You're standing in front of the Magic Mirror. Your old familiar face is smiling back. But the body? It's Marilyn Monroe's, and it's all decked out in that sexy dress she wore in "The Seven Year Itch."
Great fun! And there's more to come. Much, much more. The Magic Mirror that lets ordinary people play the parts and wear the costumes the stars made famous is just one of the attractions to be found at the American Museum of the Moving Image in New York City.The first museum in the United States devoted to the art, history and technology of motion pictures, television and video, AMMI is filled to the brim with artifacts of the silver screen and intriguing exhibits that celebrate the film maker's craft.
The $15-million structure, that will eventually boast four floors of exhibits and 60,000 square feet, occupies center stage in a working class neighborhood of Astoria, Queens. It seems at first quite an unlikely place for such a museum. Why not Hollywood?
Rochelle Slovin, museum director, has the answer for that. New York City, she says, has always been a film making center in its own right; the movie industry actually began there after the turn of the century. What's more, the complex of buildings, including the one that houses the new museum, once served as the East Coast studios of Paramount Pictures. Legendary stars such as Rudolph Valentino, Gloria Swanson and W. C. Fields made silent movies and early talkies on the lots during the '20s and '30s.
Today the site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been renamed Kaufman Astoria Studios and is being revitalized as a multi-media center for the production of film television, commercials and rock videos. There's a great deal of activity going on, lots of big plans for the future. And it's hard to believe that, back in 1977, the place was standing empty - a prime target for vandals and decay. Demolition seemed imminent.
The studios might have fallen to the wrecker's ball if it hadn't been for a handful of concerned citizens with a respect for the past. They established the Astoria Motion Picture and Television Foundation and began to fight to save the historic complex. Eventually, landmark status was obtained, and a proposal was drafted to turn the place into a multi-media production center and a not-for-profit educational facility.
In 1981 Slovin was appointed executive director of the group. And she began working toward an institution that would combine the beauty of an art museum, the interpretive perspective of a history museum and the technological emphasis of a science center.
It took seven years to see that dream come true. Slovin admits there were times when working in relative anonymity in the dark and lonely building was depressing. There were times when she didn't know if the project would succeed. But finally the funding was in place and the exhibits were going up. Last September AMMI opened its doors and was greeted with so much enthusiasm it made even the hardest days of the struggle seem worthwhile.
Since the opening last fall, numerous visitors have made the trip to Astoria in Queens. And there's really something at the museum for everyone - except very small children.
Some will want to spend their time in the 190-seat theater that offers a regular program of movies and videos. A series of technicolor movie masterpieces and a retrospective of Jerry Lewis's motion picture and early television career are some of the features that have been offered so far.
The museum also has a 60-seat screening and conference room where experimental video and film programs are presented.
It should be noted, however, that AMMI does not have its own movies and tapes. Films for special programs are borrowed.
"We aren't attempting to build a library of movies," notes Slovin. "Over the years we've gathered our own special kind of collection - objects that document the material culture of the media arts."
In that vast and off-beat collection can be found everything from lunch boxes adorned with movie heroes, to coloring books, paper dolls, games and toys. The items are exhibited on a rotating basis and reveal the importance of licensing and endorsements to the motion picture and television industry.
Looking at promotional items is like taking a trip down memory lane for many museum visitors, Slovin notes. The Shirley Temple doll, the Mouseketeer ears are beloved symbols of yesterday when kids munched popcorn at the Bijou and 12- inch television screens were considered a luxury. They're as much a part of our American history, when you get right down to it, as the treasures of past civilizations unearthed on archaeological digs.
If such movie-inspired articles don't particularly interest you, though, don't worry. There are other choices. On the first floor, in addition to the theater and screening room, you'll find a handsome exhibition gallery where special shows centered around a specific historical theme are presented on a rotating basis every three to four months. The opening show, in full swing when we visited the museum, was "Masterpieces of Moving Image Technology." It spotlighted historically significant moving picture machines dating from 1860 to the present.
Perhaps the most intriguing part of the museum, though, is on the second floor. This permanent installation entitled, "Behind the Screen: Producing, Promoting and Exhibiting Motion Pictures and Television," takes the visitor behind the screen into an exciting and rarely seen world. Through film and television clips, specially commissioned artistic pieces, participatory displays, photographs, costumes, posters, movie sets and production design materials, more than 30 film industry jobs are described.
The 7,200 square foot display is organized into episodes which together investigate highlights of film and television productions from their inception to their exhibition.
It's in the "Behind the Scenes" exhibit that the visitor will find the Magic Mirror. Gaze into it and presto! With some button pushing and the aid of a museum person, you can see yourself typecast as that blond bombshell Marilyn Monroe.
Other fun things - "must sees" - at the museum:
- Video artist Nam June Paik's Get-Away Car. The car, all covered with video screens, is an artistic pun on the the museum's name - "moving image."
- Artist Jim Isermann's "TV Lounge." The installation sits 8 to 10 people and screens historic television productions.
Speaking of artists and their AMMI work brings us to "Tut's Fever." It's the spot most people want to linger when they tour the museum. And no wonder! Designed by Red Grooms and Lysiane Luong, the brightly painted, zany art work that's really a little theater seats 40 and features images of Mae West, Rita Hayworth, Clark Gable and a host of other Hollywood greats on the walls and ceiling. Theda Bara, so real you want to ask for her autograph, has been painted at the ticket window. The stage curtain is adorned with cinema star Mickey Mouse.
Some museums discourage visitors from touching works of art. At the Museum of the Moving Image, that's not the case. They want you to enter Tut's showhouse, sit in the painted chairs, walk on the painted floor - participate.
"It's my favorite part of the museum," says Slovin, who's a movie fan from way back.
And just what is it about films that has always captured her fancy? The way they picture life, the director of AMMI explains thoughtfully. Each film, she says, is linked to the culture, politics and dreams of its audiences. It's much more than mere images flickering on the screen.
The American Museum of the Moving Image is located at 35 Avenue at 36th Street in Astoria, Queens, N. Y., 718-784-4520. Hours are 11 a.m.- 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 11 a.m.- 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The museum is closed on Monday. Admission: $5 for adults, $2.50 for senior citizens and students.