The Free Press
MANKATO —
Tim Lind’s parents made a recording of him on his second birthday.
They asked him what he had done the day before, and he said, “I went to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”
Pretty close, for a 2-year-old. He had actually seen “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” which became one of his most beloved movies from childhood.
Several decades later, Lind and Shelley Pierce were planning this year’s Grind-Fu Cinema lineup. For three years, the co-hosts of KMSU’s “Shuffle Function” have held monthly, summer-long showings of free films in Wiecking Auditorium at Minnesota State University, a series which they call Grind-Fu.
So far this year, they’ve shown such movies as John Waters’ “Female Trouble,” “The Warriors” and “Escape From New York.” For their first kid-friendly film, they had planned to show “Willy Wonka” in July. Both felt sad for kids today who didn’t get to see the film in theaters. And the build-up to the screening day on July 31 was huge.
However, when the big day arrived, Lind and Pierce discovered there was no audio in Wiecking. And when tech guys arrived, they couldn’t fix the problem. So, at the last minute, as early-arrivers were showing up, they had to cancel July’s Grind-Fu.
“This breaks my heart,” Lind wrote on Facebook.
He followed up on the duo’s blog.
“This Grind-Fu has been something I’ve been looking forward to ever since we came up with the 2010 lineup. Quite honestly, I needed this Grind-Fu.”
Fret no more, area children (and Lind). Lind and Pierce have decided to give “Willy” another go Saturday.
“We decided we were going to show ‘Willy Wonka’ if it kills us,” Lind said.
The double-feature will include “Chocolate Factory” as the first movie at 2 p.m., followed by another kids’ movie, “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” at 7 p.m. Originally, “Heavy Metal” was going to be shown as the nighttime feature during the July Grind-Fu.
“We felt bad about the kids not getting to see ‘Willy Wonka,’ so we wanted to maximize the kid quotient,” Lind said.
For kids who may have not seen it, “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” is about a boy named Charlie who finds a golden ticket in a chocolate bar, which wins him a trip to Willy Wonka’s secretive chocolate factory. He and other children get to tour the crazy factory, which has fruity tasting wallpaper, a river of chocolate and ever-lasting gum.
“It’s really a sentimental thing (for me) to show this film,” Lind said.
“Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” — which came out in 1985 and was directed by Tim Burton — is about a childlike adult who goes in search of his missing bike.
The movie screenings are free, and people can bring in their own snacks.
For upcoming Grind-Fu events through October, visit
shufflefunction.blogspot.com.
