WEST SIDE STORY

One of my favorite movies of all time is West Side Story, and my favorite scene is when the Puerto Rico gang the Sharks and their ladies sing and dance to "I Like To Be In America".
Before I describe the scene, I would like to tell you about the great joy and honor I experienced two weeks ago in regard to this movie. I am lucky enough to live just a few blocks away from this wonderful new theater, call Hollywood Boulevard. What makes this show unique is the seats are like executive lounge chairs which are not bolted to the floor and a long table in front of you from where you can put your food and drinks. Servers actually give you a menu and serve food and drinks unobtrusively throughout the show. The menu is full with appetizers, salads, sandwiches, and deserts, and the drink menu can match any bar or restaurant.
I found out on the radio that on that particular weekend , one of the screens was showing West Side Story. Of course, the movie is old, I've seen it a million times, and I own the video, so normally I would not pay to see it at the show. However, the radio announcer also said that Russ Tamblyn ( who played Riff, the leader of the Jets ), and George Chakiris ( who played Bernardo, leader of the Sharks), would be at the theater to sign autographs all weekend.
I couldn't pass it up. So my husband allowed me to drag him along with an old copy of the soundtrack on LP, for them to sign. When we got there I saw that they were charging twenty dollars for an autograph, but I reasoned that they weren't doing much else in their careers, and I thought that it would make a nice gift for my Mom who also is a fan of the movie. I could only afford one so I picked Russ Tamblyn, figuring he is more famous. I shook hands with him and introduced myself and he signed my album to my Mom, as I had requested. Then I turned to George Chakiris and extended my hand, he immediately met my eyes and rose. He took my hand in his and held it tight, while I babbled nervously about how great I thought they both were in the movie and how much the movie meant to us over the years. My eyes teared as I spoke to him, because I got the sense that it really meant something to him as he never let loose of my hand, or my gaze, and I could see his eyes were moist also. It was a wonderful moment for me. We then chose our seats in the show and soon both the actors were standing along side where we were sitting. They took questions from the audience and spoke about their experiences in making the movie, and how much it impacted their lives afterwords.
We watched the movie and had drinks and dinner. During the scene where Riff and Bernardo get stabbed and die, I was fighting back the tears when the funniest thought came to me. I said to myself," don't cry, they're not really dead, in fact they're standing right out in the lobby!
In my favorite scene the Sharks are up on the roof of the apartment building where they all live with their girlfriends. The guys are all wearing suits and the ladies are wearing the most beautiful and colorful ruffled dresses, having just come from a dance.
They are dancing to "I Like To Be In America". The men and the women take turns as if they are conversing about the pros and cons of their lives in America. The dancing is wonderful and the harmonies are awesome. I left the theater that night really happy and satisfied.Thank you, Russ and George !