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Paterson Cinema News
posted by
Cinemasavvy
on
December 24, 2008 at 7:49 am
Unofficial word is that Paterson NJ will have a cinema again soon.
On February 11, 2005, the local Herald News wrote about the City Council’s approving a new downtown development – Center City Paterson. The 320,000 square foot retail and entertainment center fills an entire city block located between Smith, Ward Main and Clark Streets. The article referenced that a cinema would be part of the development. www.centercitypaterson.com
The outside of the building is almost finished and cars are already parking in a well lighted underground lot while interior construction continues. A NJ Exhibitor says its supposed to be an 8-plex (not 10 reported in ‘05 article). Official news is supposed to come in January including name and target opening date.
According to CinemaTreasures, the theater will be on ground occupied by the Majestic Theater back in the day. Since the Fabian went dark 15 years ago, the town that gave us Lou Costello, Chuck Conners, Morgan Freeman and “Unlce” Floyd Vivino hasn’t had a single screen.
Comments (5)
If the Fabian is still standing, why not just try to convert IT to a multi-use facility. All your going to get out of this new constuction is a sheetrock multiplex, with broom closet sizes theatres. One look at the Fabian on its CT site will show you a true cinema treasure, (in need of TLC)
Maybe in time – I’m curious to see what will happen with this theater and what sort of crowds it will get. Hopefully Paterson will experience a revitization that will make a Fabian restoration possable. In Monclair the restored Welmount reopened in October and they did a beautiful job on that. The Fabian I understand isn’t in the best of neighborhoods. Hopefully this new theater will provide a quality experience. Dining options in the Center City complex are said to include Buffalo Wild Wings.
The cinema complex was said to seat 2,000 people across 10 screens, which would make its average seat count 15 less than that of its competitor at Clifton Commons. The chain was said to be an upstart named Community Theaters, I wonder if that could change.
And John J Fink, don’t forget another treasure that HAS been restored and just sits, the 2800 seat Ritz in Elizabeth, N.J. I have been trying now for almost 3 years to get some classic movies going there. I got them a 17 X 39 foot screen, which was only 6 months old at the time, a dolby cp-55 sound rack with amps, carbon arc lamphouses, all I need is cash to put it all together. But now the place is for sale, so who knows.
Happy Holidays.
I was there recently and got to talk with a guy who knew a lot about the project. I have worked in booths before and my impression is that they must be very serious cinema people. Here are some details I picked up… A push is on to open the new cinema during summer 2009. Walls (double with 5-ply sheet rock)and ceilings are going in now. There must have been at least 20 carpenters and drywall guys crawling all over the place. All houses are supposed to have 24" wide rockers on deep stadium risers. They are shooting for THX specs. Sight lines and viewing angles seem to conform to THX and it looks like baffle walls are going behind the screens.
Two Christie digitals are going in (I didn’t ask who’s 3D). Bi-amped front ends.
They are using Klipsch front ends except for one digital house. “Theatre five is going to be a sound playroom for Danley. These guys are supposed to have done installs like Disney World, Volcano at The Mirage, Cirque du Soleil and Imaxes, but Paterson will not be Imax,” according to the guy I talked with. The entrance from the mall is supposed to look like an old time theatre with neon from the old Fabian. Sounds ambitious. I’ll believe it when I see (and hear) it.