Eddie Money Nights

From 2007 to 2013, I worked at a movie theater alongside my fellow blogger Jimmy. We were both managers and spent many evenings from 5 PM to midnight or later, making sure the popcorn was fresh, the movies were on time, and the theaters were clean.

For a long time, I’ve wanted to sit down and write out some stories about my time at the movie theater. It was almost seven years of my life where I had some good times and met some good people. But, ultimately, my time at the theater did not end the way I had hoped, and it left my memories tainted.

Still, occasionally, a moment or two will pop into my head that makes me smile. I had one of these flashes the other night while watching the trailer for Take Me Home Tonight.

Take Me Home Tonight is one of those fun party movies that didn’t get near the acclaim it deserved. Starring Topher Grace, Anna Faris, Chris Pratt, and Dan Folger, Take Me Home Tonight is the story about a down on his luck man, who pretends to be successful to impress his crush. Everything breaks down at a party and chaos ensues. Written by two of the writers of That 70’s Show, the movie has more heart than you’d expect and had it been released in 2001 instead of 2011, I have a feeling it would be remembered alongside Can’t Hardly Wait and Empire Records.

I always loved the trailer, although its misleading. Despite taking its name from the famous Eddie Money song, the Take Me Home Tonight doesn’t actually appear in the film. However, the way the trailer is edited you’d think it did. I love the soft beats of Take Me Home slowly coming into the trailer and that is what triggered my nostalgia.

When you work in a movie theater, the end of the night can be chaotic and fun. Concessions has to be cleaned, all the money counted, and then you wait around for the last movie to let out. The moment the doors were locked and we headed for the office, our ties were removed, jackets taken off, and we got down to business. Of course, we needed a soundtrack to accompany our evening, so for the first couple of years we pulled up Pandora on a computer and listened to that. Then as smartphones became popular, we transitioned to playing music from our phones.

Our soundtracks varied each night, luckily for me, Jimmy had great taste. One night we might jam out of Def Leppard or Poison, the next night we might be serenaded by the soft tones of Peter Cetera. I’ll never forget Jimmy correcting me on how to pronounce his name, since I’d spent my entire life saying ‘Seterra.’

I’m not sure what led to it, but one night Eddie Money began playing. I had always enjoyed his music, but I hadn’t really given him much thought. That fateful night, Jimmy and I found ourselves rocking out to Take Me Home Tonight and it became a ritual every night to listen to it.

Now, whenever I hear Eddie Money, I instantly think of Jimmy. I think of us being tired and our suits smelling like popcorn oil. I think about the slick floors, the sound of projectors, and the frustration of putting a butter pump back together. I’m reminded of Jimmy and I sitting in that same office, unamused after our company was bought out by a corporation and our free benefits eliminated. I also think about how our refusal to put a smile on after being taken advantage of, got us both raises which in fact, did give us back our benefits for free.

It’s funny how the few beats of a song can take you back and with that segway, may I recommend Eddie Money’s I Want to Go Back for your listening pleasure.