Say aloha to the Aloha billboard that has been overlooking Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood for more than a year. Not the hello aloha, the goodbye aloha. Because it’s gone. The billboard – for a movie that came out on May 29, 2015 – has finally been removed from it’s perch in Chicago after long overstaying it’s welcome. It went up over a year ago at this point and since then it has amassed a cult following and its very own Tumblr page dedicated to its status. Before it was taken down, a birthday celebration was even planned to celebrate its longevity. Now that birthday celebration has pivoted to a wake, which is more indicative of the movie’s box office performance and critical reception.
The AV Club spoke to the keeper of the Tumblr page, Matt Byrne, who speaks for everyone when he called the news of the billboard’s removal an “emotional” day.
“While it was never the place of the Tumblr to weigh in on whether or not the billboard’s presence was good or bad, I think it goes without saying that today is an emotional day for all of us.”
It may have just been another billboard in a random neighborhood in another city in the country, but for the people that looked towards it as a daily affirmation this is a tough blow. How else can they remember to follow their dreams when the billboard isn’t their to prove that your legacy can live on in perpetuity even if you are a terrible movie that cast Emma Stone as an Asian woman. In a city with a baseball team that hasn’t won a World Series since 1908, it is important to have something to rally around.
(via The AV Club)
