Rialto Cinemas Cerrito
10070 San Pablo Avenue,
El Cerrito,
CA
94530
10070 San Pablo Avenue,
El Cerrito,
CA
94530
9 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 30 comments
Opened December 25th, 1937. Grand opening ad posted.
The 13th annual Albany Film Festival will be held at the Cerrito this year due to the nearby Albany Theatre’s closing earlier this year. Details … Here
A few 2012 photos can be seen here and here.
Great theater! I love it’s Art Deco interior.
This is not being operated by Rennaisance Rialto. Rennaisance operates the Grand Lake and formerly the Park, Orinda and Oaks. Rialto Cinemas is a completely different guy.
Reopens on July 15th under the operation of Rennaisance Rialto (who operates the Elmwood in Berkeley). First attraction will be the new Harry Potter film. It sounds as if RR will be running first-run product here, unlike the Fischers.
I don’t want to be a killjoy. But I’m not sure how much money is left in exhibition of foreign films. I’m sure DVDs, internet access, etc. have taken a bite out of that business as compared to what it was twenty years ago. There is definitely a solution, I’m just not sure what it is. Whatever the case I think the recent renovation means that the theatre is safe for a while.
(continued)
that shows Chinese/Hong Kong fare (there is a good Asian population there, and they can cross-market to nearby UC Berkeley as the theater is easily accessible by public transit).
Unfortunately, according to this mornings Contra Costa Times, the Cerrito Theater is now “closed indefinitely” as the Fischers have ran out of money. The Redevelopment Agency of El Cerrito pulled their lease recently as the Fischers have not paid their $10,000 a month rent on the theater for the last 18 months. (Their other theater, the Parkway in Oakland, shuttered in April due to financial issues & declining attendance.) They have blamed the shutdown on the economy, lack of access to first-run movies, increased construction costs, etc.
This is sad but me thinks that the best solution may be to try opoperating a theater
The Cerrito opened in December 1937, according to Boxoffice magazine, at a cost of $150,000. The owner at the opening was the Blumenfield Theaters chain.
The Cerrito restoration received a California Preservation Foundation 2007 Preservation Design Award:
http://www.californiapreservation.org
See
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_G-jzEFK4k
“Gee Dad, it was a WurliTzer!”
Anyone have any interior shots of the finished theatre to share?
Hence (and perhaps rather obviously), Cerito’s status will very soon need to be changed to “Open,” the number of screens changed to “Twin,” and the chain to “Speakeasy Theaters.” Presumably the seating capacity will also need changing, but the new capacity is uncertain (the site’s FAQ isn’t up as yet). But WHAT A VICTORY (especially in light of the loss of several beloved Bay Area theaters in recent months)!
Sweet picture. The whole project blows my mind. This place sat for, what, forty years?
Go to the “Friends” web site and take a look at the photographs of the replica vetical sign and attraction boards being installed. Outstanding!!!
Cerrito’s status should probably be changed to “Closed/Renovating,” as work is well underway to prepare it for its grand reopening!
Fans of Cerrito: I’m doing a school project focusing on the Cerrito Theater and am looking for people who might have the time to answer a couple brief email questions about the theater. I’m just trying to get as many perspectives on the theater as possible. If you’re interested, please email me at Thank you!
My heart goes out to all those involved in the incredible restoration of the Cerrito Theater!!! If only the same was happening at the moment to the Trylon Theater in Forest Hills, NY, which was intact, but is now undergoing profound alterations because of greed! The Cerrito restoration photos and plans do shed light on other theaters that can make a complete turn-around. Good luck!!!
The Cerrito is rising again.
To those involved in the renovation:
Well done!
There is a hearing at the El Cerrito City Council tonight with an update about the project (Contractor bids and will the city continue to help with the restoration.)
Those murals are pretty cool, along with that etched glass design. Hope you all have the best of times there.
Considering the tremendous progress that’s been made in the effort to revitalize the Cerrito, perhaps a more accurate status at this point should be “Closed/Renovating/Restoring.”
William David was the architect of the Cerrito according to their web site at http://www.cerritotheater.org
Doesn’t look like it’s in very good condition. The exterior has been completely stripped of a marquee and signage.