WHAT A COMPLETE WASTE OF A PERFECTLY GOOD 3 SCREEN CINEMA!! This building has been sitting empty for the past 10 years….think of all the movies it could have shown at reasonable prices if it had been taken over by say…Rainbow Cinemas or something. And especially since the Kingsway closed, Central Etobicoke would have had a cinema again. The only 2 are at the southern end, the very expensive Queensway 18 or way up at the north end, the Rainbow Woodbine Centre cinemas. And there the Westwood sits, rotting away. Tsk Tsk
Wow, looked at all the photos of the Villa theatre. That sure was some place, must have been great to see a movie there. At least the building is still standing and even though not a theatre anymore you can still see what it was like. We have a former beautiful theatre here in Toronto that is now a bookstore, with the magazine section on the former stage. I wish that more theatres had survived like that.
The Michael Todd and Cinestage were next door to each other on Dearborn, just north of Randolph, up the street from the Woods. I don’t think the Chicago or the Oriental had any roadshow engagements.
Great list Bob! I know that almost all of the films mentioned on your list did play roadshow engagements in Toronto, so they must have in Chicago as well. Now we just have to find out where.
Thank you so much Michael! Always wondered where these great films were shown. On the “From script to DVD” web site they have 70mm in NY and 70mm in LA but don’t have Chicago. Seems like the majority of them played the Michael Todd or the Cinestage.
Could be that Montreal being a bilingual city that 2001 was not as popular with French speaking audiences as it was in Toronto. I think that Toronto was an exception with this film, I remember reading while it was here in it’s record breaking run that people were seeing it again and again. It was described at the time as the ultimate “trip”.
It seems to me that “2001: a space odyssey” played over 2 years at the Glendale, something like 120 weeks plus. That is why we didn’t get “Custer of the West” or “Ice Station Zebra” in Cinerama because “2001” was still at the Glendale.
What an awful city Detroit must be. How can any place allow such destruction of such a beautiful old theatre. And the magnificent Michigan theater becoming a parking garage of all things! Hard to believe they are in the United States.
Theatres of this size and on upper floors all have fire exits from each cinema that take you right down to the street. No need to go through the lobby and down the main escalators or elevators.
In the mid 90s, Famous Players was considering adding screens to the Hollywood to make it more of a multiplex. But alas they built the Silvercity Yonge/Eglinton instead. In a way it would have been nice to re-devlop the Hollywood site because the Yonge/St Clair area would still have been considered an entertainment destination, especially with many new condo developments in the area. I still miss the Hollywood twins and the Odeon Hyland twins two doors down….it was always nice to go to that neighbourhood, see a movie and then walk around to the shops and restaurants.
It’s about time. With the Revue back up and running and the Fox and Royal still going strong it will be great having the Kingsway part of the community again. It was sorely missed!
I remember here in Toronto new movies would open Wednesdays at 20th Century theatres, Thursdays at Odeon theatres and Friday at Famous Players and Loews theatres. It was like that for years and then I think sometime in the late 70s or early 80s everything started opening on Fridays, regardless of which chain it was.
THAT’S their Etobicoke location LM…the one here it the Mississauga (Port Credit) location. If you google The Crooked Cue it comes up with the former Vogue theatre location.
I grew up about a block away from this theatre so this was where I went often as a child. After 1970 it was renovated and re-opened as the Credit Cinema which lasted a few more years. Then it closed for good as a theatre and for years was a high class jewellery store. For the past several years it has been a restaurant/billiard hall called The Crooked Cue. The Credit cinema would have made a great reportory theatre back when there was the Festival chain of old cinemas. Since it’s demise, there has never been any theatre of any kind in what is now Southern Mississauga, south of the QEW highway. Not even a multiplex
If you look on the web site cinematour.com there are 63 photos of the Granville Cinemas, and it looks like Cinemas 6 and 7 are the original Coronet theatre.
I like the Varsity too but it’s too expensive. The old Uptown (formerly Loew’s Uptown) was the best! I prefer the new AMC to the Scotiabank theatre…looks classier and less noise….
Yes, it opened on March 28th and i’ve been there and it’s beautiful! Nice addition to the downtown scene. Nice to finally get some movie screens back on Yonge St. where a lot of old movie houses used to be.
WHAT A COMPLETE WASTE OF A PERFECTLY GOOD 3 SCREEN CINEMA!! This building has been sitting empty for the past 10 years….think of all the movies it could have shown at reasonable prices if it had been taken over by say…Rainbow Cinemas or something. And especially since the Kingsway closed, Central Etobicoke would have had a cinema again. The only 2 are at the southern end, the very expensive Queensway 18 or way up at the north end, the Rainbow Woodbine Centre cinemas. And there the Westwood sits, rotting away. Tsk Tsk
Wow, looked at all the photos of the Villa theatre. That sure was some place, must have been great to see a movie there. At least the building is still standing and even though not a theatre anymore you can still see what it was like. We have a former beautiful theatre here in Toronto that is now a bookstore, with the magazine section on the former stage. I wish that more theatres had survived like that.
Hallelujah! Have looked forward to this since the day it closed!!
The Michael Todd and Cinestage were next door to each other on Dearborn, just north of Randolph, up the street from the Woods. I don’t think the Chicago or the Oriental had any roadshow engagements.
Great list Bob! I know that almost all of the films mentioned on your list did play roadshow engagements in Toronto, so they must have in Chicago as well. Now we just have to find out where.
Yes Bill, the pictures are still on the Clairidge cinema treasures site, great to see!
Thank you so much Michael! Always wondered where these great films were shown. On the “From script to DVD” web site they have 70mm in NY and 70mm in LA but don’t have Chicago. Seems like the majority of them played the Michael Todd or the Cinestage.
Could be that Montreal being a bilingual city that 2001 was not as popular with French speaking audiences as it was in Toronto. I think that Toronto was an exception with this film, I remember reading while it was here in it’s record breaking run that people were seeing it again and again. It was described at the time as the ultimate “trip”.
Any news on the re-opening of the Kingsway? It is now December and so far haven’t heard any more about it.
Yes, loved it Michael. I remember attending many of those runs during those years. I love this series and look forward to it every week!
It seems to me that “2001: a space odyssey” played over 2 years at the Glendale, something like 120 weeks plus. That is why we didn’t get “Custer of the West” or “Ice Station Zebra” in Cinerama because “2001” was still at the Glendale.
That’s too bad…would love to see shots of the Cinema 1…that was the big one that sat over 1000…would love to have seen each cinema.
No…the ones I took were only of the exterior. I believe on Cinema tour there are interior shots of the Capitol 6
What an awful city Detroit must be. How can any place allow such destruction of such a beautiful old theatre. And the magnificent Michigan theater becoming a parking garage of all things! Hard to believe they are in the United States.
Yes and what about Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Baltimore, Detroit…this could go on and on…love it. Look forward to it every week!
Theatres of this size and on upper floors all have fire exits from each cinema that take you right down to the street. No need to go through the lobby and down the main escalators or elevators.
In the mid 90s, Famous Players was considering adding screens to the Hollywood to make it more of a multiplex. But alas they built the Silvercity Yonge/Eglinton instead. In a way it would have been nice to re-devlop the Hollywood site because the Yonge/St Clair area would still have been considered an entertainment destination, especially with many new condo developments in the area. I still miss the Hollywood twins and the Odeon Hyland twins two doors down….it was always nice to go to that neighbourhood, see a movie and then walk around to the shops and restaurants.
It’s about time. With the Revue back up and running and the Fox and Royal still going strong it will be great having the Kingsway part of the community again. It was sorely missed!
I remember here in Toronto new movies would open Wednesdays at 20th Century theatres, Thursdays at Odeon theatres and Friday at Famous Players and Loews theatres. It was like that for years and then I think sometime in the late 70s or early 80s everything started opening on Fridays, regardless of which chain it was.
Exactly right!
THAT’S their Etobicoke location LM…the one here it the Mississauga (Port Credit) location. If you google The Crooked Cue it comes up with the former Vogue theatre location.
I grew up about a block away from this theatre so this was where I went often as a child. After 1970 it was renovated and re-opened as the Credit Cinema which lasted a few more years. Then it closed for good as a theatre and for years was a high class jewellery store. For the past several years it has been a restaurant/billiard hall called The Crooked Cue. The Credit cinema would have made a great reportory theatre back when there was the Festival chain of old cinemas. Since it’s demise, there has never been any theatre of any kind in what is now Southern Mississauga, south of the QEW highway. Not even a multiplex
If you look on the web site cinematour.com there are 63 photos of the Granville Cinemas, and it looks like Cinemas 6 and 7 are the original Coronet theatre.
I like the Varsity too but it’s too expensive. The old Uptown (formerly Loew’s Uptown) was the best! I prefer the new AMC to the Scotiabank theatre…looks classier and less noise….
Yes, it opened on March 28th and i’ve been there and it’s beautiful! Nice addition to the downtown scene. Nice to finally get some movie screens back on Yonge St. where a lot of old movie houses used to be.