I still remember going to this theatre on its opening night. They rented a pair of powerful spotlights which waved back and forth in the air.
The opening films were The Naked Gun and Twins.
The theatre was the best deal in town. They ran three movies and charged $2.50 which allowed you to see all three movies plus you could see two of the movies a second time if you wanted.
That’s right. I forgot they actually had a Cineplex and Famous Players right across from one another. I guess this made sense at the time when each chain had exclusive rights from the major studios.
Famous Players had Warner Bros, Paramount, MGM, Touchstone, Disney and Cineplex Odeon had Universal, Orion, Columbia, Tri-Star, New Line.
These exclusive deals semmed to go out the window when the 18-plex Silver City theatres popped up.
One of the very few theatres in BC that still have the Famous Players branding, which have been slowly changed to Cineplex.
The “Famous Players” lettering has been removed from the building as they are gradually rebranding it to Cineplex.
It will be sad when they finally phase out “Famous Players” as the name has been a film staple across Canada since the 1920s.
I still remember going to this theatre on its opening night. They rented a pair of powerful spotlights which waved back and forth in the air.
The opening films were The Naked Gun and Twins.
The theatre was the best deal in town. They ran three movies and charged $2.50 which allowed you to see all three movies plus you could see two of the movies a second time if you wanted.
I think the last film to play at this theatre was “The Marrying Man” in early 1991.
Considering it was best theatre in Vancouver, that was kind of a sour note to leave off on!
I remember going this theatre on opening night when Titanic premiered.
I think this theatre had the fourth or fifth highest ticket sales in North America during its first five or six months of operation.
People were driving in from all over the lower mainland to experience the first “Jumbo” megaplex.
That’s right. I forgot they actually had a Cineplex and Famous Players right across from one another. I guess this made sense at the time when each chain had exclusive rights from the major studios.
Famous Players had Warner Bros, Paramount, MGM, Touchstone, Disney and Cineplex Odeon had Universal, Orion, Columbia, Tri-Star, New Line.
These exclusive deals semmed to go out the window when the 18-plex Silver City theatres popped up.
Back in March they sold off many of the seats and started dismantling the theatre and lobby (see pictures). Sad to see another theatre disappear.