Panorama Theatre
1621 Penfield Road,
Rochester,
NY
14625
1621 Penfield Road,
Rochester,
NY
14625
1 person
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Jo-Mor Theatres
Architects: Joseph Schuler Jr, George Edward Yurchison
Functions: Retail
Nearby Theaters
News About This Theater
- Mar 31, 2013 — "2001: A Space Odyssey" 45th Anniversary – The Cinerama Engagements
- May 31, 2012 — REMEMBERING CINERAMA (Part 51: Rochester)
Opened September 14, 1966 as a stand alone building for Jo-Mor Enterprises Inc. The opening movie was Charlton Heston in “The Battle for Khartoum” presented in 70mm. It included 750 rocking chair seats and a very large screen. Very nice theatre that went the way of so many suburban theatres and was twinned in the 1970’s. Closed on October 4, 1992 following a bitter dispute with the owner and the operator.
Contributed by
dhroc
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Recent comments (view all 16 comments)
Michael, I know your a stickler for perfection, but I think CT could use some cleaning up. I wish everyone would go through their posts and delete ones for at least photos and websites that don’t work. Please look up the Willard Theatre in Norfolk, Virginia. Don’t you think I could remove some of those comments that have nothing to do with the theatre? As I wrote above the same ad that gives the address of 360 Penfield, also gives the location as PANORAMA PLAZA. That PLAZA is located at 1601 Penfield.
Jensen… The theater wasn’t in the plaza, which may explain why it had a different address.
Opened September 14, 1966 with two Philips Cinema of Holland DP70 Projectors. “DP” short for “Double Projector”, “70” designed specifically as a 70mm projector. These projectors could play all 70mm and 35mm formats except VistaVision. Later on the projectors would be called Todd-AO Projectors, Universal 70/35, and a newer version Norelco AAII.
Panorama projectors came from the Town Theatre in Rochester, New York. When no longer used at the Panorama one went to The Stoneridge Theatre in Rochester, and the other went to The Strand Theatre in Brockport, New York.
Michael, did I get that all correct?
The theater was always referred to as Panorama Plaza, right up until it closed. I can’t comment on the actual location compared to the strip mall (which is still in use) because I live on the other side of Rochester and am unfamiliar with the Penfield area.
PLEASE CHANGE ADDRESS TO:
1621 PENFIELD ROAD
PENFIELD, new york
ZIP:
14526
FUNCTIONS:
RETAIL
The building is located in PENFIELD, but has a Rochester mailing address.
A Panera Bread and Dollar Tree Store are now located in the building.
Thanks to Kathy Kanauer, Penfield Historian/Local History Room Coordinator for all the above information.
The Panorama opened on 8/17/66 with Khartoum in 70mm or what was then referred to as single lense Cinerama. Green velvet-like drapery with green rocking chair seats. I don’t know the cap. Theatre was a stand alone in the Panorama Plaza. It was twinned in the 70’s.
P.s. to last post. It was originally goint to be called the Cinerama Theatre but ended up the Panorama with “Cinerama” logo underneath its sig.
September 14th, 1966 grand opening ad in photo section.
The dramatic ending of the Panorama Theatre took place in October of 1992. The property owner announced the end of the theatre while the manager disagreed with the fate of the theatre and questions about rent. The two-screen theatre completed showings of “3 Ninjas,” “Single White Female”, and “A Stranger Among U"s on one screen and "A League of Their Own,” “The Player,” and “Whispers in the Dark” on the other. From October 6, 1992 and weeks forward, the theatre operator barricaded himself in the building while the owner of the plaza cut off water and electricity ending the theater’s operation Although showtimes are listed through October 6, the likely final showings were October 4, 1992.
I have some cool memories of going to the Panorama Theatre in the 1980s as a teen. I can recall seeing Doctor Detroit, Class (both 1983), Platoon (1986), The Witches of Eastwick (1987), and Colors (1988). I’m probably forgetting more.
Of course the Midnight Movies were the coolest of them all - I went to some over and over again - the standouts being
Led Zeppelin’s The Song Remains the Same
Heavy Metal
AC/DC: Let There Be Rock
Pink Floyd: The Wall
They played The Rocky Horror Picture show a lot too but I never got round to it. My sister went a bunch of times though.
Looks like it’s a Planet Fitness now. The gas station/convenience store (Quicklee’s? Marathon?) on the Penfield Road side used to be a Hess Mart.
I worked at Present Company for about a year while attending Penfield High - it was on the Southeast end of the plaza, close to Panorama Trail. Looks like it eventually transformed into something called Tuesday Morning, which is now closed.
I also fondly remember the indie record shop HOT LIX, which was situated about midpoint in the plaza. I bought many LPs there that I treasure to this day.
I used to clip movie ads from the newspaper and have some stuff from the late 1970s & early 80s, including a few for Panorama showings. Some survived the years, I’ll post some copies.
Cheers