We would have two houses. One in the San Francisco Bay area, the other in the North Carolina Mountains. Maybe Asheville. Both houses would have excellent views, elevators, and a tremendous amount of shelf space for my books. Michael would have his own movie theater with an enormous screen.
We’d make sure our families were taken care of.
We’d buy the Castro movie palace, halt its current gutting into a music venue, and have it restored, including, if possible, the organ that dates back to the silent era and is now God-knows-where. We’d make sure the Castro functioned as a sort of rep house, screening either classics or indies.
I’d donate a large sum to the Mechanics’ Institute for maintenance of the building, and hopefully add a dedicated events space on the ground floor, with a stage, drop-down screen, and decent acoustics.
Other donations would go to various carefully researched causes, including Jewish organizations, film restoration, healthcare, literacy, animal rescue, domestic abuse, and women’s shelters.
We’d travel.
We’d have cats and dogs waiting for us when we came home.
Pam Troy 