UA Cinema 150

marysgranddaughter: No, my job transferred me to Ohio, back in ‘91. I hardly ever go to the movies any more. It’s just not nearly as much fun as in 'the good ol’ days'.

This is great they saved this wonderful building. There was once a similar theatre in Seattle for years with the same screen and systems and they made it a weedfilled lot and now it is another huge generic highrise in a city rapidly loosing it soul and history. The screen in this 150 degree system is almost as awesome as Cinerama or Imax. The Cinerama theatre still exists in Seattle and has been updated and improved many times and just recently again. One of the most technically advanced theatres in the world. Was built around 1962 or 1963.

I saw the original Star Wars, Empire and Jedi at this theater as a kid. I moved from Little Rock long ago, but it’s sad to see it gone.

There are lots of interesting stories about the UA Cinema 150. I worked for United Artists from 1969 until 1977, and then again from 1980 until 1986, in Conway, Morrilton and Arkadelphia, Arkansas. While I had many UA manager and employee friends in Little Rock, I never did work there.

The story goes that the real estate specialist for United Artists, Bob Bouchee (spelling?) was scouting Little Rock, in an effort to find the best location for a D-150 theatre. He saw the corner of Asher & University and said “This is it.” Unfortunately, the developer of the Village Shopping Center did not want a movie theatre in his project. As a result, United Artists purchased the entire shopping center and put the Cinema 150 there. At one point in time, it was suggested that the city offices for United Artists be placed in the center. United Artists had closed the Arkansas Theatre downtown and then needed another place to go. When someone suggested to then district manager Robin Wightman about the possibility, Wightman said, “Hell, we can’t afford the rent there!” So they located the offices behind the UA University Quartet Theatre across the street from the 150.

Another story concerns the construction of the 150. The construction was progressing nicely, when someone discovered that the architect had not included a project booth in his plans! So, one had to be added to the plans and engineers had to figure out how to complete the construction. That apparently was a problem, but they got it worked out.

The UA Cinema 150 was a gorgeous theatre and one that the film companies wanted to have their pictures screened there. It was also a favorite of movie patrons, great for dates and special occasions. I always enjoyed going there on my night off and watching a film. But my favorite theatre in Little Rock for watching movies was actually The Heights Theatre. I know it was a sad day when the 150 was razed.

A chronology of Little Rock’s 70mm presentations has recently been published for those interested in this aspect of the city’s motion picture exhibition history. The Cinema 150 gets several mentions in the piece.