Theaters

  • March 17, 2003

    Friends of the Boyd Host A Fundraiser

    PHILADELPHIA, PA — The following email was sent by Friends of the Boyd Chairman, Howard Haas:

    We are really eager for you to join us at our film fundraiser of The Show-Off, 8 PM, Friday March 21, at International House, 3701 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. $15 includes live music & reception afterwards at International House with White Dog Cafe food, Yards Brewing Co. beer, and 1920’s music from radio D.J. Dan Buskirk.

    The Show-Off is a silent 1926 romantic comedy starring Louise Brooks, and was filmed in Philadelphia with scenes of Swann Fountain, City Hall, and old Pennsylvania RR Broad Street Station. Movie critic Carrie Rickey will introduce the film. Hope to see you there. Please bring your friends!

    For tickets, call Upstages at 215-569-9700 or buy at Prince or Plays & Players when Upstages open at those theaters, or with cash or credit card at International House from 2 hours before the film. Friends of the Boyd is raising funds for business and architectural studies to restore the Sameric.

    For more information, visit the Friends of the Boyd website.

    Thanks to Howard for the update.

  • Last Chance For A Discount Rate At The National Town Meeting

    WASHINGTON, DC — Today is the last chance to sign up for the early registration rate at the National Town Meeting, to be held May 18-21 in Cincinatti, Ohio.

    To qualify for this rate, you must sign up by 5 pm today.

    For more information on the National Town Meeting, visit their website.

    Thanks to David Tully for the update.

  • March 10, 2003

    Send In Your Proposals For The Villa!

    SALT LAKE CITY, UT — The following email was sent out by Kirk Huffaker of the Utah Heritage Foundation:

    Over the last 2 weeks, we have heard not only the continuing concerns of Villa-philes from everywhere, but also some great ideas to continue the use of the Villa as a theater venue and for adaptive use of the building. Utah Heritage Foundation would like to serve as the clearinghouse for all ideas for the continued use of the Villa Theatre and requests your assistance in this endeavor.

    We would like to continue collecting these ideas through the next week (March 14). Please forward your thoughts on continuing the use of the Villa as a theater (business planning, management, rehabilitation, variation of use, integration into community events, partnerships, fundraising, etc.) or the adaptive use of the theater (ideas for other uses, feasibility of those uses in the building, rehabilitation and costs, funding/financing of a project, etc.) to me.

    Thank you for your continued interest in saving the Villa!

    Kirk Huffaker
    Assistant Director
    Utah Heritage Foundation
    Memorial House in Memory Grove Park
    P.O. Box 28
    Salt Lake City, UT 84110-0028
    801.533.0858
    801.537.1245 fax

    www.utahheritagefoundation.com

    Thanks to Grant Smith and Kirk Huffaker for their work on behalf of the Villa!

  • Theaters For Sale On eBay

  • Grand Theatre Plans Stalled

    MILWAUKEE, WI — This was sent in from contributor Jim Rankin:

    The former WARNER (now THE GRAND) in Milwaukee that was supposed to be converted by the Milwaukee Symphony into a secondary concert hall (the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts is their prime venue) … will not now come to be. [See below Journal Sentinel for more information.]

    The new addition to our Art Center has received national acclaim for its innovative – if not revolutionary – design, but in the process they went so far over budget (280%!) that all the local charitable dollars have been soaked up, and with about $50 million said to be needeed in adapting the former GRAND and adding a parking structure of some sort, there just are not enough dollars out there for the foreseeable future for the Symphony to do the GRAND.

    The present owner of the land under the theatre says that Marcus Entertainment still has 20 years to go on its lease, and that he fully intends to keep them at maintaining the long dark theatre so that it does not deteriorate. He seems sincere in that. Since there will, of course, be no formal announcement of the Symphony’s change in plans for the GRAND, the story [below] will have to suffice.

    If you would like to advertise this as an opportunity for someone to place themselves in the Mid-West in the finest of Rapp & Rapp’s medium scale works, please use this to do so! I don’t forsee anyone else locally stepping forward to take on this 2700-seat movie house which now has been ‘un-divided’ so that it is again a single auditorium, in contrast to its last years since 1973 as a so-called “Twin.”

    Read the Journal-Sentinel story

    Thanks to Jim Rankin for the update! Any takers?

  • March 6, 2003

    Raymond Theatre Court Date Tomorrow

    This has been sent in from Gina Zamparelli:

    Our long-awaited court date is THIS Friday, March 7th.

    We hope those of you who have a few free hours on Friday morning, will consider attending our court date to show your support. Judge Dizintra I. Janavs will be making a decision on the fate of the Raymond Theatre on this date.

    We really hope to see our supporters there! This case will be important, not only to our 15 year effort to preserve the Raymond Theatre, but also for preservation cases to come. For those who cannot attend, I will send out a newsletter on the outcome as soon as possible.

    Case: Friends of the Raymond Theatre and Sage Council vs. City of Pasadena
    When: March 7, 2002
    Where: Los Angeles County Courthouse, 111 North Hill Street, Los Angeles, Dept. 85
    Time: 9:30 am.
    Parking: There is ample parking surrounding the Courthouse

  • March 4, 2003

    Welton Becket Event Tonight At The Cinerama Dome!

    This was sent to us by Arclight Cinemas; Event open to the public:

    Cinerama Dome and Architecture Aficionados Invited to WELTON BECKET Tribute, March 4 at the Dome

    ArcLight members are invited to join the Los Angeles Conservancy’s Modern Committee on the evening of March 4, 2003 for a centennial tribute to legendary Los Angeles architect Welton Becket and the firm of Welton Becket & Associates.

    The Becket office produced many of the space-age icons of mid-century Los Angeles including the Capitol Records building, the Music Center, Santa Monica Civic Auditorium and the Beverly Hilton, as well as master plans for UCLA and Century City.

    This once-in-a-lifetime event, to be held in Becket’s landmark 1963 Cinerama Dome includes a reunion of designers, a screening of rare historical footage, and an exhibition of archival materials. Alan Hess will lead a discussion on the architect’s work and Leo Marmol will moderate a panel of designers from the Becket office.

    Included in the ticket price is a commemorative booklet with a self-guided tour of Becket buildings and a docent-led tour on Saturday, March 8.

    For more information please contact the Los Angeles Conservancy at 213-623-2489 or go to www.laconservancy.org. Tickets are $20 for Conservancy and ArcLight members and $25 for non-members.

    Visit the ArcLight Cinemas website

  • February 28, 2003

    The Reel Cinerama Film Festival Begins Tonight!!!

    SEATTLE, WA — Lucky Seattle-area residents can be the first to see a newly restored print of the last 3-strip Cinerama film, “How The West Was Won” at the Seattle Cinerama Theatre. In addition to HTWWW, the festival, which is being sponsored by Paul Allen’s Vulcan, Inc., will also be showing the following Cinerama films:

    • Fri, 2/28: How The West Was Won – 7:00pm
    • Sat, 3/1: How The West Was Won – 10:00am, 2:00pm, 7:30pm
    • Sun, 3/2: Search For Paradise – 11:00am, 2:00pm, 7:30pm
    • Mon, 3/3: Windjammer – 11:00am, 2:00pm, 7:30pm
    • Tue, ¾: This is Cinerama – 11:00am, 2:00pm, 7:30pm
    • Wed, 3/5: This is Cinerama – 11:00am, 2:00pm, 7:30pm
    • Thu, 3/6: How The West Was Won – 2:00pm, 7:30pm

    “Search For Paradise” and the Cinemiracle film, “Windjammer” are “historic” prints which have not yet been preserved.

    This is a festival not to be missed!

    Visit the Seattle Cinerama website
    Buy tickets at Movietickets.com
    Read the Seattle Post-Intelligencer article

  • February 27, 2003

    Raymond Theatre Benefit Tonight In Pasadena

    PASADENA, CA — This has been sent in from Gina Zamparelli of the Friends of the Raymond:

    Our benefit for the Raymond Theatre is tonight at the Ice House in Pasadena. We hope to see all our supporters there! It will be a great opportunity for all of us to get together and raise funds to help continue our work to preserve The Raymond Theatre.

    Comedian and show producer Julie Sandoval is kindly donating all door receipts to Friends of the Raymond Theatre. Julie will be performing, along with a host of great comedians!

    We will also be holding a 50/50 raffle. Raffle tickets will be $1. You can purchase them before you enter the Annex showroom or from people wearing yellow “Save the Raymond Theatre” buttons. Winners will be drawn tomorrow night. Someone will win half the money we raise from raffle.

    We want to see everybody at the Ice House tonight!

    Where: The Ice House
    The Annex Room
    24 Mentor Avenue, Pasadena, California
    (626) 577-1894

    When: This Thursday, February 27, 2003

    Time: 8:00 pm

    Admission: $10 (+ $2 drink minimum)

    Website: www.icehousecomedy.com

    Parking: Parking is available on the street or in the lighted garage across from the Ice House for $3.

    Entrance: Enter in the main entrance to the Ice House, which is in the alley. Once inside the Ice House, follow the signs that say “Saving Raymond” to the Annex showroom.

    Thanks to Gina Zamparelli for the update!

  • February 25, 2003

    Former Key Theater To Reopen As Cinema & Drafthouse

    WEST HAZELTON, PA — Sybil Hillman, the new owner of the former Key Theater in West Hazelton, PA, has sent in the following update, which corrects earlier information we received which identified local competition as the reason for the movie house’s closure:

    The reason for the theater’s [earlier] closing was my purchase of the building. I have since renovated the entire building and will be reopening the theater as the Cinema & Drafthouse [on] March 21, 2003.

    The entire Hazleton community is extremely excited about our Grand Opening and has shown support for both my project and the revitalization of such an historical theater.

    To see the progress of the renovations, please visit our website.

    Thanks to Sybil Hillman for setting the record straight. We wish her and the Cinema and Drafthouse the best of luck!