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The latest movie theater news and updates
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May 10, 2011
Pathway cleared for demolition of Beach 4 in Cape May
CAPE MAY, NJ — The long saga of efforts to save the Beach 4 now appears to have met a sad end. The City Council has voted to overrule the determination of its own Historic Preservation Commission which had recommended against the issuance of a demolition permit and also to take the matter away from the Zoning Board which had been holding hearings on the issue. The Council’s decision essentially clears the way for the theater to be destroyed.
City Council awarded a $7.5 million contract Tuesday to a Vineland firm to construct a new convention facility on the beachfront. And City Solicitor Tony Monzo announced the settlement of a lawsuit that will allow Frank Investments to demolish the Beach Theatre across the street from the convention facility.
The company plans to construct condominiums, but a debate over whether the movie theater built in 1950 was a historic building had held up the project.
Read the full story in the Press of Atlantic City.
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May 9, 2011
Former Surf-n-Sand Movies 8 becomes Beach Movie Grill
VIRGINIA BEACH, VA — Closed since 2008, the Surf-n-Sand Movies 8 will be renovated and become the seven-screen Beach Movie Grill. In addition to burgers and fries, more upscale entreés will be available including some seafood offerings. The theater is expected to open on May 20 and was once a Regal operation.
Virginia Beach brothers Donald Pollard Jr. and John Pollard, both with national experience in retail real estate, joined with two out-of-town partners in the movie theater business to form Beach Movie Bistro Inc. The Pollards' parents owned the long-gone Surf ‘n’ Sand Motel, which stood on the site that became the movie theater.
There is more in the PilotOnline.
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Kanopolis Drive-in re-opens after five years of dormancy
KANOPOLIS, KS — Closed since 2006, the Kanopolis Drive-in will be back in business as of May 6. Now operated by by Josh and Amanda Webb, the drive-in can accommodate 160 cars. There are still even a few post speakers available though most patrons will hear the soundtrack through their car radios tuned to an FM frequency. Currently the drive-in is running 35mm, but the Webbs expect that a conversion to digital will inevitably occur.
He said his goal is to upgrade to digital or laser projection, but that’s going to mean saving money and possibly taking out financing for the project.
“It’s gonna be awesome when it opens up,” Amanda Webb said. “It’ll bring people together. We need their patronage for it to work.”
The story appeared in The Republic.
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May 6, 2011
Detroit Senate Theater Reopening & Pops Concert featuring Jelani Eddington
DETROIT, MI — The Detroit Senate Theater, current home to the unique 4/34 Wurlitzer Organ from Detroit’s Fisher Theater, reopens Sunday May 15, 2011 at 3 PM with a show featuring Jelani Eddington playing a wide variety of popular music.
6424 Michigan Ave
Detroit, MI 48210
Tickets: $12.00 / $8.00 ages 12 and underMany exciting things happening at the Senate. Volunteers have been hard at work painting, cleaning, refreshing, and much more. The Wurlitzer is sounding better than ever after recently being professionally releathered (including the electro-pneumatic relay !)
Many recent pictures and updates at http://www.facebook.com/DTOSonFB
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A look inside the AMC Empire 25, the busiest theater in America
NEW YORK, NY — A recent article in the Hollywood Reporter provides a close-up look at how the AMC Empire 25 handles the daily crowds at its popular location just off of Times Square. The seven-level “multiplex on steroids” entertains, on average, 42,000 patrons a week and last year took in nearly $25 million in revenue. At its mammoth concession stand, 3,500 pounds of popcorn kernels are popped and 250 gallons of Coke syrup are mixed with carbonated water every week. The history of the theater, which dates back to 1912 when it was built as the Eltinge 42nd Street Theatre is also summarized.
Most multiplexes in the U.S. don’t open until noon and, if they did open earlier, would be hard-pressed to get any traffic. But early openings are all in a day’s work for the Empire, which accommodates more than 2 million moviegoers annually. It’s been the top-grossing theater in North America for years — a surprising fact, even within the film business, given that it doesn’t have bells and whistles like reserved seating or high-end dining. Not to mention that 42nd Street is best associated with the surrounding Broadway legit theaters (and, of course, the often seedy history of Times Square).
The story of how the Empire — which has gone from Broadway theater to burlesque house to shuttered operation — came to be the U.S.‘ busiest theater is emblematic of the resurgence of Times Square and New York City’s tenacious ability to reinvent itself. Beyond its singular success, the Empire offers a profile of how the modern multiplex — albeit one on steroids — operates. Individual movies are assigned screens based on their drawing power, and the number of screens can change quickly from one day to the next. To maintain cost-effectiveness, staffing is constantly adjusted based on projections about how upcoming movies are expected to perform. And even orchestrating the concession lines is a near-science.
The whole story can be read here.
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May 5, 2011
NEW THEATRE - LAEMMLE NOHO 7, NORTH HOLLYWOOD. CALIF
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA — Laemmle Theatres is building a new theatre in the NoHo Arts District to open by the end of the year.
Read more in NoHo Arts District.com.
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Inappropriate behaviour in the back row of the Rink Cinema (in 1916)
FINSBURY PARK, LONDON, ENGLAND — The Guardian Newspaper reports the discovery of a police file concerning inappropriate behaviour in the back row of the Rink Cinema in 1916. According to the paper the Rink is now a bowling alley.
“I knew immediately I had struck gold. They are really, really rare, a unique insight into the behaviour of cinema audiences almost a century ago,” he said.
When the police went in plain clothes they certainly did see things, but struggled to prove that the management must have known exactly what was going on. “The whole of these people were behaving in a disgusting manner throughout the whole performance”, one wrote.
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May 4, 2011
$2.9 million in renovations bring the Wildey Theatre back to life
EDWARDSVILLE, IL — Originally opened as an opera house in 1909 and closed in 1984 by Plitt Theaters, the Wildey is now sparkling again on Edwardsville’s Main Street after many years of civic restorative effort and an expenditure of nearly three million dollars. The Wildey will now be a mixed-use performing arts facility, including occasional film showings on a newly installed screen.
“In the mid-1980s, it went dark and it left a void in a large part of downtown,” he said. The last movie to be shown was “The Big Chill,” circa 1983.
Once the mayor was given a round of applause, Walker came to the stage and said, “Hear that sound. It’s applause. It has not been heard here for 25 years and it’s great.”
There is more in the Daily Journal.
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Broadway shows, more opera and ballet coming to digitally-equipped theaters
NEW YORK, NY — The range of presentations being made available to digitally-equipped movie theaters in rapidly increasing. In addition to well-established offerings such the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD series and rock concert events, the options now include Broadway shows. The currently running Broadway musical “Memphis” will showing soon in about six hundred theaters as will “The Importance of Being Earnest” with undoubtedly more shows to follow. There is more in this story from Reuters.
In addition, more opera and ballet presentations are being made available by companies such as Emerging Pictures, which announced its offerings for 2011-12 here.
Another reflection of this trend is evident in the emergence of a new theater operator which calls itself Digiplex Destinations, which has acquired two theaters and intends on further expansion. Perhaps the day is coming when we shall no longer go to the movies, the cinema, or to a theater, but to a DEC – digital entertainment center. There is a story about Digiplex here.
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May 3, 2011
Vincentennial celebrates 100th birthday of Vincent Price in St. Louis
ST. LOUIS, MO — The one hundredth anniversary of the birth of actor and St. Louis native Vincent Price will be celebrated by a special event called Vincentennial, sponsored by Cinema Saint Louis and other presenting partners. Running from May 19-28, the event will feature showings of nearly twenty of Price’s films from his long film career, lectures and talks from film experts, exhibits of related film memorabilia, and a special tribute to Roger Corman, and an appearance by Victoria Price, author of a biography of her famous father.
A copy of the festival brochure can be viewed here.
