Anybody have any information on other theaters in that area: Powell(now occupied by a Burger King), Stage Door, Crest(known under several other names, now the Crazy Horse strip club—It was next to the Warfield), Regal (showed 4 features grindhouse-style, became a porn theater around 1973, later renamed Bijou when operated by the Mitchell Brothers—Now the LA Gals strip club), and the Centre (showed adult films from the early 60’s on—What was it called prior & also what is it now?).
Saw the film “Insomnia” here two weeks ago. Excellent projection and sound. Auditorium has a lot of red curtains. Lobby area small. Does have ticket booth in center of front entryway. Theater mostly shows first-run art fare.
Good news!! According to a small article in an East Bay edition of the San Francisco Chronicle (June 7, 2002), the city council of El Cerrito voted recently to go ahead & buy the theater! They are now in escrow with the building owner. This gives us much hope that it will reopen as a theater!
This theater has just reopened & is showing movies (at least on weekends anyway)!! Theater is now called Bringing All Love. It has reopened within the last week.
This theater was in the Cannery shopping complex at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. The complex was once a cannery for fruits & vegetables. Walter Reade Theaters last operated it as an arthouse in the 1970’s before the chain went bankrupt.
The balcony area has chair seating. In the 1970’s, National General Cinemas and later Mann theaters ran it, primarily showing second-run fare. “Dawn of the Dead” was shown first-run here in May 1979 and I had seen it here. Shortly after the run of “Dawn”, the Warfield became an occasional concert venue and now runs concerts full-time.
This theater closed in the 1980’s. Last operator was General Cinema Corp. It was located in the Ghiradelli complex, which was once the Ghirardelli Chocolate factory in San Francisco and is now a popular shopping complex on the west end of San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf. The theater itself had a red brick interior and was single screen. I had seen the film “Rollercoaster” in Sensurround in 1977 here, great sound system.
The theater sat 644 when in operation. Blumenfeld was the original operator.
Friends of the Cerrito theater recently had a public open house which had an excellent turnout. The murals looked in good shape & the lobby had a mirrored mural behind where the concession counter stood. The auditorium had evidence of past ceiling leaks, but overall the theater has a lot of potential.
This jewel of a theater is in danger of closing. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the operators are four months behind on rent and may have to close if the matter is not resolved by April 16. They are having a save the theater benefit on April 7. If you are in the San Francisco area on this date, attend by all means. Not only is this the oldest operating theater in San Francisco(and in great shape too), but they have also been instrumental in getting many little known films exposed to the public that helped get them wide exposure. Some examples are: Red Rock West, Baise-Moi, Panic, Man Bites Dog, Tigerland, numerous documentaries, pre-Code Hollywood films, noir films of the 40’s & 50’s, and lots more. Save this theater now!!
This theater seats 800 & has a long auditorium. Had reopened in 2000 after being shuttered for several years. The operators at that time had spent some money sprucing up the place. The auditorium had some gorgeous paintings in it. The theater in its last incarnation was showing second run films at discount prices and even had reasonably priced concessions. It did have an occasional live concert & live state shows as well. Closed in April 2001 after the city pulled the operator’s permit because of their midnight showings of “Rocky Horror Picture Show” which offended some area residents. The new attempt to open the theater is primarily being done by an operator who is looking to hold religious meetings & may possibly show family oriented films. The lack of parking in the area is an issue that has been holding it up.
The theater opened in 1946 & was a neighborhood theater until 1969, then switched to Spanish language programming until the early 1980’s, then was shuttered for some time. A brief attempt to show Indian language films came in the 1990’s, but it lasted just a few months.
Syufy was the last chain to run this theater.
Anybody have any information on other theaters in that area: Powell(now occupied by a Burger King), Stage Door, Crest(known under several other names, now the Crazy Horse strip club—It was next to the Warfield), Regal (showed 4 features grindhouse-style, became a porn theater around 1973, later renamed Bijou when operated by the Mitchell Brothers—Now the LA Gals strip club), and the Centre (showed adult films from the early 60’s on—What was it called prior & also what is it now?).
Saw the film “Insomnia” here two weeks ago. Excellent projection and sound. Auditorium has a lot of red curtains. Lobby area small. Does have ticket booth in center of front entryway. Theater mostly shows first-run art fare.
Good news!! According to a small article in an East Bay edition of the San Francisco Chronicle (June 7, 2002), the city council of El Cerrito voted recently to go ahead & buy the theater! They are now in escrow with the building owner. This gives us much hope that it will reopen as a theater!
This theater has just reopened & is showing movies (at least on weekends anyway)!! Theater is now called Bringing All Love. It has reopened within the last week.
This theater ran adult films in the 1970’s.
This theater was in the Cannery shopping complex at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. The complex was once a cannery for fruits & vegetables. Walter Reade Theaters last operated it as an arthouse in the 1970’s before the chain went bankrupt.
The balcony area has chair seating. In the 1970’s, National General Cinemas and later Mann theaters ran it, primarily showing second-run fare. “Dawn of the Dead” was shown first-run here in May 1979 and I had seen it here. Shortly after the run of “Dawn”, the Warfield became an occasional concert venue and now runs concerts full-time.
This theater closed in the 1980’s. Last operator was General Cinema Corp. It was located in the Ghiradelli complex, which was once the Ghirardelli Chocolate factory in San Francisco and is now a popular shopping complex on the west end of San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf. The theater itself had a red brick interior and was single screen. I had seen the film “Rollercoaster” in Sensurround in 1977 here, great sound system.
The theater sat 644 when in operation. Blumenfeld was the original operator.
Friends of the Cerrito theater recently had a public open house which had an excellent turnout. The murals looked in good shape & the lobby had a mirrored mural behind where the concession counter stood. The auditorium had evidence of past ceiling leaks, but overall the theater has a lot of potential.
This theater did show porn in 1973-1974, then was showing second-run product prior to being a Spanish language theater.
This jewel of a theater is in danger of closing. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the operators are four months behind on rent and may have to close if the matter is not resolved by April 16. They are having a save the theater benefit on April 7. If you are in the San Francisco area on this date, attend by all means. Not only is this the oldest operating theater in San Francisco(and in great shape too), but they have also been instrumental in getting many little known films exposed to the public that helped get them wide exposure. Some examples are: Red Rock West, Baise-Moi, Panic, Man Bites Dog, Tigerland, numerous documentaries, pre-Code Hollywood films, noir films of the 40’s & 50’s, and lots more. Save this theater now!!
This theater seats 800 & has a long auditorium. Had reopened in 2000 after being shuttered for several years. The operators at that time had spent some money sprucing up the place. The auditorium had some gorgeous paintings in it. The theater in its last incarnation was showing second run films at discount prices and even had reasonably priced concessions. It did have an occasional live concert & live state shows as well. Closed in April 2001 after the city pulled the operator’s permit because of their midnight showings of “Rocky Horror Picture Show” which offended some area residents. The new attempt to open the theater is primarily being done by an operator who is looking to hold religious meetings & may possibly show family oriented films. The lack of parking in the area is an issue that has been holding it up.
The theater opened in 1946 & was a neighborhood theater until 1969, then switched to Spanish language programming until the early 1980’s, then was shuttered for some time. A brief attempt to show Indian language films came in the 1990’s, but it lasted just a few months.