King Theatre

DennisZ: Any pics or info on the Joy theater in Mount Joy? Been past it many a times. I like the exterior of it.

John Messick: Yes I am the one and the same. Sorry it took so long to answer your question. My wife and I were on vacation for one week and it seems since we have been back everything has been hectic and there have been days I have not even checked this site or emails for that matter. I have a number of pictures – mostly black and white of the theatres being demolished on N. Queen St. That is the Capitol, Boyd, and Hamilton. I also have a scrapbook of newspaper articles and pictures about their demise. Unfortunately, the only interior pictures I have are ones from the newspapers and a local historical society magazine article. I have pictures I took from the street of the theatres with their marquees empty and waiting for demolition to begin. Then I have pictures of their actual demolition. Do you live in the Lancaster area? The Grand theatre on the opposite side of the street was demolished while I was an elistee in the Air Force. I would be happy to let you peruse it and make any copies of what you want. The negatives of the pictures have long been lost. The only picture I sent to the Sameric website was the color picture of the outside with “Star” as the attraction.
Also an update – The Penn Cinema off the Lititz Pike in Lancaster will open on 11/17/06. They are having a sneak preview on Thurs 11/16/06 with a trial run of second run movies at $5.00 admission for a contribution to a charity – Ronald McDonald house, I think, but am not positive. It is called the Penn Cinema. Let me know about the scrapbook!

John..When Park City first opened, CBS Channel 15, WLYH, had a TV studio in the mall. I think it was on the lower level. They also had an in mall channel which aired on TV monitors located on towers throughout the malls. They also broadcast shows live from the malls. Back then each mall had a theme – Summer, Winter, Fall, and Spring. There were artificial trees in each major mall. That is going back a ways. There was a mini amusement park in the lower level where Kohl’s is now located. They did have an ice skating rink. In the Penney’s mall, there were “skylights” in the floor and you could look down and see them ice skating. The amusement park became a “hangout” and dump and was replaced by a farmer’s market. Which was later replaced by a Clover store and now Kohl’s. I know that Gimbels (Now Boscov’s), Penney’s, and Watt and Shand (Now Bon Ton) opened before the malls were finished. It was Christmas of 1970 when you drove to each of the department stores to shop. Then in 1971 the mall actually opened, if my memory is not playing tricks on me. Sears was the last department store of the original four to open. And that opened in 1972 I believe. When my wife and I want to shop, we make the fifty mile drive to the King of Prussia mall. Which also happens to have a UA Imax Theatre! When Park City opened all the malls were carpeted. After years of wear and tear – and cigarettes being crushed on it – it was replaced with a tile floor.
Well, I guess that is enough memory jogging for one night. By the way, before the AMC Wonderland and Eden theatres closed, there was a movie complex built at the Manor Shopping Center just outside Lancaster city. See “Manor Cinema” on CT. I added that theatre a while ago. It was no Cinema Treasure, but it was a nice complex.
There were rumors originally that the Red Rose Commons Shopping Center on Fruitville Pike was to include a movie multiplex. But that never happened. Just more bloomin' stores!….Dennis

John…..The Century Park City theatre opened in Summer of 1971. It was originally to be a single screen theatre. When I interviewed for the assistant’s job, construction had stopped because they decided to twin it before it even opened. At that time the frame work for a large screen with a stage area had already been built. The theatre was located in the mall with an entrance from the back parking lot between Sears and Penney’s. A Lenscrafters store and the Park City Mall offices now occupy the space. It is right across the mall from the Kohl’s entrance. Which originally was a Farmers Market and then when that failed, the market area was converted to retail and opened as a Clover Store. It operated as a first run theatre for some time. About 1978 the policy changed to “Over 21” movies in one theatre and $1.50 admission reruns in the other theatre. The theatres closed in August of 1985. The majority of the “perimeter” area of the mall has been taken up by strip shopping centers and restaurants. What started out as a Children’s Palace store is now an Ollie’s Bargain Outlet. The Century Theatre was the only theatre at Park City since it was built. According to what I had read, Earl Realty did not renew the lease for the AMC Wonderland 4. Earl Realty owned the ground and the Dutch Wonderland Amusement Park, which they have since sold to Hershey Park. The Wonderland opened in the late 1960’s as a single screen theatre. A second screen was added in 1971. Eventually both theatres were twinned. They closed in 1986. Also AMC did not renew their lease on the Eden Theatre. The theatre was ruined when it was twinned. And when AMC dropped out they were getting rid of all their single and twin screen theatres. There were different operators of the Eden after AMC and even a “budget” rerun policy was used for a while. However, I think when the lease came due, the owners of the Eden Resort, which actually owned the theatre, did not renew the lease. The Eden was replaced by a Sheetz Gas and Mini Market.

John….The Eric Pacific 4 shoeboxes opened in Dec. 1969 was the RKO Stanley Warner Triplex – RKO Twin and Pacific East Cinema. They each had about 350 seats. I was the assistant manager from Sept. 1970 to May 1971. They were located in the third block of N. Queen Street, one block North of the urban renewaled block where the original “Cinema Treasures” were located. I was offered by RKO a manager’s job at their theatre in Ardmore, PA. However, their payscale did not match the “living scale” of the Ardmore – Phila. Main Line – area. So I gave up on the idea of making a career of theatre management. About the same time, Century Theatres was opening a twin theatre at the Park City mall in Lancaster. They offered me an assistant’s position, but I turned that down also. In 1977 Sameric Theatres took over the RKO Triplex and reenamed it the Eric Pacific 3. In 1982 a fourth theatre was added to what was always an empty store room next to the theatres main entrance. I had been told that was originally supposed to be occupied by a bank, but the lease deal fell through. So it was converted in 1982 to a 200 seat theatre. UA purchased the Sameric chain in either 1988 or 1989. They continued to operate the theatres until 7/19/2000 when they closed. They sat empty for a while until being demolished for the Transit Authoritys bus terminal. Ironically, the Sameric chain opened a single screen theatre in 1970 in the second block of North Queen street as part of the redevelopment. They twinned that theatre in the Fall of 1973 and it reopened at Christmas. However, they closed that theatre on Labor Day in 1995. To this day, it is still sitting there empty. The 10 screen complex being built on Airport Road is supposed to open around Thanksgiving. The road is closed now as they are doing utility work and road improvements. So you cannot drive past to see the progress.

P.S. – The one small neighborhood theatre was the Strand Theatre which was located on Manor Street. It was about half mile from the downtown area. It showed, during my growing up years, second run films. Movies played the Strand after their showing at the N. Queen Street theatres. The Strand opened as a nickelodeon in 1910. It was used for boxing in the 1920s. And in 1964 was torn down. The land has been a parking lot ever since. Oddly enough, the Strand Theatre was owned and operated by Lehad Theatres which also built and operated the King Theatre. The Strand was the place for kids to go for the Saturday matinee. They gave away prizes and passes. I remember during one of the Strands remodelings, they installed a new traveler curtain. It was the first curtain that I ever saw that opened on the right side of the screen instead of in the middle or raising up.

The King Theater was located on King Street a good distance from
downtown where the Queen Street Theaters were as I recall all on
one block. I believe the King opened in the early 50s. I remember seeing the Student Prince with Mario Lanza and South Pacific there.
It was the first time I had ever seen reclining seats in a theater.
I visited an aunt in Lancaster every summer and fondly recall the
theaters on Queen Street. I believe they were the Capitol, Colony,
and I especially liked the Hamilton. The Hamilton in the 50s showed
mostly double features of B Movies. I first saw a double bill of
Frankenstein and Dracula at this theater. I remember the lobby which
I recall as being long and narrow with massive white pillars. I grew
up in Shamokin, Pa., which had three theaters but always loved going
to the movies in Lancaster. I can recall 6 theaters in Lancaster
the four on Queen Street the King and one other small neighborhood
theater. At the time I thought of Lancaster as a big city.

Also the King Theatre was ahead of its time. There was no balcony to the theatre. However on the upper level where the projection room was located, there was a “theatre party room.” Back when I was in elementary school, my parents surprised me with a birthdy party in that room. We watched the movie “There’s No Business Like Show Business” from that room after the party. There was also a “Mother’s Room”. Parents could take their “unsettled” children to that room so they did not disturb the audience. But they could also see and hear the movie from that room. Even better than today with the popularity of “mom’s matinees.”

The King Theatre was at 419 E. King St. and opened in 1950. It had 1,350 seats when it opened. When Cinemascope was added about 100 seats were removed. The theatre was twinned in 1971 and each theatre had about 525 seats. It was called the King Twin theatre. The Comet Drive In was located West of Lancaster and was sold and demolished in 1979. The SkyVue Drive in was East of Lancaster and was sold and demolished in 1981. Leahad operated ten theatres in Camp Hill, Pa., Lebanon, PA., Steelton, PA., Mt. Joy,PA., Lititz,PA., and Elizabethtown, PA. In addition they operated the Strand Theatre in Lancaster which was a subrun theatre located on Manor St. This theatre opened in 1910 as a nickelodeon. Was used for boxing in the 1920’s. The theatre was closed in the early 1960’s and stood empty for a number of years. Was torn down in 1964 and the land has even since been a parking lot. The four theatres mentioned by someone else were all located in the 100 block of North Queen Street in Downtown Lancaster. The Capital (Hippodrome), Grand, and Hamilton Theatres were operated by Stanley Warner. The Boyd (Colonial) was operated by the early Shapiro Co. that became the Sameric Chain if I remember correctly. All four of these theatres were torn down in the late 1960’s in the name of “urban redevelopment.”

I believe the King Theare was built in the late 30’s for the Chertikoff chain.