GMNash: You mentioned Dana…was that Dana Moore? Anyway, I was there opening day in the booth. The district manager, Gene Patterson was there, and had a heart attack and was carried out on a stretcher. He died the next morning. Mr. P was a great guy, a bit gruff on the outside, but a nice guy once you got to know him. Not the best opening….
Zeb?? Hey David, Pat here! I come to Memphis occasionally to service the Digital IMAXs there! Live North of Nashville, still with IMAX. Won 2010 best Imax booth contest. https://www.giantscreencinema.com/Awards/Past-Award-Winners/2010-Awards. Pix of me there. Call imax 9054036500 and have them email me your number. Good to see you!
I’ve discovered from the old Chief Projectionist that took over when I left that the 1570 equipment is there. Sad part is, there’s no one on staff there who can operate it.
The Warner Park Drive in operated into the early 70’s if memory serves me correctly. The land was cleared and a big gym was built there, but I don’t know what is there now. Very steep lot it was built on. Other drive ins in Nashville at the time, Bel Aire, Colonial, Montague, Lebanon Rd, Skyway, Crescent and maybe another one or two I can’t remember. There were actually two Colonials. The original was at the intersection of Old Hickory Blvd and Gallatin Rd, and was a single screen. The second was a twin closer towards Hendersonville.
Harry Vickous managed this theater at one time…just a “name spelling” correction. I started training to be a union operator at this theater with Ben Thomas, the business agent. It had three projectors, and a magnetic playback unit that could sync to the projectors.
Cecil Ferguson and his wife Euela Mae ran this theater when I was a union projectionist. They had carbon arc lamphouses, and Euela Mae would give me left over hamburgers and hot dogs at the end of the night. I’d heat ‘em up during a 20 minute reel in the lamphouse and they’d be piping hot! Euela Mae was struck by lightning not once, but TWICE on the front porch of their home.
I hired and trained the IMAX staff when this theater opened. Nice guys, but all gone now. Rumor has it that the 1570 film projector was removed/decommissioned after the second “Dark Knight” film earlier this year. It now has a “fauxmax” digital IMAX projector. Management did nothing but complain about the fact the projectionists got paid more than they did…running a 4 million dollar projection system. I will never enter that theater again.
TSLowes: I worked there in the 70’s also, in the concession stand. Johnny Cash’s “The Gospel Road” premiered there, and I still have the signed copy of a bible they were handing out.
While working for Regal Cinemas, I installed the projectors in this theater while it was being built. All twelve houses could be interlocked, i.e a single print could be run through all houses at the same time.
When the restoration of Lawrence of Arabia ran in 1988, I was managing the Belleview 4. Carmike signed me out of the theater, and put me as projectionist at the BelleMeade, because I was the only person in Carmike’s organization who had experience running 70MM films. Harry Vickous was the manager at that time and it was a lot of fun working for him.
I was a relief projectionist, and later for Carmike was a manager there. Had a weird experience there with “cold spots”. The janitor, Veronica Flemming, was from Jamaica and practiced Voodoo. She “cleaned” the theater in more ways than one!
The Bel-Air was near the intersection of Charlotte Ave. and White Bridge Road. I trained there as a projectionist. The Drive-in scenes of “W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings” was filmed there.
I managed this theater in 1990-91. I had a great staff, a few of which I still have contact with.
Anyone know of the status of the projection equipment at the Lyric? Installed? Gone?
@zebtheamerican I reset my phone…your number wasn’t backed up! Call me! Before July 10!
GMNash: You mentioned Dana…was that Dana Moore? Anyway, I was there opening day in the booth. The district manager, Gene Patterson was there, and had a heart attack and was carried out on a stretcher. He died the next morning. Mr. P was a great guy, a bit gruff on the outside, but a nice guy once you got to know him. Not the best opening….
Zeb?? Hey David, Pat here! I come to Memphis occasionally to service the Digital IMAXs there! Live North of Nashville, still with IMAX. Won 2010 best Imax booth contest. https://www.giantscreencinema.com/Awards/Past-Award-Winners/2010-Awards. Pix of me there. Call imax 9054036500 and have them email me your number. Good to see you!
I’ve discovered from the old Chief Projectionist that took over when I left that the 1570 equipment is there. Sad part is, there’s no one on staff there who can operate it.
As an adult, I never worked there. However, I did go there with my father who was into war films and saw “Von Ryan’s Express”.
The Warner Park Drive in operated into the early 70’s if memory serves me correctly. The land was cleared and a big gym was built there, but I don’t know what is there now. Very steep lot it was built on. Other drive ins in Nashville at the time, Bel Aire, Colonial, Montague, Lebanon Rd, Skyway, Crescent and maybe another one or two I can’t remember. There were actually two Colonials. The original was at the intersection of Old Hickory Blvd and Gallatin Rd, and was a single screen. The second was a twin closer towards Hendersonville.
Harry Vickous managed this theater at one time…just a “name spelling” correction. I started training to be a union operator at this theater with Ben Thomas, the business agent. It had three projectors, and a magnetic playback unit that could sync to the projectors.
Cecil Ferguson and his wife Euela Mae ran this theater when I was a union projectionist. They had carbon arc lamphouses, and Euela Mae would give me left over hamburgers and hot dogs at the end of the night. I’d heat ‘em up during a 20 minute reel in the lamphouse and they’d be piping hot! Euela Mae was struck by lightning not once, but TWICE on the front porch of their home.
I hired and trained the IMAX staff when this theater opened. Nice guys, but all gone now. Rumor has it that the 1570 film projector was removed/decommissioned after the second “Dark Knight” film earlier this year. It now has a “fauxmax” digital IMAX projector. Management did nothing but complain about the fact the projectionists got paid more than they did…running a 4 million dollar projection system. I will never enter that theater again.
TSLowes: I worked there in the 70’s also, in the concession stand. Johnny Cash’s “The Gospel Road” premiered there, and I still have the signed copy of a bible they were handing out.
I also installed the projectors for Regal at this location. (All digital except for one house now)
While working for Regal Cinemas, I installed the projectors in this theater while it was being built. All twelve houses could be interlocked, i.e a single print could be run through all houses at the same time.
When the restoration of Lawrence of Arabia ran in 1988, I was managing the Belleview 4. Carmike signed me out of the theater, and put me as projectionist at the BelleMeade, because I was the only person in Carmike’s organization who had experience running 70MM films. Harry Vickous was the manager at that time and it was a lot of fun working for him.
I was a relief projectionist, and later for Carmike was a manager there. Had a weird experience there with “cold spots”. The janitor, Veronica Flemming, was from Jamaica and practiced Voodoo. She “cleaned” the theater in more ways than one!
The Bel-Air was near the intersection of Charlotte Ave. and White Bridge Road. I trained there as a projectionist. The Drive-in scenes of “W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings” was filmed there.