Seattle Cinerama
2100 4th Avenue,
Seattle,
WA
98121
2100 4th Avenue,
Seattle,
WA
98121
34 people
favorited this theater
Seattle’s Martin Cinerama opened in 1963 using the original Cinerama 3-strip projection technique. But with a shift underway towards 70mm projection, the theater was altered just a few months later, although the enormous curved screen was kept.
The 70mm Cinerama screenings lasted until 1969, when the theater switched to more conventional 35mm projectors. Eventually Cineplex Odeon took over operations. By 1997, the theater was struggling and developers swooped in with plans to repurpose the theater.
Very quickly, Seattle Cinerama lovers began a grassroots effort to save the theater. A year later, Paul Allen (of Microsoft fame), bought the theater for $3 million. Soon after, he orchestrated an immense restoration project that enhanced the theater’s appearance and returned it to its roots—showing films in the Cinerama format.
Re-opened in 1999, the Seattle Cinerama Theater is now one of only three operating Cinerama theaters in the world. This beautifully restored shrine to Cinerama is now one of the most technologically advanced movie theaters ever erected.
Contributed by
Ross Melnick
Want to be emailed when a new comment is posted about this theater?
Just login to your account and subscribe to this theater
Recent comments (view all 165 comments)
Ben-Hur starts here next weekend. It’s a new digital restoration. I wonder if they’ll be using the curved 90-foot screen or the flat 70-foot one? I saw it in New York City a few weeks ago and it was quite spectacular.
wasn’t the New York City Film Festival screening of ‘Ben Hur’ a 4K DLP digital presentation? or was it 35mm – I assumed it was the former.
It was an 8K presentation, and looked like 70mm. It filled a 50-foot flat screen beautifully, at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center.
I assumed they were referring to the 8K restoration of the film, current digital projector are not able to output at 8K, the highest (at the moment) is 4K. Given that the Cinerama has installed a Christie Solaria (4K) projector this should look amazing.
Re-linking to thread.
Hats off to the Cinerama’s team! Anyone who would show the much-maligned ‘South Pacific’ in Todd-AO gets my applause (worth seeing/hearing for Alfred Newman’s music direction alone, let alone Shamroy’s psychedelic color carnival).
I saw ‘Grand Prix’ & ‘2001’ in original release here, life-changing, of course. And in revival, ‘Oklahoma’ (though I think the CinemaScope version is better in subtle ways). Presentation of pix like ‘Exorcist’, ‘Excalibur’ and ‘Barry Lyndon’ at the Cinerama always made you feel like their celluloid was twice as wide as it really was.
Hopefully, a future festival might showcase not only ‘Grand Prix’ but anything and everything in Ultra-Panavision 70, from ‘Raintree County’ to ‘Fall of the Roman Empire’ (the Forum scenes outdo anything in ‘Cleopatra’ by a mile), plus ‘Mad World’, ‘Hallelujah Trail’, etc. And what about ‘El Cid’, ‘King of Kings’, ‘Exodus’, ‘Dr. Z’ & ‘Ryan’s Daughter’?
Seeing the restored 1954 ‘A Star Is Born’ here in the 80s also proved that plain old CinemaScope looks pretty dandy, too. I’d also add ‘The Egyptian’ as a reason to make a pilgrimage, as well. (For CinemaScope presentation, the mega-screen was specially masked top and bottom with matte cloth for 2.55:1 a/r; the attention to detail was impeccable.)
I’m a realist though, acquiring worthy prints of these more obscure titles might be impossible.
PS: I saw ‘Ben-Hur’ in its ‘69 re-release, which played at the Paramount across town. Supposedly, like 'Gone/Wind’, it was in 70, but having worked at the Paramount in the 70s, and having examined the projectors, they were just Simplex 35mm – I had expected Norelco/Philips 35/70 hardware, but no…
I think I’d go back to Seattle just for Ryan’s Daughter. Doctor Zhivago was considered for this year’s festival, but ultimately rejected because it was shot in 35mm Panavision and then blown up to 70mm.
I dunno…they’re claiming an 8k showing on their site. Check it out.
@ GregF: The Cinerama’s facebook page denotes the projection at 2K. Why though Warner’s did not create a 4K DCP of ‘Ben Hur’ to take advantage of the film’s original 70mm photography is bewildering.
The Cinerama site said 8k. I know their FB page said 2K and I pointed out the difference. Oh well. It doesn’t matter now. It’s a done deal. Hope it works out better for the 75th.