Comments from bigjoe59

Showing 1,026 - 1,050 of 1,248 comments

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about American Theater on Sep 15, 2013 at 10:52 am

Hello-

i was saddened to hear of the theater’s closing.
i believe that leaves the Bay Plaza as the only
movie theater in the Bronx.

but i don’t understand as a Bow Tie spokesperson said in the News 12 video that he lease can’t be renewed? it not like the building was something else previously and the owner wanted to return it to its original use. it was built as a movie theater. so i assume we’re dealing with a typical greedy NY landlord.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Sep 12, 2013 at 12:19 pm

Hello from NYC-

I haven’t been out to L.A. in a few years and did enjoy going to the Chinese. to which my question- with all the hoopla about the IMAX-ing of the auditorium while keeping the renowned architectural design as anyone heard anything about the 3-D…ing of The Wizard of Oz. if the retrofit into 3-D of the 1939 film just doesn’t work that won’t be a good omen for the reopening.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre on Sep 10, 2013 at 1:00 pm

to techman707-

i thank you for your help with my previous questions. in fact you have a detailed knowledge of this particular theater. to which my new two part question.

*on page 4 of the photo gallery is an ad for “Frankenstein” and “Sitting Bull”. so was the ad for the 1931 horror classic for the original 1st run engagement or a subsequent 2nd run. also it seems the big grand old movie theaters of Times Square played as many B movies as they did A movies. to which i’m guessing the western about one of the most prominent Native Ameericans was considered a B movie.

*on the last page of the photo gallery is a pic of the marquee during the roadshow engagement of “The Shoes of the Fisherman” which i believe opened Nov. of 1968. now the side of the marquee has the title in the typeface used in the ads with a collage of the major characters in the film. yet on the front of the marquee the title is spelled out in plain ordinary block letters. wasn’t kind of tacky for a roadshow engagement?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre on Sep 9, 2013 at 11:45 am

Hello-

the last film I saw at this theater before it closed was “Living Out Loud” with Holly Hunter and Queen Latifah. i’m 99.9% sure it was in the downstairs auditorium. to which my question- what was the last film to play here when it was still a single screen theater at which point i believe it was still called the Demille.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Cinema Studio 1 & 2 on Sep 8, 2013 at 1:05 pm

Hello-

I liked going to the Cinema Studio since it played many prominent low budget indie American films and top foreign language films. a two part question-

1.i’m guessing that the theater(and the surrounding buildings)were torn down because eventhough the theater was quite popular the land underneath it became worth more than the theater could ever bring in at the box office.

2.as stated by Al A. it opened as the Arcade in 1919. i’m guessing it opened from the get go as a 2nd/3rd run neighborhood theater. so when did it become a 1st run venue? when it became the Cinema Studio?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 29, 2013 at 12:42 pm

Hello-

I have to be frank and say i find much of the tech numbers mentioned a bit confusing. admittedly i’m no techno wiz. to which what I hope is a simple question- when the 3-D TWOO opens the end of Sept. will they be able to mask the screen so all we see is the movie? whatever the dimensions of a screen it drives me up a ****** wall when it is not properly masked and you see unused screen on the top, bottom or sides.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 22, 2013 at 11:44 am

Hello-

I suppose we shall have to wait and see. I have found the discussion of the Chinese' new IMAX installation fascinating to say the least. it kind of resembles my opinion of the IMAX screens in Manhattan. the only real or true IMAX screen is the one at the Loew’s Lincoln Square on Bway and 68th St. the other IMAX screens in Manhattan are not quite so.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 22, 2013 at 11:44 am

Hello-

I suppose we shall have to wait and see. I have found the discussion of the Chinese' new IMAX installation fascinating to say the least. it kind of resembles my opinion of the IMAX screens in Manhattan. the only real or true IMAX screen is the one at the Loew’s Lincoln Square on Bway and 68th St. the other IMAX screens in Manhattan are not quite so.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Liberty Theatre on Aug 22, 2013 at 10:30 am

Hello-

i’m sorry to hear of the theater being gutted by fire especially since the structure could have been renovated and saved. as we say in NYC i bet it was “a business fire”. whenever an historic renovatable building in NYC is gutted by fire that always my guess as to what happened.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 12, 2013 at 9:22 am

Hello-

I would like someone to explain to me how they can successfully to a 3-D retrofit for a film released in 1939.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 9, 2013 at 6:21 pm

Hello Again-

every grand old theater no matter how state of the art when it opened has to be fine tuned every so often to keep it viable as a 1st run venue. to which my question- other than the auditorium is any other part of the theater being renovated?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 9, 2013 at 12:47 pm

Hello-

from what I have read and from Howard H.’s comments the Grand Lake in Oakland appears to be a true gem.

so its fascinating that of all the grand old movie theaters/palaces built in the 1914-1941 building boom the Chinese is the only one built from the get go as a 1st run venue and has continued to operate as such since the day it opened. when you consider the countless grand old movie theaters/palaces that were built in all 50 states that the Chinese is the only one to operate as a 1st run venue since the day is opened is beyond remarkable.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Aug 9, 2013 at 12:32 pm

Hello-

I also remember the original exclusive 1st run
engagement of “Close Encounters”. it was Nov. of
1977 and there were lines around the block for
just about every screening on the weekend.

its nice that Bow Tie will continue to operate this theater well into the future. one would have thought the age of the multiplex would have doomed into oblivion theaters such as the Ziegfeld.

how this theater has stayed open when you consider the land underneath it is worth way more than the theater could ever bring in is one of the great mysteries.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 8, 2013 at 9:54 am

Hello-

I thank Robert A. for his reply. while I know of the Grand Lake Theater in Oakland i wasn’t aware it opened as a 1st run theater and has continued to operate as such since the day it opened as has the Chinese.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 6, 2013 at 2:40 pm

Hello-

i thank Howard H. for the info. i was under the assumption that the Uptown in D.C. had opened as a 1st run theater but according to you it only became 1st run in the late 50s.

therefore that makes the Chinese distinctive in that its the only grand old movie theater/palace built in the 1914-1941 building boon that opened as a 1st run theater and has continued to operate as such since the day it opened.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Aug 3, 2013 at 9:55 am

Hello from NYC-

I have to agree with Escott N. that as long as the new owners preserve the original architectural design,ornamentation, elements etc….. while in the process of upgrading the sound and projection systems one can’t complain to much.

also there’s one very interesting distinction about this theater that i’m betting few people realize. the the heyday of building grand old movies theaters/ palaces was approx. 1914 -1941. when I first came upon this delightful website I created a task for myself- to find any grand old movie theaters/palaces that were built from the get go as 1st run venues and have continued to operate as such since the day they opened. needless to say I have centered my search on big cities. of the searching I’ve done so far I have found a grand total of 2- the Uptown in D.C. and this theater. amazing when you think about it.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Vitascope Hall on Aug 2, 2013 at 3:20 pm

was the original Vitascope Hall of 1896 built from the ground up with the sole intent of showing flickers or was it simple a already existing retail space redone as a movie theater?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Gem Theatre on Jul 31, 2013 at 1:18 pm

Hello-

the Crescent/Gem was designed and built to showcase films as well as vaudeville and as such opened on the night of Dec. 16, 1909. so doesn’t that make it the 1st theater built brick by brick from the ground up in Manhattan for the purpose of showing movies?

for the next several years after the faithful night of April 23, 1896 at Koster and Bial’s Music Hall i should think any “movie theaters” that existed in Manhattan were simply music halls and vaudeville/legitimate theaters converted to show flickers as they were known.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jul 4, 2013 at 10:49 am

Hello-

I read the article for which Mike posted the link in which Charles B. Moss Jr. the CEO of Bow Tie is interviewed. he states the Chelsea multiplex will get a redo since unlike the Ziegfeld Clearview has let let it grow shabby over the years. I just went to the theater this past Sat. 6/29 to see “I’m So Excited” and the theater was in fine shape. in fact the redesign done by Clearview after they took over
from Cineplex Odeon is still in great shape. so how is the Chelsea in shabby condition?

the Ziegfeld is in fact in “shabbier” shape per se since they’ve never bothered fixing the curtain.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Loew's Capitol Theatre on Jun 20, 2013 at 11:47 am

Hello-

shouldn’t the last line in the intro be changed? the original Cinerama roadshow engagement of “2001” did not end when the Capitol was closed previous to being demolished. it immediately continued at the Warner Cinerama at 47th St. and Bway.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Jun 17, 2013 at 2:03 pm

Hello-

i appreciate Escott N.’s thoughts on the 3-D retro- fitting of “The Wizard of Oz”. i saw “Man of Steel” this past weekend and the 3-Dness of the 3-D was negligible. so i simply don’t see how they can use elements of a film made in 1939 to successfully do a retrofit.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Jun 16, 2013 at 4:59 pm

Hello-

i have been wondering how can they retrofit a film from 1939 into 3-D? it seems to me to be just greed to get as much $$$ out of the public.

in fact i have seen few films actually shot in
3-D where the 3-D was worth higher surcharge.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about AMC Lincoln Square 13 on Jun 9, 2013 at 2:21 pm

Hello-

i wonder if anyone especially the theater’s management has realized that the info on the plaques next to the auditoriums entrances aren’t always? for instance the plaque for the Loew’s Capitol says it was torn down at the end of 1967. so i wonder how i saw “2001: A Space Odyssey” in its original Cinerama roadshow engagement at the Capitol the last week of April 1968? i am highly surprised even shocked to a certain degree that the plaques weren’t fact checked before they were put up.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Fine Arts Theatre on Jun 9, 2013 at 11:01 am

Hello-

i’m wondering how many of my fellow posters attended all 3 roadshow engagements hosted by this theater-A Man for All Seasons, The Charge of the Light Brigade and The Trojan Women.

The Fine Arts is the only art house that i can
think of that hosted more than 1 roadshow engagement.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about TCL Chinese Theatre on Jun 7, 2013 at 11:04 am

Hello From NYC-

i hope this isn’t a silly question. if the auditorium is being done over into an IMAX theater does that mean it can only play IMAX movies? if that is correct then doesn’t that limit the commercial viability of the theater?