While in New York, we to the Museum of the Moving Image. It is connected to the historic Astoria Studios which for over 100 years has been a center for film and then television production. In the early silent era Rudolph Valentino, Gloria Swanson, and W. C. Fields were regulars at the production center. As the talkies began to sweep into theaters, The Marx Brothers, Claudette Colbert, and Burns and Allen were the talk of the town. Eventually, the lure of Hollywood was too much and the studio was sold to the Army to make training films during and after the war. It fell into disuse in the 70’s. The Studio was given new life in the 80s and has since hosted the productions of Martin Scorsese, Rod Howard, and since 1993 Sesame Street.
We went to see the the history section of the museum, one of the “nation’s largest and most comprehensive collection of artifacts relating to the art, history, and technology of the moving image.” It has exhibits of cameras, sound equipment, makeup, animation, and special effects. As a film buff, it was fantastic. I told Cindy and Logan that we were going to the museum, which was nothing new to them for a vacation stop.
It had taken about an hour of travel from near Herald Square to Astoria. I yanked the front door so excited to surprise them with this incredible museum. It was locked. Trash blew along the street. I thought maybe the museum had closed down for COVID and never reopened. It felt oddly abandoned. I pulled harder hoping that I was wrong, but it didn’t budge. Then I noticed a tiny sign whispering that the museum did not open until 2 PM. I was embarrassed and frustrated. We filled the next few hours with other New York adventures, but eventually found ourselves back at the museum.
After finishing the history section of the museum, we arrived at the crown jewels, the Jim Henson Exhibition. I was certain that Cindy and Logan would find out about the exhibit as we got near the museum, but there were no posters or advertising announcing its presence. We then had a couple of hours of meeting old friends and learning about their roots, their process, and their continuing work in television and theater. It was so much fun. As I got to look closely at each of the Muppets I was struck by how their eyes were so expressive and individual.
Jesus said, The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. (Mt 6:22). He connects physical seeing with Spiritual understanding and impact. The eye is a portal, an opening, a beginning. Do we see what Jesus saw? Do we look at people with the intensity that Jesus looked at people? Are we filled with light?