Film in New Hampshire, Part II

Like just about everywhere else in the U.S., New Hampshire was swept in the very early 20th century by a wave of theater-building, in part to accommodate the growing parade of Vaudeville stars but also, as importantly, to show the hottest, latest invention: movies. Unlike most other places in the U.S., however, with the exception of a few of the larger towns in southern New Hampshire, most New Hampshire movie venues have not been updated for, well, a century or so, so that the movie experience for an average New Hampshirite takes place in a beautifully ornate, neo-baroque theater building with poor quality sound (the speakers usually turned up far beyond their capacity) but luxurious, plush seats as compensation. That's just a thought about how films like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Convoy were framed for most New Hampshirites, food for thought.

Anyway, as I discovered one day while turning onto Grove Street in tiny, little Peterborough, NH, this state has succeeded in attracting more than its share of Hollywood attention. Expecting to see the post office and maybe the odd pigeon, I instead was confronted with six tractor trailers filled with huge amounts of electrical equipment -- cameras, lights, and wires everywhere -- spilled all over Grove Street. Turns out they were filming the Aaron J. Wiederspahn film Sensation of Light in Peterborough. This kind of experience has been repeated surprisingly often, as picturesque New Hampshire apparently lends itself well as background. On Golden Pond with Paul Newman and Robin William's Jumanji were both filmed here, as well as some local productions like the unimaginatively-named Live Free or Die. The state of course actively promotes this kind of stuff -- see the video above for reference -- but New Hampshire's reputation as "New England scenic personified" seems to be working.....

A Good Town to Li... Wait! Cut!

When driving westbound on Route 101 in southwestern New Hampshire, after winding your way over Temple Mountain and being greeted as you descend into the Monadnock Valley by the majestic Mount Monadnock herself -- himself? itself? -- you will shortly, as you finally begin to relax your white-knuckle deathgrip on the steering wheel, be surprised to see the quaint sign above. It will remind you, perhaps relaxing you further, that you are indeed in scenic New England, and if you survive this mountain, then you're in for a treat. This sign was erected by the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce, and kind of like the mythical Hitchiker's Guide to the Universe -- oh Douglas Adams, we hardly knew ye -- with its big, friendly letters inscribed on the front ("Don't Panic"), this very traditional "Welcome to Peterborough" sign informs you that Peterborough is apparently "A good town to live in".

Now, I spend a lot of time in Peterborough and I can attest to the fact that Peterborough is actually a very nice place to live, if a wee bit pricey. (Susie's breakfast sandwich specials at Nonie's make the price totally worth it, though. Really.) Anyway, putting a statement like that on a town sign, a statement that is kind of subjective and presumptive, seems disingenuous. They're not being smug there in Peterborough, however. This line, "A good town to live in", is taken from a Thornton Wilder play, "Our Town", written in 1938 about a fictional New Hampshire town, "Grover's Corners". Well, Grover's Corners = Peterborough; Peterborough's main street is named "Grove Street", and Wilder had taught at the MacDowell Art Colony in Peterborough in 1926. In 1940, a film was made from Thornton's play starring William Holden, which was was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

For such a small town in the middle of nowhere, Peterborough seemingly has attracted a lot of attention, from fictional gangsters to German spies -- all of which will be explored in good time. For a final thought, I'll mention that the tallest building in Peterborough, the 5-floor brick building referred to by locals as the 'Peterborough Skyscraper' -- was built for cows, though the Monadnock Valley is definitely not cow country. The builders eventually figured that out and moved to Ohio, but, well, enjoy the rest of your evening.