Rollamo Theatre
210 W. 8th Street,
Rolla,
MO
65401
210 W. 8th Street,
Rolla,
MO
65401
1 person
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That’s according to a November 1962 article from the Rolla Daily News.
and that information is where exactly? I’m interested in the process and history and would like to know more about it.
Rotoscope didn’t last long at all, lasting for only two weeks. In November 1962, Smith and Carney bought the Lyric Theatre in Springfield, Missouri, in order to continue to sell their creation to the movie industry. They attempted to introduce Rotoscope there but never happened for unknown reasons.
In the photos section is an advertisement for something called “RotoScope”, something like a bit of a Cinerama. This was projection system capable of taking and projecting a widescreen image with a 180-degree field of view, from a single strip of 35mm film, developed by Rowe E. Carney, Jr. and Tom F. Smith from Rolla, MO, United States.
FilmAtlas provides a history of this RotoScope as well as re-created footage
https://www.filmatlas.com/entry/146
Though Carney was impressed by the Cinerama film technology – which used three strips of film projected in synchronization to create an extra-wide image on a curved screen – he realized that the process was expensive and inefficient. He became convinced that he could create a similar film experience that was cheaper to produce and avoided the need for multiple projectors, and eliminated (or, at least, greatly reduced) any gaps between the composite sections. Returning to Rolla, Carney brought on Smith to help him run tests and experiments. The two worked together to create a system of lenses, mirrors and other equipment that could capture a 180-degree view and then project it seamlessly from one reel of 35mm film onto a specially designed curved screen.
My research doesn’t show that this was shown anyplace than at the Rolla-Mo. Something that should be added to sparse introduction.
Actual opening date is August 5, 1931 with Polly Moran in “Politics” along with the short “Cowboy Blues”, an unnamed cartoon, and Paramount News.
The Rolla Preservation Alliance informs me that the Rollamo Theatre was at 210 W. 8th Street. The drastically altered building is still standing, and now houses a bank.
The principals of Johnson & Maack were Eugene S. Johnson and Albert C. Maack. The firm was founded in 1929 and became Johnson & Maack & Saunders in 1937.
This item is from the March 15, 1931, issue of The Film Daily:
The July 30, 1931, issue of the Rolla Herald said that work on the theater was being rushed to have it open by August 5, but the August 6 issue of the paper carried no theater news or advertisements. Advertisements had appeared by August 16, however.Robert Boller was the architect for a remodel in 1941 for the Gasconade Theatre Co.