Mann Southtown Theatre
7770 Penn Avenue S,
Minneapolis,
MN
55423
7770 Penn Avenue S,
Minneapolis,
MN
55423
7 people
favorited this theater
Showing 26 - 50 of 63 comments
Budyboy100…Hopefully, this will put to rest any question of whether or not “Star Wars” played at SOUTHTOWN per your memory. What follows is a week by week breakdown of the bookings for the SOUTHTOWN during the 67-week run of “Star Wars.” As you can see, at no time during that original release did “Star Wars” play at SOUTHTOWN.
05.27.1977 … ROCKY
06.03.1977 … ROCKY
06.10.1977 … ROCKY
06.17.1977 … ROCKY
06.24.1977 … ISLANDS IN THE STREAM
07.01.1977 … ISLANDS IN THE STREAM
07.08.1977 … ISLANDS IN THE STREAM
07.15.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
07.22.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
07.29.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
08.05.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
08.12.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
08.19.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
08.26.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
09.02.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
09.09.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
09.16.1977 … THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
09.23.1977 … A STAR IS BORN
09.30.1977 … A STAR IS BORN
10.07.1977 … THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT
10.14.1977 … THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT
10.21.1977 … THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT / TOM THUMB
10.28.1977 … CARRIE
11.04.1977 … DAMNATION ALLEY
11.11.1977 … CAMELOT
11.18.1977 … LED ZEPPELIN: THE SONG REMAINS THE SAME
11.25.1977 … POCO: THE ADVENTURES OF A LITTLE DOG LOST
12.02.1977 … 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY
12.09.1977 … LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
12.16.1977 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
12.23.1977 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
12.30.1977 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
01.06.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
01.13.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
01.20.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
01.27.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
02.03.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
02.10.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
02.17.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
02.24.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
03.03.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
03.10.1978 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
03.17.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
03.24.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
03.31.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
04.07.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
04.14.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
04.21.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
04.28.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
05.05.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
05.12.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
05.19.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
05.26.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
06.02.1978 … THE GOODBYE GIRL
06.09.1978 … HERE COME THE TIGERS
06.16.1978 … GREASE
06.23.1978 … GREASE
06.30.1978 … GREASE
07.07.1978 … GREASE
07.14.1978 … GREASE
07.21.1978 … GREASE
07.28.1978 … GREASE
08.04.1978 … GREASE
08.11.1978 … GREASE
08.18.1978 … GREASE
08.25.1978 … GREASE
09.01.1978 … GREASE
Source: Minneapolis Tribune
Big Red, I would LOVE to see the photos you have of this theater, if you could, my email is , I would be very grateful. Thank you.
General Cinema bought the Southtown from Mann in 1970 along with a few other theatres. The justice dept rules they didn’t have enough compition so they had to sell off a couple theatres. General Cinema kept Southtown and Har Mar.
The Mann in Cal is not the same company but it was started by one of the same owners. The brothers had a falling out and split and one went to Cal shortly afterwards. He got back in the business and started another company that mostly is in Cal.
By ther way the Mann Chinese wasn’t built by Mann and they aren’t the current owners but do still operate it.
budyboy100… You are really beginning to test my patience! Do you honestly believe that the information I’ve been posting here and in the Star Wars anniversary thread has been culled from memory or pulled out of my ass?!
Dude, I researched the matter by consulting the very source you keep recommending! In other words, I already went through the archived copies of the Minneapolis newspaper (and Variety) week by week and relayed to you my findings. “STAR WARS” DID NOT PLAY AT SOUTHTOWN DURING 1977.
And one other thing: The SOUTHTOWN during the timeframe in question was operated by General Cinema, not by Mann.
Is this the same Mann chain from Mann’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood, Ca?
http://0mg.com
Michael,
Sigh…..
I don’t want to bore you with my claims against your facts…….
The question can easily be solved by someone currently in Minnesota going to the newspaper office and looking at all the records from opening day, (May sometime) through the summer it opened, say until the end of August. Mann theaters always ran a list of all their theaters and what was showing.
BTW, the review that got me to the movie was in a weekly blurb called ‘The Reader’. Who knows what happened to that.
Interestingly, someone mentioned that 2001 was soon to celebrate an anniversary. Well, I saw it on a re-release in the 70’s in Super 70 format at the Cooper Cinerama, not the undivided step cousin called the Cooper Cameo, but the one with the 105 foot louvered screen. You likely won’t believe that either………but I did.
Budyboy100, regarding our “debate”… I replied to this already on the Happy 30th, Star Wars! page, but here it is again. Sigh…
The ST. LOUIS PARK theater had an exclusive for the Minneapolis market from May 25 until July 14. The additional area runs identified in my earlier post started on July 15th.
Regarding my “incomplete evidence” for May & June 1977, the SOUTHTOWN during this period of time was showing “Rocky.”
Still not convinced? Here’s industry trade VARIETY’s take on the matter from their issue of July 27, 1977, page 16:
“Now in ninth week, ‘Star Wars’ played its first seven weeks exclusively at suburban St. Louis Park before splitting to other sites.”
bigred… My SHELARD PARK question was rhetorical! In other words, my point was that “Star Wars” didn’t play there. (Thanks, though, for the rundown.) Nevertheless, I’d like to know where you found a list that claims it ran at SHELARD PARK.
As for budyboy100 and the SOUTHTOWN thing, your point is well taken regarding the many “Star Wars” return engagements. If budyboy or anyone wishes to research GCC’s old booking records or the newspaper ads on microfilm, the official U.S. re-releases of “Star Wars” were as follows:
07/21/78 (7 weeks)
08/15/79 (3 weeks; included debut of “Empire” trailer)
04/10/81 (2 weeks; included debut of “Episode IV A New Hope” subtitle)
08/13/82 (3 weeks; included debut of “Jedi” trailer)
And in summer ‘83, selected markets ran a “Star Wars”/“Empire” double feature.
Shelard Park was a theatre in St.Louis Park owned by General Cinema. It was in an office building and at one time hold the distric office. At the time it was open or part of it General Cinema had Southtown, Burnhaven 8, Centinnial Lakes ( which replaced Southdale 4 ), Mall of America, Har Mar 11, Northtown 4, Brookdale East and Shelard Park 5.
I don’t know if the St. Loius Park location is the same one and just changed the name. I do know that Shelard Park was a 3 plex in 1983 but don’t know when it opened or when the expanded to 5 screens and unit munber was 809.
bigred… What is SHELARD PARK???
If you go to the Happy 30th, Star Wars! discussion, you can (1) see the list of 43 original bookings of “Star Wars” Michael Coate posted (he cites ST. LOUIS PARK for the Minneapolis showing), and (2) can read the debate budyboy100 refers to between he and Coate.
Who do you think won the debate: Michael Coate or budyboy100?
I found a list of the org. 43 theatres and Shelard Park and Roseville 4 are the only Minnesota theatres listed.
I ’m pretty sure it did play there but not until later. There was a book that was in the office that the org manager from Mann started that had the movie(s) for each week along with the box gross and attendence and it was kept up until a few years after the split. I’m sure I saw it listed in there before but only for a short time.
There was a theatre around where I lived at the time Star Wars came out that would bring it back. They did it again when Empire came out and again the next year or two the brought both back for 3 or 4 weeks. It is possible Southtown did the same or brought it in before Empire started.
Help anyone, Michael C. and I a having an ongoing debate about whether or not Star Wars (the original) played at the Southtown back in 1977. (Not whether it opened there, it apparently didn’t, but a short time later if it played there.)
Anyone see Star Wars at the Southtown?
Would someone mind telling me what Kraus Anderson doesn’t own? The city I grew up in (Bloomington) has been destroyed and I have a sneaking suspicion they’re behind the Andy’s Tap mall closing as well? Anyone know? I know they own Valley West. The mod Bloomington of today makes me ill.
I have a pic of the theatre postcard that shows the outside and lobby when it opened. All the other pics are after it was twinned.
I would also like to see pics from when it was a single screen. I would really like to see pics of the lobby when the fountain was still there or even at the opening or close to it.
If anybody has photos of the southtown theater when it was still a single screen, I would love to see some pictures. You can send them here:
The single theatre had a stage in the front and after the screen was split part of it was still theater 1 or the south one. The main difference in the theaters was when they put the wall down the middle and of course removed the seats to make room for the wall.They had to reposition some of the seats. The doors were in the same locations and no extra doors were added.
The Har Mar 3 was built by Mann in 1970 but never run by them and the design was along that of Southtown. The Har Mar was opened as a twin and later split one screen. Har Mar had been run by General Cinema and later AMC and just closed by AMC on Dec.7, 2006.
Thanks for emailing me with those pics bigred, The last time I had seen the Southtown Theater was just before it was torn down. I had not seen pictures of it EVER, my memory was all I had. Southtown was where our family went to see most movies, and I believe it was one of the most popular theaters in the Twin Cities south suburbs. It was always such a fun place, and even after the Mall of America Theater opened still remained a mainstream theater. The lobby in Southtown was gorgeous, and it had to be some of the area’s finest 1960’s interior decor. I do not remember what the original auditorium looked like for it was divided into two screens before I was even born. The Twin Cities now only has two theaters left with decor along the lines of Southtown in style and era. One is the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis (still operating) another is Terrace in Robbinsdale (closed but still standing)However these theaters were built about a decade earlier, and are better examples of the 1940’s and 50’s rather than the 1960’s styles. I hope that there are still parts of the Southtown’s lobby still in existence today, maybe theater chains will someday use such relics to build grand theaters once again. Right now, I’ve not been too impressed with the new cineplex theaters that have opened, it’s hard to like them when you recall how much better the classics were.
Thanks for emailing me with those pics bigred, The last time I had seen the Southtown Theater was just before it was torn down. I had not seen pictures of it EVER, my memory was all I had. Southtown was where our family went to see most movies, and I believe it was one of the most popular theaters in the Twin Cities south suburbs. It was always such a fun place, and even after the Mall of America Theater opened still remained a mainstream theater. The lobby in Southtown was gorgeous, and it had to be some of the area’s finest 1960’s interior decor. I do not remember what the original auditorium looked like for it was divided into two screens before I was even born. The Twin Cities now only has two theaters left with decor along the lines of Southtown in style and era. One is the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis (still operating) another is Terrace in Robbinsdale (closed but still standing)However these theaters were built about a decade earlier, and are better examples of the 1940’s and 50’s rather than the 1960’s styles. I hope that there are still parts of the Southtown’s lobby still in existence today, maybe theater chains will someday use such relics to build grand theaters once again. Right now, I’ve not been too impressed with the new cineplex theaters that have opened, it’s hard to like them when you recall how much better the classics were.
Thanks for emailing me with those pics bigred, The last time I had seen the Southtown Theater was just before it was torn down. I had not seen pictures of it EVER, my memory was all I had. Southtown was where our family went to see most movies, and I believe it was one of the most popular theaters in the Twin Cities south suburbs. It was always such a fun place, and even after the Mall of America Theater opened still remained a mainstream theater. The lobby in Southtown was gorgeous, and it had to be some of the area’s finest 1960’s interior decor. I do not remember what the original auditorium looked like for it was divided into two screens before I was even born. The Twin Cities now only has two theaters left with decor along the lines of Southtown in style and era. One is the Riverview Theater in Minneapolis (still operating) another is Terrace in Robbinsdale (closed but still standing)However these theaters were built about a decade earlier, and are better examples of the 1940’s and 50’s rather than the 1960’s styles. I hope that there are still parts of the Southtown’s lobby still in existence today, maybe theater chains will someday use such relics to build grand theaters once again. Right now, I’ve not been too impressed with the new cineplex theaters that have opened, it’s hard to like them when you recall how much better the classics were.
bigred – Could you please e-mail me photos of the Southtown Theater? I am trying to trigger a memory for my 80 year old father. Thank you so much!
bigred, I understand you have photos of the Southtown Theater; could you please email me them? My address is
bigred, I understand you have photos of the Southtown Theater; could you please email me them? My address is
It was a crime to knock down the Southtown but it wasn’t in a blink of an eye. It was over a year when everyone knew it was going to happen. Shortly before Krause Anderson wanded Wards out but Wards had a 25 year lease and theatened legal action so they gave up. The Texaco station across from the theater was not owned by Krause Anderson. It was about a year after giving up on Wards that they started trying to get General Cinema out but like Wards they had a 25 year lease renewal at General Cinema’s option. They then set sights on the gas station and when they wouldn’t sell they moved the enterance to the other side of the station with the lanes going to the parking areas near Applebees they you had to hook it in to get the theater and or gas station. The owner of the station had said he would never sell so it was assumed the theater was there for good as well but after they moved the entrance he was losing to much money not to sell. He did good when he sold because Krause Anderson bought a new location a couple miles away. It didn’t take long after that before they closed the Goodyear store.
I don’t know why any business at least in Minn. would want to do business with Krause Anderson after seeing or finding out about everything they did to get people out of Southtown even ones with leases and brought in lots of business to the center.
The Southtown Theater only had 2 years in its 31 year history that it didn’t show a profit. The first was in the ‘70’s and I think it was 1975 but I’m not sure and the other was 1995, the year it closed.
In the fall of 1975, the Southtown held a film festival of Hollywood Musicals of the 1950-1960’s era. I recall that it ran 6-8 weeks and featured them all in 70MM and stereo sound. Many of these films played their premier downtown showcase runs at theaters that did not have the huge screens because they were built as RKO (Keith-Albee) vaudeville theaters. I saw several of them. Generally, they were poorly attended with 40-50 people per showing. The only other huge screens at the time were the Cooper Cinerama in St. Louis Park and the GCC Orpheum and Plitt Skyway 1 downtown. The Orpheum generally didn’t play musicals after Mary Poppins. All of the few 1970-1980’s musicals that were released showcase went to the Cooper and Skyway 1 downtown. I consider it a privilege to have seen these great films at the Mann Southtown. I consider it the finest suburban theater build in the 1960’s era , with the ABC Brookdale, a distant second.
Am wanting to see photo’s of this theater. I’m amazed that not even the Minnesota Historical Society has pictures of it; Southtown was beautiful. I think what happened is that it never crossed anyone’s mind that such a neat gathering place would ever be torn down. When word did come, the theater was closed and torn down in almost a blink of an eye. I thought it was pretty sneaky of the (then) owners of the building, Kraus Anderson Reality. This lovely building was pretty much replaced with a McDonald’s. Please email pics of this theater to me a I would really appreaciate it.