MUSEUM. FIRST AND FOREMOST. WELL, THE MUSEUM IS IN THE ACTUAL SPACE WHERE THE WARNER BROTHERS STARTED THEIR FIRST PERMANENT THEATER. AND THE THEATER THAT WE HAPPEN TO BE SITTING IN IS WHAT WE HAVE REPRESENTED AS THE CASCADE THEATER. THE CASCADE THEATER WAS THE WARNER BROTHERS VERY FIRST THEATER. IT OPENED IN FEBRUARY 2ND, 1907, AND IT WAS A SMALL ROOM, REALLY. THEY HAD SEATING FOR 99 CUSTOMERS, BUT WHEN THEY OPENED HER THEATER, THEY DIDN\u2019T HAVE ENOUGH MONEY FOR CHAIRS. SO IF YOU CAME TO WATCH A WARNER BROTHERS MOVIE, YOU WOULD HAVE TO STAND, OKAY, SHORTLY AFTER THEY MADE ARRANGEMENTS WITH A FUNERAL HOME THAT WAS ONE BLOCK AWAY, AND THEY GOT PERMISSION TO BORROW THEIR CHAIRS WHEN THERE WASN\u2019T A FUNERAL. AND THAT\u2019S ONE OF OUR EXHIBITS THAT WE HAVE HERE IN THE CASCADE THEATER. IS THIS FUNERAL HOME CLOSED IN THE MID 50S, AND THEY REMEMBERED THE STORY ABOUT THEIR CHAIRS. SO THEY DONATED FOUR CHAIRS TO OUR LOCAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY, WHO IN TURN HAS LENT ONE OF THOSE CHAIRS TO OUR MUSEUM. I\u2019M LOOKING AT IT RIGHT NOW. THAT\u2019S FASCINATING. WHY NEW CASTLE, WHEN IT COMES TO THE WARNER BROTHERS, WHAT ATTRACTED THEM TO THIS AREA AND HOW DID THEY END UP PICKING HERE AS THEIR FIRST PERMANENT LOCATION? OKAY, WELL, THE FAMILY IS LIVING IN YOUNGSTOWN, AND ONE MONTH THE LANDLADY CAME TO COLLECT THE RENT, AND SHE MENTIONED THAT HER SON HAD A PORTABLE MOVIE PROJECTOR FOR SALE. WELL, THEY END UP BUYING THAT PROJECTOR AND THEY TOURED WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND EASTERN OHIO. AND ANY PLACE THERE WOULD BE A GATHERING OF PEOPLE, ANY KIND OF A FAIR OR FESTIVAL, ANY KIND OF AN OCCASION, THEY WOULD BE THERE WITH THEIR PORTABLE PROJECTOR AND THEY WOULD BE SHOWING THEIR MOVIES. BUT WINTER CAME AND EVERYBODY IS HUNKERED DOWN IN THEIR HOMES, AND THEY WERE OUT OF BUSINESS, AND THEY REALIZED THAT THEY HAD TO HAVE A PERMANENT LOCATION. WELL, OF ALL THE PLACES THEY HAD TRAVELED WITH THEIR PORTABLE PROJECTOR, THEY HAD DONE THEIR BEST IN NEWCASTLE BECAUSE NEWCASTLE WAS ONE OF THE FASTEST GROWING CITIES IN THE WHOLE COUNTRY AT THE TIME, YOUNGSTOWN ALREADY HAD SOME SMALL THEATERS. THEY CALLED THEM NICKELODEONS, AND THEY THOUGHT THAT IF THEY OPENED UP THEIR FIRST THEATER IN YOUNGSTOWN, THAT THE ONLY WAY THEY COULD BE SUCCESSFUL IS THEY WOULD HAVE TO TAKE CUSTOMERS AWAY FROM THE CURRENTLY EXISTING NICKELODEONS, AND THEY REMEMBERED HOW WELL THEY HAD DONE IN NEWCASTLE AND HOW FAST NEWCASTLE WAS GROWING. AND THEY THOUGHT, WELL, THERE\u2019S NEW CUSTOMERS COMING INTO NEWCASTLE EVERY DAY, SO LET\u2019S GO TO NEWCASTLE, WE\u2019LL OPEN UP OUR THEATER THERE AND OUR CHANCES OF SURVIVAL WILL BE MUCH GREATER. AND WERE THEY? I MEAN, DID THEY DO WELL? THEY THEY DID. THEY CAME TO NEWCASTLE AND DISLOCATION THAT WE\u2019RE AT BACK IN. YOU KNOW WE\u2019RE TALKING 1907 NOW. THIS LOCATION WAS THE KNOX INN AND IT IT THE PROPERTY ITSELF JUST SITS ON THE EDGE OF THE ENTERTAINMENT SECTION OF NEWCASTLE. IN FACT, THE LOCALS REFER TO THIS AREA AS LITTLE TIMES SQUARE. STREET, THERE WAS A LARGE AUDITORIUM AND THAT\u2019S WHERE THEY THE THE KIND OF THE UPSCALE ENTERTAINMENT COULD BE HAD. IT\u2019S ACTUALLY WERE ON THE BLOCK THAT\u2019S NEXT TO US IS ACTUALLY WHERE BOB HOPE GOT HIS START. AND IN VAUDEVILLE WAS BIG AT THE TIME. AND THAT ALSO HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH WHY THEY CHOSE THIS PARTICULAR LOCATION IN NEWCASTLE, BECAUSE, WELL, THEY\u2019RE GOING TO BE IN THE ENTERTAINMENT FIELD AND THEY SIT RIGHT NEXT TO WHERE ALL THE BIG ENTERTAINMENT OF THE TOWN WAS LOCATED. A LITTLE BIT OF HOLLYWOOD HISTORY RIGHT HERE IN NEWCASTLE. YES. WHICH BRINGS US UP TO YOU GUYS AND THE MUSEUM. HOW DID THAT COME TO BE? WELL, THAT THAT\u2019S A THAT\u2019S A LONG STORY, BUT BUT WHAT HAPPENED? THIS THIS BUILDING THAT WE\u2019RE SITTING IN. OKAY. IT\u2019S IT WAS VACANT. IT WAS BOARDED UP. AND AT THE TIME I WAS DATING A GAL WHO I DID EVENTUALLY MARRY. AND AS A GIFT, SHE GAVE ME THIS BOOK THAT WAS THE LEGENDS OF LAWRENCE COUNTY. AND I\u2019M READING THIS BOOK AND IT SAID THE WARNER BROTHERS HAD THEIR FIRST THEATER IN NEWCASTLE, AND IT GAVE THE LOCATION, WELL, I\u2019M DRIVING ON MILL STREET, WHICH IS A STREET ADJACENT TO THE BUILDING, AND I\u2019M STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT AND IT\u2019S ALL BOARDED UP, COMPLETELY VACANT, AND IT\u2019S LIKE, THERE\u2019S SOMEBODY. IT LOOKED LIKE SOMEBODY HAD GOTTEN A BUCKET OF PAINT AND A BRUSH, AND ON THE SIDE OF THE BUILDING, THEY PAINTED THE WORDS FOR SALE AND A PHONE NUMBER. SO I THOUGHT, THIS IS AMAZING. WARNER BROTHERS FIRST THEATER WAS IN THIS BUILDING AND IT\u2019S FOR SALE. I CALL THE NUMBER OKAY, AND I MAKE ARRANGEMENTS TO BUY THE BUILDING. SO AT THIS TIME I\u2019M WORKING AND ON BREAK I\u2019M READING THE PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. WE HAD A SUBSCRIPTION, SO THAT\u2019S WHAT WE DID ON BREAK. AND THERE\u2019S AN ARTICLE IN THE PAPER THAT THERE\u2019S THIS NONPROFIT IN PITTSBURGH THAT THEIR MAIN FUNDRAISER EVERY YEAR IS THEY INVITE PEOPLE WHO HAVE JUST PUBLISHED A BOOK AND THEY CAN COME AND THEY CAN GIVE A ABOUT A FIVE MINUTE SPIEL ON THEIR BOOK, BUT THE CONDITIONS ARE THAT WHEN THEY\u2019RE EVERYBODY IS DONE SPEAKING, ALL THE AUTHORS ARE DONE, THAT YOU HAVE TO HAVE YOUR BOOK AVAILABLE FOR SALE, AND YOU HAVE TO BE WILLING TO AUTOGRAPH IT. AND AS I\u2019M READING THIS ARTICLE, IT SAYS CASS WARNER, THE GRANDDAUGHTER OF HARRY WARNER, HAS JUST PUBLISHED A BOOK ON THE HISTORY AND LEGACY OF THE WARNER FAMILY. SO IT\u2019S LIKE, I JUST, I HAVE TO DO THIS. SO I GET ON MY PONY AND I GO TO PITTSBURGH AND I SIT THERE AND I LISTEN TO ALL THESE AUTHORS TALK ABOUT THEIR BOOKS, EACH ONE ABOUT, LIKE I SAID, ABOUT A FIVE MINUTE. SO WHEN THEY\u2019RE ALL DONE, I GOT IN LINE TO BUY CASS\u2019S BOOK. AND TO MY SURPRISE, THIS IS A HARDBACK BOOK. IT WAS CALLED HOLLYWOOD BE THY NAME, AND THERE\u2019S A DUST COVER ON THE BOOK, AND THE DUST COVER IS A PICTURE OF THE CASCADE THEATER. AND I OPENED THE BOOK AND I\u2019M LOOKING AT THE CONTENTS, AND THERE\u2019S A WHOLE CHAPTER ON NEWCASTLE. WELL, WHAT I HAD DONE, I HAD TAKEN A PICTURES, I HAD TAKEN SOME PICTURES OF THIS BUILDING WITH ALL THE WINDOWS AND DOORS ALL BOARDED UP. AND YOU COULD SEE THAT IT WAS VACANT, AND I WAS GOING TO SHOW THESE TO CASS. SO WHAT I DID WAS I PUT THESE PICTURES INSIDE THE BOOK, AND I WENT AND STOOD IN LINE TO GET HER AUTOGRAPH. AND WHEN I WORKED MY WAY TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE, YOU KNOW, SHE, SHE GREETED ME AND I HANDED HER THE BOOK AND SHE OPENED THE BOOK AND HER IS THESE PICTURES. BUT SHE LOOKED AT THESE PICTURES AND SAID, WELL, IT\u2019S AN OLD BOARDED UP, VACANT BRICK BUILDING. SHE SAYS, YOU WANTED ME TO SEE THESE PICTURES. OBVIOUSLY YOU PUT THEM HERE, BUT. BUT WHY? AND I DIDN\u2019T SAY ANYTHING. I TOOK THE PICTURES AWAY FROM HER AND I CLOSED THE BOOK, AND I PUT THE PICTURES NEXT TO THE DUST COVER. AND YOU CAN SEE THAT ALL THE BRICKWORK, ALL THE WINDOWS WERE THE SAME AS THE OUTSIDE. THEATER. AND SHE GOES, OH MY GOD. AND I SAYS, YES. I SAYS, I\u2019M FROM NEWCASTLE AND WE\u2019RE GOING TO REOPEN THE CASCADE THEATER. AND I SAYS, AND I\u2019M HERE TO ASK YOU FOR SOMETHING. I\u2019M NOT GOING TO ASK YOU FOR MONEY. I\u2019M ASKING FOR YOUR BLESSING. IF THE WARNER FAMILY BLESSES OUR PROJECT, THIS GIVES US LEGITIMACY. THIS WILL MAKE IT EASY FOR US TO FUNDRAISE, AND WE WILL OPEN A CASCADE THEATER STILL AHEAD ON FOR THE RECORD, WHAT DRIVES US AND REALLY WHAT OUR MISSION IS, IS TO TELL THE STORY OF THE WARNER LEGACY. MORE ON THE MOVIE HISTORY BEING KEPT ALIVE IN NEW CASTLE, LAWRENCE COUNTY. WELCOME BACK TO. FOR THE RECORD, LET\u2019S GO BACK NOW TO MY CONVERSATION WITH JERRY KERN, PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR THE WARNER CASCADE THEATER MUSEUM IN NEW CASTLE. SO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS DO AS AN ORGANIZATION. WELL, WE HAVE HANGING ON OUR WALLS A LISTING OF WHAT OUR ALL OF OUR WALL EXHIBITS ARE GOING TO BE. AND WE ONLY HAVE ONE COMPLETE EXHIBIT UP NOW. OKAY, BUT, BUT WHAT DRIVES US AND REALLY WHAT OUR MISSION IS, IS TO TELL THE STORY OF THE WARNER LEGACY, WHAT THEY DID AND HOW THAT AFFECTS THE WAY WE LIVE TODAY. OKAY. AS A AS ONE EXAMPLE, THEY CREATED THE MOBSTER MOVIES, OKAY? THEY WERE THE ONES WHO STARTED IT. OKAY. AND WHAT HAPPENED AT THE TIME WHEN THE FIRST MOVIE CAME OUT, THEY WERE ACTUALLY CALLED BY WASHINGTON AND SAID, YOU KNOW, THIS ISN\u2019T GOOD. YOU\u2019RE SHOWING THESE MOBSTERS SHOOTING UPTOWNS AND AND ALL THIS CRIMINAL ACTIVITY GOING AROUND. AND THIS GIVES A BAD LIGHT BECAUSE YOU\u2019RE SO BIG, YOU\u2019RE SHOWING MOVIES OVER IN EUROPE AND AROUND THE WORLD, AND PEOPLE ARE NOT GOING TO WANT TO COME TO THIS COUNTRY IF THEY THINK THAT THERE\u2019S PEOPLE STANDING WITH MACHINE GUNS SHOOTING AT EVERYBODY. AND THEY SAID, WELL, WE\u2019RE NOT MAKING THIS STUFF UP. THIS STUFF IS ALL BASED. THESE MOVIES ARE BASED ON TRUE FACTS. AND YOU KNOW, IF IF YOU\u2019RE NOT WILLING TO CONFRONT A PROBLEM, HOW ARE YOU EVER GOING TO SOLVE IT? OKAY, SO THAT WHAT THAT LED TO WAS A DISCUSSION ABOUT IS WHAT THEY WERE DOING. IS IT REAL? IS IT REALISTIC? ARE THEY DEPICTING THINGS THE WAY THEY TRULY EXIST AND ALL? AND THERE WAS A LOT OF TALK AT THE TIME WHERE CONDITIONS IN PRISON WERE VERY POOR. SO THEY CALLED ONE OF THEIR EMPLOYEES IN AND THEY SAID, WE\u2019RE GIVING YOU A DIFFERENT ASSIGNMENT. WE WANT YOU TO ACTUALLY GO OUT AND RESEARCH THIS AND SEE IF THE PENAL SYSTEM IS AS CRUEL AS PEOPLE ARE SAYING IT IS. AND SO THE PERSON DID THAT. AND WHEN HE WAS DONE, THEY CALLED HIM BACK IN AND THEY SAID, WELL, IS IT REALLY AS BAD AS WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING? OR THEY\u2019RE EXAGGERATING? AND HE SAYS, WELL, IT\u2019S NOT AS BAD AS WHAT IS WHAT THE STORIES ARE. HE SAYS IT\u2019S MUCH WORSE. AND SO THEY MADE SOME MOVIES ON THE CONDITIONS OF THE PENAL SYSTEM AND HOW PEOPLE WERE PRISONERS, WERE PUT IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT AND WHIPPED AND ALL THAT. AND WHEN THAT BECAME PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE, IT LED TO PENAL REFORM NATIONWIDE. AND IT\u2019S TODAY THAT IF YOU DECIDE THAT YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING THAT\u2019S GOING TO GET YOU THROWN IN JAIL, YOU HAVE THE WARNERS TO THANK FOR THAT. YOUR CONDITIONS WILL BE MUCH DIFFERENT THAN THEY WERE BACK IN, IN, LET\u2019S SAY, IN THE 20S, IN THE 30S. OKAY. AND SO MOST PEOPLE AREN\u2019T AWARE OF THAT. MOST PEOPLE ARE. AND THAT\u2019S, THAT\u2019S ONE OF THE STORIES WE WANT TO TELL. BUT IF YOU, IF YOU LOOK AND YOU SEE WHAT ALL OUR WALLET EXHIBITS ARE GOING TO END UP BEING, YOU\u2019RE GOING TO SEE THAT WE HAVE MANY STORIES TO TELL AND PEOPLE DON\u2019T APPRECIATE THE ADVANTAGES AND THE LIFESTYLE THEY HAVE TODAY, AND THEY DON\u2019T UNDERSTAND HOW A LOT OF IT RELATES BACK TO WHAT THE WARNERS DID. THE WARNER FAMILY WAS A VERY STRICT RELIGIOUS FAMILY, AND WHEN THEY STARTED TO MAKE MOVIES, THE OLD MAN CALLED THEM IN AND SAYS, LOOK, GUYS, HE SAYS, YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY. YOU KNOW? YES, MOVIES ARE ENTERTAINMENT, BUT THEY SHOULD ALSO BE MADE TO EDUCATE AND ENLIGHTEN. AND THAT BECAME KIND OF LIKE THEIR MOTTO. AND WE HAVE THAT HANGING IN OUR MUSEUM THAT THAT THAT\u2019S THE PURPOSE OF THE WARNER MOVIE LEGACY. IT WAS TO EDUCATE, TO ENTERTAIN, AND IT WAS TO ENLIGHTEN. A, A CONSTRAINT ON HOW WE OPERATE. YOU KNOW, WE\u2019RE GOING TO, WE\u2019RE GOING TO SHOW YOU BUGS BUNNY, AND WE\u2019RE GOING TO SHOW YOU THE FAMOUS MOVIES AND ALL THAT STUFF, BUT WE\u2019RE DOING IT WITH THE INTENT THAT IT\u2019S TO BE USED FOR HUMANITARIAN CAUSE. ALSO STILL AHEAD, IT\u2019S MORE CHALLENGING NOW FOR NON-PROFITS THAN EVER BEFORE. WHY IS HISTORIC THEATER IN NEWCASTLE NEEDS YOUR HELP TO MAINTAIN ITS MISSION? FOR THE RECORD, AS I CONTINUE TO LEARN ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE WARNER CASCADE THEATER MUSEUM FROM ITS ACTING CURATOR, INCLUDING WHAT THEY NEED TO CONTINUE TO ENTERTAIN PEOPLE FROM AROUND THE REGION, HOW LONG WERE THE PLANS IN PLACE BEFORE ALL OF THIS CAME TO BE? WHAT WE\u2019RE LOOKING AT NOW? WELL, I THINK IT\u2019S FAIR TO SAY THAT WE JUST WE DEVELOPED IT AS WE MOVED ALONG OVER OVER A 12 YEAR PERIOD NOW. AND AS WE MOVED ALONG, WE SAW WHAT NEEDED TO BE DONE. NEXT. WE ADDED THE SCREENS, WE ADDED THE PROJECTORS, JERRY BROUGHT IN HIS COLLECTION OF MAGIC LANTERNS, WHICH YOU SEE UNDER LIT UNDERNEATH ON THE CASES HERE, WHICH ARE THE PRECURSORS, OF COURSE, OF THE MOVING PICTURE. AND WE JUST AS WE MOVE ALONG, WE AND OF COURSE, AS A NONPROFIT, YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS? EVERYTHING HINGES UPON RAISING FUNDS TO DO WHAT WE WANT TO DO. TALK ABOUT THAT. IS THAT CHALLENGING? IT\u2019S MORE CHALLENGING NOW FOR NON-PROFITS THAN EVER BEFORE. I\u2019VE WORKED WITH A LOT OF NON-PROFITS OVER THE YEARS, AND I\u2019VE NEVER SEEN THIS THIS DIFFICULT FOR THE SMALL ONES. WE TRY TO GET A LITTLE MORE SUPPORT OUT OF PITTSBURGH, AND WE\u2019RE WORKING ON THAT CONSTANTLY BECAUSE WE\u2019RE NOW PART OF THE PITTSBURGH TRADING AREA. YOU KNOW, THAT WE\u2019VE BEEN IN THIS COUNTY HAS BEEN INCLUDED NOW. SO THAT\u2019S SOMETHING WE\u2019RE GOING TO FOCUS ON MORE. YOU KNOW, THERE\u2019S A BIG EMPHASIS IN PITTSBURGH RIGHT NOW ON FILM AND MOVIES AND TELEVISION SHOWS BEING MADE THERE. YES. NONE OF THAT ARGUABLY WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE HISTORY HERE IN NEW CASTLE. TALK ME, TALK TO ME ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THAT WHEN YOU STOP TO THINK. I MEAN, THAT\u2019S THAT\u2019S MONUMENTAL. IT IS. AND WHEN WE GET PEOPLE IN HERE, LIKE FROM PITTSBURGH, WHICH WE DO FREQUENTLY GET FOLKS FROM PITTSBURGH, THEY\u2019RE ALWAYS AMAZED AT WHAT\u2019S HERE AND THAT IT IS HERE AND THAT THEY\u2019RE STANDING WHERE THE WINNER STOOD. AGAIN. YOU\u2019RE SITTING WHERE THE FAMILY STOOD. THEY ARGUED CONSTANTLY AS A FAMILY, THE BROTHERS AND SISTERS, THE KASEY REIGNER TELLS US THAT THE WHOLE FAMILY FOUGHT ALL THE TIME, WHICH I GUESS IS GOOD BECAUSE THEY THEY ACCOMPLISHED A LOT. HOW THEY GOT THERE ISN\u2019T REALLY THAT IMPORTANT. IF YOU HAVE TO FIGHT TO GET SOMEWHERE, THAT\u2019S. THAT\u2019S GOOD. BUT WE DO GET A LOT OF PEOPLE FROM PITTSBURGH. SO WHAT\u2019S YOUR PITCH TO PEOPLE WATCHING THIS? WELL, IT\u2019S IMPORTANT BECAUSE, AS JERRY TOLD YOU PREVIOUSLY, THIS IS WHERE IT ALL STARTED. AND YOU NOTICE ALL THE OTHER STUDIOS, THE NAMES CHANGED, THE FACES CHANGED, THE WONDER BROTHERS NEVER CHANGE BECAUSE EVERYBODY THAT COMES IN TO OWN THE FRANCHISE, WHICH IS NOW WARNER DISCOVERY AND DAVID ZASLAV IS THE IS THE PERSON IN CHARGE OF THAT? THEY ALL CHANGED THE NAME FOR SOME REASON. THE LEGACY DOESN\u2019T MEAN ANYTHING TO THEM, BUT HERE THIS CONTINUES. I MEAN, FOUR BROTHERS, I ALWAYS SAY FOR JEWISH KIDS FROM YOUNGSTOWN STARTED THIS THING. IT\u2019S THAT SIMPLE AND BUILT AN EMPIRE. AND IT STARTED RIGHT HERE. AND THIS WAS THEIR FIRST THEATER. THEY\u2019VE ADMITTED THAT OUR RESEARCH PROVES THAT. AND HERE WE ARE. WHY SHOULD IT EVER NOT BE HERE? BUT PEOPLE WITH MONEY HAVE TO STEP UP. TOO MANY PEOPLE DON\u2019T. I DON\u2019T KNOW IF THEY\u2019RE JUST UP NIGHTS COUNTING IT OR WHAT THEY\u2019RE DOING, BUT THEY NEED TO SUPPORT NONPROFITS, ESPECIALLY IN NONPROFIT LIKE THIS, WHICH DESERVES MORE SUPPORT. IT REALLY DOES. WHAT MAKES THIS SO SPECIAL TO YOU? TO ME, IT\u2019S THE HISTORY OF IT AND ALL THE DIFFICULTIES THAT JERRY AND HIS BOARD HAD TO GO THROUGH TO CONTINUE FROM DAY ONE. TO GET TO THIS POINT. IT WASN\u2019T EASY. THERE WERE A LOT OF HURDLES TO GET THROUGH AND A LOT OF CIRCUMSTANCES VERY DIFFICULT, WHERE THIS MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN HERE. BUT THROUGH HIS EFFORTS AND HIS BOARD BEFORE I CAME ON, IT SURVIVED. IT KEPT GOING. AND IF I COULD ADD SOMETHING TO THAT, THAT\u2019D BE FINE WITH ME. SO WHAT\u2019S NEXT FOR YOU GUYS? THE NEXT IS THE LOONEY TUNES COLLECTION NEXT DOOR IN THE ANNEX, AND YOU MAY, IF YOU HAVE TIME, YOU MAY RUN OVER THERE AND LOOK AT THAT BUILDING, AT LEAST FROM THE OUTSIDE. THE START OF THE RENOVATION THE FACADE\u2019S BEEN REPAINTED AND WE\u2019RE BUT THAT\u2019S A CAPITAL CAMPAIGN THAT\u2019S GOING TO TAKE A BIG CHUNK OF MONEY. BUT AGAIN, YOU\u2019LL HAVE THE WARNER BROS. FIRST THEATER HERE, AND YOU\u2019LL HAVE THE LARGEST LOONEY TUNE COLLECTION IN THE NATION. APPROX. ALMOST 3000 ITEMS AND SOME OTHER THINGS. LIKE JERRY SAID, YOU\u2019LL BE ABLE TO SEE HIS COLLECTION OF MOVIE MAGAZINES, HIS COLLECTION OF POSTERS. WE\u2019LL HAVE COMPUTER STATIONS THERE WHERE YOU CAN RESEARCH FILM POSTERS. THE PLAN FOR THAT IS EXTENSIVE. VERY COOL. WHAT AM I MISSING? WHAT ELSE DO YOU WANT TO TOUCH ON THAT I DIDN\u2019T ASK YOU. WELL, I THINK YOU PRETTY MUCH COVERED EVERYTHING. AND I DO APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE A LOT OF INTERVIEWERS DON\u2019T. BUT THE IMPORTANCE THAT I\u2019D LIKE TO CARRY THROUGH AND HOPEFULLY THE SUPPORT IS NEEDED FROM THE PITTSBURGH AREA. PITTSBURGH\u2019S DONE WONDERFUL THINGS FOR THE FILM INDUSTRY. I MEAN, IT MAKES CLEVELAND LOOK LIKE A POOR SISTER BECAUSE I DO THINGS IN CLEVELAND. I WORK WITH RESTAURANTS, PUT RESTAURANTS TOGETHER. I\u2019VE DONE THAT OVER THE DECADES, AND THEY\u2019RE ALWAYS COMPLAINING ABOUT PITTSBURGH BECAUSE PITTSBURGH GETS ALL THE ALL THE SHOWS. SO THEY\u2019RE BANGING AWAY THERE. BUT PITTSBURGH, HEY, WE\u2019RE UP THE ROAD AND WE NEED SOME HELP. SO COME ON, THAT\u2019S MY MESSAGE. AND AS WE WRAP UP THIS EPISODE OF FOR THE RECORD, ONE MORE REMINDER THE 98TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS AIRS TONIGHT AT SEVEN RIGHT HERE ON WTAE, CHANNEL FOUR. AS FOR US, WE HOPE YOU HAVE A GOOD WEEK. WE\u2019LL SEE YOU NEXT SUNDAY MORNING AT 11 A.M.\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
‘Educate, entertain, enlighten’: 4 The Record learns about Hollywood history near Pittsburgh<\/p>\n
Host Lily Coleman visits the historic Warner Cascade Theatre Museum in New Castle, Lawrence County<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\tUpdated: 11:00 AM EDT Mar 15, 2026\n\t\t<\/p>\n