I did a double-take when I heard 3Below Theaters in downtown San Jose was having a 40th anniversary celebration this weekend. I was there when Scott and Shannon Guggenheim opened the movie house and live performance in 2018, so did I somehow miss 34 years?
No, I didn’t fall into a time warp. The Guggenheims are instead paying tribute to the May 18, 1984 opening of Camera 3, the independent movie house that originally occupied their location on Second and San Carlos streets.
“Camera Cinemas passed the baton to us in 2018, but we couldn’t let this momentous date pass without acknowledging where it all began,” Shannon Guggenheim said.
The celebration will include screenings of 1984 movies, with two box office hits, “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” and “Purple Rain”; “Amadeus,” the year’s Best Picture winner; and “The Times of Harvey Milk,” which won the Oscar for Best Documentary. There’s one even older film in the bunch, too: Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Man Who Knew Too Much.” The classic thriller with Jimmy Stewart was released in 1956, but it was the first movie shown at Camera 3 as it was in re-release that year.
The best part about it all? 3Below is also rolling back prices to 1984 levels with tickets for those movies set at $3.50 and popcorn at $2 a bag. Moviegoers will also get a chance to win some free stuff including a “House Party” for a private movie screening.
If you can’t make it Saturday, you should mark your calendars for June 1-2 when 3Below will be having an open house to usher in the summer season. There will be programs showcasing the venue’s different offerings and free movie screenings celebrating the legacy of Norm Mineta, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Fred Rogers and Nichelle Nichols, as well as an encore of “Changing Boundaries,” the San Jose history documentary directed by Tricia Creason-Valencia.
You can get more details on Saturday’s 40th anniversary screenings at 3belowtheaters.com.
FUN NIGHTS ARE BREWING: Gordon Biersch owner Dan Gordon announced he’s teaming up with Off the Grid for this year’s Thursday night markets, which kicked off May 16 and run through Aug 15 at the brewery on Taylor Street in San Jose’s historic Japantown neighborhood.
The San Jose Jazz Boom Box stage will be parked in the courtyard, featuring a new live band every week. Frunkyman, a soulful band led by bassist Miguel Leyva and made up of seven San Jose State grads, was the opening night band, and future performers include Tracy Cruz (May 23), the 408 Collective (July 18) and Ukelele James (July 25). Of course, there’ll be dozens of food trucks, too, with the opening lineup including Shrimpin’ Ain’t Easy, Capelo’s BBQ, Barya Kitchen, Chicken Bros and Sam’s Chowdermobile.
There are theme nights planned for the rest of the summer including Bacon Night on May 23, a Taco Takeover on June 6, Mobile Masala on June 27 and Hula Night on July 25.
CAMPBELL SCRAMBLE: Downtown Campbell’s going to be rockin’ this weekend with the 45th annual Boogie Music Festival on Saturday and Sunday. Nearly two dozen bands — including the Pearl Alley Band, the Cocktail Monkeys, the Blind Pilots and First Call — will be performing on four stages along Campbell Avenue starting at 11 a.m. each day.
A groovy highlight Sunday will be the “Best Dressed Contest” at 1:30 p.m. at the KFOX East Stage, where contestants will wear their finest ’70s and ’80s threads. You can get more information — and pre-purchase food and drink tickets to avoid long lines — at www.campbellboogie.com.
PLAYING YACHT SEE?: We all know that Bay Area home prices are out of this world, but $2.1 million for a boat? That’s the sticker price for the 2024 Princess F45, a 47-foot luxury yacht that will no doubt be the biggest draw at the Pacific Sail & Power Boat Show taking place at Westpoint Harbor in Redwood City through Sunday. Don’t worry, there are plenty of other yachts, sailboats, powerboats and catamarans to see, too, and I’d bet most of them cost less than a house. Get more information and tickets at pacificboatshow.com.
