Belvidere Cinema
2145 Belvidere Road,
Waukegan,
IL
60085
2145 Belvidere Road,
Waukegan,
IL
60085
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This was a very bland mall cinema, which was located in the mall of the same name. I have almost no information on this place. From the photos I have seen, the letters on its sign look like those used by General Cinemas. It probably was built in the 1970’s or 1980’s.
Village Theatres later operated this place, probably beginning around the same time as the nearby Lakehurst Theatre. Although it looks like new seating had been installed, it was closed by Village circa 2004-2005. A fate that has befallen many cinemas owned by Village!
Contributed by
Paul Fortini
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Theatres closed by the Village Entertainment chain and the years Village operated them:
Biograph: 2002-2004
Burnham Plaza: 2002-2005
Fox Valley: 2002-2003
Golf Glen: 2002-2006
Hinsdale: 2002-2003
Water Tower: 2002-2003
Belvidere: -2004(?) 2005(?)
Notice that all came from Village’s expansion in 2002. Undercapitalized and over-expanded in such a short time
The Belvidere was originally a single-screen theatre built and run by the General Cinema chain. It stayed a single screen for quite some time, even years after the 3 screen GCC Lakehurst was opened up. The last film I remember seeing at the Belvidere when it was a single screen was ‘A Bridge Too far’.
In it’s own way this place was a classic:
http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=6433
Going to the movies 1974 style!
Not to do over any one but as the theater listing states at the time this theater opened at a 2 screen General Cinema and was later split to a 4 at some point likely in the late 80s.
Pemberton Square Cinema 4 was another victim of Village Entertainment. It has been closed now for nearly seven months; it was shut down with the feud over high rent issues with CBL Associattes and Vicksburg has now regressed back another 100 years becouse of this feud. Yet the real hard question that hasn’t been addressed is this: why didn’t this market get a box cinema outside the mall? Now Regel Entertainment Group formally rented that cinema before they sold it to Village Entertainmetn in ‘04. Film wise I can tell Village didn’t do know better. They didn’t do a market study to improve things. Like ask the questions what the customer wanted. Like Regel they continued to target niche market of getting the blacks and teenagers. They never looked at the fact that they lost the teen market to the Jackson Metro area. Especially with Cinemark TinselTown in Pearl,the Malco in Madison and Flowood 15. Poor marketing can also be attributed to its downfall.
And now the mall cinema is closed property at the decaying Pemberton Mall.
Here is a photo of this place.
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Catherine,
The movie poster in the photo is of SCARY MOVIE 2, so the place was open until at least 2001.
Background: Pemberton Cimema 4. Four screen multiplex built sometime in the late'80s. Didn’t come operational unitl the early ‘90s. First owner Regel Entertainment Group under the flag title of United Artist Theatres. Now the Clinton 14 another Regal Entertaintment Property flys that same name. As does the Flowood Cinama 15.
Now Regel didn’t go out of the mall in the late '90s nore during the early part of this decade. Regel sold the Pemberton Cinema to Village Theatres in either 2003 or 04. But for sometime under mismanagement audiences moviegoing declined. Market shifted to the TinselTown in Pearl,Malco17 in Madison;Clinton 14 out of Clinton Ms which is thirty miles from Vicksburg.
Management under both Regel and VillageTheatres didn’t pay attention to the fact that market had shifted to high end cinemas in the Jackson Metro area. Now why would Regel Entertainment sale one of thier properties to a bad operator like VillageTheatres?
Is this cinema still here?
Yes, still standing but not operating. Last year I did some photography in the mall after making friends with a security guard; so hopefully I’ll get into the Cinema sometime.
In the meantime, here’s a shot of the nearly-unmolested 1960s concession area…
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