The Downtown Marietta Back Drop

Last night on the evening news they advised drivers to avoid certain streets for a few days in downtown Marietta. Why? Because a movie was being made.

I instantly thought it is not unusual to see downtown Marietta as a backdrop in movies. The buildings are universal “downtown” in Any City, U.SA. I think we have seen at least three downtown Marietta scenes in the past several months – without any hint it was a southern town.. The geography had nothing to do with the story.

I thought back to when I was a teenager and after school, we hung out at Atherton Drug Store in downtown Marietta. A lot of times we hung out in front of the store because Doc Atherton would get irritated with us hanging out at the lunch counter and not buying anything.

If the same practice was today as yesteryear the back drop of some movies might be confusing – like why are the same teenagers that were in the Living Dead movie also in the Sharky and the Bad Guys movie, hanging out on the same corner.

Speaking of Atherton Drugstore, Halloween night 1963, it, without warning, blew up, killing and injuring. A leaky gas line in the basement was the reason. Atherton Drug Store is gone and in its place is Marietta Pizza.