The future of military base theaters is probably going to follow the recent pattern established by AAFES by partnering with a theater chain operator and operating the theater jointly as part of retail/entertainment center with a number of franchised operations. An example would be the ten-screen theater that was opened at Fort Bliss in 2010, jointly operated by AAFES and Southern Theatres.
There is an update within the article, about halfway down; the new owner is the current operator of the Congress. I hope for the best, but I do not think this bodes well for the long-term future of the Portage as a full time cinema.
The Picture House an be partially seen in this photo taken sometime in the 1930’s, and a picture of soldiers marching into the theatre in 1937 can be seen here.
There is additional information and pictures of this theater on this theater’s entry page at CinemaTour. It was part of of a small group of automated theaters built by Jack Loeks as part of a division called AutoCiné. The two 350 seat theaters were built with a common projection room.
I do not know when you were there last, chicagomike, but there have been substantial improvements both along Hollywood Boulevard and in the surrounding area. I would not call it a slum anymore.
The Chinese, while still a revered institution, has had some challenges over the last few years. Take a look at its page here on CT and you will see what I mean.
Finally, the Egyptian really is not what I would call a first run theater; as the home of the American Cinemathéque, it shows a mix of classics, themed retropectives, documentaries, and other films not often seen in commercial theaters, Depending on the day of the week in a particular month, it might be closed.
What I long for is full restoration of the Hollywood Pacific.
There is additional information about this theatre here and here; here is some information about the period when it was the Studio 7, and finally here is some additional detail about its last years as a cinema.
Well, now let me think. Could it be because the King’s is an outstanding example of a Rapp & Rapp movie palace, irreplacable in its design and architecture? Could it be that some events are better suited to a large, luxurious proscenium theater than a sterile, curtained off chunk of an arena better suited to sports events? Or might it be the fact that a functioning theater like the Kings stimulates a neighborhood’s small business environment more than an arena that will be built over railroad tracks that will be unavailable as a theater for many periods when the basketball team that will play there needs the whole space? Is it very likely that anyone would ever want to stage a film festival or premiere film event in a draped-off portion of a sports arena that this so called “theater” really is? To me, this like asking “Why preserve Radio City Music Hall or the Ziegfield when we could just hang drapes over a part of the Javits Center or the Meadowlands arena?”
One of the principal and foundational purposes of this site is the preservation of theaters in fact, in record, and in memory. I found this question to be totally inappropriate here.
A true chicken-or-the egg question! I am sure that many, if not most of the patrons of the Loop Palaces of the time were just there to see a movie. Based on my experience (I saw quite a number of films in Loop area the late 1960’s and 70’s), the threat of violence was exaggerated, but as they say, perceptions are reality. The Loop theaters, given their proximity to CTA bus and train lines made it easier for the less affluent to have access to a movie theater, as the neighborhood theaters were disappearing in Chicago as they were in other metropolitan areas.
From the theater operators' perspective, these films were what brought people in at the time. During the period in question, parts of the Loop became very downtrodden and there was decreasing foot traffic, as many stores and restaurants were closing and the malls were proliferating in the suburbs. Under such conditions, crime tends to increase, and many Chicagoans who were Loop patrons now went to the suburban theaters both for convenience and due to perceptions of danger. But Chicago was hardly unique with regard to what happened in its central core retail and entertainment area.
In a way, it was fortunate in that in showing some kind of film – any kind of film – the result was that the owners had to do at least some basic maintenance and repair and in doing so, kept the wrecking ball away long enough so that when things got better economically, at least a few palaces were left to restore. The reason that the Oriental and the Chicago survived is at least partially due to what the then-owners did to keep the doors open.
It might be one of the reasons, but not the only or even the most important. The downtown Chicago palaces, like those in many other cities, started their decline as cinemas with the advent of television and the Paramount Consent decree.
With the exception of Michael Todd and Cinestage theaters (which at the end were the Dearborn Cinemas) and perhaps one or two others, none of the really big houses in the Loop went to anything really like soft porn.
Many did go to cheaper horror, kung-fu and exploitation features in the 1960’s and 70’s. But what lead to the demise of so theaters in the Loop was a steep decline of patronage, some of it due to fear of street crime, and a city administration at the time that tended to look at the palaces as desirable parcels of real estate for commercial redevelopment
An article about the closing can be seen here.
That is indeed most likely the reason; AAFES recently the theater at the Dyess Airforce Base for that reason.
The future of military base theaters is probably going to follow the recent pattern established by AAFES by partnering with a theater chain operator and operating the theater jointly as part of retail/entertainment center with a number of franchised operations. An example would be the ten-screen theater that was opened at Fort Bliss in 2010, jointly operated by AAFES and Southern Theatres.
Here is an undated advertisement for the theatre; the caption indicates that the Ladywood Methodist Church now occupies the site.
Scroll down a bit on this webpage to see a picture of the theatre, which, according to its signage, was also known as the New Ashted Row Cinema.
A picture of the ballroom entrance is 1919 is here and a view from 1958 is here.
There is an update within the article, about halfway down; the new owner is the current operator of the Congress. I hope for the best, but I do not think this bodes well for the long-term future of the Portage as a full time cinema.
A picture taken in 1959 can be seen here.
The Picture House an be partially seen in this photo taken sometime in the 1930’s, and a picture of soldiers marching into the theatre in 1937 can be seen here.
A picture supposedly from 1957, though the film advertised was released two years prior: View link
A picture of the theatre from the 1920’s can be seen here.
There is additional information and pictures of this theater on this theater’s entry page at CinemaTour. It was part of of a small group of automated theaters built by Jack Loeks as part of a division called AutoCiné. The two 350 seat theaters were built with a common projection room.
There is additional historical detail about this theatre here, here, and here.
This photo appears to show a remaining fragment of the Andrews' Picture House before the Gaumont Palace was built on the site.
I do not know when you were there last, chicagomike, but there have been substantial improvements both along Hollywood Boulevard and in the surrounding area. I would not call it a slum anymore.
The Chinese, while still a revered institution, has had some challenges over the last few years. Take a look at its page here on CT and you will see what I mean.
Finally, the Egyptian really is not what I would call a first run theater; as the home of the American Cinemathéque, it shows a mix of classics, themed retropectives, documentaries, and other films not often seen in commercial theaters, Depending on the day of the week in a particular month, it might be closed.
What I long for is full restoration of the Hollywood Pacific.
The are four exterior pictures of the Vue Cinema in Plymouth here; each will expand if clicked upon
This theater is open.
There is additional information about this theatre here and here; here is some information about the period when it was the Studio 7, and finally here is some additional detail about its last years as a cinema.
There is some additional information about this theatre here.
According to this webpage, the theatre eventually had five screens before it closed: View link
This heater has switched to all-digital projection: View article
Direct link to the announcement in .pdf form.
Well, now let me think. Could it be because the King’s is an outstanding example of a Rapp & Rapp movie palace, irreplacable in its design and architecture? Could it be that some events are better suited to a large, luxurious proscenium theater than a sterile, curtained off chunk of an arena better suited to sports events? Or might it be the fact that a functioning theater like the Kings stimulates a neighborhood’s small business environment more than an arena that will be built over railroad tracks that will be unavailable as a theater for many periods when the basketball team that will play there needs the whole space? Is it very likely that anyone would ever want to stage a film festival or premiere film event in a draped-off portion of a sports arena that this so called “theater” really is? To me, this like asking “Why preserve Radio City Music Hall or the Ziegfield when we could just hang drapes over a part of the Javits Center or the Meadowlands arena?”
One of the principal and foundational purposes of this site is the preservation of theaters in fact, in record, and in memory. I found this question to be totally inappropriate here.
A true chicken-or-the egg question! I am sure that many, if not most of the patrons of the Loop Palaces of the time were just there to see a movie. Based on my experience (I saw quite a number of films in Loop area the late 1960’s and 70’s), the threat of violence was exaggerated, but as they say, perceptions are reality. The Loop theaters, given their proximity to CTA bus and train lines made it easier for the less affluent to have access to a movie theater, as the neighborhood theaters were disappearing in Chicago as they were in other metropolitan areas.
From the theater operators' perspective, these films were what brought people in at the time. During the period in question, parts of the Loop became very downtrodden and there was decreasing foot traffic, as many stores and restaurants were closing and the malls were proliferating in the suburbs. Under such conditions, crime tends to increase, and many Chicagoans who were Loop patrons now went to the suburban theaters both for convenience and due to perceptions of danger. But Chicago was hardly unique with regard to what happened in its central core retail and entertainment area.
In a way, it was fortunate in that in showing some kind of film – any kind of film – the result was that the owners had to do at least some basic maintenance and repair and in doing so, kept the wrecking ball away long enough so that when things got better economically, at least a few palaces were left to restore. The reason that the Oriental and the Chicago survived is at least partially due to what the then-owners did to keep the doors open.
It might be one of the reasons, but not the only or even the most important. The downtown Chicago palaces, like those in many other cities, started their decline as cinemas with the advent of television and the Paramount Consent decree.
With the exception of Michael Todd and Cinestage theaters (which at the end were the Dearborn Cinemas) and perhaps one or two others, none of the really big houses in the Loop went to anything really like soft porn.
Many did go to cheaper horror, kung-fu and exploitation features in the 1960’s and 70’s. But what lead to the demise of so theaters in the Loop was a steep decline of patronage, some of it due to fear of street crime, and a city administration at the time that tended to look at the palaces as desirable parcels of real estate for commercial redevelopment
An aerial view can be seen here.
Aerial views of the theater and the site as it looks today from the air can be seen here.