Let's all go to the movies... again soon – Clark Wiens, Circle Cinema

Welcome to Tulsa Talks presented by Tulsa Regional Chamber. I’m your host Tim Landes, and I really miss going to the movies. I’ve been going to the movies most my life. Sometimes it was multiple times a week. The smell of popcorn. The faint rumbles of a movie playing in a screening room. The half hour of previews and then the show. 

My guest on this episode is Clark Wiens, co-founder of Circle Cinema. He misses the movies, too. Maybe more so than me. 

Circle Cinema is one of my favorite places to visit in Tulsa. It’s a nonprofit theater that has withstood the test of time, and now hopes to withstand the pandemic. 

The Circle was built in 1928. It was built near Route 66 in a thriving neighborhood. It was among the more than two dozen theaters in Tulsa. It is the only one still operating today. 

It went through bumps and bruises along the way and was once even an adult theater. In 1983 it appeared in the beginning of “The Outsiders” when Pony Boy visits a movie house to watch Paul Newman in “Hud.” 

By the 1990’s it was shuttered and facing demolition. 

In December 2002, the nonprofit Circle Cinema Foundation was formed to purchase the Circle Theater and turn back the clock to make it a must-visit cinematic destination for Tulsans. Clark and business partner George Kravis oversaw the revitalization. In 2003, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Since then it has become the place to see independent films and documentaries in Tulsa. It’s also often the place to see classic throwbacks. It was really cool to see some of my favorites like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, True Romance and Point Break on the Circle big screen.

Nobody knows what the future holds for cinema, but Clark shares what he envisions.

In this phone conversation, Clark and I discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted Circle Cinema and how they plan to bounce back, hopefully in September. 

Clark shares the story of how he fell in love with movies in a very unique way during a very unique time, and how he’s been able to bring it all full circle at the Tulsa theater. 

We also talk about why he and George launched the nonprofit and what it was like to inherit a longtime Tulsa business that had been closed for some time. 

This was my first time to have a conversation with Clark. It was great getting to know him and felt good to talk about going to the movies, even if we must a while longer to return to those seats, popcorn and drink in hand as the lights go down and the movie previews begin. 

Following my conversation with Clark, our music writer Kyra Bruce shares the song “Regret & Sweat” from Girls Club. More on that later. 

Let’s get this going. 

This is Tulsa Talks.