After our dinner we walked over to the Michigan Theater to see a film called “Lee.” My Bride knew of this film, and this was her second “bio-pic” that she has enjoyed, the first was Reagan, and she not only saw it with me, but she went and saw it three other times with friends and relative.  I was afraid that this might have been a case of déjà vu, but the story is a bit more gripping.  The movie is about Lee Miller, who began as a model and “muse” during the years after World War I in Paris, she became a photographer after she realized that glamor only lasts for so long. She ended up in London and became a war photographer, and she was only one of four female photographers accredited as war correspondents.  She was the first to photograph the camps after their liberation and how the war took its toll on her, and the people she knew.  She also took a famous photograph of herself in Adolf Hitler’s bathtub in Berlin, before going back to London.   She would have probably sat on the photos, but her publishers at Vogue found a way.

We had been to the sister theater the Senate, which is just around the corner, but this is truly a Grande Dame for cinema viewing.  Originally built and owned; then his heirs leased both theaters to the Butterfield Theatre chain.  Now they are managed by the non-profit Marquee Arts and they are maintaining the tradition of offering vaudeville, independent and commercial cinema, touring productions, and live concerts.  Audiences have been entertained by the likes of Jack Benny, Bing Crosby, Paul Robeson, and Ethel Barrymore.  I would say that it is probably still the finest theater in Ann Arbor.  I still would have liked to have seen the film from the balcony, but it was cordoned off, so we sat in what I would term as the “loge” of the auditorium, in the front row of the section with a very wide aisle, so that even if someone insisted on wearing a large hat, it would not have hindered the view.   The loge area was surrounded by beautiful wooden paneled walls, the seats were a mix of wooden arms and back trim, with blue seat and back upholstery with gold M in a crest embroidered on each seat.

It was a tough internal debate, since we had just had a wonderful dinner, so we all refrained from having some real hot-buttered theater popcorn, and it really had a great aroma.  We could hear the Barton Theater Pipe organ already being played and making the guests feel at home.  There was also a small collection of libations behind the candy counter and I knew that our throats perchance might get a bit parched, so we each had a glass of (Dr. Henry John) Lindeman’s Bin 95 Sauvignon Blanc South Eastern Australia 2023.  Lindeman’s is a large Australian wine producer based in Hunter Valley, encompassing all types of wines.  Dr. Henty Lindeman was born in England, fell in love with wine in Europe and settled in Australia to make wine.  In 1843 he planted vines on his three-hundred-thirty-hectare property in Hunter Valley.  In 1850, an arsonist burned down his winery and cellar, and he was forced to be a doctor again to regain his funds, and the first Lindeman wines were exported to England in 1858.  The company has grown and added several vineyards in Australia.  The Bin Series is their largest and most recognizable range at a reasonable price.  Lindeman’s is now part of Treasury Wine Estates and their extensive range of wine brands.  I was not anticipating anything but a bulk wine, but it was fine for drinking in the theater watching the movie.  A soft-yellow golden wine that offered notes of grass, tropical fruit, and asparagus.  On the palate, it was a crisp white wine with tones of grass and grapefruit, with a very short finish that was crisp and clean.