Before the Twin Peaks pilot premiered on the ABC Television Network on April 8, 1990, a 35mm print of the film was shown at a number of film festivals. The first was Telluride Film Festival followed by Vancouver International Film Festival in September 1989. With the start of a new decade, the 90-minute pilot episode would be shown in Palm Springs, Miami and an unlikely destination, Cleveland, Ohio. But how did it end up in the “Rock’n’Roll Capital of the World” on January 7, 1990?
JOHN EWING AND THE CLEVELAND CINEMATHEQUE
While Cleveland has long been known as the birth place of rock n’ roll, the city also has a vibrant arts culture. In December 1984, film buffs John Ewing, George Gund, and Ron Holloway formed the Cleveland Cinematheque (pronounced “Cinema-tech”). Ewing and partners loved cinema, especially films that many folks never have an opportunity to see.
Ewing previously ran a film series at his alma mater, Denison University in Ohio, and then served as director of the Canton Film Society from 1975-83. From 1981-86, he was a contributing editor and regular film reviewer for Northern Ohio Live magazine. In 1985, Case Western Reserve University Film Society co-sponsored this nonprofit organization to start showing unique films.
In 1989, the Gund Foundation gave Ewing and team a $116,000 start-up grant and the Cleveland Cinematheque moved into Aitken Auditorium of Cleveland Institute of Art. In the years that followed, the Cinematheque became the destination for film screenings, conversations with film makers and other experiences that you could find no where else in the midwest. For example, in 1993, they screened the 25-hour German epic film, Heimat II. which had about 100 people attend throughout the weekend.
Ewing continued running the Cleveland Cinematheque until June 2024 when he retired.
“My hope was to show movies that wouldn’t come to the region otherwise, and I really think we’ve done that—in spades,” Ewing said in a statement. “Film history has been reduced to a short list of ‘greatest hits’ like ‘Gone with the Wind,’ ‘The Godfather’ and ‘2001: A Space Odyssey.’ But, film history is so much richer than those titles that will always be shown in multiplexes.”
His efforts have been recognized with a Cleveland Arts Prize and, in 2010, he was named a Chevalier (knight) in the Order of Arts and Letters of the Republic of France.
On June 30, the Cinematheque screened John’s three favorite movies— “Shane,” “Late Spring,” and “The Magnificent Ambersons.” Bilgesu Sisman is now serving as the nonprofit’s director.
WHERE WAS THE CLEVELAND CINEMATHEQUE LOCATED?
The building was once located at 11141 East Boulevard in Cleveland, Ohio.
Sadly, the structure that housed the 600-seat theatre was demolished after 2017. This is how it would have looked from the street.
Entering the theatre, you would have been greeted by a set of stair leading up to wooden seats.
Yes, the theatre had uncomfortable wooden seats for all of their screenings (imagine sitting through a 25-hour film in these).
Here is a look at the projection booth that screened a 35 mm print of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s Twin Peaks pilot.
In 2015, the Cleveland Institute of Art campus moved into a single location. The college had been operating as a split campus since 1976 when it outgrew the original George Gund Building on East Boulevard, adjacent to the Cleveland Museum of Art. With the addition of a new, 80,000 square foot George Gund Building on Euclid Avenue, operations were centralized into one building.
The Cinematheque moved into the Peter B. Lewis Theater, which has 300-cushioned seats. The projection booth was also updated with state-of-the-art digital projectors.
TWIN PEAKS AT THE PREMIERE SHOWCASE IN JANUARY 1990
To kick off a new decade, the Cleveland Cinematheque announced a “Premiere Showcase” of 16 films from around the world.
Cleveland’s newspaper, The Plain Dealer, printed the schedule of films on Christmas day (it literally would have been the best gift had I known about this in 1990). Twin Peaks would be shown on Sunday, January 7.
Cleveland Cinematheque regularly published a newsletter about their programming, a vital tool in the days before social media or the world wide web. Their January-February 1990 issue outlined the upcoming “international film festival week in week out.”
The Twin Peaks screening would begin at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 7. Here is the synopsis:
David Lynch’s TWIN PEAKS
(USA 1990)
David Lynch’s first film since BLUE VELVET is set in a fictional northwestern logging town where an FBI agent (Kyle MacLachlan) investigates the murder of the high school Homecoming Queen. Self-described as “BLUE VELVET” meets “PEYTON PLACE,” “TWIN PEAKS” take another look at the creepy, slimy things under the rock of Middle America. This first opportunity to see this already acclaimed new thriller may be your only chance to see it in 35mm on the big screen, in the dark; it was made for TV. Cleve. premiere. 94 min.
Can you imagine seeing a 35mm print of the pilot before anything had aired on television? What a dream!
The Plain Dealer had another blurb about the screening on January 4, 1990. Tickets were $4.00 per film ($3.00 for Cinematheque members). FOUR DOLLARS to see Twin Peaks on 35mm. Come on!?!
On January 5, 1990, another short article about upcoming films included Twin Peaks
Joanna Connors published another reminder in The Plain Dealer on January 7, 1990. She stressed this was a “special, one-time-only showing” of Lynch’s TV pilot.
Interestingly, this screening was not the first for the film in 1990. A day early on January 6, 1990, the Pilot was shown during the Winter Press Tour for the Television Critics Association in Los Angeles, California. This means that no celebrities were present at the Cleveland screening as they were all in California for the event.
I’ve been unable to find ANY photos or materials aside from the newsletter about this screening. The theatre image above is from an interview with John Ewing from late 1990 (the featured image in this story is something from my imagination).
On September 1, 1991, The Plain Dealer interviewed Ewing. He shared his “10 nights to remember” which included Jan. 7, 1990: “The Cleveland premiere of the pilot episode of David Lynch’s “Twin Peaks,” several months before it aired on ABC-TV.” This clearly was a big win for Ewing and the Cleveland Cinematheque.
I’m grateful for folks like Ewing and organizations that preserve film and the filmgoing experience. I was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio (which also has a vibrant art scene, especially at places like Studio 35 Cinema). I only wish I could have attended the event held more than 35 years ago.
Check out Cleveland Cinematheque’s film screenings HERE. The even recently showed Industrial Symphony No. 1 and David Lynch’s Rabbits on August 4. The screenings were courtesy of ABSURDA/Asymmetrical Productions.
