Westgate Cinema Centre
200 Westgate Drive,
Brockton,
MA
02301
200 Westgate Drive,
Brockton,
MA
02301
1 person
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This was originally built as a twin by General Cinema. In 1971 it was four screens. It was later increased to seven screens, and was operated by Hoyts. The theater closed in October 2004, and was razed during the summer of 2005.
Contributed by
dave-bronx
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The Quincy Patriot Ledger of Feb. 12th has an article “Theater to Open at Westgate Mall” by Maria Papadopoulos which states that National Amusements' new cinema will be located on the former location of Macy’s at the south end of the mall. Construction is expected to start in the spring, it will have 12 stadium-style auditoriums, and should open in mid-2009. Next to it will be a new building containing a restaurant and retail shops.
I live in Quincy MA and here is what I rember of Westgate:
1) I went on a field trip to see Close Encounters of The Third Kind.
2) After General Cinema sold to Hoyts, the place went downhill.
3)It had fans on top of the ceiling to circulate the AC.
4)I saw Looking for Mr Goodbar there and there was a sign that said no one will be admitted during the last ten minutes of the film.
the Sack Cinema building is still there and vacant, the Foxy Lady thats there, is in a spot that has nothing to do with the Sack Cinema building.
Heres what i rememebr about the Westgate Cinema:
1) I snuck in all the time, i saw Purple Rain in the summer of 84 so many times that i ended up knowing the script by heart.
2)Sneaking in the movies in the early 80’s was easy. U just stayed in the bathroom until the next crowd comes in and then u blend in with them.
3) The bigger auditoriums echoed in the front row
4) In the front part where the 4 cinemas are located, there was a hallway behind the concession stand that lead from the 2 theatres on
the left to the 2 theatres on the right.
5) I always played Dig Dug, Donkey Kong and Asteroids there.
6) When u see a guy with a flashlight in the theatre, that meant something was up.
7) Throwing candy from the back row to the crowd in the dark was fun.
8) The introduction of the GCC on the screen looked like something i cant post on here, try to figure it out when the 2 C’s would rotate in a circle and the G was in the middle of the 2 C’s, and i remember
the music very well.
9) General Admission in the esrly 80’s was $2.50, and $5 after 6pm.
Today’s Globe has an article entitled Ailing malls shopping for a new identity. Regarding Brockton, it says:
“Westgate Mall in Brockton last week said it is postponing indefinitely a plan to add a movie theater to replace a Filene’s department store that closed several years ago. A huge torn-up lot surrounded by a chain-link fence is the only evidence of the moribund project.”
An article in the Patriot Ledger of March 24, “Credit Crunch – Westgate Mall Theater on Hold” says that financing problems have put a temporary halt to construction of the new 12-screen National Amusements cinema on the site of Macy’s at Westgate Mall. The site has been cleared and is ready to go. Construction was to have begun this spring. The mall owner says that construction is now postponed to within a year. A Brockton city councilor expects a delay of 6 to 12 months.
This news is unfortunate, but given Redstone’s current sad financial status, I’m quite sure he could use the reprieve.
It baffles me that National Amusements is even THINKING of putting another theater here. As dwodeyla said above, the Showcase Cinemas in Randolph is a short trip up Route 24. It’s what killed this previous theater in the first place, or at the very least, a major contriubiting factory. I don’t see any theater succeeding here, as long as the Showcase in Randolph is around. It will simply out-draw it.
And even if that goes(which it won’t, trust me), about the same distance in the opposite direction gets you to the Silver City Galleria in Taunton, and a multi-screen Regal Cinema. No winning here, either way.
In the business news in yesterday’s Quincy Patriot-Ledger there is an article titled “Prospects for Westgate theater dim”. It says that the site of Macy’s store is clear and ready for construction. But it now looks highly unlikely that National Amusements will proceed there with their plan for a 12-screen cinema. “Ward 7 Councilor Christopher MacMillan said the theater plan may be dead. ‘It looks like it’s not going to happen’, he said.”
There was a brief item about development on this site in the business news of the Quincy Patriot Ledger a few weeks ago which stated that plans for a proposed cinema fell apart.