Cinema Treasures | Memories

Not a member yet? Register now.

Maps, Maps, Maps

Cinema Treasures now uses Google Maps to map theater locations!

Search

Theater News

Book Project (16)
Cameos (27)
Commentary (45)
Demolitions (111)
Digital Cinema (68)
Events (473)
For Sale (583)
Help Wanted (319)
Industry News (428)
Memories (311)
Openings/Closings (420)
Preservation Alert (242)
Restorations/Renovations (283)
Site News (102)
Theater News (745)
Theaters In Need (85)
Today's Newsreel (96)

Cinema Treasures Poll

What is your favorite use of existing classical music in a movie?

News Archive

Add Theater News

Got a scoop about your favorite Cinema Treasure?
Tell us about it!

Who's Online?

BobT
KenRoe
Guests: 68

Have theater info, industry events, preservation alerts, or other news
you'd like to share? Add it to our news section!

Memories

Wednesday / November 18, 2009

Memories
Happy 50th, "Ben-Hur"

posted by Michael Coate at 8:00am

BEN-HUR
50th Anniversary — The Roadshow Engagements

Compiled by Michael Coate

Commemorating the golden anniversary of the release of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s 1959 production of “Ben-Hur: A Tale Of The Christ,” I would like to present a list of the award-winning film’s original North American roadshow engagements.

The list, created for the sake of nostalgia and historical record, is noteworthy as it represents a breakdown of the first theaters anywhere to have played the film, and, as far as I know, such a list has never before been published. In addition, this (work-in-progress) article is a celebration of the fondly-remembered “Cinema Treasures” in which the film played as much as it is a celebration of the classic film.

The bookings are listed chronologically by premiere date. Duration data has been included for selected entries, many of which are/were a record for a given market or theater.

23 comments (250 views)

Wednesday / November 11, 2009

Memories
Memories of the downtown theaters of St. Paul

posted by CWalczak at 7:45am

ST. PAUL, MN — In a recent article in the Pioneer Press, writer Tom Webb, former movie critic Bill Diehl, and others recall the movie theaters of downtown St. Paul. The article focuses on the Paramount, Orpheum, Strand, Tower, Riviera, World, and Lyceum, Now only the World (now the Fitzgerald) and the Orpheum are still with us, the latter currently vacant and decaying. The article includes a slide show with pictures of each theater.

Today, in an era of suburban multiplexes, video rentals and movie channels, the movie theater business model is radically different.

Yet, to those who loved downtown’s Technicolor era, the memories are like something from the movies.

‘Wabasha and Seventh was the busiest corner in St. Paul in those days,’ said Rod Ripley, a retiree who remembers the heyday of the ‘40s and ‘50s. ‘All the streetcars met there for transfers and would line up there after midnight to leave on the hour.’

Read the whole article at TwinCities.com.

4 comments (98 views)

Tuesday / November 10, 2009

Memories
Encore showings of "The Wizard of Oz" on Nov. 17, but has it peaked in terms of its appeal?

posted by CWalczak at 7:59am

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - The successful one-night showing of 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz” in hundreds of theaters across the country in September is prompting a second round of screenings in over 300 theaters on November 17.

Tickets for The Wizard of Oz 70th Anniversary Encore Event are available at participating theater box offices and online at www.FathomEvents.com For a complete list of theater locations and prices, please visit the web site (theaters are subject to change).

“Tens of thousands of fans nationwide celebrated the 70th anniversary of this beloved family classic in local movie theaters in September and due to the overwhelming response, we are proud to present a final opportunity for fans to gather again and experience ‘The Wizard of Oz’ on the big screen,” said Dan Diamond, vice president of Fathom.

Read the full announcement at Reuters.

14 comments (240 views)

Monday / November 2, 2009

Memories
Those delightfully goofy William Castle promotional gimmicks

posted by CWalczak at 7:45am

SEATTLE, WA — A recent article in the online Seattle P-I notes that while the internet has been used to promote the success of low budget films such as “Paranormal Activity” and the “The Blair Witch Project,” those of us “of a certain age” fondly recall how schlockmeister William Castle used memorable “promotional innovations” as effectively to create buzz around movies such as “House on Haunted Hill” and “The Tingler”. Many will recall the theaters - many, if not most, themselves now just memories - where we experienced “Emergo,” “Percepto,” and “Illusion-0”

William Castle didn’t just produce scary movies, he PRODUCED scary movies. To him, filming the movie was one thing, but marketing it was quite another. His promotional innovations (or “gimmicks” for you less romantic souls) earned him the title “The Schlockmeister” and he reveled in his reputation. Like a carnie barker, Castle would appear in a filmed segment before the start of each of his movies to hype the special “icing” associated with that particular film.

Read the whole article at Seattle Pi.

7 comments (176 views)

Friday / October 30, 2009

Memories
Happy 50th, "Sleeping Beauty"

posted by Michael Coate at 8:11am

Walt Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty”
50th Anniversary — The Original Engagements

Commemorating the golden anniversary of the release of Walt Disney’s animated film production of “Sleeping Beauty,” I’ve put together a list of the film’s original roadshow* bookings. These were the first cinemas anywhere to play the film and, for the most part, the only ones to showcase the film in 70mm and stereophonic sound. This article is a celebration of the cinemas in which the film played as much as it is a celebration of the classic film.

(*Officially, “Sleeping Beauty” was not a roadshow release since screenings were continuous and seats were not reserved. However, many moviegoers and historians tend to remember the film as a roadshow because the film was booked initially as a 70mm exclusive in roadshow markets.)

The original “Sleeping Beauty” presentations included the CinemaScope short film “Grand Canyon.”

21 comments (340 views)

Friday / October 23, 2009

Memories
Remembering Cinerama (Part 43: New Haven)

posted by Michael Coate at 8:00am

REMEMBERING CINERAMA
Part 43: New Haven

The following is Part Forty-Three in a series of retrospectives on Cinerama, the legendary motion picture process that kicked off the widescreen revolution. The series focuses on providing a market-by-market historical record of when and where Cinerama and its multi-panel clones were exhibited. The easy-to-reference articles serve to provide nostalgia to those who experienced the Cinerama presentations when they were new and to highlight the movie palaces in which the memorable screenings took place.

Part 1: New York City
Part 2: Chicago
Part 3: San Francisco
Part 4: Houston
Part 5: Washington, DC
Part 6: Los Angeles
Part 7: Atlanta
Part 8: San Diego
Part 9: Dallas
Part 10: Oklahoma City
Part 11: Syracuse
Part 12: Toronto
Part 13: Columbus
Part 14: Montreal
Part 15: Northern New Jersey
Part 16: Charlotte
Part 17: Vancouver
Part 18: Salt Lake City
Part 19: Boston
Part 20: Philadelphia
Part 21: Fresno
Part 22: Detroit
Part 23: Minneapolis
Part 24: Albuquerque
Part 25: El Paso
Part 26: Des Moines
Part 27: Miami
Part 28: Orange County
Part 29: Pittsburgh
Part 30: Baltimore
Part 31: Long Island
Part 32: Kansas City
Part 33: Milwaukee
Part 34: Nanuet/Rockland County
Part 35: Denver
Part 36: Worcester
Part 37: Toledo
Part 38: St. Louis
Part 39: Tampa
Part 40: Calgary
Part 41: Hartford
Part 42: Albany

And now...Part 43: Cinerama Presentations in New Haven, Connecticut!

6 comments (188 views)

Friday / October 9, 2009

Memories
Remembering Cinerama (Part 42: Albany)

posted by Michael Coate at 8:14am

REMEMBERING CINERAMA
Part 42: Albany

The following is Part Forty-Two in a series of retrospectives on Cinerama, the legendary motion picture process that kicked off the widescreen revolution. The series focuses on providing a market-by-market historical record of when and where Cinerama and its multi-panel clones were exhibited. The easy-to-reference articles serve to provide nostalgia to those who experienced the Cinerama presentations when they were new and to highlight the movie palaces in which the memorable screenings took place.

And now...Part 42: Cinerama Presentations in Albany, New York!

2 comments (156 views)

Tuesday / September 29, 2009

Memories
Remembering the lost theaters of Boise

posted by CWalczak at 7:45am

BOISE, ID — In a a two-part article recently published in Sunday editions of Idaho Statesman, area historian Arthur Hart writes about the movie theaters of Boise, Idaho. Many, if not most, are long gone, some even from memory. One, however, the Egyptian, still survives.

They didn’t have multiplex movie theaters in Boise a century ago, but Boiseans had a range of choices, all of them Downtown.

In 1910 you also could choose the entertainment offered by the Dime, the Nickelodeon, or the Bijou. In a sequence that was repeated often with those pioneer theaters, the Bijou, at 921 Main, became the Woods in 1912 and the Rex in 1914. In its prime, the Bijou offered six movies a week. In January 1911, these included two comedies, “Tag Day at Silver Gulch” and “The Gardener’s Ladder,” and two dramas, “The Englishman’s Honor” and “Washed Ashore.” A film described in the ad as “industrial” was titled “Wood Carving at Brienz” and “The Home of the Seal” was listed as “educational."

Read the articles here:
Part I
Part II

2 comments (107 views)

Tuesday / September 22, 2009

Memories
"Grandfather" of Salt Lake City film exhibition dies at 77

posted by CWalczak at 7:45am

SALT LAKE CITY, UT — Regarded as Salt Lake’s champion of classic Hollywood films and at one time the operator of a number of the city’s theaters, Arthur Charles Proctor has passed. He is remembered in this article from the Deseret News.

"Art was the city’s single greatest influence for the preservation of classic movies from what we now call the Golden Age — the 1930s, ‘40s and ‘50s,” said Chris Hicks, former Deseret News movie critic and entertainment editor.

“Unlike most film buffs, he didn’t just talk about old movies — he showed them on the big screen in his theaters week after week for years. Then, when VHS movies came on the scene, Art opened a video store and rented those same golden oldies. I’m sure he had the largest collection of classic films in the state, and he loved to share them. His contribution to the local movie scene really can’t be measured."

0 comments (73 views)

Monday / September 21, 2009

Memories
Remembering Cinerama (Part 41: Hartford)

posted by Michael Coate at 8:00am

REMEMBERING CINERAMA
Part 41: Hartford

The following is Part Forty-One in a series of retrospectives on Cinerama, the legendary motion picture process that kicked off the widescreen revolution. The series focuses on providing a market-by-market historical record of when and where Cinerama and its multi-panel clones were exhibited. The easy-to-reference articles serve to provide nostalgia to those who experienced the Cinerama presentations when they were new and to highlight the movie palaces in which the memorable screenings took place.