Uptown Theatre
3426 Connecticut Avenue NW,
Washington,
DC
20008
3426 Connecticut Avenue NW,
Washington,
DC
20008
60 people
favorited this theater
Showing 151 - 175 of 592 comments
Howard, I have relatives outside of Washington DC and not all of the streets are cleared yet. They got 18 inches of snow and the area was not all been cleared yet. They were not prepared for that much snows. They even moved electric repair trucks from as far away as Missouri. Even the Federal Government was closed today. 91/27/16
AMC website still asserts Uptown closed due to the snow storm. Why still closed?
What does “Krakatoa…” have to do with this discussion of “Cinerama’s Russian Adventure”? And what is the city/theatre mentioned in the January 14 post?
Java only played one reserved seat engagement — in Hollywood. All others, including NY, played as many as 4 performances a day at reduced prices. This was both the first and last time this occurred, as there were no more pictures released in the process. And why wouldn’t they sell the program in any theatre to make money, since the first credit is “Cinerama Presents”. There were no “truth in souvenir program” laws that I know of.
My unaccounted for engagements of “Russian Adventure” are Akron (Falls), Birmingham (Eastwood Mall), Chattanooga (Brainerd), Jacksonville (5 Points), Louisville (Showcase), Norfolk (Rosna), and Providence (Cinerama). Is the “unique” engagement you’re referring to, patryan6019, one of these?
Not on the Russian Adventure list is an engagement totally unique in that this never happened in any other city or theatre. The picture ran for 5 weeks. The theatre then closed for 46 days so that it could be upgraded from a temporary installation into permanent Super Cinerama (You all know the difference,don’t you). RA then resumed for an additional 17 days. Anyone know the city and theatre?
And, I might add that the “Variety” review out of Chicago stated positively that the initial American engagement at the McVickers (a Cinerama house since 1962) was the only one in the States to utilize a 3-projector Cinerama protocol for this release; the following dates would all be via 70mm. It never played the Philadelphia market in any format, however.
bigjoe59….
Regarding “Russian Adventure,” I find nothing odd about my claim of that film not playing Washington, DC since it was essentially a “filler” release. Washington, DC wasn’t the only Cinerama market in which it did not play. (I’m assuming, of course, I researched the matter thoroughly and that it did in fact not play in DC.) I’ve found that at least two dozen markets that ran Cinerama-branded releases did NOT play “Russian Adventure.”
If you’re curious, here are the North American markets that DID play “Russian Adventure”:
I should note that at least a couple bookings might be missing from my listing in its current state. Providence played it, for sure, and possibly a couple others not cited, but, as previously stated, several markets clearly did not play it, so don’t be alarmed by how short the list is compared to other Cinerama releases.
1966-03-29 … Chicago, IL — McVickers (11 weeks)
1966-03-30 … Denver, CO — International 70 (5)
1966-03-31 … San Francisco, CA — Golden Gate (7)
1966-03-31 … Toronto, ON — Glendale (10)
1966-04-01 … Atlanta, GA — Georgia Cinerama (6)
1966-04-01 … Detroit, MI — Music Hall (12)
1966-04-01 … St. Louis, MO — Martin Cinerama (12)
1966-04-01 … Seattle, WA — Martin Cinerama (13)
1966-04-06 … Nashville, TN — Crescent (12)
1966-04-09 … Milwaukee, WI — Southgate (10)
1966-04-13 … New York, NY — Warner (13)
1966-04-26 … Pittsburgh, PA — Warner (6)
1966-04-27 … Cincinnati, OH — Capitol (5)
1966-04-27 … Toledo, OH — Showcase 1 (4)
1966-04-29 … New Orleans, LA — Martin Cinerama (8)
1966-05-03 … Los Angeles, CA — Warner Hollywood (13)
1966-05-11 … San Diego, CA — Center (6)
1966-08-17 … Dallas, TX — Capri (1)
1966-08-24 … Portland, OR — Hollywood (4)
1966-09-21 … Kansas City, MO — Empire (7)
1966-09-21 … Salt Lake City, UT — Villa (4)
1966-09-28 … Boston, MA — Boston (7)
1966-11-02 … Minneapolis (St. Louis Park), MN — Cooper (7)
1966-11-02 … Montreal, QC — Imperial (29)
1967-01-18 … Columbus, OH — Grand (4)
1967-01-25 … Wichita, KS — Uptown (5)
1967-02-08 … Newark (Montclair), NJ — Clairidge (6)
1967-09-20 … Hartford, CT — Cinerama (6)
1968-10-23 … Fresno, CA — Warnor (6)
to Coate-
a belated HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! and you are to be
commended for your list of this theater’s 80s
bookings.
an item or two-
1.i read the article you suggested and I did indeed have my question answered. but your additions to the list were just as interesting. for instance you said you could find no info that Russian Adventure ever opened in D.C. period let alone presented in Cinerama. I find that odd since it opened in NYC at the Warner in in Cinerama on a reserved seat engagement.
2.i have often wondered why some films that opened on reserved seat engagements were presented “in Cinerama” in some cities and in plain 70MM in others. for instance Krakatoa-East Of Java played the Warner on a reserved seat engagement and was presented “in Cinerama”. yet the reserved seat runs in D.C. and San Francisco were in plain 70mm. did they have a separate souvenir program for those runs? the one I bought at the Warner had its first two pages devoted to the new Cinerama. which you couldn’t sell in a theater where its not being presented “in Cinerama”.
3.also you are again to be commended for you detailed listings of engagements which brings me yet again to “Circus World”. as I am sure you will agree a big budget highly promoted film that turns out not to be bad just not up to all the expectations is the same film in no matter what city it plays in which was the case with Circus World. so I am still trying to understand how CW’s reserved seat run in NYC lasted 13 weeks and in other cities 14, 15 or even 18 weeks yet the D.C. run at the Uptown lasted only 3 weeks. I still don’t get it.
Michel, I always enjoy your lists. I spent a day at the local library going over some of the old ads and made copies to post online but now I’ve lost my folder. I hope to do that again one of these days.
As this venue was the premier place to see movies in the 80s, I’ve seen most of the first run 70mm films here in the 80s. I wasn’t into the classics, except sci-fi, until I was a little older. Looking at the chronological order of the Uptown’s 70mm shows, it seems my first 70mm was Star Trek II. The list doesn’t reflect it but it played just one week prior to Gandhi’s opening. I saw it 2x. I remember dropping my Mom off to her nursing job at Sibley Hospital then high tailing through DC. By about 6:40 pm or so, you’re more or less safe to park for free on the street as rush hour is about over. During the full house shows, you could park in the residential areas but had to walk some but its still free. I don’t think you can do that today with the use of vehicle stickers.
Superman III was a disappointment presentation wise. I do not recall anything positively memorable as the story was lame and the attempt at lightening it up didn’t work, with probably the only exception being the opening scene where Clark does that comedic walk avoiding several disasters in what looked like one take.
Ghostbusters in 70mm is memorable for me with that shot of the homely looking librarian that turns ghostly. It was the combination of the visual fx transition, the shhh and some low bass rumble that scared me and the audience gasp/scream..then laughter as the Ghostbuster crew dashes out of the library.
Dune is memorable for me as the presentation perfectly fits the visual quality of its high budget production. The Arrakis desert and the shreiking sounds of the sandworms. Oh..the thumpers..that low beating drum sound effect that attracts those sandworms, you could really feel its power through the Uptown’s sound system. I was curious if you would enjoy it as much sitting in the balcony but at that time, I wanted to get my $ worth sitting close to the front of that huge curved screen.
The Return of the Jedi reissue I’ve mentioned before. The size of the screen made my enjoyment of the film even better especially during those first person shots such as the speed bike chase on the Endor moon. The sound wasn’t as good as the MacArthur’s only because my memory of the Emperor’s use of force lightning didn’t have the sizzle and sparking sound it had. Perhaps the print had degraded a little soundwise or the Uptown’s sound muffles the soundtrack some.
I forgot about Manhunter. This was directed by Michael Mann, who did the Miami Vice show on NBC, which was very popular, audibly and visually stylistic back in the day. The show was one of the first to broadcast in stereo..that was a big thing then. My only memory of this were the lush colors captured on film. Then there was the scene of the guy that got killed in a burning wheelchair and the sound effects of the fire and whoosh as it goes by you.
The Last Emperor was another visually beautiful film to look at. Nothing great audio wise that I can recall. I think this was my first movie to see women kissing..it was Pu Yi’s wife and the female pilot that talked like Trixie from the old Speed Racer cartoons..remember that?
Willow was enjoyable for me. The most memorable sound effect for me were the two headed dragons. When they’d shoot fire, there was the sound coming directly in front of you but when there were those shots of the side and the fire breath goes directional, the sound seems to go behind you either to the right or the left and then in back. It had some decent fx..I think one of the first CGI morphing effects, from the different animals to the old, but good witch. One last thing..Val Kilmer’s yellow teeth. I recall reading something to the effect of him being in character all the time but did that include him not brushing his teeth? Ugh.
The Roger Rabbit movie I believe may have been the first time in the balcony. This may have been because they were the only seats. But for some reason, I’m thinking Manhunter was because I didn’t want to see the movie but my friend kept badgering me to see it but I agreed only if it was here in 70mm. If I was going to see something I didn’t want to see, the logic of going would be to see it in the best presentation possible..70mm. Make sense?
Anyway, there wasn’t anything memorable by way of wow..cool effects or soundtrack. I’m thinking now being older that that was the intention. The integration of the animated and real world had to be seamless, which makes everything in the movie more believable. And it is. Thinking back now..I think the introduction of the Jessica Rabbit character and the way she sings that song and the way they animated or lit up her dress with the sparkling sequins. That was very well done. They weren’t sparkling in a cartoony way, but like it was a real dress with sparkling sequins. Those touches elevate the movie to be more special than it would have been.
Born on the 4th of July. I’ve written about this before. We were in a group, I chose the seats very close to that giant, curved screen. The cinematography was that hand held, jerky, real time style. Bad decision. I got motion sick at the end. This was Tom Cruise’s first real dramatic performance and he did well. I can still visualize him as that Kovic or Kovaks character whirling around in the wheelchair, drunk and telling his Mom how he can’t feel anything below his waist..can’t even masturbate. Mom screams in shock and tells him not to talk like that.. it plays all the more powerfully on the huge screen. I suppose its true what they say about size does matter..watching the movies. :)
Looking at all the movies in chronological order, I’m beginning to second guess myself as to when I saw 2001 in 70mm here for the first time. I know there was a very special engagement and a ‘virgin’ print. It may have been in the 90s.
Sorry for the long post, I should have put an intermission after the Return of the Jedi experience. :)
oh sorry Coate – I remember seeing ‘Quest for Fire’, was very impressionable for a young age.
I had no idea that ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit’ was here, since I distinctly remember seeing it over at 4000 Wisconsin Ave.
I remember the ads for ‘The Last Emperor’ – it played at Jenifer? The Post ads definitely were touting 70mm at the Uptown for that release.
I can comment because I lived there 1985 to 88 & visited thereafter. Saw at the Uptown: Silverado, Out of Africa, Manhunter, the Name of the Rose (a favorite of mine there), The Mission, the 3 Vietnam War movies- all flat, Platoon being the best, Kubrick’s 2nd best, No Way Out, Princess Bride, Cry Freedom, Mississippi Burning, Lawrence of Arabia (one of my favorite film screenings ever!), Field of Dreams, Back to the Future Part II, and Born on the Fourth of July (and on same day “Glory” at KB Cinema in 70mm 6 track). As “The Last Emperor” opened at the Jennifer, I saw it there, not knowing it would move to the Uptown. If only I had been there one week earlier, I could’ve seen Apocalypse Now according to your list! The Redux version at NYC Astor Plaza was another of my favorite film screenings ever, but at the Uptown would’ve been even better! And I still haven’t seen The Sand Pebbles, which would’ve been great to have seen there, too. Coates, happy now?
Can’t you guys at least comment on the recently-posted 1980s listing before asking new questions??!! <sigh…>
Anyway, bigjoe59… Scroll up to the right margin of this page and find the section News About This Theater. Find the link to the 2008 “Remembering Cinerama (Part V)” story and there you’ll find your answer.
Hello-
I’m from NYC and the only time I’ve ever been in the Uptown was Easter vacation 1963 when my parents took my brother and I to D.C. for a trip. we saw How The West Was Won during its roadshow engagement in Cinerama. now what other movie theater in D.C. was converted to show Cinerama aside from the Uptown and does it still exist?
as a teen in the late 80’s I started to keep the Movie Section of the Weekend part of the Post – they unfortunately got chucked… [sad face] So how would I research this? got any tips – I know that the Martin Luther King Jr. branch of the DC library used to keep the Post on microfilm – do they still do that?
Happy New Year! As requested, here is a listing of the Uptown’s bookings for the decade of the 1980s.
First a few notes…. Only the commercial/public bookings have been cited here; the list excludes premieres and special screenings, of which there were many. Also, there might be a missing engagement and/or a “dark” week or two in the autumn 1981 period preceding the run of “Ragtime.” There might be a couple of Wednesday vs. Friday opening-date discrepancies. The data listed in parenthesis following each title is the duration of the engagement, measured in weeks (except in a few cases where days are noted). And, lastly, the 70mm presentations have been listed in bold.
Have fun reminiscing about what you saw at this venue during the ‘80s!
1979-12-21 … THE BLACK HOLE (8)
1980-02-15 … ALL THAT JAZZ (17)
1980-06-13 … THE SHINING (7)
1980-08-01 … RAISE THE TITANIC (8)
1980-09-26 … DIVINE MADNESS (7)
1980-11-14 … FANTASIA (5)
1980-12-19 … THE JAZZ SINGER (5)
1981-01-23 … ALTERED STATES (10)
1981-04-03 … BLACK AND BLUE (1)
1981-04-10 … STAR WARS (2)
1981-04-24 … 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1)
1981-05-01 … CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (4 days)
1981-05-05 … APOCALYPSE NOW (5 days)
1981-05-10 … THE SOUND OF MUSIC (2 days)
1981-05-12 … DAYS OF HEAVEN (3 days)
1981-05-15 … PATTON (2 days)
1981-05-17 … THE ROSE (2 days)
1981-05-20 … THE SAND PEBBLES (2 days)
1981-05-22 … OUTLAND (4)
1981-06-19 … SUPERMAN II (15)
1981-10-02 … PRINCE OF THE CITY (6)
1981-11-13 … THE PURSUIT OF D.B. COOPER (?)
1981-12-18 … RAGTIME (11)
1982-03-05 … QUEST FOR FIRE (6)
1982-04-16 … FANTASIA (5)
1982-05-21 … AC/DC: LET THERE BE ROCK (2)
1982-06-04 … 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (2)
1982-06-18 … ANNIE (6)
1982-07-30 … ANNIE / APOCALYPSE NOW (2)
1982-08-13 … STAR WARS (5)
1982-09-17 … PINK FLOYD: THE WALL (4)
1982-10-15 … TRON (2)
1982-10-29 … FANTASIA (3)
1982-11-19 … THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (3)
1982-12-08 … GANDHI (27)
1983-06-17 … SUPERMAN III (4)
1983-07-15 … STAYING ALIVE (4)
1983-08-12 … CUJO (2)
1983-08-26 … A STAR IS BORN (4)
1983-09-23 … KOYAANISQATSI (2)
1983-10-07 … OKLAHOMA! (2)
1983-10-21 … THE RIGHT STUFF (7)
1983-12-09 … YENTL (9)
1984-02-10 … UNFAITHFULLY YOURS (4)
1984-03-09 … FANTASIA (3)
1984-03-30 … GREYSTOKE: THE LEGEND OF TARZAN (9)
1984-06-01 … STREETS OF FIRE (1)
1984-06-08 … GHOSTBUSTERS (17)
1984-10-05 … COUNTRY (7)
1984-11-21 … SUPERGIRL (3)
1984-12-14 … DUNE (5)
1985-01-18 … A PASSAGE TO INDIA (10)
1985-03-29 … RETURN OF THE JEDI (2)
1985-04-12 … LADYHAWKE (8)
1985-06-07 … FANTASIA (2)
1985-06-21 … RETURN TO OZ (2)
1985-07-03 … RETURN TO OZ / APOCALYPSE NOW (1)
1985-07-10 … SILVERADO (12)
1985-10-04 … JAGGED EDGE (11)
1985-12-20 … OUT OF AFRICA (21)
1986-05-16 … SWEET LIBERTY (1)
1986-05-23 … ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS (4)
1986-06-20 … LEGAL EAGLES (6)
1986-08-01 … HOWARD THE DUCK (2)
1986-08-15 … MANHUNTER (6)
1986-09-26 … THE NAME OF THE ROSE (7)
1986-11-14 … THE MISSION (9)
1987-01-16 … PLATOON (16)
1987-05-08 … GARDENS OF STONE (5)
1987-06-10 … THE BELIEVERS (2)
1987-06-26 … FULL METAL JACKET (7)
1987-08-14 … NO WAY OUT (8)
1987-10-09 … THE PRINCESS BRIDE (4)
1987-11-05 … CRY FREEDOM (7)
1987-12-25 … THE LAST EMPEROR (21)
1988-05-20 … WILLOW (5)
1988-06-22 … WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT (13)
1988-09-23 … GORILLAS IN THE MIST (11)
1988-12-09 … MISSISSIPPI BURNING (9)
1989-02-08 … LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (10)
1989-04-21 … FIELD OF DREAMS (12)
1989-07-12 … WHEN HARRY MET SALLY… (9)
1989-09-15 … SEA OF LOVE (10)
1989-11-22 … BACK TO THE FUTURE PART II (4)
1989-12-20 … BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY (?)
I’m not planning to compile a similar list for the 1990s, so someone else ought to consider tackling that period.
I wish Boston had more theaters like this one. Love the curved screen. I saw “Inception” here with my sister five years ago. It was also a treat to sit in the balcony, something very few theaters have now. But then there are hardly any single screen palaces like this one left in the country, depending on where you live.
This venue would be a great place to see the new Star Wars film, if only for the sake of nostalgia. I saw Return of the Jedi here in ‘85, during its first re-release, here in 70mm, which filled up the curve quite nicely. I still think the MacArthur was better soundwise but thats just my opinion. I’m thinking it may be the massive interior fabrics absorbing some of the sound. The speedbike chase through the Endor forest was more exciting because the screen is that more massive and immersive.
Unless, they’ve upgraded the digital projection, Im not that enthused about the darker picture quality. Laser would be a nice upgrade but as you say, Giles, AMC isn’t going to. If someone does see it here, post..maybe the projection light is bright now, but 3D digital plays a little darker for me.
I highly doubt that AMC is going to pony up for a laser system – it could use it (in my opinion) but the theater was listed as one of the top three places to see the new Star Wars movie as mentioned in today’s Washington Post’s Weekend section.
I accidentally found this theater during a recent trip to Washington. I was so glad to see that it still existed. Single screen theaters are so rare these days. It looks to be relatively well cared for and in good shape. I love the fact that the newspaper advertisements refer to this as “AMC Uptown 1” as if every theater has to have a number like 10 or 14 or 16 these days!
when are you going to do the 1980’s list Coates – I’m very curious to resee what played there since those were the years I most went to the Uptown (a lot).
Well now I’m curious to find my bluray copy of ‘Circus World’ it’s somewhere here in the mess er, video collection (organizational skills aren’t my strong suits)
Hello Again from NYC-
I thank richmurphy for his reply. as stated though Circus World isn’t Oscar material I found it a corny, hokey colorful entertaining film. i just can’t see any roadshow film presented “in Cinerama” starring John Wayne lasting only 3 weeks. a question for you. as i said in my original post i suppose CW suffered from the fact it wasn’t another El Cid. but if that’s the case than why did the film last as long as 13, 15 or 20 weeks in its roadshow run in other cities.
Sorry, bigjoe59, but Coate’s listing of the Uptown’s CIRCUS WORLD engagement is NOT a mistake. Having some time to kill today, I perused back issues of The Washington Post. (Remember that 1964 was the era of daily showtime listings and display ads, so researching facts like this is relatively easy). The dates he listed are correct.
But since you and I are both fans of the movie, may I recommend the Anchor Bay Blu-Ray from Britain that came out a year ago. You’ll need a multi-region player to view it, but the restoration work by Pinewood is quite impressive.
Hello From NYC-
i thank Coate for posting a while back a list of Circus World’s roadshow runs across the U.S. i questioned the D.C listing for the Uptown of only 3 weeks. Coate figured it might be because word had gotten out that the film while enjoyable wasn’t another El Cid. but the film opened in other big city runs after D.C yet had decent runs cancelling out Coate’s theory about word of mouth. my point being the Uptown run of 3 weeks the shortest on the list has got to be a mistake.
October 28th, 1936 grand opening ad in photo section