Oh please… we tried all of that in the 50s, remember Mike Todd’s Scent of Mystery" or William Castle’s “Tingler” What’s next a nurse in the lobby in case you have a heart attack watching a horror movie?….yeah we did that in the 50s as well. It did not work then it ain’t gonna work now.
Tinseltoes thanks so much for that link to the Box-office magazine archives. I have often wished I had saved my original copies. I recall how I would look forward to the new addition and now I can relive those wonderful glory days of movies.
Hey Mark, It’s a sad story I have heard over and over this past year but I thought NA handled the transition well giving all the boys plenty of notice time. I have a hard time accepting the death of film which was a big part of my life for so many years. We sure had fun in the booth did we not, that Amboy booth was quite the adventure. After hiring you for the position at City Center my worries in the booth(s) disappeared you handled it so well. I don’t know if you remember what I said to you after interviewing you for the projection job at City Center, I asked one of the managers to take you on a tour of the four projection booths and said to you “after you see what you are getting yourself into and still want the job it’s yours.” I marveled at how clean and organized you kept those projection rooms and how well you handled moving those prints from booth to booth which was no easy task. Best of luck to you.
Your welcome Bill, I enjoy recalling the good ole days of projection from the 50s when we experenced so many new toys to play with. It seemed every year we had some new improved and fun way to project movies.
Many theatres In 1954 projected GWTW through a 1.66:1 plate, with the cropping occuring at the bottom of the 1.37:1 frame so as not to cut off any heads. Some action scenes with important action occuring in the bottom portion of the frame were cropped at the top of the image and re-centered
How exciting to see this magnificent theatre on “Smash” Sure brought back many memories, the marquee looks to have been resored and looks magnificent.To think we almost lost this gem but thankfully it was saved I wondered if any one knows what is in the booth these days have the 35mm projectors been removed for spots?
I absolutly love the new curtain
Perhaps for those of us unable to visit the theatre someone could photograph the curtain opening and closing and post it on You Tube
Simon I would like to point out that although CinemaScope 55 was projected in 35mm we had the advantage of the higher resolution quality from the 35mm reduction prints. Much like VistaVision which Paramount abandoned in 1963 the standard 35mm vertical reduction prints from the horizontal VV negative was rather good. I can only imagine what those images would look today projected thru the much improved Schnieder Isco lenses we have today which are a cut above the Bausch and Lomb.
Peter that was the first thing I said to him. With Smoke coming out of my ears and fire out of my mouth I reduced the little twerp to rubble and walked away. As Professor Higgins once said “I am a gentle man BUT…let a women (in his case idiot in my life :)
Oh yes Bill I shall never forget the day I went to that opening and confronted that fool running that control panel who said something along the lines of “We don’t need the man in the booth anymore” I went off on him like a bomb, I could not accept a 306 guy telling people that, it was a touchy subject at the time with all that automated stuff about to pounce on us. We knew it was the beginning of the end of projection as we knew and loved it but I still was not ready or willing to accept it. Little did we know that platters were just waiting in the wings to pounce on us or the inevitable replacement of film with Digital. “Won’t need the guy in the booth” indeed has sadly come to pass.
Bill I am a bit confussed what did you mean
“Here is the console”
The link took me to movie ads. Ole age perhaps but I can not recall why you sent me that :)
Did they not install that additional part at the top of the proscenium to accomadate Cirque du Soleil?
I understood that it would be removed when that show leaves in 2-3 years because it would better than removing it now and have to reinstalled when Cirque returns next summer.
How has the 3-D LED screen been working has it been behaving properly? Looks like a magnificent effect
Thanks Mark I dont know why I did not just do that. Appperently the image hosting site I used hosts pornographic material as well as he more family suitable images, I was not aware of that till now and will of course never use it again. I still do no understand how the link went that image instead of the movie poster I put up, a very sick joke if you ask me My aplogies once again to those of you who clicked on that link. Meanwhile yes indeed “Tunnel Of Love” was shot in CinemaScope and Black & White
I have no exlanation as to why that link takes you to that awful picture. It should have gone to movie posters. I have written and complained to the website If you have not used that link please do not. My aplogies to those of you who have.
It had a hugh projection room with a shower in the bathroon and large windows overlooking the turnpike.
Of course working for Century in the day was the ultimate job for a projectionist.
St George I worked on that booth a few years back and left in usable two projector operation. Some additional work was recomended on the gear train on projector #2 and the scope lenses were mising but it was a workable operation The sound system, stage speaker and lamp houses were all working fine. What has happened up there since?
Thanks for that responce I sorta thought they were cooling of some kind but they semed a-bit-much for that purpose,124 degrees yikes. Temperature was also a problem with the 70mm IMAX which ran off of platters. In order to keep the film from warping and sticking together on the platter we had to introduce enough humidity into the booth to turn it into an African rainforest. :)The new Digital IMAX of course does not have that problem but sd you have explained needs cooling. Yes, I recall now REendes telling us about the change in the lamphouse for the 3-D
Jay, You are referring to the xenon exhaust vents on the film projecors, What I am interested in are the giant tubes next to the digital machines If you look at the just posted pictures of the booth you will see what I mean.
Thanks rcdt55b for those booth pictures I enjoyed seeing those.
Question if I may, what in the world are those huge tubes hanging down next to the digital projectors? They appear to be some sport of blowers to keep things cool? Also the lamp house for the #4 35/70 film projector looks different then the ones for #2 and 3 did you change that and why?
I can see now why movies won’t be shown digitally with those projectors they seem to be for effects rather than projecting a movie.
Best of luck with the shows have fun up there and of course please keep us informed
Oh please… we tried all of that in the 50s, remember Mike Todd’s Scent of Mystery" or William Castle’s “Tingler” What’s next a nurse in the lobby in case you have a heart attack watching a horror movie?….yeah we did that in the 50s as well. It did not work then it ain’t gonna work now.
Tinseltoes thanks so much for that link to the Box-office magazine archives. I have often wished I had saved my original copies. I recall how I would look forward to the new addition and now I can relive those wonderful glory days of movies.
Hey Mark, It’s a sad story I have heard over and over this past year but I thought NA handled the transition well giving all the boys plenty of notice time. I have a hard time accepting the death of film which was a big part of my life for so many years. We sure had fun in the booth did we not, that Amboy booth was quite the adventure. After hiring you for the position at City Center my worries in the booth(s) disappeared you handled it so well. I don’t know if you remember what I said to you after interviewing you for the projection job at City Center, I asked one of the managers to take you on a tour of the four projection booths and said to you “after you see what you are getting yourself into and still want the job it’s yours.” I marveled at how clean and organized you kept those projection rooms and how well you handled moving those prints from booth to booth which was no easy task. Best of luck to you.
Your welcome Bill, I enjoy recalling the good ole days of projection from the 50s when we experenced so many new toys to play with. It seemed every year we had some new improved and fun way to project movies.
Many theatres In 1954 projected GWTW through a 1.66:1 plate, with the cropping occuring at the bottom of the 1.37:1 frame so as not to cut off any heads. Some action scenes with important action occuring in the bottom portion of the frame were cropped at the top of the image and re-centered
In an age when film is all but dead to see a theatre presenting a program like this in 35mm and I assume reel to reel just warms my heart
I recall they had an option for 2013, was it not as popular as they had hoped?
Cirque du Soleil opens again soon I wondered if it is the same show as last year and is anyone here working on it?
How exciting to see this magnificent theatre on “Smash” Sure brought back many memories, the marquee looks to have been resored and looks magnificent.To think we almost lost this gem but thankfully it was saved I wondered if any one knows what is in the booth these days have the 35mm projectors been removed for spots?
Tinseltoes that House Of Wax 3-D showing was one the few that were done without intermision. The Paramounts four projector booth made that possible.
I absolutly love the new curtain Perhaps for those of us unable to visit the theatre someone could photograph the curtain opening and closing and post it on You Tube
Simon I would like to point out that although CinemaScope 55 was projected in 35mm we had the advantage of the higher resolution quality from the 35mm reduction prints. Much like VistaVision which Paramount abandoned in 1963 the standard 35mm vertical reduction prints from the horizontal VV negative was rather good. I can only imagine what those images would look today projected thru the much improved Schnieder Isco lenses we have today which are a cut above the Bausch and Lomb.
Peter that was the first thing I said to him. With Smoke coming out of my ears and fire out of my mouth I reduced the little twerp to rubble and walked away. As Professor Higgins once said “I am a gentle man BUT…let a women (in his case idiot in my life :)
Oh yes Bill I shall never forget the day I went to that opening and confronted that fool running that control panel who said something along the lines of “We don’t need the man in the booth anymore” I went off on him like a bomb, I could not accept a 306 guy telling people that, it was a touchy subject at the time with all that automated stuff about to pounce on us. We knew it was the beginning of the end of projection as we knew and loved it but I still was not ready or willing to accept it. Little did we know that platters were just waiting in the wings to pounce on us or the inevitable replacement of film with Digital. “Won’t need the guy in the booth” indeed has sadly come to pass.
Bill I am a bit confussed what did you mean “Here is the console” The link took me to movie ads. Ole age perhaps but I can not recall why you sent me that :)
Thanks red155b always appreciate your imput
If not Cirque why was it installed in the first place?
Did they not install that additional part at the top of the proscenium to accomadate Cirque du Soleil? I understood that it would be removed when that show leaves in 2-3 years because it would better than removing it now and have to reinstalled when Cirque returns next summer. How has the 3-D LED screen been working has it been behaving properly? Looks like a magnificent effect
Thanks Mark I dont know why I did not just do that. Appperently the image hosting site I used hosts pornographic material as well as he more family suitable images, I was not aware of that till now and will of course never use it again. I still do no understand how the link went that image instead of the movie poster I put up, a very sick joke if you ask me My aplogies once again to those of you who clicked on that link. Meanwhile yes indeed “Tunnel Of Love” was shot in CinemaScope and Black & White
I have no exlanation as to why that link takes you to that awful picture. It should have gone to movie posters. I have written and complained to the website If you have not used that link please do not. My aplogies to those of you who have.
It had a hugh projection room with a shower in the bathroon and large windows overlooking the turnpike. Of course working for Century in the day was the ultimate job for a projectionist.
St George I worked on that booth a few years back and left in usable two projector operation. Some additional work was recomended on the gear train on projector #2 and the scope lenses were mising but it was a workable operation The sound system, stage speaker and lamp houses were all working fine. What has happened up there since?
Thanks for that responce I sorta thought they were cooling of some kind but they semed a-bit-much for that purpose,124 degrees yikes. Temperature was also a problem with the 70mm IMAX which ran off of platters. In order to keep the film from warping and sticking together on the platter we had to introduce enough humidity into the booth to turn it into an African rainforest. :)The new Digital IMAX of course does not have that problem but sd you have explained needs cooling. Yes, I recall now REendes telling us about the change in the lamphouse for the 3-D
Jay, You are referring to the xenon exhaust vents on the film projecors, What I am interested in are the giant tubes next to the digital machines If you look at the just posted pictures of the booth you will see what I mean.
Thanks rcdt55b for those booth pictures I enjoyed seeing those. Question if I may, what in the world are those huge tubes hanging down next to the digital projectors? They appear to be some sport of blowers to keep things cool? Also the lamp house for the #4 35/70 film projector looks different then the ones for #2 and 3 did you change that and why? I can see now why movies won’t be shown digitally with those projectors they seem to be for effects rather than projecting a movie. Best of luck with the shows have fun up there and of course please keep us informed