The Film Forum

• 1544 Piedmont Avenue NE, Atlanta GA
• Managers: George Ellis, Michael Ellis
• Capacity: One screen, 174 seats

Take a right from Seal Place onto Monroe Drive, and it's a short ride to Ansley Mall at the intersection of Monroe and Piedmont. These days the shopping center is homogenized with the likes of Publix, Starbucks, Panera, etc. In the 1970s, it was full of unique shops, and a small, narrow theater was tucked near the middle.
The Film Forum, opened in 1971,* was loved by locals not only for its dedication to independent, obscure, and foreign films, but also for the father/son team that ran it: George and Michael Ellis. The Ellises were devoted to fans, like themselves, who appreciated movies outside the mainstream. The smell of freshly popped corn welcomed you, along with a hello from George and/or Michael. You almost always ran into other folks you knew. It was a friendly, cozy, comfortable place, like an extension of your living room.

Poster for the Film Forum,
photo of George and Michael Ellis by Joe DeCasseres,
silkscreen print by Grace Zabriskie

Manager George Ellis was known and beloved by many. As evidenced in my 1/15 post about Grace Zabriskie, he acted in Atlanta theater productions. He also worked in film and television, and was probably most recognized as "Bestoink Dooley," a character he created to host various programs, mostly movie presentations, for the Atlanta CBS affiliate.

Favorite films often played the Film Forum for weeks on end. George initiated a $1 midnight show seven nights a week. I must have seen Harold and Maude a dozen times or more. The midnight showings were profitable, perhaps even more so than their regular features.
By 1974, the Film Forum was "solidly–if not spectacularly–solvent." On November 18 that year, property owner Louis Osteen entered the theater with a locksmith, evicted the Ellises, and changed the locks on them, upending their 50/50 business arrangement which had been sealed with only a handshake (admittedly "naive" per Michael Ellis.) Osteen wanted 100% of the profits. He did not foresee the fierce backlash. The Great Speckled Bird took an immediate stand:

"This paper will carry no Film Forum ads and run no Film Forum reviews until George and Mike are back at the theatre, or safely installed somewhere else. Creative Loafing, one of our competitors, has also pulled their ad this week. Other papers, despite hard times and low ads, may join. There is talk of phone campaigns, pickets, and legal action. By this time next week, some or all of these should be underway. If you are interested in helping George and Mike, call us here at 875-8301; we'll plug you into whatever is happening... The Ellis's have given to the Atlanta community for years. Now let's help them back."

The news spread like wildfire. Loyal fans picketed and boycotted the theater. Osteen threatened to take both The Bird and the Ellises to court. Movie attendance dropped nearly 90%. Osteen closed the theater. He negotiated with the Ellises and achieved a signed contract January 7, 1975, with terms honoring their previous 50/50 verbal arrangement.
George and Michael returned to the helm of the Film Forum and the fans rejoiced. Power to the people, right on.

*The space had previously operated as the Ansley Mall Mini Cinema, which opened in 1968.

Sources:
CinemaTreasures.org
"Shutout at the Film Forum," by Jon Jacobs, The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 7 No. 48, November 28, 1974
"Film Forum Manager Ellis Fired," by Farnum Gray, The Atlanta Constitution, November 29, 1974
"BOYCOTT!... until George & Mike are back," by J.D. Cale, The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 7 No. 49, December 5, 1974
 "Film Forum / They're Back," by Jon Jacobs, The Great Speckled Bird, Vol. 8 No. 2, January 9, 1975