Comments from drb

I remember after the Loyola and Paradise closed, we’d have to go here by default. The only good thing was the great video arcade next door, but that closed by the mid to late 80s. Besides being a lousy venue, the rule of thumb was to never wear anything identifying you with Westchester High unless you wanted the Venice High gangs to chase you away. I can’t believe that with the Bridge open and Loews across the street, that this boring little boxy multiplex is still around.

Re: QuickTime VR comment from JJ MacCrimmon: Huh?? “Massive files”? “Memory intensive”? Dude, I made some QuickTime VRs with an ancient Mac Performa 6116 ages ago, sometime mid- to late-1990s when QTVR came out. Just took a cheap camera and a tripod, took photos at around 30 or 45 degree increments, stitched them together, which was just a matter of clicking on common points in adjoining photos and let the incredibly powerful 66MHz computer with its 32MB RAM do its work in a matter of seconds, then uploaded the VR files (each under 1MB) to my FTP space on my ISP. TaDa, interactive 360 degree panorama. I haven’t done any since then, and don’t even know where my copy of the software is now (that version wouldn’t run on the newest Macs anyway, plus I don’t currently have a tripod), but it’s not anywhere near the big drama you’re saying it is. If you didn’t want to do a VR, fine, but there’s no reason to tell tall tales about the huge amounts of computing power necessary, when a 12 year old budget-level Mac can do it just fine, which you can buy in a thrift store for $10. I just don’t want anyone else to be falsely discouraged from doing VR panos, just because you’re massively fibbing about what it takes. VR views of theaters would be nifty to see.

As for the Californian, I only go to San Diego maybe once a year, usually for Comic-Con, but I’ve been fretting for the fate of this old place for years. I had hoped there would be some good news. Well, as long as it’s still standing, there’s still hope, right?

The Town Center 8 started out as a 4-plex, but as the little shops along its left side struggled and closed, the theater expanded , turning each of the four ex-shops into a mini-theater. The newer 4 screens have the foldaway armrests that the original 4 don’t, and are much more easily wheelchair-accessible (the front 4 theaters require their wheelchair lift to be working), but the seating is flat and they’re even tinier screens than the original front 4. Other than carpeting and a little decorating, they just took each little boutique shop, closed off the entrances and put screens there instead, threw in a few dozen seats and a projection booth in each, and connected them to the lobby via a hallway. There’s a good chance that your living room is larger. IIRC the original 4 are slightly sloped, but not much.

But the Burbank 16 and the Town Center 6 really are quite nice, in every way that the 8 isn’t. The 8 are convenient when you’re shopping, but really, it’s such a short walk to screens that are so much better.

I notice the 8 has started to play second-run films that the better screens have already dropped, and some independent films. Wise move, actually.

While I never went to the Capitol myself, only having just move to Glendale at the time, I remember it was sitting vacant before the Northridge quake. After the quake, there was extensive damage to the theater’s south wall, and it was demolished shortly afterwards. You could see that the old brick walls had never been retrofitted, which was the probable reason for the partial collapse. That was also probably why it was closed, as by that time retrofitting was mandatory, but I guess they didn’t want to put in any money to keep it open and standing.

The Centinela was in Westchester, not Inglewood. Centinela Ave. doesn’t become part of Inglewood until you pass La Cienega, nearly a mile away. Ladera Heights and Fox Hills are on the north side of Centinela, and the theater was on the south (Westchester/LA) side of the street.

It always seemed to be viewed by most locals as the “lesser” drive-in, in comparison to the Studio Drive-In in Culver City, but both are very much missed today.