Gwinnett Place Cinema I-VI

wolfius on April 9, 2018 at 2:03 pm

my name is Justin and i worked at this theater from Spring of 1991 until probably mid-to-late summer of 1992. Lynn Zieburtz was the manager, Aaron worked the booth, and i think Lisa Cooper was the assistant manager who hired (and would later fire) me. one of the other female asst. managers was a lady named Dierdre, she had red hair and was super nice, i forget her last name, she came to a party that my friend threw that summer which i thought was cool (and also kinda odd since she was older than us, but whatever, we liked her). Silence of the Lambs was still playing when i was hired. we had Backdraft, City Slickers, The Rocketeer, Soapdish, V.I. Warshawksi, Doc Hollywood, Double Impact, Child’s Play 3, Other People’s Money, Billy Bathgate, Beauty and the Beast, Bugsy, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, Memoirs of an Invisible Man, My Cousin Vinny, The Cutting Edge, Ladybugs, Thunderheart, Lethal Weapon 3, and Sister Act when i was there (i think—after i got fired, i immediately got hired over at the UA theater on the other side of Gwinnett Mall, and i’m a little fuzzy on the timeline so some of the movies we had kind of run together).

Lynn gave out “Z-bills” that you could save, and every couple of months, she would host an auction with old posters, standees, and other prizes to spend your bills on. it was great.

Aaron was the best; he would come down and hang out with you if you were closing, after he started the final show. he had this awesome recliner he sat in up in the booth, and he wore a fantastic pair of green slippers that he had cut the toes out of.

i forget the name of the male asst. manager who came later… Mr. Thornton maybe?? he drove a Grand Prix and was always trying to get people to ride with him when he went out to the bank or to get food. that always used to weird me out.

Other people who worked there when i did:

Oscar Hernandez (drove a motorcycle for a while) Don Pennelli Tim (tall skinny kid) Tonya (young blonde)

i can see other faces but the names are eluding me.

i’ve gone over there a few times over the years, hoping to sneak in and have a look around, but i quit trying a long time ago, it’s been sealed up tight for ages. the closest i got was finding one of the locks broken on one of the side exit doors, but the door was wedged shut and i couldn’t pull it open. plus it was in full view of the Fry’s parking lot and that spooked me a little. i’d be afraid to go in there now. i can’t believe no one ever did anything with the building, including just knocking it down. i still remember what it smelled like in that theater, it was very distinct, more than just popcorn, i’ve never been in another theater that smelled like it did.

thanks to everyone who posted photos and info about the theater and the people who worked there. it jogged a few nice, old memories.

rivest266 on April 16, 2018 at 1:12 am

Closed in 2000 by General Cinemas and picked up by Georgia Theatre Company in 2001.

Turd_Ferguson on May 31, 2019 at 4:38 am

Demolished January 2019

CinemaManSteve on September 1, 2020 at 7:39 am

Wow, great to go down memory lane. I remember Aaron and Lynn vividly. I worked there from the summer of ‘95 until about '98 I believe. Worked so many Open to Closing shifts as a teenager trying to save money. When AMC Colonial 18 opened up Lawrenceville, that seemed to be the beginning of the end for this specific location. Oscar previously mentioned was my favorite manager. Braveheart was probably the biggest hit we had there while I was employed and I probably saw it 10 times LOL. Can’t wait to reminisce more with anyone else reviewing this thread.

rivest266 on March 6, 2025 at 10:20 pm

Article from Cassie.

General Cinema closed in Atlanta

Article from 29 Sep 2000, Fri The Atlanta Constitution (Atlanta, Georgia)