Cinema Treasures

Preservationists win partial victory in battle to save Metro Theater

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:45:10 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- According to this article, the developer who wants to repurpose the Metro Theater on Union Street has agreed to preserve at least some of the historic interior:

The deadlock between historic preservationists and developers who want to renovate the old Metro movie theater on Union Street loosened Monday when both sides agreed to compromise. The Board of Supervisors Land Use and Economic Development Committee supported landmark status for the exterior of the 1924 theater, and the developer extended a commitment to preserve some of the historic features inside, including a series of Heinsbergen murals, Ionic columns, grills and urns on the stage.

Read the full story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Laie Theater reopening as Palms Cinemas

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:40:33 GMT

LAIE, HI -- A much loved local cinema is reopening as the Palms Cinemas under new ownership.

The Laie community and BYUH students have shown great enthusiasm about the reopening of the Laie movie theater. Since the theater closed in early 2008, Don and Alicen Nielsen, who recently moved to Laie from the Central Coast of California, have decided to reopen the theater as an independent theater called Laie Palms Cinemas. The Nielsens arrived for the Fall 2008 semester. Alicen was accepted to BYUH to complete her IDS degree in Art and Anthropology. Don had been looking for a job. Despite his previous experience in finance business and having worked at a bank in California, he was not successful in finding a job. Alicen saw a letter from a community member posted on campus that said that if the community had known Laie Cinemas was going to go out of business they would have gladly paid more. Alicen felt like something should be done and talked with her husband about starting a family business. Alicen believed they were lucky and blessed with the timing of everything.

Read the full story in Ke Alaka'i.

Favoring the ticket kiosk

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:34:19 GMT

Christopher Campbell blogs about his love for the simple ticket kiosks and how they're still overlooked often.

Expect long lines at your local box office this week thanks to Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Public Enemies, and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. But remember you can always avoid the long line at the ticket booth by buying your tickets at a ticket kiosk instead. No, you don't have to have already purchased your tickets online. As long as you have a debit or credit card, you can just walk up to a kiosk and get your tickets easily and quickly. Plus, you avoid at least one impolite theater employee. Certainly this isn't a new concept, and you're probably reading this and wanting to comment with something like, "how is this news?" But I find it surprising how many times I go to the theater and see people lined up down the block while the kiosks inside sit mostly unused. The lack of traffic to these ticket machines may have something to do with the fact that they're so quick -- those who use them are probably already in the theater, because it only took them a few seconds to get their movie ticket.

Read the full post at the Weekly Moviegoer.

Remembering Cinerama (Part 34: Nanuet/Rockland County)

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:55:50 GMT

REMEMBERING CINERAMA Part 34: Nanuet/Rockland County The following is Part Thirty-Four 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 events 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 And now... Part 34: Cinerama Presentations in Nanuet/Rockland County, New York!

Laserium takes over Hollywood's Vine Theatre

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:40:59 GMT

HOLLYWOOD, CA -- The movies have ended at the 1937 theater originally known as the Admiral, later the Vine. Yet there are several screens set up in the theater just off the world-famous corner of Hollywood & Vine. Laserium, which enjoyed a nearly 30-year run at the Griffith Observatory, has taken over the Hollywood movie house, which for years had played second-run double features to audiences that often numbered in the single digits. Will Pink Floyd, the Beatles, and Led Zep set to lasers be enough to lure a serious tourist crowd and not just nostalgic L.A. stoners? I wrote about the rebirth of Laserium, and the theater's unusual adaptive reuse, in this L.A. Times story.

Walk into the Vine Theatre's auditorium and you may be shocked at how much it still looks like the second-run movie house it was until late 2007. About 200 seats were removed to make way for a stage area and control panels in the rear -- but the 424 that remain are the same funky orange seats that moviegoers of a few years ago will recall. They don't recline like the Observatory's chairs, but they don't need to: Producers insist the days of chiropractor-friendly neck-craning have come to an end, because all the action is at panoramic eye level. Each show starts with animations projected on the former movie screen, then expands the action to three semi-transparent scrims closer to the audience, two additional screens on the side walls, mirrors, and -- new to the Laserium experience, surprisingly enough -- real mid-air effects. "We weren't allowed to put haze in the planetarium to light up laser beams," explains Dryer, "so we really couldn't do beam effects very well there, which always frustrated us"

Read the full post at the Los Angeles Times.

Varsity Theatre closes its doors forever

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:35:16 GMT

CHAPEL HILL,NC -- After initially reporting the possibility, as of Friday, June 26,2009....the only movie theatre located in Downtown Chapel Hill, the Varsity Theatre, closed its doors forever.

The Varsity, whose theater marquee is the icon of Franklin Street, is closing according to its owner Bruce Stone. Despite rumors and blogs that said the theater was going to close, it wasn't official until Stone made the announcement on Thursday, June 25, 2009. The theater has been in business for 80 years and it is considered to be a Chapel Hill landmark serving not only the residents and patrons, but also serving the entire communities of Orange County, including nearby University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The last two picture shows that played at the Varsity were "The Hangover", and "The Brothers Bloom".

More on this at the Herald Sun(reg rqr'd).

Classic Film Theaters in New Jersey and New York?

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:49:01 GMT

It seems that showing "classic" films in theaters today can often be a hit-or-miss project. I've attended classic film programs at the great Loews Jersey, the Lafayette, Suffern, New York, Film Forum and the Cedar Lane Cinema in Teaneck, NJ....... are there any other venues in the New Jersey/New York area that show classic and independent films on a regular basis?

Morningside Theatre info

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:45:33 GMT

NEW YORK, NY -- The following is a request for a new member, Marya Pollack, looking for information regarding the Morningside Theatre, once run by her family: My great-grandmother ran it from about 1908-1915 and I believe other family members before her. I have a copy of the theatre license but can you help me track down any paperwork they might have filed? My great aunt used to play the piano for the movies there. I have some pictures of actors but I don't know if they were part of this theatre. For over a decade all I had was Amalia Steinberg's calling card with a fragment of the theatre name. The license gives the exact address 2135-8 8th Ave as well as another theatre at 1217 Prospect Ave. I'd love to find out who actually filled out the request for the license as there are no first names on it. Amalia's maiden name was Weissman (Wiseman, Weisman) and she married a Bernard Steinberg, who ran several restaurants but she is listed in the NYC Directory as "theatre owner" after he died in 1908. Much of the two families were reportedly in theatre and early film in Manhattan and "amusements" in Coney Island, but it has been a huge struggle to find anything out. Another relative, Samuel Weisman is listed as working at "Philum's Motion Picture Studio." Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

How to cope with sensory integration at the movie theater for your special need kids

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:42:14 GMT

This article discusses issues that may arise from taking a special needs child to the movies.

Do your children with special needs enjoy going to the movies? It is often a somewhat traumatic experience, yet the joys of modern day entertainment on the big screen are enough to entice you kids into the theater. Here are common reasons a child will have trouble in a modern day movie theater. Sound levels - With the new digital sound offered in many theaters, the film's noise level is worthy of a good pair of ear plugs for even those of who hear normally. But, for someone with super sensitive hearing, that noise level is enough to hurt them or drive them insane in a really short amount of time.

Read the full story in the Examiner.

Drive-in in danger of closing

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:45:57 GMT

GLEN DALE, WV -- The Glen Dale Drive-in might close due to poor business.

The Glendale Drive-In Theater, located in Marshall County, is in jeopardy of closing unless more movie goers start showing up, 7 News learned. The owners say they're doing all they can to keep the drive-in open. Friday night they're bringing in a live band to begin at 7p.m. and play up until the movie starts and then the band will begin performing again during the intermission between the two movies.

Read the full story in the State Journal.

RealD achieves 100% growth worldwide

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:45:32 GMT

More and more theaters are equipping themselves for RealD as the company makes huge gains.

RealD announced today that it has doubled its installation base of RealD 3D equipped cinema screens worldwide and notched 400% growth in Europe in the first half of 2009. Far and away the world's largest 3D cinema platform, RealD's network of theatres is expanding at a breathtaking clip, nearly doubling the number of 3D cinema installations of all other 3D providers combined. The RealD 3D platform now accounts for over 8,700 screens under contract and over 3,200 screens installed in more than 45 countries with over 200 exhibition partners.

Cinemark makes deal with T.I.

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:40:22 GMT

Trying to keep up with Sony, Texas Instruments announces a deal with Cinemark along with mentioning they will be rolling out 4K projectors next year.

Current leader Texas Instruments has revealed that during 2010 it aims to incorporate 4K resolution as part of its next-gen projection technology platform, which will be offered in projectors from its licensees Barco, Christie Digital and NEC. Meanwhile, Barco inked a significant deal with Cinemark to deploy the developing 4K technology exclusively on all Cinemark screens.

Rialto Theater for sale

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:50:15 GMT

KENEDY, TX -- The Rialto Theater is for sale. Selling for what we have invested, $10,000. We need to sell it to help family with medical issues. It needs a complete rehab. The beginnings of rehab were started. The marque glass was removed and replaced with plastic. Some of the original pink tinted marque glass and holders are inside the building. The interior has been gutted including walls. There is a balcony but the floor was stripped out and the boards are scattered in several areas. There was water damage due to a leak along the length of the building. A temporary patch was placed to prevent further damage. There are no seats in this theater. There is some kind of speaker box on the stage. In the projector room are 3 carbon rod projectors and a power unit. Don't know if it works. On the walls are a couple of murals made of cloth.

Theater operators upbeat at Cinema Expo

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:45:35 GMT

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS -- At the annual Cinema Expo, exhibitors were upbeat about the year in film and upcoming technologies.

The credit crunch has stalled many digital screen conversions. But exhibs came away pleased with sneak peeks of films screened throughout the week, and most believe d-cinema and 3-D projection will spread through the marketplace eventually, further bolstering business. "It's been a really great week, with many exciting movies and exciting lineups," said Peter Janovsky of Hollywood Megaplex, which operates 48 screens in five Austrian theaters. "In 2009, we have had a very good year -- the best in three years -- and the future looks positive."

Power projector heads questions

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:31:14 GMT

I have 4 old power projector heads and a couple of bases. Any idea of their value?

Hollywood in Fullerton Gala

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:15:57 GMT

FULLERTON, CA -- Hollywood in Fullerton: Celebrating the decade of the 70s. Join us at 7pm for our 6th annual Hollywood in Fullerton Gala at the historic downtown Fox Fullerton Theatre on June 27, 2009. This year's theme celebrates movies and the popular culture of the 1970s. Save the date and join us for a groovy time. Official Website

Senator Theater auction

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:10:14 GMT

BALTIMORE, MD -- Baltimore's much-loved Senator Theater is going to be auctioned on Wednesday, July 22, at 11:00 a.m. The auction will take place at the Senator (5904-06 York Road, Baltimore, MD 21212. Built in 1939 in the Art Deco style, the single-screen Senator Theater is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a local landmark. A glass block and limestone facade, colorful backlighting, and �walk of fame� sidewalk distinguish the building�s exterior and grounds, while original terrazzo floors and Art Deco murals grace the lobby. The theater seats 900, including two skyboxes for private parties. Technical specifications include a 40� curved screen, Bauer U2 Projector with top of the line German lenses, Dolby Digital sound with surround EX, and user-controlled digital sound in the skyboxes. Films can be screened in 35MM or 70MM.

Cinema Treasures adds its 25,000th theater

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 15:15:58 GMT

Cinema Treasures passed the 25,000-theater mark this past week as our database of theaters keeps growing at a blistering pace. Thank you to all of the thousands of contributors who have made Cinema Treasures a destination site for movie theater exhibitors and patrons, journalists, and researchers. Finally, a special thank you to Bryan Krefft and our theater editor extraordinaire, Ken Roe, whose tireless dedication and expertise are the reason Cinema Treasures is what it is today. Thank you again and see you at 30,000. :) Ross Melnick and Patrick Crowley Co-founders, Cinema Treasures

RFP for Hollywood Theater

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:55:58 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS, MN -- The City of Minneapolis issued a Request for Proposals for redevelopment of the Hollywood Theater.

The City�s redevelopment goals for the site include renovation of the existing structure to accommodate a viable commercial use while preserving the character-defining features of the building and the option for future use as a theater. This RFP will consider a wide range of commercial uses of the theater building. Proposals that involve a theater or entertainment reuse will be considered, but so will proposals with other commercial uses such as office and/or retail. Any proposals with a non-theater use must address how they will preserve the option for reuse as a theater in the future, if such an option arises. Residential uses are not allowed at the site.

Oscars expanding to 10 best picture nominees

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:40:31 GMT

The Motion Picture Academy has decided to return to their old system of ten Best Picture nominees instead of five. There will still be only one winner. The mind boggles as to how they will find ten worthy nominees when even five was often pushing it.

Decades ago, the Oscars had up to 10 best picture nominees for several years. "Gone With the Wind" famously beat a number of great films for best picture in 1939, including "Stagecoach," "Goodbye, Mr. Chips," "Ninotchka," "The Wizard of Oz" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." But in the mid-1940s, the system changed to its present five films, and five films it's been ever since. That's led to any number of crowd-pleasing but not "Oscar-worthy" (as the Academy believes) films not making the cut. Just last year, there were howls of protest for the failure of "The Dark Knight" to crack the Academy�s top five.

Call for 3D Olympics screenings

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:50:42 GMT

A former producer fights for more digital film acceptance in Great Britain and for the Olympics to be shown in theaters in 3D.

Digital technology could enable the 2012 Olympics to be shown in 3D in cinemas across the UK, former film producer Lord Puttnam has said. It should be possible to show the London Olympics "every single day in 3D on every screen in the country", he said at the Edinburgh Film Festival.

The Future beyond the movie theater

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:45:05 GMT

A piece at Salon.com discusses the steps we're taking to get closer to feature films being primarily released online.

But online distribution remains an insignificant factor in the film economy (if anything, movie theaters are thriving in the current recession), and it represents a tiny proportion of the video watched on computer screens. One could argue, in fact, that feature films and the Internet are mismatched forms of media; the former demands long stretches of undivided attention while the latter thrives on multitasking, rapid response time and brief info-bursts. When was the last time you spent 90 minutes or more sitting at your computer and looking at the same thing?

"Radical Civility" for movie manners

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:40:54 GMT
John Kelly of the Washington Post details some of his thoughts on approaching the issue of dealing with bad movie theater behavior.
1. We hold this truth to be self-evident: People ought to be able to go to the movies without being disturbed by the behavior of others. Increasingly, that behavior includes texting during the film. The bright light of the screen is distracting, taking us out of our reverie. It ought not happen. We are determined to address it. 2. We start from the assumption that most movie texters are clueless, not evil. They just haven't thought about what they're doing.

Due to Boyd Theatre, Philadelphia passes law to protect public interiors

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:48:49 GMT
PHILADELPHIA, PA -- The movement to save Philadelphia's last premiere movie palace, the Boyd Theatrea has led Philadelphia to pass a law to protect landmark public interiors!
City Council yesterday approved two measures that could boldly affect the way the city looks, by establishing a vision for waterfront development and protecting historic buildings' interiors. The bills, which would create a 100-foot setback along seven miles of Delaware River waterfront and allow interiors to be designated as historic, passed by overwhelming margins, and Mayor Nutter has indicated he would sign them into law.
Read the full story in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Hidden gem: American Movie Palace Museum

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:45:51 GMT
ELMHURST, IL -- My Suburban Blogs looks at the Theatre Historical Society of America's American Movie Palace Museum.
The 40-year-old society that collects information on theater architecture oversees the American Movie Palace Museum and the American Theatre Architecture Archives on the second floor of the York Theatre in downtown Elmhurst. Konrad Schiecke, a society member since 1991, has used the archives to write two books: "Historic Movie Theatres in Illinois, 1883-1960" and "Historic Movie Theatres of Wisconsin: Nineteenth Century Opera Houses through 1950s Playhouses, Town by Town."