Comments from bigjoe59

Showing 251 - 275 of 1,248 comments

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about AMC Lincoln Square 13 on Jun 30, 2020 at 1:13 pm

Hello-

to markp- you are an expert at showing movies on film especially 70MM so I have a question for you and it has to do with traditional roadshow engagements. Funny Girl opened at the Criterion Theater the 3rd week of Oct. 1968 and played on said engagement till Feb. 1970. though the film played at the most twice daily by Feb. 1970 wouldn’t the print have been a tad worn? or did they as a matter of course replace prints that had rather long roadshow engagements?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Roxy Theatre on Jun 27, 2020 at 4:05 pm

Hello-

I thank everyone who replied to my question. the only curved screens I ever experienced in Manhattan theaters were the Loews Capitol and the Warner. in the photo section for this theater there are numerous ads which imply rather boldly that the CinemaScope screen was curved. in fact in the special features on the Blu-ray disc of The Robe it makes it clear that the CinemaScope screen was curved.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Roxy Theatre on Jun 27, 2020 at 12:33 pm

Hello-

I’m guessing the Roxy was the theater in Manhattan that showed CinemaScope films on a curved screen.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about AMC Lincoln Square 13 on Jun 26, 2020 at 2:46 pm

Hello-

for people who have seen big blockbuster type films in both the IMAX and Dolby theaters which would say is the better experience?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Criterion Theatre on Jun 25, 2020 at 4:20 pm

Hello-

to Al A. thanks for your reply. reflecting on your reply probably of the 7 theaters studios used on a regular basis for their roadshow engagements(Criterion, Loew’s State, RKO Palace, Demille, Warner, Rivoli and Loew’s Capitol)the only one that never became a “exploitation” house to any degree was the Loew’s Capitol. its last 2 films(Planet of the Apes, 2001: A Space Odyssey) are both candidates for the best science fiction film ever made.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Criterion Theatre on Jun 25, 2020 at 2:25 pm

Hello-

to vindanpar- I always enjoy reading your posts and your most recent one prompts a question. I have no idea why a studio picked whichever of the 7 Times Square houses used on a regular basis for roadshow engagements for their newest such engagement. now if a house had already become known as an “exploitation house” why would Fox have booked this theater for the roadshow engagement of Tora Tora Tora (one of my favorite WW II films) or Columbia for Nicholas and Alexandra(one of my favorite historical epics)?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Loew's State Theatre on Jun 20, 2020 at 12:34 pm

Hello-

to vindanpar- I saw Oliver twice during its roadshow engagement here. once the week before Christmas and then in February. after the second time i wrote a letter to Columbia Pictures whose New York offices at the time were at 715? Fifth Avenue. about a week one day when I got home from school my mother said a big package had come for me. it was from Columbia Pictures. i don’t think a studio would send out a similar package today. inside were a set of all full size posters for the film, a packet with all the b&w stills they had released, all color lobby cards both legal size and twice as large. nice hey?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre on Jun 20, 2020 at 12:08 pm

Hello-

to vindanpar- many times when a film left its roadshow engagement and went to the neighborhood theaters circuit in NYC it would state in the ad “direct from its reserved seat engagement complete and uncut”. when a film left its roadshow run I guess whether it was cut or not depended on how long it was. so the “continuous performance policy at popular prices” ad for The Fall of the Roman Empire(a film I happen to like) fails to state its not the same cut used for the roadshow engagement policy.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre on Jun 17, 2020 at 11:24 am

Hello-

in the ad stating that The Fall of the Roman Empire was switching from reserved seat to continuous performances it also lists the show times. while they don’t state it in the ad its a cut version and not the original roadshow print. you can surmise this by the running times.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Loew's Capitol Theatre on Jun 15, 2020 at 12:33 pm

Hello-

I think the only roadshow engagement at this theater that
I missed was The Hallelujah Trail. I saw it at my neighborhood
theater but would have loved to have seen it on the large
curved Cinerama screen here.

also I saw 2001 twice here during its roadshow engagement. it was the first time I ever smelled pot smoke in a movie theater.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Adonis Theatre on Jun 14, 2020 at 2:20 pm

Hello-

in the approx. 15 years the Adonis and the 55th St. Playhouse were in a tie for the leading gay porn house in Manhattan the 55th St. often had the star or stars of a new film do personal appearances the opening weekend. now I don’t remember the Adonis doing so but did they?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Adonis Theatre on May 11, 2020 at 10:45 am

Hello-

to grindhouse thanks for the info. the 55th St. playhouse was showing hard-core gay porn a good three years before the Adonis started doing so. now the film that made people take note of gay porn was Boys in the Sand which opened at the 55th St. Playhouse Dec.‘71. but that was not the first hard-core gay porn film to open in Manhattan just the first people took note of. since you seem quite knowledgeable would you happen to know the first hard-core gay porn film to open in Manhattan before Boys……..?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Adonis Theatre on May 6, 2020 at 12:15 pm

Hello-

to Mike(saps) thanks of the info. so it seems the theater played regular films of whatever genre till the early 60s. the first time I remember seeing an ad for the theater when till called the Tivoli was in say 1969/1970 when it was showing soft-core straight exploitation films.

just out of curiosity. in the approx. 15? years it was tied with the 55th St. Playhouse as the leading gay porn house in Manhattan the box office was always in the upper left hand corner of a rather large lobby. is that where the box-office was when it a regular movie theater?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Rendezvous Cinema on May 4, 2020 at 12:59 pm

Hello-

the intro refers to this theater as a first run house as opposed to some of the other smaller gay porn houses in Manhattan which played films only after they had played their first runs. it would be interesting which films of the period this theater played first run.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Adonis Theatre on May 3, 2020 at 3:33 pm

Hello-

this theater opened in 1921 as a combined vaudeville/movie theater. now when I was the leading gay porn house in the city it seemed to have the same 1.33.1 aspect ratio screen that a silent picture house would have had. so by the mid 50s it wouldn’t have been able to show a film shot in Cinemascope or Vista-Vision. so my question is when did it stop showing regular films?

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Adonis Theatre on May 2, 2020 at 2:02 pm

Hello-

Our memory plays tricks on us doesn’t it? I could swear the 3-D film I alluded to played the Adonis. now one thing I am 99.99% certain of is that for the longest time a poster for an “upcoming” 3-D film was in a display case right above the box office window.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Adonis Theatre on May 1, 2020 at 3:07 pm

Hello-

I believe this theater showed the only 3-D gay porn film I am aware of. it was in the days when gay porn was still shot on film and shown in theaters like regular films. I can’t remember the title but it starred Jack Wrangler and the Christy twins.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Cinema 1, 2 & 3 by Angelika on Apr 3, 2020 at 12:32 pm

Hello-

before the mandated movie theater shutdown on Mon. March 16th
was the escalator ever fixed? it had been out of order since
Oct. 2018.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Uptown Theatre on Mar 13, 2020 at 3:51 pm

Hello- from NYC-

was this closure(hopefully temporary) something that was talked about in a hush hush way for years like the Ziegfeld or was it a sudden thing that shocked even the staff of the theater. its like the 86th St. East in Manhattan. the theater closed the last week of May 2019 and even many staff members weren’t even aware it was closing.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about AMC Lincoln Square 13 on Mar 12, 2020 at 3:17 pm

Hello-

I have an interesting situation I hope someone has advise on. i recently ordered the 4K discs of Batman v Superman, Wonder Woman and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them after getting a gift card for a prominent online retailer as a birthday gift. I happened to see all three films at this theater when they were released. when i received the package a blind person could tell all three discs were opened returned re-shrink wrapped discs. so I contacted said online retailer got s refund of the gift card after\ returning the discs. so I thought I’d order them from the WBShop where I’d certainly get brand new factory sealed discs in their think cardboard sleeve. guess what? the Batman v Superman was such but the Wonder Woman and Fantastic ……… discs were again opened returned re-shrink wrapped discs. what online retailer can I get brand new factory sealed in their thin cardboard sleeves discs from. i thought the WBShop would sell such but even they sell used returned re-shrink wrapped discs as new.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Uptown Theatre on Mar 12, 2020 at 12:01 pm

Hello from NYC-

is there any further info as to whether this theater
is closing? I’m still heartbroken over the closing of
the Ziegfeld.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Regal Union Square Stadium 17 on Mar 10, 2020 at 3:48 pm

Hello-

to crunchocky- thanks for the info. I still think it looks like a pumpkin threw up. as I have said before a colorblind person would have chosen a better color.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Criterion Theatre on Mar 9, 2020 at 1:05 pm

Hello-

I should think The Guns of Navarone had ROADSHOW written all over it. I’m highly surprised Columbia didn’t do so.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about Paris Theatre on Feb 28, 2020 at 2:38 pm

Hello-

to Howard B. thanks for your reply. for me more advertising doesn’t make a theater “better maintained”. so I would greatly appreciate it if xbs2034 could reply as to their meaning of “better maintained then in the City Cinemas days”. for me the Paris has always been the best maintained movie theater in Manhattan so I am intrigued as to what exactly xbs2034 meant.

bigjoe59
bigjoe59 commented about SIFF Cinema Downtown on Feb 18, 2020 at 3:21 pm

Hello-

to MSC77- in my original post discussing Manhattan’s roadshow houses during the prime period of Sept. 1952 to Dec. 1972 as opposed to Seattle’s I listed the 7 that were “regularly” used. though they are/were fine theaters the Royale, Sutton, Coronet etc….. were not “regularly” used as roadshow houses.

also to Mike(saps)– you are correct in that the Liberty (which is now used as an event space for the adjacent Hilton Hotel) was used for the roadshow run of The Birth of a Nation Feb. 1915 it doesn’t fall into the time period I stated.