El Dorado Theatre
5909 E. Broadway Boulevard,
Tucson,
AZ
85711
5909 E. Broadway Boulevard,
Tucson,
AZ
85711
1 person
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: ABC Theatres, Cineplex Odeon, Plitt Theatres
Architects: Henry George Greene
Styles: Spanish Colonial
Nearby Theaters
ABC’s El Dorado Theatre was the first theatre in Tucson to accommodate multiple film formats, including 70mm. It had 725 seats. The official opening was June 14, 1967 with a world premiere of “El Dorado”. On June 26, 1975 it was expanded with the addition of a second screen.
The El Dorado Theatre was later taken over by Cineplex Odeon, and was closed on November 28, 1987 with “Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n Roll” & Patrick Swayze in “Dirty Dancing”. In 1988 the original theatre and its addition were demolished.
A 2,000-seat six-screen multiplex of the same name was built at a different location on E. Broadway Boulevard (it has its own page on Cinema Treasures).
Contributed by
Joe Vogel
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Recent comments (view all 18 comments)
IA – Mr. Congelli and Frank are a couple of names I haven’t heard in a very long time. Good times…
yeah Ed Congelli was at the Northpoint and the District Office in San Francisco when it ABC Plitt. Jackie was his Assistant
Aerial photos show that the 2nd screen was built on the west side of the original.
Here are said aerials:http://www.historicaerials.com/aerials.php?scale=2000&lon=-110.86620882154&lat=32.221724912524&year=1980
My mom, my aunt, & my nana saw A New Hope here.
Here’s a link to a photo when they were replacing the 2-screen building with the 6-screen building:http://tucson.com/news/local/tucson-time-capsule-el-dorado-movie-theater-made-way-for/article_6f986ee0-9111-5956-89b4-0cbce2a2f14f.html
June 14th,1967 grand opening ad in the photo section for this cinema.
June 26th, 1975 grand opening ad for this cinema as a twin also in the photo section.
Here’s the link to a new historical article about large format and roadshow presentations at El Dorado and other Tucson cinemas.
The original El Dorado Theatre closed on November 28, 1987 with “Hail! Hail! Rock ‘N’ Roll” in Screen 1 and “Dirty Dancing” in Screen 2 before it received massive renovation which led to the original theater’s demolition.