B&B Theaters took over the Dickinson chain at some point-2014 maybe??? It says AMC took over in 2017, so did B&B operate it from 2014 to 2017 or was it someone else? Does anyone familiar with Mesa, AZ know??
You’re probably right, Scott. I know the theater was originally a 3plex, and West Side Valley Theatres could have been the operator. At some point, North American Cinemas took it over-in the 90s. The theaters were 3 long and narrow with an aisle down the middle, about 275 seats each as I recall. North American put up a wall in the middle of theaters 2 and 3 and it became a five plex. You went down a hallway to access theaters 4 and 5 and there were side doors, so the back of those theaters were basically the front six or seven rows of the originals. Theater 1 remained long and narrow. The remaining four theaters were all pretty small. Craig Gildea was the manager there for a few years in the mid to late 90s. He left and has since passed away. I don’t know when North American closed it, but the name change to Bluelight must have been with the new owners. If my memory serves, directory ads ran in the Oakland Tribune, and maybe Chronicle and San Jose papers, I’m not sure. It thought it was a fairly mediocre theater- uncomfortable seats and mono sound, but it did pretty good business, and the theaters were so small that sellouts did occur.
The Glenwood did indeed have a 70mm print of Return of the Jedi for its entire 21 week run (May 25-October 20, 1983). My friends and I were there opening day at the 11 am showing. Great picture, incredible sound system for 1983. Four theaters played the film in KC at opening, the MidAmerica Blue Ridge East, Commonwealth Bannister Mall, Dickinson Glenwood and AMC Metro North. Blue Ridge, Bannister and Glenwood were all 70mm. Only AMC played it in 35mm on two screens. The large coop ads always advertised the 70mm and even Dickinson display ads prominently listed it as 70mm. In fact they added a 70mm print of Brainstorm in another theater on Sept 30, and even on the last day Oct. 20, the Dickinson display ad said Both Movies in 70mm! The next day, the Jedi print was replaced with a 70mm print of The Right Stuff. I don’t remember hearing anything about the print being stolen, but it is certainly possible. The Glenwood was (in my opinion) the best venue for 70mm in the Kc metro (Overland Park). It was one of a kind. The AMC and B&B mega plexes that now dominate the market are just not as impressive, but tastes change for better or worse.
Closed on Sunday August 27, 2006. Final movies were ‘Beerfest,’ ‘Accepted,’. ‘Snakes on a Plane,’. ‘Step Up,’. ‘Barnyard: The Original Party Animals’. and ‘Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.’ The first 70mm film this theater played was “A Chorus Line” opening December 20, 1985. They also played a 35mm print on a second screen.
Could anyone clarify-the grand opening ad from 1982 says 14 cinemas. The picture at top of page says Beverly Center Cinemas 13. The ad from 1987 says we’ve gone through the roof with two new theaters. So did the addition make it a 15 or 16 plex? The listing on Cinema Treasures still calls it the Beverly Center 13 Cinemas. I apologize if I’m missing something, but ? ? ?
Grand opening ads as a four-plex have been added. Friday August 17, 1984. The first picture is a larger view of the grand opening ad. This ad was created by Gary Downs, who was the advertising director at the Dickinson home office at the time. We put his part on top and built the rest of the theaters around it. I always thought Gary created some really great artwork for special occasions. I’ve added the full ad also, so everyone can see what “classics” were playing at the time. For the record, we were the first theater in Topeka to have Dolby Stereo-only in the two new theaters (and it was 1984, so Topeka was definitely behind the times!). The next week, our film booker moved the bomb Sheena to the Fairlawn, and Warner Bros sent us a Dolby print of Purple Rain (Held Over 5th week! Now in Dolby Stereo!). That really showed off the new system. Fun times!
Drove by the site this morning. Demolition work was in progress, the west third of the building (theaters 2 and 3) are gone. Took some pictures, will try to get help uploading. The Fox White Lakes theater is still 2 blocks south, also needing a wrecking ball. Boarded up doors and windows, no roof on the former lobby, and the marquee face has been smashed.
The end is here. The Topeka Capital-Journal reporter Keishera Lately, reported in today’s edition that the former GCC movie theater is being demolished. GCC opened the theater in 1974 and operated it until 1987, when Crown Cinema ran it until closing in 1994 at the end of the lease. For the past several years it has been the Wild Horse Saloon. Julie Pamplin Castaneda bought the business in April and plans to relocate. The building is owned by a company called 911 Walnut located in Parkville, MO. Sterling Scott, owner and landlord of the property announced plans for a $15 million dollar project to build a strip retail center in back of the former theater, with two restaurants in front. Chick-Fil-A has confirmed their new store, and Whataburger is expected to be the other. According to the article, Mr. Scott wants the city to provide tax incentives for the project. “We’re trying to follow through with the city’s wishes and redevelop things on that side of town and make some positive impacts, and I think we’re going to.” R.D. Johnson Excavating Co is handling the demolition. The Applebees restaurant that was just east of the cinema was torn down several months ago. The Richman Gordman department store building, which was also an original tenant in 1974, has been acquired by Mainline Printing as an additional location for their business.
I forgot ‘A Man Called Otto,’ which is also on the schedule (at $9.83 for Sat night). I should also clarify that even tho this theater and 3 Wichita theaters are operated by Regal, they are not actually branded on the buildings as Regal. This theater retains the Hollywood Theatres logo and the Wichita theaters still say Warren on the front.
Yes, it appears that Regal is changing its policy at this theater. A first-run Crown Cinema venue when it opened in 1993, it became a second-run Hollywood/Wallace theater in 2004 when Hollywood opened their new 14-plex a couple of miles north. Now that Regal has closed the 14-plex in their bankruptcy, this property (which has always been owned outright, not leased) is changing to a varied mix of first-run and older films. The pricing is also quite varied. The final Regal second-run pricing was around $4.99 per ticket for evening shows. A look at Fandango pricing for Saturday night (Jan 28, 2023) at prime evening shows (6-8 pm) shows the range. For older films The Whale, The Fabelmans and Everything Everywhere, adult tickets are $5.47. For Fear and Whitney Houston I Wanna Dance with Somebody adult tickets are $7.37. For M3GAN and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish adult tickets are $9.83. and for Avatar: The Way of Water adult tickets are $12.02. (this is quite a bit less than B&B’s top Sat eve price for Avatar of $20.44. Regal’s matinee pricing is also varied, at lower pricing. It will be interesting to see if, or how, they will monitor people buying low priced tickets and simply walking into a higher priced auditorium. Regal is not known for staffing their theaters at proper levels. Also will be interesting to see how many people are willing to forgo the luxuries of stadium seating, heated reclining seats and Dolby Atmos at B&B to save money. This theater will be 30 years old in July, and as far as I know, has the original sloped floors and seats. I believe this theater and a couple of former Warren venues in Wichita are the only Regal branded properties left in Kansas.
Yes, the theater ended with 3 screens. Mann added the second screen on October 22, 1976, reopening with ‘Marathon Man’ and ‘The Ritz’. After Dickinson took over from Mann, they split the balcony and it became a tri-plex, reopening on December 9, 1983 with ‘Sudden Impact,’ ‘Yentl,’ and ‘To Be or Not to Be (on 12/16). I remember seeing 'Yentl’ after the remodel and it was a very nice theater. They had added Dolby Stereo to the main floor and the ‘Yentl’ balcony theater. The third theater had no stereo sound. I’m pretty sure the main theater never had any alterations other than the addition of Dolby Stereo. The Plaza was always so much nicer than the tiny, awful basement screens at the Seville 4 down the street. It’s a shame to see it sit vacant.
On April 25, 2019, a fire broke out inside the old Fox Theater. According to an article in the Topeka Capital-Journal, “Battalion Chief Chuck Gatewood said workers were cleaning the place and burning some debris in the old theater building” (!). Evidently the fire was put out quickly, reportedly causing some damage to the roof, but from the street view no fire damage is visible. The theater remains boarded up and extremely decrepit in appearance as of today. The article is at https://www.cjonline.com/news/20180425/topeka-fire-crews-respond-to-fire-at-old-fox-movie-theater
There is a heartfelt letter by owner Jerry Harrington at the website www.tivolikc.com detailing the reasons for closing.
This theater was originally opened by Mid America Cinema on Dec 18 1987 as the Manor Square 3. AMC took over operation of all Mid America theaters on January 6, 1989. The Justice Dept decided that was a monopoly in the Kansas City area, and Crown Cinema Corp took over in 1990. In 1992, Crown Cinema turned this theater over to Mr. Harrington, who had already been operating a Tivoli Theater in Kansas City. He changed the name of this theater to Tivoli Manor Square, and operated both “Tivoli’s” as arthouses for several years, eventually closing the original, and keeping this one.
Arthouse patrons in Kansas City owe Mr. Harrington a debt of gratitude for this fine venue.
AMC reopened the Northrock 14 on March 30, 2018 after extensive renovations. The theater, previously operated by Dickinson Theaters, had been closed since 2012.
Information on the new amenities can be found at bigscreen.com
The Wichita Eagle also had an extensive article at www.kansas.com/entertainment/movies-news-reviews/article207047279.html.
The theater now includes Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, recliners and a McGuffin’s Bar among the upgrades.
The AMC Salina 10, is one of three Kansas theaters acquired from Starplex Cinemas on December 16, 2015.
I believe this theater, along with the Hays 8, and Pittsburg 8) are the first AMC theaters in Kansas that are located outside the Kansas City metro area.
AMC Theaters acquired this theater from Starplex Cinemas on December 16, 2015, along with the Hays 8 and Salina 10 in Kansas. The three theaters appear to be the first AMC theaters in Kansas that are not located in the Kansas City metro area.
Information is available at their official website amctheatres.com.
This theater is now listed as the AMC Hays 8 after their takeover from Starplex December 16, 2015.
I believe the three theaters they bought from Starplex are the first AMC Theaters in Kansas that are not located in the Kansas City metro. Hays and Pittsburg both have populations under 25,000, and Salina is about 47,000. Years ago, when I asked AMC why they didn’t build in Topeka, I was told the city was too small…and the population at the time was about 125,000.
I suppose (at least initially) they had to take all the theaters Starplex operated, whether they really wanted them or not. I am interested to see if they modernize the theaters and keep them, or if they sell them off to B&B or another chain that operates in smaller Kansas towns.
For what its worth: Bill Hunt, who runs the popular digitalbits website, took his posse to see Force Awakens at the above Arclight Cinerama Dome Thursday night. His entire post Friday was on the experience. It seems the head of Christie Digital showed up to make an announcement before the showing. Bill raves about the presentation (and the movie). This reportedly half a million dollar system that was installed is evidently THE definitive way to see this movie. Sadly, I don’t live anywhere near Los Angeles. For those of you who do, you might want to check it out and report back. I don’t know Mr. Hunt, but his credibility in the industry seems legitimate. His article is at www.thedigitalbits.com.
Additional info on the recent change in ownership according to an article by Joyce Smith in the December 8 Kansas City Star:
The owners of Legends Outlets Kansas City have purchased the centers 14-screen theater and will convert it to an AMC.
The deal closed Friday. The theaters reopened as AMC Legends 14 on Saturday December 12, 2015, and will remain open through a renovation scheduled for 2016.
Legends 14 Theater was owned by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and has been managed by Phoenix Big Cinemas LLC since it opened in 2005.
In a statement, Doug Bach county administrator said: “The sale of the theater paves the way for private sector re-investment in the 10-year-old facility, and insures that both residents and tourists will be able to enjoy this asset for years to come.
The Legends Center is near the Kansas Speedway, a 72,000 seat capacity motorsports facility for NASCAR races and other auto-related events.
B&B Theaters took over the Dickinson chain at some point-2014 maybe??? It says AMC took over in 2017, so did B&B operate it from 2014 to 2017 or was it someone else? Does anyone familiar with Mesa, AZ know??
You’re probably right, Scott. I know the theater was originally a 3plex, and West Side Valley Theatres could have been the operator. At some point, North American Cinemas took it over-in the 90s. The theaters were 3 long and narrow with an aisle down the middle, about 275 seats each as I recall. North American put up a wall in the middle of theaters 2 and 3 and it became a five plex. You went down a hallway to access theaters 4 and 5 and there were side doors, so the back of those theaters were basically the front six or seven rows of the originals. Theater 1 remained long and narrow. The remaining four theaters were all pretty small. Craig Gildea was the manager there for a few years in the mid to late 90s. He left and has since passed away. I don’t know when North American closed it, but the name change to Bluelight must have been with the new owners. If my memory serves, directory ads ran in the Oakland Tribune, and maybe Chronicle and San Jose papers, I’m not sure. It thought it was a fairly mediocre theater- uncomfortable seats and mono sound, but it did pretty good business, and the theaters were so small that sellouts did occur.
The Glenwood did indeed have a 70mm print of Return of the Jedi for its entire 21 week run (May 25-October 20, 1983). My friends and I were there opening day at the 11 am showing. Great picture, incredible sound system for 1983. Four theaters played the film in KC at opening, the MidAmerica Blue Ridge East, Commonwealth Bannister Mall, Dickinson Glenwood and AMC Metro North. Blue Ridge, Bannister and Glenwood were all 70mm. Only AMC played it in 35mm on two screens. The large coop ads always advertised the 70mm and even Dickinson display ads prominently listed it as 70mm. In fact they added a 70mm print of Brainstorm in another theater on Sept 30, and even on the last day Oct. 20, the Dickinson display ad said Both Movies in 70mm! The next day, the Jedi print was replaced with a 70mm print of The Right Stuff. I don’t remember hearing anything about the print being stolen, but it is certainly possible. The Glenwood was (in my opinion) the best venue for 70mm in the Kc metro (Overland Park). It was one of a kind. The AMC and B&B mega plexes that now dominate the market are just not as impressive, but tastes change for better or worse.
Closed on Sunday August 27, 2006. Final movies were ‘Beerfest,’ ‘Accepted,’. ‘Snakes on a Plane,’. ‘Step Up,’. ‘Barnyard: The Original Party Animals’. and ‘Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.’ The first 70mm film this theater played was “A Chorus Line” opening December 20, 1985. They also played a 35mm print on a second screen.
Looks like originally an Act III theater, before they sold to Regal??
Could anyone clarify-the grand opening ad from 1982 says 14 cinemas. The picture at top of page says Beverly Center Cinemas 13. The ad from 1987 says we’ve gone through the roof with two new theaters. So did the addition make it a 15 or 16 plex? The listing on Cinema Treasures still calls it the Beverly Center 13 Cinemas. I apologize if I’m missing something, but ? ? ?
Grand opening ads as a four-plex have been added. Friday August 17, 1984. The first picture is a larger view of the grand opening ad. This ad was created by Gary Downs, who was the advertising director at the Dickinson home office at the time. We put his part on top and built the rest of the theaters around it. I always thought Gary created some really great artwork for special occasions. I’ve added the full ad also, so everyone can see what “classics” were playing at the time. For the record, we were the first theater in Topeka to have Dolby Stereo-only in the two new theaters (and it was 1984, so Topeka was definitely behind the times!). The next week, our film booker moved the bomb Sheena to the Fairlawn, and Warner Bros sent us a Dolby print of Purple Rain (Held Over 5th week! Now in Dolby Stereo!). That really showed off the new system. Fun times!
This theater should be listed as demolished. I have uploaded pictures of the demolition to the photo page.
Drove by the site this morning. Demolition work was in progress, the west third of the building (theaters 2 and 3) are gone. Took some pictures, will try to get help uploading. The Fox White Lakes theater is still 2 blocks south, also needing a wrecking ball. Boarded up doors and windows, no roof on the former lobby, and the marquee face has been smashed.
The end is here. The Topeka Capital-Journal reporter Keishera Lately, reported in today’s edition that the former GCC movie theater is being demolished. GCC opened the theater in 1974 and operated it until 1987, when Crown Cinema ran it until closing in 1994 at the end of the lease. For the past several years it has been the Wild Horse Saloon. Julie Pamplin Castaneda bought the business in April and plans to relocate. The building is owned by a company called 911 Walnut located in Parkville, MO. Sterling Scott, owner and landlord of the property announced plans for a $15 million dollar project to build a strip retail center in back of the former theater, with two restaurants in front. Chick-Fil-A has confirmed their new store, and Whataburger is expected to be the other. According to the article, Mr. Scott wants the city to provide tax incentives for the project. “We’re trying to follow through with the city’s wishes and redevelop things on that side of town and make some positive impacts, and I think we’re going to.” R.D. Johnson Excavating Co is handling the demolition. The Applebees restaurant that was just east of the cinema was torn down several months ago. The Richman Gordman department store building, which was also an original tenant in 1974, has been acquired by Mainline Printing as an additional location for their business.
I forgot ‘A Man Called Otto,’ which is also on the schedule (at $9.83 for Sat night). I should also clarify that even tho this theater and 3 Wichita theaters are operated by Regal, they are not actually branded on the buildings as Regal. This theater retains the Hollywood Theatres logo and the Wichita theaters still say Warren on the front.
Yes, it appears that Regal is changing its policy at this theater. A first-run Crown Cinema venue when it opened in 1993, it became a second-run Hollywood/Wallace theater in 2004 when Hollywood opened their new 14-plex a couple of miles north. Now that Regal has closed the 14-plex in their bankruptcy, this property (which has always been owned outright, not leased) is changing to a varied mix of first-run and older films. The pricing is also quite varied. The final Regal second-run pricing was around $4.99 per ticket for evening shows. A look at Fandango pricing for Saturday night (Jan 28, 2023) at prime evening shows (6-8 pm) shows the range. For older films The Whale, The Fabelmans and Everything Everywhere, adult tickets are $5.47. For Fear and Whitney Houston I Wanna Dance with Somebody adult tickets are $7.37. For M3GAN and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish adult tickets are $9.83. and for Avatar: The Way of Water adult tickets are $12.02. (this is quite a bit less than B&B’s top Sat eve price for Avatar of $20.44. Regal’s matinee pricing is also varied, at lower pricing. It will be interesting to see if, or how, they will monitor people buying low priced tickets and simply walking into a higher priced auditorium. Regal is not known for staffing their theaters at proper levels. Also will be interesting to see how many people are willing to forgo the luxuries of stadium seating, heated reclining seats and Dolby Atmos at B&B to save money. This theater will be 30 years old in July, and as far as I know, has the original sloped floors and seats. I believe this theater and a couple of former Warren venues in Wichita are the only Regal branded properties left in Kansas.
Yes, the theater ended with 3 screens. Mann added the second screen on October 22, 1976, reopening with ‘Marathon Man’ and ‘The Ritz’. After Dickinson took over from Mann, they split the balcony and it became a tri-plex, reopening on December 9, 1983 with ‘Sudden Impact,’ ‘Yentl,’ and ‘To Be or Not to Be (on 12/16). I remember seeing 'Yentl’ after the remodel and it was a very nice theater. They had added Dolby Stereo to the main floor and the ‘Yentl’ balcony theater. The third theater had no stereo sound. I’m pretty sure the main theater never had any alterations other than the addition of Dolby Stereo. The Plaza was always so much nicer than the tiny, awful basement screens at the Seville 4 down the street. It’s a shame to see it sit vacant.
On April 25, 2019, a fire broke out inside the old Fox Theater. According to an article in the Topeka Capital-Journal, “Battalion Chief Chuck Gatewood said workers were cleaning the place and burning some debris in the old theater building” (!). Evidently the fire was put out quickly, reportedly causing some damage to the roof, but from the street view no fire damage is visible. The theater remains boarded up and extremely decrepit in appearance as of today. The article is at https://www.cjonline.com/news/20180425/topeka-fire-crews-respond-to-fire-at-old-fox-movie-theater
There is a heartfelt letter by owner Jerry Harrington at the website
www.tivolikc.com detailing the reasons for closing.
This theater was originally opened by Mid America Cinema on Dec 18 1987 as the Manor Square 3. AMC took over operation of all Mid America theaters on January 6, 1989. The Justice Dept decided that was a monopoly in the Kansas City area, and Crown Cinema Corp took over in 1990. In 1992, Crown Cinema turned this theater over to Mr. Harrington, who had already been operating a Tivoli Theater in Kansas City. He changed the name of this theater to Tivoli Manor Square, and operated both “Tivoli’s” as arthouses for several years, eventually closing the original, and keeping this one.
Arthouse patrons in Kansas City owe Mr. Harrington a debt of gratitude for this fine venue.
AMC reopened the Northrock 14 on March 30, 2018 after extensive renovations. The theater, previously operated by Dickinson Theaters, had been closed since 2012.
Information on the new amenities can be found at bigscreen.com
The Wichita Eagle also had an extensive article at www.kansas.com/entertainment/movies-news-reviews/article207047279.html.
The theater now includes Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos, recliners and a McGuffin’s Bar among the upgrades.
It is the first Wichita theater in AMC’s history.
This theater may now be listed as demolished as of March 2017. The Metro North Mall has been torn down to make way for new development.
Article and pictures in the Kansas City Star. Link is www.kansascity.com/news/local/article130664359.html
The AMC Salina 10, is one of three Kansas theaters acquired from Starplex Cinemas on December 16, 2015.
I believe this theater, along with the Hays 8, and Pittsburg 8) are the first AMC theaters in Kansas that are located outside the Kansas City metro area.
AMC Theaters acquired this theater from Starplex Cinemas on December 16, 2015, along with the Hays 8 and Salina 10 in Kansas. The three theaters appear to be the first AMC theaters in Kansas that are not located in the Kansas City metro area.
Information is available at their official website amctheatres.com.
This theater is now listed as the AMC Hays 8 after their takeover from Starplex December 16, 2015.
I believe the three theaters they bought from Starplex are the first AMC Theaters in Kansas that are not located in the Kansas City metro. Hays and Pittsburg both have populations under 25,000, and Salina is about 47,000. Years ago, when I asked AMC why they didn’t build in Topeka, I was told the city was too small…and the population at the time was about 125,000.
I suppose (at least initially) they had to take all the theaters Starplex operated, whether they really wanted them or not. I am interested to see if they modernize the theaters and keep them, or if they sell them off to B&B or another chain that operates in smaller Kansas towns.
For what its worth: Bill Hunt, who runs the popular digitalbits website, took his posse to see Force Awakens at the above Arclight Cinerama Dome Thursday night. His entire post Friday was on the experience. It seems the head of Christie Digital showed up to make an announcement before the showing. Bill raves about the presentation (and the movie). This reportedly half a million dollar system that was installed is evidently THE definitive way to see this movie. Sadly, I don’t live anywhere near Los Angeles. For those of you who do, you might want to check it out and report back. I don’t know Mr. Hunt, but his credibility in the industry seems legitimate. His article is at www.thedigitalbits.com.
Additional info on the recent change in ownership according to an article by Joyce Smith in the December 8 Kansas City Star:
The owners of Legends Outlets Kansas City have purchased the centers 14-screen theater and will convert it to an AMC.
The deal closed Friday. The theaters reopened as AMC Legends 14 on Saturday December 12, 2015, and will remain open through a renovation scheduled for 2016.
Legends 14 Theater was owned by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and has been managed by Phoenix Big Cinemas LLC since it opened in 2005.
In a statement, Doug Bach county administrator said: “The sale of the theater paves the way for private sector re-investment in the 10-year-old facility, and insures that both residents and tourists will be able to enjoy this asset for years to come.
The Legends Center is near the Kansas Speedway, a 72,000 seat capacity motorsports facility for NASCAR races and other auto-related events.
This theater is now owned and operated by AMC Theatres. It is listed as the ‘AMC Bowles Crossing 12.’
The phone number for showtimes is 888-AMC-4-FUN and the number for Guest Services is 303-973-2059.
Information can be found at their official website: www.amctheatres.com
This theater is now owned and operated by AMC Theatres. The name is listed as ‘AMC Cherry Creek 8.’
The phone number for showtimes is 888-AMC-4FUN and the number for Guest Services is 303-393-0530.
Information can be found at their official website: www.amctheatres.com
This theater is now owned and operated by Landmark Theaters as the Landmark Theatre’s Olde Town Stadium 14.
Information can be found at their official website: www.landmarktheatres.com.