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Memories
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August 28, 2009
Remembering Cinerama (Part 39: Tampa)
REMEMBERING CINERAMA
Part 39: TampaThe following is Part Thirty-Nine 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 screenings 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
Part 34: Nanuet/Rockland County
Part 35: Denver
Part 36: Worcester
Part 37: Toledo
Part 38: St. LouisAnd now…Part 39: Cinerama Presentations in Tampa, Florida!
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August 27, 2009
At the movies in Zurich 30 years on
At the movies in Zurich 30 years on…
My wife and I are just back from a weekend in Zurich…a destination I chose with some motivation…centre city lakeside beach, great baked goods, and outstanding sausages and beer…and the movies are in English – not always a given in Continental Europe.
I had worked in Zurich in 1981 – bartending and waiting tables in a little jewel of a centre city hotel – gravitating naturally to the movies on my days off. Shortly upon arrival at the Bahnhof, the main train station, I had discovered an old grindhouse, the Rex, which cranked out mostly Charles Bronson reissues with the odd Spaghetti Western, all dubbed in German of course, and even better a 20 foot display of current and coming attractions around town…and of course most hotel, cafe and bar vestibules would display a weekly movie timetable which changed every Thursday – a very civilized habit which still hangs on in many European cities.
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Memories of a former repertory theater owner
BROOKLINE, MA — Justin Freed, the former owner and programmer of the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline, MA reflects on his experience of running a repertory cinema before VHS tapes and DVDs made operating such a theater so challenging in this retrospective.
“Everyone’s a programmer,‘” Justin Freed says with a laugh, describing what it’s like to own a revival house. “When I was running that theater it was like being Theo Epstein [running the Red Sox]. Everyone has an opinion on what you should be doing – believe me! And I’m not sure I was doing it any better than the people who were giving me the suggestions.’”
The “Coolidge'” in question is, of course, the Coolidge Corner Theatre, in Brookline, which Freed owned from 1977 to 1989. Those were halcyon days. Moviegoers were as likely to encounter Norman Mailer introducing one of his films, or the graffiti artists of “Wild Style” spray-painting an exterior wall, as a Fellini double feature.
Read the full story in the Boston Globe.
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August 21, 2009
“Alien” 30th Anniversary
In space no one can hear you scream.
On May 25, 1979, Twentieth Century-Fox released “Alien,” Ridley Scott’s sci-fi/horror classic about the crew of the Nostromo who get more than they bargained for after investigating a distress signal from a mysterious planet. Suspense, atmospheric moodiness and Oscar-winning visual effects highlighted the film which starred Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, and Yaphet Kotto. The popular and influential film spawned several sequels and numerous imitations.
Back in May of this year, around the time of the actual 30th anniversary date, I considered posting an anniversary tribute for “Alien,” but I talked myself out of it because (1) five years ago I had written something for the film’s 25th anniversary and I thought writing a 30th anniversary piece would be unnecessary and redundant, and (2) “Alien” was covered in the Cinema Treasures news posting A look back at the year 1979: the year of science fiction. I’ve since reconsidered, but instead of writing something new I’ve decided to simply quote selected passages from my 25th anniversary article including the original bookings list, all of which focus not so much on the film itself but the experience of seeing the film.
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August 18, 2009
Movie Palace History summarized online
Here’s a wonderful new online article with fantastic photos illustrating what a movie palace is about and the wonderful survival of some of them:
With so much confusion, careless mismanagement and blind ignorance in play, is it any wonder that so few of the grand picture palaces of yore have survived?
Not all is lost, though so much has been relegated to the dust bins of history. After the cavalier purge and demolition in the mid to late 60s, the early 1970s saw a sudden revival of interest in these crumbling paradises, most immediately from civic-minded cultural preservationist groups who aggressively campaigned to raise money and save their picture palaces that had fallen on hard times.
Read more at Hollywood Art.
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August 15, 2009
“Apocalypse Now” 30th Anniversary
I had intended to write an in-depth retrospective on “Apocalypse Now” to commemorate the landmark film’s 30th anniversary, but for the time being this brief write-up will have to do.
On August 15, thirty years ago, Omni Zoetrope and United Artists released Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam War epic, “Apocalypse Now.” Rather than saturating the market with hundreds or even thousands of bookings, as would be the case if released today, top-flight theaters in three large and important markets were selected to open the film. The film was shown on a reserved-performance, guaranteed-seat basis and presented in 70-millimeter and Six-Track Dolby Stereo showcasing a then-new quintaphonic “split surround” audio mix. The film was shown without opening or closing credits or any studio logos; instead, a program was handed out to moviegoers. These initial bookings were:
Los Angeles, CA: Cinerama Dome
New York, NY: Ziegfeld
Toronto, ON: University -
August 14, 2009
Remembering Cinerama (Part 38: St. Louis)
REMEMBERING CINERAMA
Part 38: St. LouisThe following is Part Thirty-Eight 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 screenings 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
Part 34: Nanuet/Rockland County
Part 35: Denver
Part 36: Worcester
Part 37: ToledoAnd now… Part 38: Cinerama Presentations in St. Louis!
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August 5, 2009
Remembering Cinerama (Part 37: Toledo)
REMEMBERING CINERAMA
Part 37: ToledoThe following is Part Thirty-Seven 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 screenings 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
Part 34: Nanuet/Rockland County
Part 35: Denver
Part 36: WorcesterAnd now… Part 37: Cinerama Presentations in Toledo, Ohio.
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July 29, 2009
The man responsible for all those American Classic photos
Here’s the story of the man whose photographs of so many US cinemas have been linked to individual theater pages.
Working from a 1953 movie exhibitor guide listing all the theaters in the country, he plotted his trips: Ogden, Utah; Omaha, Neb.; Bakersfield, Calif.; Bangor, Maine.
They drove like hell to get where they were going, but once they got there, they were prepared to wait.
If it was too cloudy for a good shot of the theater marquee or if the trains were late, they sat in the truck, drinking Special Export beer, which Jim would drive to Chicago to buy, reading, listening to the CB and napping.
Read the full story in the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
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July 23, 2009
Happy 1 year anniversary, The Dark Knight!!!
Last weekend one year ago, Warner Bros. Pictures released what would be the most popular superhero movie of all time (adjusted for inflation)…“The Dark Knight”. The film, a sequel to the surprise 2005 hit “Batman Begins”, became more famous after the untimely death of Heath Ledger, in his last public role as The Joker, and the film outgrossed all other movies and scored some awards, including Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars. The film was also notable for being the first major film to have several major action scenes shot in IMAX, the version of which can be seen on the bluray version of the movie. A sequel is in the planning stages as of this post.