Comments from MPol

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MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 25, 2009 at 8:44 am

Hi, ErikH. Thanks for the info. I DID read about the mixed reviews that came in the wake of the Washington DC trial run of West Side Story. I’m still thinking about it, although I certainly wouldn’t go right the minute it opened if I went; I’d wait afew months. Regarding the prices: What I said earlier in another post; those hefty orchestra seat prices couldn’t be maintained/increased with the way the economy is right now—they’d have to drop them down some—probably a lot. The cheaper seats, though, are considerably farthur back from the stage, which isn’t what I’d want, with a stage play.

Anyway..back on topic; Glad there’s going to be a 70mm film festival in Berlin. 70mm prints of various classic films must be tough to come by, just generally. It would nice if they could/would include the film “West Side Story” in that 70mm festival!

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 25, 2009 at 2:54 am

Right.

This:

“ Bill said:

I got “Billy Elliot” tickets. The closest date I could get for the seats I wanted: July 4th.“”

is something I know. Thanks, though.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 24, 2009 at 2:08 pm

Youch!! Whatever…..$120.00 a pop is still a lot, regardless of what anybody says or thinks. Going directly to the box office where ANY event(s) in question in person and picking up tickets, however, is the best way to avoid the extra service and handling charges, plus it’s more assuring to just know that one has the ticket(s) right in hand, so to speak.

July 4th is the closest date you could get tickets for the Broadway revival of West Side Story?!? Wooohoo! I guess West Side Story is a hot musical, be it on stage or on screen!!\

I guess we’ve strayed quite far from the topic at hand here, but, hey…regarding West Side Story…both the movie and the stageplay are excellent, imho! I’d LOVE to see another screening of WSS at the Ziegfeld one day. Perhaps, maybe, I will. However, to stray off topic some more for a bit: I’m elated and excited that the patrons of the Coolidge Corner Theatre, in Brookline, MA, and at Trader Joe’s voted in the film West Side Story as the number one film of the 1960’s!!

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 24, 2009 at 9:35 am

Ouch!!! Do they HONESTLY think that those prices can be maintained/increased indefinitely, with the economy being the way it is right now? Seriously, if that’s the case, there may well come a time when many more people, even ones who DO have that kind of money to spend for a super-expensive seat for a Broadway show, will think twice before buying, plus who’s to say that this Broadway revival of West Side Story won’t be even MORE expensive than other Broadway shows? Everytime a revival of any show comes along, it’s much more expensive to do, than to do whole new musicals, etc.

I’d also like not to see the Ziegfeld close. It’s one of my favorite movie theatres, even though I don’t reside in the New York area.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 24, 2009 at 6:01 am

You sang “Something’s Coming” in a 7th-grade variety show? How neat!

Thanks again, Ziegfeld Man. Whether or not I’d be able to make the road trip/pilgrimage down to NYC for any of the classic films would depend on at least a couple of things, though:

A) The weather. If any of them were in the wintertime, there’d be no way I’d be able or willing to make the trip down there, especially since the winters up here are too unpredictable; one never knows what’s really going to happen from one day to the next.

B) Whether or not I’d be able to find a place to stay the night. The couple of times I’d made road trip/pilgrages down to NYC for screenings of West Side Story (one to the Ziegfeld, the other to Radio City Music Hall 5 years before), I stayed overnight with relatives (who might or might not still be residing in the City)

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 24, 2009 at 5:37 am

(smiling) Thanks, Ziegfeld Man.

MPol
MPol commented about Tivoli Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 4:52 pm

It’s a little bit out of focus, but the Tivoli Theatre looks like a very attractive theatre.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 4:48 pm

Hi again, Ziegfeld Man.

Thanks. I can think of a dozen more films, in addition to West Side Story, which give me lots of the good-o feeling to watch, but they admittedly don’t hold the same special place in my heart regarding movies as West Side Story does. I have mixed feelings of “getting on the horn” to Craig, since I don’t live in New York, however.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 4:33 pm

I’ve seen the Special Edition of the 2-disc DVD version of the film “West Side Story”, with all the interviews, and the scrapbook. It’s cool. However, NOTHING beats seeing this great, golden oldie-but-goody movie classic film on the great big, wide screen, in a REAL movie theatres with the lights down low, especially in a place like the Ziegfeld.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 4:27 pm

Thanks for the suggestion, Jeff S. How do I hit END? Where do I find it on my computer? That might make it easier to go down to the end of the thread in order to post a comment/reply.

I’m going to wait for the prices to hopefully go down some before I even consider going to a performance of the Broadway revival of West Side Story. I’ve also read some mixed views about it, so I’m still thinking about it, also.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 3:54 pm

Hi, Jeff S. and Ziegfeld Man:

Jeff: What a mistake I made—not knowing about the inside joke between you and Bill! I got egg on my face with THAT one!

Jeff S. I agree with you wholeheartedly about the scrolling all the way down to the very bottom of a given thread, especially long ones, with many, many comments, such as this thread and a bunch of others, before one can make a comment. Scrolling all the way down to the very bottom of a long thread like this in order to post a comment/reply is also quite tiresome and can be annoying sometimes.

Also, Jeff S., I’ve seen several good stage productions of West Side Story, including one at NYC’s Lincoln Center, at around Thanksgiving time, 1980. Boycotting super-expensive prices: While I agree that $120.00 a pop for a Broadway revival of West Side Story at the Palace Theatre is outrageous, the only way to really boycott those prices is to do it on a personal basis—by not attending! It won’t stop people from attending a WSS Broadway revival at the Palace Theatre who are willing to spend that kind of money or possibly more, but at least you’ll have made your voice heard, if one gets the drift.

Webmasters, if you’re listening, while I enjoy posting on this website a great deal, there are certain things that need changing, and this is most defnitely one of them!

Ziegfeld Man: As I mentioned on another post, I, too saw the film West Side Story at the Ziegfeld afew years ago, and it was, indeed a beautiful experience! I’d make the trip down to NYC again for another screening of my alltime favorite flick at the Ziegfeld again, weather permitting, of course.

MPol
MPol commented about Maspeth Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 7:56 am

A bit off topic, but here’s a question:

Did most of the posters here on CinemaTreasures grow up in New York? Just curious, because there seem to be lots and lots of posters on this site with memories of New York movie palaces, along with the communities they served, and the various movies they saw in those palaces.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 7:54 am

Hey Jeff! Where?

I wish West Side Story would play here in Boston more often.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 23, 2009 at 7:45 am

Hi, Bill, Jeff and Ziegfeld Man!

Wow! My nostalgia burns more brightly already!! Don’t know about attending the Broadway stage revival of West Side Story, with the prices the way they are right now (not that I’m particularly worried about money, but I couldn’t see spending two to four hundred bucks a pop for a seat on Broadway. I’d wait for the prices to drop some before thinking about attending a Broadway stage revival performance of WSS. I wouldn’t want a cheaper seat, because they’d clearly be way too far back from the stage, which isn’t what I’d want.), but it would sure be cool to see the film once again at the Ziegfeld. Imho, West Side Story is a great and wonderful musical, both on screen and on stage! (Sorry to get a bit off topic here)

Back to the subject at hand: The Ziegfeld is a REAL, honest to goodness movie palace—very
cavernous, but spacious inside. The long, narrow screen is a great screen for showing a classic film such as West Side Story and many other great, old classic films.

I love the fancy, high-heeled shoe over the door of the ladies' room, and the fancy hat over the mens' room at the Ziegfeld.

MPol
MPol commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Jan 22, 2009 at 2:58 pm

Wow—Have a good Classics film year at the Ziegfeld. I saw “Fiddler on the Roof” when it first came out, which I wasn’t crazy for, but, to each their own. Never saw “Summer of ‘42” or “To Kill A Mockingbird”, but I did read the book on which “To Kill a Mockingbird” was based, for English class, as a sophomore in high school, way back when. (hehe).

Saps—I just saw the movie “Defiance”, which was really quite good, and I’ve also seen Gran Torino, which was also very good.

If I lived in NYC, I’d gladly put up my suggestions for the classic films programs that you annually have. I did get to NYC for an October screening of West Side Story back in 2006. Would love to do it again sometime, if you have WSS. If it happens in February, however, it’s too difficult for me to come down to NYC to see it.

MPol
MPol commented about Patio Theatre on Jan 21, 2009 at 2:08 pm

It looks like a gorgeous theatre, both inside and out. Sure hope you guys can save it, for your own sake, although I’m not a resident of the Chicago area, or the State of Illinois, generally.

MPol
MPol commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Jan 21, 2009 at 5:30 am

My, my, how things change over the years.

MPol
MPol commented about Rivoli Theatre on Jan 21, 2009 at 5:17 am

As somebody who’s never resided in NYC, or the NY area generally, the Rivoli sounds like it was probably the best place…period…to see the great, venerable, golden oldie-but-goody classic films, particularly a lot of the prominent 1960’s films! Again, tp reiterate what I said earlier on another post here on this thread, I would’ve LOVED to drive down from Boston for a screening of the film, West Side Story at the Rivoli.

Again, if the old house was really run down, it might’ve been cheaper for them to renovate and restore the Rivoli than to just tear it down and demolish it. Whether it be in the Rivoli or any other theatre, large, curved screens are the best. To digress just a bit, the CineStudio in Hartford, CT, the Brattle Theatre, and maybe even the Coolidge Corner Theatre have somewhat curved screens. Not sure about other movie theatres that I’ve been in, however.

MPol
MPol commented about Palace Theatre on Jan 21, 2009 at 5:08 am

Hmmmmmm..

MPol
MPol commented about Rivoli Theatre on Jan 20, 2009 at 2:50 pm

Oh, that’s too bad, Life’s too short. It’s a shame that people can be so rude as to drown out the movie soundtrack with excessive amounts of noise. You know what? I think that the theatre staff really should be tough on people who’re excessively noisy and threaten them with expulsion from the theatre if they don’t quiet down. if that doesn’t work, then outright ousting from the theatre in cases like that is probably the best. Or, maybe the projectionist can shut off the movie until the crowd quiets down? Wishful thinking, maybe.

MPol
MPol commented about Narrows Plaza cinema closing, Galaxy 6 moving into location on Jan 20, 2009 at 2:41 pm

That’s the way it often goes, especially nowadays. What a drag. (sighs)

MPol
MPol commented about "What's Up Doc?"...Looney Tunes Marathon on Jan 20, 2009 at 2:40 pm

I remember Bugs Bunny, Elmer, Woody Woodpecker, AndyPandy, Betty Boop, Mighty Mouse, Popeye the Sailor Man and Porky Pig. However, I don’t remember Sniffles or Droopy.

Yes, I do remember seeing those Looney Tunes in the movie theatre and on TV at home. Ahhhh, Saturday morning cartoons!

I also remember Boom Town (Rex Trailer), Big Brother (Bob Emery), and Ruth Ann’s Camp. Boom Town and Big Brother both featured cartoons, but I don’t think that Ruth Ann’s camp did. I remember watching a classmate and her younger brother on one Saturday morning episode of Boom Town (Rex Trailer), when I was in third grade, and another time before that, watching a 2nd-grade classmate on an episode of Big Brother (Bob Emery), on TV, also. My younger sister, who was two years behnd me in school, was on one episode of Ruth Ann’s Camp, as well.

How I envied the kids, including my younger sister, who were on TV and got their 15 minutes of fame! Oh, well—water under the bridge—other things abide.

MPol
MPol commented about Rivoli Theatre on Jan 20, 2009 at 2:18 pm

Boston lost a lot of its fine movie theatres to so-called progress, too. I’m more than grateful that the Coolidge Corner Theatre and the Brattle Theatre are still around.

MPol
MPol commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Jan 20, 2009 at 7:26 am

So….a bank and a theatre could both serve to hold the Ridgewood community together?!

MPol
MPol commented about Rivoli Theatre on Jan 20, 2009 at 7:18 am

When so many of these grand, venerable old movie palaces get torn down, is the fact that the land is worth more than the business of movie theatres why these grand old movie palaces have all too often gone the way of office space, parking lots, arcades, and retail, etc?