America’s Hometown Movie Theaters: Please Remain Standing
BENITA VANWINKLE
Essay by Henry B. Aldridge, Emeritus Professor, Eastern Michigan University
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Book available April 23, 2026 (National Movie Theatre Day)
Overflowing with images, this captivating volume represents, in part, the massive body of work photographer Benita VanWinkle has produced for her documentary project on America’s hometown movie theaters, Please Remain Standing. The project, entitled as a plea for preserving the structures being torn down at an alarming rate, is entering its fifth decade with more than 1,100 theaters documented. These photographs are a celebration of the architectural gems that were built for one of America’s greatest pastimes—the shared movie-going experience.
Projected release date: Spring 2026
Hardcover
608 pages
525 photographs (mostly color)
9.25 x 8.50 inches
ISBN: 978-1735600147
$75.00
Description
An enchanting visual journey for anyone who loves movie theaters, film history, and architecture!
This remarkable book features 525 photographs of outdoor and single-screen movie theaters built before 1965 when the multiplex began to dominate the landscape. For more than forty years, photographer Benita VanWinkle has traveled across the country in search of hometown movie theaters and drive-ins to photograph for her ongoing documentary project Please Remain Standing—a visual appeal to preserve America’s remaining community theaters and drive-ins. VanWinkle has captured every architectural type: from the simple Washington Theater in Shelby, North Carolina, built from a Quonset hut, to the grand Ohio Theater in Columbus, Ohio, with its dazzling chandelier. Her photographs depict magnificent Art Deco detailing, Mayan ornamentation, elaborate marquees, and whimsical road signs that still entice movie-goers to the once ubiquitous drive-in.
These striking images invoke an excitement for the days when many of us went out to the movies as a matter of routine, whether a Friday night first date or a family outing to see the Saturday matinee double feature. Once the cornerstone of many a community’s social life, the American movie theater has been fading from our national consciousness. Recently, however, a notable number of towns and cities have successfully restored and revived their local theaters. Many still screen movies, while others have been repurposed and are now used for live events, church services, as restaurants and bars, and in one case, a dentist’s office.
Selected from thousands of images VanWinkle has made to date for the project, those reproduced in this hefty volume represent theaters from each of the fifty states and the District of Columbia. Extensive captions tell a brief history of the theaters represented, conjuring up a time when Americans embraced the shared experience of going out to the movies—a few hours in which strangers are united through mutual tears and laughter. VanWinkle’s photographs celebrate these structures and their continuing importance in building a sense of community.
About the Author
Photographer Benita VanWinkle is Associate Professor of Art at High Point University in High Point, North Carolina. She worked as a photojournalist for several years before obtaining her MFA in Cinema and Photography at Southern Illinois University. That early training continues to impact not only the academic courses she develops for students but also the independent documentary projects she pursues outside of teaching. Among her ongoing photography portfolios are Old Glory, the American flag encountered during her travels, and The View from Here, her observations of everyday life. Her most ambitious project yet is Please Remain Standing. Since 1982, she has documented more than 1,100 movie theaters. VanWinkle actively exhibits her work and lectures on documentary photography. Her website, busybstudio.com, also showcases her love of bookbinding and mixed media work.
