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The latest movie theater news and updates
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July 21, 2009
Utah Theater to take center stage
SALT LAKE CITY, UT — The centerpiece of a new downtown, the Utah Theater is coming back.
The Utah Theater is on the cusp of a renaissance. Salt Lake City’s Redevelopment Agency has agreed to terms to buy the show house and adjacent storefronts for $7 million. The sale could be finalized this fall after the agency completes a building inspection and lines up financing. Then the one-time vaudeville stage could return as a first-of-its-kind-in-Utah film center.
Read more in the Salt Lake Tribune and check out some cool current pictures too.
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Update on status of New Orleans theaters
NEW ORLEANS, LA — This article, from WWL-TV in New Orleans, discusses the current status of four former movie palaces in the Big Easy. The Saenger’s restoration is apparently on track, but the State-Palace and Joy remain closed and for sale, and the Orpheum restoration appears to have been postponed and the building has further deteriorated.
The $40 million renovation to bring the Saenger back from its current Hurricane Katrina-damaged condition is still in its very early stages.
“We are working with architects now and expect the Saenger, if all goes well, open in September 2011,” said David Skinner, General Manager for the private company that manages both the Saenger and Mahalia Jackson theaters.
Read more at WWL.
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Twin for sale – reduced again to $285,000
CHECOTAH, OK –
The Gentry Cinema is for sale
Price reduced again… to $285,000This theater has now been listed with a realtor, and based on his advice the price has been reduced yet again.
Closed in 1996, it was re-opened it in Dec. 2008 after twinning and renovation. All new: facade and building exterior, windows and doors, plumbing, restrooms, electrical system, heat and air system and ductwork, fire sprinkler system, insulation in attic and walls, marquee, draperies, screens, sound. Replaced and upgraded projectors and added platters. Installed like-new seats. New concession counter with enough equipment for a small restaurant. Tables and seating for 20 in concession area. Currently have food license. Serving some hot food. Could serve more. Showing first run films. Located in market area of 20,000 people. Competition is over 20 miles away.
Owner is undercapitalized after remodel. $285,000 includes land, building, equipment, and business.
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July 20, 2009
New group formed to rescue abandoned Miami Valley movie theaters
DAYTON, OH — NOUVEAU CINEMA GROUP INC. (NCGI) is, as its name suggests, a new 501 c 3 non-rofit arts oriented corporation, the brain-child of Richard Alan Mendel-Martin, of Dayton, OH, George Katchmer, esq, of Yellow Springs, OH, and Kendra Neargarder, also of Dayton, OH. “We are dedicated to the preservation, restoration and management of culturally significant theatrical venues and the presentation of quality retrospective and new world cinema,” according to Martin, NCGI Executive Director.
In addition, NCGI envisions an educational outreach to the community which would include but not be limited to master classes/seminar series dealing with film history, production, arts and management. A multi-tiered Film Society would offer educational and entertainment opportunities to various, specialized groups and demographics. “Additionally,” according to Martin, “our proposed scholarship/grant program would provide funding for students interested in pursuing a career in the cinema arts with additional funding for other local, national and international, non-profit arts projects. All envisioned services would be made available at minimal cost to the individual patron.
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Pros and cons of church services in theaters
The rise in churches relocating services to theaters has led to better attendance but not necessarily moving organizations in the best direction.
Congregation members eat popcorn and drink soda while worshipping. The offering is collected in popcorn buckets. “Sunday best” is often sneakers, jeans and an untucked T-shirt. Song lyrics and movie clips that illustrate sermon points flash across the large screen. (And during normal theater hours, church ads are included in the movie previews.)
However, Pastor Steve Kelly of Wave Church in Virginia said staying in a movie theater sends a certain message to the community. “The moment you define yourself as ‘We’re just going to rent this facility,’ you’re saying that you’re not necessarily here to stay,” he said.
Read more at CNN.
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Movie theater memories
SAN ANTONIO, TX — A Texas writer discusses memories from movie palaces long gone in the area and other locals' thoughts as well.
So now it shouldn’t surprise you that on a recent hot summer’s day I was dumbfounded with delight when I stumbled across a website that allowed me to reminisce about the perfect summer time activity; going to the movies.
I don’t mean to have an Andy Rooney moment here but, “Have you ever noticed that going to the movies doesn’t have the same feeling that it once did?”
I was lucky enough to live at the end of the movie house era. I can remember the thrill of going to see the latest movie at (get this) a one-screen theater. (In the 21st century you might call them “the uni-plex.”)
Read more at WOAI.
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July 17, 2009
Palace Theatre turns 100
CANADIAN, TX — A hundred years have gone by but the Palace Theatre is still going strong and recent renovations have made it as strong as ever. This gem of the panhandle even has THX-certification.
The theater opened in 1909 as the Pastime before it was renamed the Queen Theatre in 1916. The venue received its current moniker, the Palace Theatre, in 1932.
The theater’s 1998 renovations preserved the venue’s vintage look.
An art deco style reminiscent of the early 1900s can be seen throughout the theater.
Read more in the Amarillo Globe News.
(Thanks to Michael Coate for passing along the story.)
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Islip Theater threatened with demolition
Here is the link to the online petition to save the Islip Theater…Please pass this around and have everyone sign it.
UPDATE ON ISLIP THEATER…
The plan that the current owner is actively seeking is to tear down this beautiful art deco theater to erect a daycare center in its place. There is no time to waste as the next meeting at Town Hall will have already determined the fate of the theater and the public will not be allowed to debate or discuss it any further once this next meeting takes place(currently on the calendar for 7/23/09). This is why it is crucial for everyone to show their support now!!!I urge everyone to go to this website to sign the online petition to keep our Islip Theater standing for generations to come.
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Happy 10th Anniversary, “Blair Witch Project”!!!
On July 14, 1999, a little film called “The Blair Witch Project” premiered in limited release in several indie theaters around the country and the world. It would be two weeks before the movie went wide and word of mouth spread like wildfire. The film, made on a ultra-low budget, went on to make hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office worldwide and even more when it was released on VHS (in a 2-pack combined with a Blair Witch mockumentary) and DVD.
It would go on to be the most successful indie movie made by Artisan Entertainment (before Lionsgate bought the company) at the time. More than a year later, a sequel was made, and was more like a horror action film than the home movie horror that its predecessor was. It bombed at the box office, with the lack of stars from the original and the creators who made Blair Witch what it is today. Without Blair Witch, there wouldn’t be a “Cloverfield”.
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3-D starting to look flat
This piece in the Los Angeles Times suggests the excitement surrounding 3-D films is beginning to cool down.
As more movies play in digital 3-D, there’s evidence that audiences are becoming less interested in the ballyhooed format that many in Hollywood have predicted will stem the long-term erosion of theater attendance.
Box office data for “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs,” which opened last Wednesday, shows that theaters with at least one screen playing the film in 3-D generated on average, 1.4x as much in ticket sales as those that only showed the picture the old fashioned 2-D way. (A breakdown by individual screens within multiplexes was not available.)