AT 10:45 P.M. THE CLOSING CURTAIN at the Globe Cinema signalled to patrons that the movie Mission Impossible 4 had ended.
It also meant that the Roebuck Street, St Michael theatre which opened in July 1956 will be no more.
The Globe, which has given thousands of Barbadians and visitors alike more than half a century of large-screen entertainment, music and memories, closed its doors on Saturday – the last day of 2011.
People gathered to not only watch the last movie, but most importantly to be part of another closing chapter in Barbados’ history.
The DAILY NATION was present to record and take in the atmosphere.
People walked into the building full of energy and chatter as they waited for the start of the movie.
When it was time to leave, it was a different story. Memories started rolling. Cameras were flashing. A few tears could be seen dropping. Everybody was sad that the globe was closing.
Beverly Best was not particularly keen on watching Mission Impossible 4, but she was determined to be present for the last show.
“I have been here during my teen years but judging from the look of the crowd, which could have been more today, I understand why they are closing. With the newer cinemas now, The Globe would have lots of competition,” said Best.
According to Sean Gibbs: “I just came to watch the very last show. It was very good. I haven’t been in The Globe for years. Being here brought back some memories.”
Kemora Neverson and her friends stood outside, feeling sad as they watched The Globe sign blinking. They had been coming to the cinema from the time they were teenagers. They felt as though they had lost their home.
“Coming to The Globe was a Sunday routine for us. Almost every Sunday, don’t care what’s showing, we would come to The Globe. Even if the picture was repeating, we would come and watch it again. It is the only place that we come and feel safe and comfortable,” said the emotional 28-year-old.
Neverson’s friend Zenani Welch said that she and her friends were not going to let the closing of cinema stop them from spending time together on Sundays.
Welch said they already had a plan: “The next best thing to The Globe is the [Globe] Drive-In, so we shall go there.”
Junior Eli and his wife Ramona were among the last people to leave the building because they were busy taking pictures and recalling their first date, which took place there.
The couple described that date more than ten years ago as “exciting and memorable”.
“The Globe has always been part of our lives so now that it is closing, we had to come back for the last [time]. It is a very sad time.
“As long as I know myself I have been coming to The Globe with my mother to watch cartoons and action [films].
“Then when I turned a teenager, I would come by myself and with friends,” Junior recalled as Ramona added, “This is very sad.”
Laurence Small, 32, said he has been a “proud member of The Globe for over 20 years”.
Standing with his friends and some of the cinema’s staff, Small explained: “We came in here to have fun and we did have fun.
But, sorry to say, it is the end – and we don’t like it.
“The Globe should go on for many more years to come. My children will not be able to have the benefits of experiencing and having fun in this theatre which I grew up in.”
The theatre’s operating room director, Norman, also known as “Smiles”, said that while “I know The Globe is up for sale, if I win the lotto tonight I would buy it and The Globe would be open tomorrow”.
“The building is [the owners’] and I can’t tell them what to do with their building. But if I had money, I would buy it from them and put it back as a cinema . . . and put my two sons to run it,” said Norman. (AH)
