to Roger A.- it was a common practice to trim a film from
its original roadshow cut for when its played neighborhood
theaters. how much was trimmed depended on how long the
film was to begin with. which leads me to my question- why
do you think some studios/distributors were more adept at
keeping the trims from roadshow prints than other studios?
for instance the 1st time I saw Cleopatra was at my
neighborhood theater in NYC. I assumed the print I saw
was the film but it was the 3hr. 15min. print. fortunately
Dorothy Spencer kept the trims from the original 4hr. cut
which premiered in NYC June of 1963. but that’s not the
case with a number of roadshow films whose blu-ray discs
are the general release print not the original roadshow
cut.
to Roger A. thanks for your assessment of the situation.
aside from how big an HD or 4K t.v. most people would be
able to afford if a t.v were to big wouldn’t it hurt your
eyes or be overwhelming? for instance in the rec room
in my house the largest t.v. I could buy and put in the
spot I’ve always put my t.v.s is 50". an 80" t.v. would
be way too much.
since theaters in NYC haven’t been opened since March 16
I just got to see Tenet on blu-ray which was released this
past Tues. considering the mixed reviews the film got
from what people did get to see it I thought my reaction
would be mixed as well but it wasn’t. two questions-
*one complaint some people had was not understanding the
dialogue in some scenes. what scenes were being referred
to? I had very little problem understanding the dialogue.
*also the back of the case says there’s a making of doc. not on the 4K but on the blu-ray. but the blu-ray disc doesn’t have a making of doc. what gives?
even if the pandemic had never happened I still can’t see a true movie buff being comfortable with watching say WW84 or No
Time to Die on their computer rather than at the Chinese or
this theater.
on pg.1 of the photo section is an ad with highly acclaimed
critics' quotes for the New York premiere of Isadora with Vanessa Redgrave. interesting note. I believe the Paramount
Theater(now the El Capitan) in L.A. was the only theater in
the entire U.S.to have played the original uncut version.
to vindanpar. I thank you for your note of 11/10. I still
don’t understand the reason tweaking a film while still in
its original roadshow run. LOA was still at the most 2 shows
a day so tweaking it wouldn’t have increased the box office.
perplexing decision on Lean’s part.
to vindanpar- I guess great minds think alike. after
reading oknazevad’s 11/24 comment I was just about to
note that the live theater space used by the Roundabout
Theater Company was never part of the movie theater
proper. if I remember correctly at the time the space
opened it was stated it was unused storage space or the
like. its kind of like the Orleans at the Warner. the
theater proper was twined and the Orleans was created
from storage space used for when the theater also
presented life acts.
if a film was tweaked during its roadshow run in
Manhattan I assume it happened in L.A. as well. now
I knew 2001 and IAMMMMW were tweaked while still
in their roadshow runs in Manhattan at respectively
the Loews Capitol and the Warner but I wasn’t
Lawrence of Arabia was tweaked while still in its
roadshow run at the Criterion. I assumed it was
tweaked before it played the neighborhood theater
circuit.
it is my understanding that IAMMMMW was tweaked when it was
still in its roadshow at the Warner in Manhattan. when they
made the circuit of neighborhood theaters around NYC after
they finished their original roadshow runs films would be
tweaked or not depending on how they were. but I never
understood the point to tweaking a film when it was still
in its roadshow run.
this question has probably already been asked but I would
appreciate if some one provided the answer again. how long ‘
did the original 3hr. 12min. cut play during the roadshow
engagement?
to Al A.- thanks again for your font of knowledge. is it
possible AIW was shot as an actual porn film and then edited
to get an official X rating so it could play regular
movie theaters? in the late 70s I distinctly remember there
was a fairy tale based film that was shot as an actual porn
film but edited to get the official X rating. since you
said AIW was shot as a soft-core film what film might I
being thinking about?
I haven’t been to a movie since i saw Onward at the
AMC 19th St. on Sat. March 14th. I would love to go to
the movies again. since everyone would be masked and
cleaning would be done between screenings and the
capacity would be capped at 25& I’d go. what do my
fellow NYC moviegoers say?
I’m sure at one time or another all the 1st run theaters in
the Times Square area showed what were known as exploitation
films. but I never remembered this theater showing actual
porn. in the photo section is an ad for Alice in Wonderland
which was am actual porn film. or though it had an X rating
was it a cleaned up version?
to Bill H.- thanks for your reply. movie theaters in NYC
have been closed since March 16th. there’s a YouTube channel
that reviews films i like quite a bit. someone from
Canada write in saying he had seen the film 3 times in
IMAX and he and his friends were going back this weekend.
I can’t believe a Christopher Nolan film can be that
uneven. hopefully theaters in NYC will re-open soon so I
can judge for myself.
to hdtv267. in your reply to moviebuff82’s comment on
wanting to see Tenet in this theater’s IMAX auditorium
you say “ its a bad film no matter what format its shown
in”. NYC movie theaters have been closed since Mon. 3/16.
so might I ask where you saw Tenet?
its nice the owner of this theater is using the down time
to upgrade this theater. so the oldest continually operated
movie theater in NYC will be it tip top shape when it
re-opens. I hope other theater owners are doing likewise.
on page 1 of the photo second is an ad for this theater as
the Mark 1,2,3 showing war films. now I have used the TKTS
booth since the day it opened. to which if you stood on the
line on the right side of the booth you looked directly
at the marquee for this theater. I never remember Mark 1,2,3
being on the marquee. anyone ever come across a photo?
I just watched the new Netflix film of The Boys in
the Band which uses the cast from the 2018 Tony winning
revival. the character of Cowboy in the 2018 revival
and the Netflix film is played by Charlie Carver. this
reminded me of Robert La Tourneaux who played Cowboy
in the original long running Off-Bway production and
the 1970 film version. in 1978? He did a live strip
show here. he was great but it was sad he was so typecast
by the character of Cowboy that his career stalled.
on page 2 of the photo section is an ad for the continuous
performances at popular prices engagement of Cleopatra. this
was after its lengthy roadshow run at the Rivoli. now the
ad does not contain the often used catchphrase “nothing cut
but the prices”. so I’m guessing this engagement used the
same 3hr. 15min. edit that I saw at the Valentine Theater
in the Bronx.
to walterk thanks for your reply. The Man Who Made The
Movies a bio of Fox by Vanda Krefft is one of my favorite
movie history books ever. I could swear she said the Halsey
was the 1st theater Fox managed with the Dewey the 1st
he managed in Manhattan.
also I’m surprised the Halsey close as early as 1943. most
neighborhood theaters in the Bronx took yearsssss to be done
in by t.v.. so I find it interesting the Halsey closed
up a good 5/6 years before t.v. even came about.
Hello-
to Roger A.- it was a common practice to trim a film from its original roadshow cut for when its played neighborhood theaters. how much was trimmed depended on how long the film was to begin with. which leads me to my question- why do you think some studios/distributors were more adept at keeping the trims from roadshow prints than other studios? for instance the 1st time I saw Cleopatra was at my neighborhood theater in NYC. I assumed the print I saw was the film but it was the 3hr. 15min. print. fortunately Dorothy Spencer kept the trims from the original 4hr. cut which premiered in NYC June of 1963. but that’s not the case with a number of roadshow films whose blu-ray discs are the general release print not the original roadshow cut.
Hello-
to Roger A. thanks for your assessment of the situation. aside from how big an HD or 4K t.v. most people would be able to afford if a t.v were to big wouldn’t it hurt your eyes or be overwhelming? for instance in the rec room in my house the largest t.v. I could buy and put in the spot I’ve always put my t.v.s is 50". an 80" t.v. would be way too much.
Hello-
since theaters in NYC haven’t been opened since March 16 I just got to see Tenet on blu-ray which was released this past Tues. considering the mixed reviews the film got from what people did get to see it I thought my reaction would be mixed as well but it wasn’t. two questions-
*one complaint some people had was not understanding the dialogue in some scenes. what scenes were being referred to? I had very little problem understanding the dialogue.
*also the back of the case says there’s a making of doc.
not on the 4K but on the blu-ray. but the blu-ray disc
doesn’t have a making of doc. what gives?
Hello-
even if the pandemic had never happened I still can’t see a true movie buff being comfortable with watching say WW84 or No Time to Die on their computer rather than at the Chinese or this theater.
Hello-
on pg.1 of the photo section is an ad with highly acclaimed critics' quotes for the New York premiere of Isadora with Vanessa Redgrave. interesting note. I believe the Paramount Theater(now the El Capitan) in L.A. was the only theater in the entire U.S.to have played the original uncut version.
Hello-
to vindanpar. I thank you for your note of 11/10. I still don’t understand the reason tweaking a film while still in its original roadshow run. LOA was still at the most 2 shows a day so tweaking it wouldn’t have increased the box office. perplexing decision on Lean’s part.
Hello-
a question to my fellow moviegoers especially regulars at this theater. how much impact will the Warner HBO Max deal actually have on theaters?
Hello-
to vindanpar. the Loews State stayed almost but not quite exploitation film free, it did show “Without A Stitch” a Swedish soft-core film.
also the Capitol escaped becoming an exploitation house by Closing June? of 1968.
Hello-
to vindanpar- I guess great minds think alike. after reading oknazevad’s 11/24 comment I was just about to note that the live theater space used by the Roundabout Theater Company was never part of the movie theater proper. if I remember correctly at the time the space opened it was stated it was unused storage space or the like. its kind of like the Orleans at the Warner. the theater proper was twined and the Orleans was created from storage space used for when the theater also presented life acts.
Hello-
if a film was tweaked during its roadshow run in Manhattan I assume it happened in L.A. as well. now I knew 2001 and IAMMMMW were tweaked while still in their roadshow runs in Manhattan at respectively the Loews Capitol and the Warner but I wasn’t Lawrence of Arabia was tweaked while still in its roadshow run at the Criterion. I assumed it was tweaked before it played the neighborhood theater circuit.
Hello-
it is my understanding that IAMMMMW was tweaked when it was still in its roadshow at the Warner in Manhattan. when they made the circuit of neighborhood theaters around NYC after they finished their original roadshow runs films would be tweaked or not depending on how they were. but I never understood the point to tweaking a film when it was still in its roadshow run.
Hello-
this question has probably already been asked but I would appreciate if some one provided the answer again. how long ‘ did the original 3hr. 12min. cut play during the roadshow engagement?
Hello-
to Bill H.- you obviously live in New Jersey. what was Governor Murphy’s rationale behind letting movie theaters re-open?
Hello-
to Al A.- thanks again for your font of knowledge. is it possible AIW was shot as an actual porn film and then edited to get an official X rating so it could play regular movie theaters? in the late 70s I distinctly remember there was a fairy tale based film that was shot as an actual porn
film but edited to get the official X rating. since you said AIW was shot as a soft-core film what film might I being thinking about?
Hello-
to Al A.-
I have been searching these pages and can’t find the Trans Lux East. its not listed under the Gotham either. do you know what name its listed under?
Hello-
I haven’t been to a movie since i saw Onward at the AMC 19th St. on Sat. March 14th. I would love to go to the movies again. since everyone would be masked and cleaning would be done between screenings and the capacity would be capped at 25& I’d go. what do my fellow NYC moviegoers say?
Hello-
to markp- thanks for your reply. I could swear AIW was an actual porn film. I might be confusing it with a similar fairy tale based porn film.
Hello-
I’m sure at one time or another all the 1st run theaters in the Times Square area showed what were known as exploitation films. but I never remembered this theater showing actual porn. in the photo section is an ad for Alice in Wonderland which was am actual porn film. or though it had an X rating was it a cleaned up version?
Hello-
to Bill H.- thanks for your reply. movie theaters in NYC have been closed since March 16th. there’s a YouTube channel that reviews films i like quite a bit. someone from Canada write in saying he had seen the film 3 times in IMAX and he and his friends were going back this weekend. I can’t believe a Christopher Nolan film can be that uneven. hopefully theaters in NYC will re-open soon so I can judge for myself.
Hello-
to hdtv267. in your reply to moviebuff82’s comment on wanting to see Tenet in this theater’s IMAX auditorium you say “ its a bad film no matter what format its shown in”. NYC movie theaters have been closed since Mon. 3/16. so might I ask where you saw Tenet?
Hello-
its nice the owner of this theater is using the down time to upgrade this theater. so the oldest continually operated movie theater in NYC will be it tip top shape when it re-opens. I hope other theater owners are doing likewise.
Hello-
on page 1 of the photo second is an ad for this theater as the Mark 1,2,3 showing war films. now I have used the TKTS
booth since the day it opened. to which if you stood on the line on the right side of the booth you looked directly at the marquee for this theater. I never remember Mark 1,2,3 being on the marquee. anyone ever come across a photo?
Hello-
I just watched the new Netflix film of The Boys in the Band which uses the cast from the 2018 Tony winning revival. the character of Cowboy in the 2018 revival and the Netflix film is played by Charlie Carver. this reminded me of Robert La Tourneaux who played Cowboy in the original long running Off-Bway production and the 1970 film version. in 1978? He did a live strip show here. he was great but it was sad he was so typecast by the character of Cowboy that his career stalled.
Hello-
on page 2 of the photo section is an ad for the continuous performances at popular prices engagement of Cleopatra. this was after its lengthy roadshow run at the Rivoli. now the ad does not contain the often used catchphrase “nothing cut but the prices”. so I’m guessing this engagement used the same 3hr. 15min. edit that I saw at the Valentine Theater in the Bronx.
Hello-
to walterk thanks for your reply. The Man Who Made The Movies a bio of Fox by Vanda Krefft is one of my favorite movie history books ever. I could swear she said the Halsey was the 1st theater Fox managed with the Dewey the 1st he managed in Manhattan.
also I’m surprised the Halsey close as early as 1943. most neighborhood theaters in the Bronx took yearsssss to be done in by t.v.. so I find it interesting the Halsey closed up a good 5/6 years before t.v. even came about.