West Seattle, Washington
03 Sunday
Lots more in the West Seattle Weekend Lineup, but wanted to hit these again: ROAD WORK — Three spots on California will see crews today; details and a map here. DELRIDGE NATURAL AREA WORK PARTY — Not too late to join; show up across from Boren/Sealth at 10 am — see our preview here. MAYOR @ ORCHARD STREET RAVINE — One week after neighbors got word of a new plan for the “connector” through this greenspace, the big dedication/celebration happens noon-2 pm today. ADMIRAL CONCERT — Tonight’s show headlined by local up-n-coming Brent Amaker and The Rodeo launches a new era for entertainment at the historic theater; read our preview here.
Just last night, we told you about the Admiral Theater’s latest efforts to broaden the offerings at the historic venue, and tonight we welcome one of them as a new WSB sponsor: 
The Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival, with a schedule involving screenings at the Admiral later this month. Here’s what the festival’s organizers want you to know: “Three Dollar Bill Cinema is thrilled to bring the Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival to West Seattle¹s Admiral Theater, Oct 24-25. There¹s something for everyone in the slate of programs we¹ve lined up for our first-ever foray into West Seattle, from features focusing on family values (THE SENSEI and THE NEW WORLD) to engaging documentaries (EQUALITY U and THE KINSEY SICKS) and edgy short films (TOUGH GIRLS). From dancing zombies to trick-or-treaters, the Halloween spirit is sweeping West Seattle during our weekend at The Admiral, and we¹re joining the celebration with several spooky programs, including: CAMP BLOOD, a fun collection of creepy and comical short films; the slasher classic with a queer subtext A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 2: FREDDY¹S REVENGE; and a very special edition of a long-running West Seattle tradition, THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW. We hope to make this first of many years that the festival finds success in West Seattle. For more information on all programs and a complete guide to the entire festival, including screenings, parties and events all over town, visit www.threedollarbillcinema.org.” Thanks to the Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival for joining the WSB sponsor team; the full list is on this page along with information for anyone interested in becoming part of it; we also thank everyone for their strong support of all the WSB sponsors who make it possible for us to bring you West Seattle news 24/7.
Ever been upstairs at the Admiral Theater? It’s been roped off as long as we can remember. But this Saturday night, when a triple-bill concert enables the Admiral’s new management to launch a new era in its alter-ego as a live-music venue, patrons will be able to enjoy the newly christened Crow’s Nest Lounge. Read on to find out more about the lounge, Saturday’s big show, and what else the Admiral has up its sleeve:Read More
When we ran a quick clip of last week’s “Ladies of Laughter” headliner a few hours before she performed at the Admiral Theater, we prefaced it with something like, it’s been a week with a lot of gloomy news, so maybe you could use a laugh. And here we are a week later, and things really didn’t get much cheerier. So we hopped over to the Admiral this afternoon to talk for a moment with Susan Rice, who’s the last “Ladies of Laughter” performer, tonight and tomorrow at 10 pm at the Admiral ($25 with $5 going to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer fund). We asked her how can you … or do you … come up with humor at a time like this; she answered wryly, but also thoughtfully. Read more about her here (by the way, she’s a native of Longview); tickets are available here.
OK, don’t let the kids click ahead on this one. Well – the pix are really just PG, but a nine-letter word starting with “s” comes up. Burning Hearts Burlesque brings its “Bedroom Club” show to Admiral Theater on Saturday night, and its executive producer talked with us at her West Seattle home so we could ask the obvious question:Read More
As we reported yesterday, the “new” operator of the Admiral Theater – who’s also one of its “old” operators – spoke with WSB and provided information we’re writing up in two reports. The first one yesterday focused on the fate of the donations solicited by the historic theater’s former manager (read that story here); this morning, our second report has the details on what the new operator plans to do next – including a relatively quick timetable for a key decision on the Admiral’s future:Read More
You’ve probably seen “under new mgmt” on its marquee – or a different look on its website – or you read this thread or this thread on WSB. Now, we have details on the Admiral Theater‘s management change, after talking by phone today with its new operator – who is also one of its old operators. We’re going to write this up in two parts – the first part is the shorter one, but it’s got the answer to the question several WSB’ers asked in comments here – what about the $40 donations for new seats?Read More
For those who e-mailed us, worried because it had gone to a “parking page” for a few days – the Admiral’s site is back, with current movies (plus details on the upcoming John Keawe concert), at admiral-theater.com.
Whole lotta love at the Admiral Theater this morning as local TV legend JP Patches put on a show for loyal fans of all ages, known as “Patches Pals.” That’s a clip of JP signing autographs and meeting fans in the lobby afterward – more video ahead:Read More
(WSB photo of JP Patches in July 2007 West Seattle Grand Parade)
Seen on the Admiral Theater marquee and website: A morning with JP Patches, legendary TV clown, 11 am next Saturday, May 17; tickets available online. So we don’t have to wait till parade season to see him here in West Seattle! The campaign for a JP Patches statue continues, by the way; find out more at his site.
As promised last night by Brandon, who told us about the Admiral Theater marquee spotlighting a prom-date invitation, here’s his video interview with the happy couple after Stephanie told Sam “yes.” (We’re charmed by the start of the clip but the jury’s out on the soundtrack.)
Got this photo from Admiral Theater employee Brandon, who says Sam asked for the prom-proposal space and they said, sure. We just drove by and it’s still up, but Brandon tells WSB it’s coming down around 9 pm. No word yet whether the would-be prom date has seen it and/or accepted! 9:39 PM UPDATE: Brandon just sent word that Stephanie said yes – and that he got a video interview with the happy couple a little while ago; he promises to send us the link when it’s uploaded.
Didn’t know about this till it landed in our inbox but we of course have no choice but to let you know: Admiral Theater boss Steve Garrett is offering WSB readers a discount at this Friday night’s comedy performance by Dante (from “Last Comic Standing“) — according to Steve, “Tickets are normally $15 in advance, $20 at the door, but we are extending this to West Seattle Blog viewers: Come into the theater before the show and mention that you saw it on the blog and receive comedy tickets for only $10.” Also mentioned in the latest Admiral bulletin, this Saturday night’s the monthly “Rocky Horror Picture Show” extravaganza, and next Wednesday night @ 7, the 75th anniversary showing of “Duck Soup,” which Steve says “will be introduced by Frank Ferrante, world-class Groucho impersonator.” (Dante’s show Friday is at 10 pm, according to the Admiral website; you can find out more about him on his MySpace site, which includes clips.)
Out of the WSB inbox, from Annie:
Just thought I’d give a shout-out for a last-minute gift idea that is a win-win for all. I just visited the Admiral Theater and contributed to their adopt-a-seat campaign. It’s the perfect gift for many folks — especially movie lovers, but also the person who has everything. For a $40 donation, my gift recipient will have a name plate on a new seat and will also receive two movie passes and a VIP invitation to a private show once the new seats are installed.
The Admiral’s open for matinees today (2 & 4 pm) and evening shows tomorrow (7 & 9 pm). Got another last-minute gift suggestion that’s unique to West Seattle? Leave a comment here.
TONIGHT: Another indie movie is having its Seattle premiere at Admiral Theater – with a bonus offer: Admiral manager Steve Garrett says every paid admission to “Sentimental Values,” a snowboarding movie, gets a free lift ticket to Stevens Pass. Tickets for tonight’s show at 10 pm are available online in advance ($8; go here) or $10 at the door.
TOMORROW: With only 7 1/2 weeks till Christmas, you can start stockpiling decorations at the various bazaars around WS (check our Weekend Lineup for the latest) and by stopping at the West Seattle Kiwanis booth on the east side of the Farmers’ Market tomorrow. WSB reader Bonnie e-mailed to let us know they’re selling ornaments to benefit the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival, best known for all sorts of summer fun from The Parade to Concert in the Park and a whole lot more.
The ornaments are $25 each and, as supplies allow, will be sold at the Kiwanis booth for the next two Sundays, as well as at the West Seattle Moms’ Holiday Bazaar next Saturday (11/10), 2 pm-5 pm (address is on the WSB Events page).
We’ve been tracking the Admiral Theater‘s evolution in recent months (scroll down its category page for archived posts); today, there’s a nice feature about the Admiral in the P-I. Reporter Kery Murakami had asked us, while working on the article, if we had any Admiral memories; as we told Kery, unfortunately we don’t — unless you count having watched “Garfield The Movie” there a few years back and almost fainting with laughter at the clumsy product-placement overkill — but we’re glad Kery found some West Seattleites who do. The Admiral will be jumping tonight, by the way, with the “Rocky Horror” Halloween bash, featuring live music from Sister Hyde, 9:30-2 am, $15.
As the new leadership at the Admiral Theater continues morphing it into much more than a second-run moviehouse, 
they’ve got local independent filmmakers premiering a movie there this Saturday. We talked (via e-mail) with co-director Damon Agnos of “Haymaker & Sally,” which he explains as: “If you liked ‘Starsky & Hutch’ but felt it needed more action; if you were thrilled by ‘Scarface’ but wished Tony would sponsor a Little League team; if you enjoyed ‘Serpico’ but wished he didn’t get shot in the face; if you always wanted ‘Miami Vice’ to do an episode where Crockett and Tubbs grill the kid behind the counter at the local Kinko’s, then ‘Haymaker & Sally’ is for you.” (Poster at right, designed by Andrew Miller.) So why premiere the movie in WS instead of the usual indy-film haunts (Capitol Hill, U-District, etc.)? Read on:Read More
There’s a new link in the gray navigation bar atop the Admiral Theater home page, enticingly titled FREE TICKETS. Click it and you’ll find this page about its restoration project. Donate $40 and they promise a name plate on a new seat, plus two tickets to any regular Admiral showing. Photos on the page include two historic pix, 1930 and 1949.
Hot out of the WSB inbox: The Admiral Theater is having a “surprise midnight movie” TONIGHT (doors open 11:30), admission $5, all proceeds to the restoration project. The movie: “Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World’s End.” Be there! Also from the Admiral Theater, two more items that are free to a good home, first come first serve according to the theater’s Steve Garrett: Glass-top display freezer, and upright “Pepsi refrigerator.” Steve says both “need to be charged.” Don’t wait till the midnight movie, call him now if you want either or both at 206-938-0360 theater, 206-856-9798 cell.
More information from the folks at the Admiral Theater about plans for its latest round of renovations, previously mentioned here and here. Biggest news: the Admiral’s Steve Garrett says they have the OK to reopen the theater’s long-closed balcony “once certain work is done” — but first, he says, they want to do some restoration work, including painting a mural in the balcony area, and they are looking for bids and proposals. Click ahead for a little more on that, including how to reach Steve if you want to bid, plus news of a prestigious premiere coming to the theater:Read More
Hot out of the inbox. If you are interested in the free marquee but having trouble reaching Steve, e-mail us and we’ll send you his cell #; just didn’t want to put it out in front of thousands.
Hello from the Admiral Theater,We are currently going through a restoration phase here at the Admiral and coming across items that may be of use to someone out there.The first Item that we have come across is a:12 foot long by 3 foot high double sided lighted marquee sign. It comes with more letter tiles than I care to count.This sign is free to a good home, just come pick it up. I would hate to see it just be dismantled and thrown away.Contact: Steve Garrett at 206-938-0360 (theater)
If you haven’t been to the historic Admiral Theater lately, you may not have noticed it’s starting to expand what it offers — such as, more midnight movies than just the monthly Rocky Horror Picture Show on Saturday nights …
… tonight, for example (as per the marquee above – though the rest of it’s a bit out-of-date since we took the pic at midweek), it’s the burgeoning cult fave “Harold & Kumar.” Then there’s a new series of Sunday morning classics kicking off 10 am tomorrow with “Casablanca” (also ahead: “African Queen” and “Singin’ in the Rain”). The Admiral website has been inconsistent lately (the link went to a parking page at last check) but there’s lots of info posted out front at the theater itself, including updates on the fundraising project for major interior fixes (such as, they hope hundreds of people will pony up $40 each so they can buy new seats, which aren’t covered in the types of government grants they’re pursuing for landmark restoration.
P.S. While fishing for Admiral Theater history, we learned that today is a notable anniversary for the Admiral District in general.
Wandering through the Admiral District this morning, we spotted West Seattle’s Only Moviehouse in the process of getting a paint job (note the primer above the marquee):
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