The latest movie theater news and updates
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December 30, 2003
Renovation Consultant Writes Book
David Jenkins, 50, former Executive Director of the Fox Theatre in Salina, Kansas, has written a new book: 501 © Blues: Staying Sane in the Nonprofit Game.
Jenkins said in an article in THE SALINA JOURNAL, “I decided I wanted to write a book that exectutive directors and responsible board members could use as a weapon, as a tool to try to get their boards to behave in a more businesslike manner.”
Jenkins was executive director of the Fox Theatre project in Salina, Kansas from the start and has been involved in nonprofit theater groups for the past 15 plus years His book is available on line at www.amazon.com and www.fandangopress.com.
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December 29, 2003
Flagship Cinemas Sued by State of Maine, May be Forced to Sell Strand Theatre
ROCKLAND, ME — The Maine Attorney General’s office has filed an antitrust suit against Flagship Cinemas, the present owners of Rockland’s long-closed Strand Theatre, according to a report in the Village Soup.
The suit charges that Flagship, which purchased the Strand in 2001 with promises of restoration, has kept the theater closed as a means of preventing competitors from using the theater. As a remedy, Maine’s Attorney General is seeking to force Flagship to sell the Strand to an independent third-party.
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New Book Profiles Southern Movie Palaces
TAMPA, FL — Janna Jones, a University of South Florida professor, has written a new book about the history of Southern movie palaces. The Southern Movie Palace: Rise, Fall, and Resurrection, the first such book to focus exclusively on cinemas of the South, profiles theaters in Atlanta, Memphis, Durham, and other large Southern cities.
“As far as I know, she’s the only one who’s taken such an in-depth look at the Southern movie palace,‘’ says Cecil Whitmire, president of the nonprofit group that owns the Alabama Theatre, one of those Jones covers in her book. "I thought she did a good job putting it together. It was well researched and well done.‘’
More information can be found in this report in the Tampa Tribune.
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December 26, 2003
Today’s Newsreel
The Uptown Theatre demolition continues in Toronto, the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA moves forward with its restoration plans, and the Proctor’s Theatre in Schenectady willl spend $22.5 million in a 2005 expansion effort — all in today’s newsreel.
- Proctor’s To Close For Work In 2005
- Making Pictures Come Alive
- Contractor Hired To Evaluate Colonial Theatre Options
- Theatre Demolition Continues After Killer Accident
- Party on: Remember When The Paramount Was Party Central?
- Public Plaza Proposed For Theater Site
- Landmark Theater To Close In January
- Future Of Allentown Movie Palace In Doubt
- Byrd Theatre’s Opening Was A Gift 75 Years Ago
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December 25, 2003
Cinema Treasures Closed Today
Cinema Treasures is closed for the holiday today, but will return again tomorrow.
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December 24, 2003
92-Year-Old Empress Is For Sale
VALLEJO, CA — The historic Empress Theatre is looking for a new owner following Robert Litwin’s decision to sell the former vaudeville and movie house after growing tired of the “city’s ‘stall tactics’ in signing a deal to help renovate and run the historic theater as the centerpiece of a revitalized downtown.”
According to the Times Herald, the asking price is $850,000, with an option for the city to buy the theater first set to run out next month. Interested parties should contact Ronald Lee Re/Max Home Advantage of Vallejo.
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Small Theater and/or Theater Seats for Sale? - San Francisco/Bay Area
I’m the director of a film festival in San Francisco and one of our long term goals is to purchase a theater for second-run, indie, classic, and community access screenings. We’re currently sharing space in a South of Market art gallery/multimedia gallery, but we’re looking to expand our focus.
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December 23, 2003
Recollections of a Cinema Projectionist
In the dim and distant past before the 1939 war, I was introduced to the rites and mystique of showing cine films for the benefit and enjoyment of others, apart from the occasional Saturday morning visit to a local cinema with most of the other noisy youngsters in our neighbourhood.
The knowledge of how these images were inexplicably thrown on to the screen did not mean anything until a very ancient hand-cranked 35mm Pathe ‘home-movie’ projector came our way together with a large box of film stock which consisted of four-inch spools of old black and white silent films, although some were tinted with blue or sepia-toned effects; not quite colour, but the idea was there.
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December 22, 2003
Paramount Theatre Deeded to Paramount Arts Center
ASHLAND, KY — According to the Herald Dispatch, the Paramount Arts Center, the long-time tenant of the 1932 art deco Paramount Theatre has now become its owner, with the Foundation for the Tri-State Community transferring the venue’s deed to the group.
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Theaters Listed for Sale on the Web
Here is a listing of all theaters I could find up for sale on the web as of 12/20/03. I post this list in hopes that people will buy them and preserve the classic theaters that remain.
Name: Capitol Theatre
Location: New London, CT
Price: Contact Building Representative
Condition: Closed for nearly 30 years
View sale pageName: Ellis Theatre
Location: Springfield, VT
Price: $335,000
Condition: Open, 2 screens
View sale pageName: Madison Theater
Location: Albany, NY
Price: $549,000
Condition: Closed 2003
View sale page