Thanks Gary, perhaps the curtain issue has become a sore spot for them and wanted to assure you they would be used.
While we are clearing things up I would not want anyone here to think we choose to disrespect instructions with respect to the opening of the curtains during the sounding of the whistles. Those instructions were requests from the film makers and were not demands. The only time I can recall a situation which was in the form of a demand was from Warren Beatty regarding the proper masking and lens selection for “REDS†which was part of the contractual agreement between the theatre owners (first run) and Paramount pictures. There may have been a similar situation with Woody Allen with respect to the showings of “Manhattan†due to the proper presentation of the anamorphic image.
We always tried to respect the film makers wishes but I honestly do not recall the Robert Wise instructions asking for the curtains to be opened displaying a white sheet during the whistles. In any event we would never have agreed to that at the Syosset or Rivoli.
Gary, it was instructions like those that we received on most road show presentations. However I Am a bit confused about the opening with regard to the whistles. We did not open the curtains at the Syosset until all three whistles had sounded and I am quite sure it was the same for the Rivoli. Neither the Syosset or the Rivoli would have opened the curtains to a blank sheet (screen). Although it was close to 50 years ago I am sure the rest of the instructions were meet, they sound familiar and correct. Perhaps there were changes or a seperate directive from UA theatres.
Bill, I was very happy to hear that the instructuions were “enthusiastically accepted” and that you experiened “goose bumps”.
I was troubled, almost amused by what Gary wrote about the conversation with a manager who said the “curtains would be used†as if that were an option. My goodness I can only imagine when I ran WSS at the Syosset going to the manager at the beginning of my shift and asking “do you want curtains today†He would have thought I had gone mad.
As to the print, based on what Bill said are we to believe they are showing a 35mm mono print?
Good GOD, it’s the Apocalypse.
Gary you are a good man, it it all fails and they screw it up, as they often do, it will be through no fault of yours and those of us who tried to have the presentation done right.
Should you folks be interested I would be happy to share some of the
preparations we did before and during those wonderful Roadshow runs of days gone by.
I am not sure which downtown theatre that was. My guess would be the Hawaii which sill operates today as a live theatre venue, we also had the Liberty which was a second run grind house till it closed and the Rex which was a chinese opera house that later began showing porn films. As to the drive ins we had the Kam in Aiea which was later twinned and now closed, the Wai'alae in honolulu also closed, the Kilua in kilua and the Royal Sunset in Waipahu, also closed.
Thanks Gary, that’s all we can ask. As I am sure you are aware by reading many of the posts here that the presentation of pictures like WSS is a major part of the movie going experience for a vast majority of the people coming to the Ziegfeld. When you do things like dim the lights during the opening whistles of WSS and then part the curtains and lower the stage lights as the first beat of the overture begins you get the blood pumping, people will notice and for many who may not have experienced how movies were presented in the Road show days will think to themselves what an exciting way to present a motion picture. It’s all about putting on a show and making the experience so much more and so marvelously different from what they accustomed to at the local Plex. It’s theatres like the Ziegfeld that we can retain some of the showmanship that has been lost over the years. The Ziegfeld must go that extra mile and present the movies in a way that has been sadly forgotten. We expect that, and the movie going public deserves that. In many ways I feel you almost have an obligation to do what ever you can to keep showmanship in the theatres alive, it is after all the Ziegfeld. So Thanks, I am sure you do all you can to separate your theatre from the rest and I wish a butt in every seat for the run of WSS.
Bill we received instructions on many pictures with regard to the roadshow presention. In the case of “WSS” and “My Fair lady” specific requests were made due to the unusual overtures which included images. Most if not all requests were granted with the execption of “Hello Dolly”,Fox had asked that the curtains be fully opened as the Fox logo came up after ther overture.
That request, at least in my theatre, was denied.
Gary please see to it that they present the picture properly
At the sound of the first whistle the house lights should begin to dim and then the curtain opens with the first beat of the music over the imaged overture.
Some prefer to open the curtain(s) at the first whistle to a blank screen but I ran the picture several times, once as a roadshow for just over six months, and can tell you the effect is far better with closed curtain.
Try it I think you will like it.
Yes Bill, the Boob tube I believe we called it.
But there was a positive side, we went all out to beat tv with great advancesments like 70mm,Cinerama,CinemScope and Stereo sound. Then of course we had all those marvelous gimmicks (bless em) 3-D, odorama
and the rest. Silly stuff of course but we had fun exhibiting them and for a while anyway the audiences loved it.
Mike, that is the forst I ever heard of that as well.
Perhaps in that pre-platter era thst theatre had only one working projector and was limited to 6k or one hour reels. Any other other excuse would be hard to justify.
For us at Consolidated Hawaii Roadshows with built in intermissions were quickly becoming a thing of the past, the decsion to add intermissions to long running movies was made on the idea that people expected the break especially at the Cinerama.
Of cousre it was good for concession sales but management felt the patrons enjoyed the bathroom/smoke break and it had become a part of the program for the epic or long running movies.
During the 70s we added intermissions at the Cinerama to such films as “Towering Inferno” and “Posiden Adventure”, plus some of the musicals like “Funny Lady” and “Mame” to name a few.
But even the biggest blockbusters presented at the Cinerama running under two hours like “Young Frankenstien” were presented without intermission.
Paul there is a great story regarding the presentation of the film including the projection of the train wreck on a larger screen image. It is described somewhere here if you have the patience to scroll around or perhaps REndres would be kind enough to repeat the marvelous story.
I agree Bill, I have a 16mm print I drag out every now and again.
Oh my goodness, how I would love to see it again at RCMH with the enhanced big screen train wreck scenes.
I received a phone call from Peter Lisi who is one of the owners of the paramount. We had a wonderful 45 minute conversation about the theatre and his plans for operation of the space. I was so impressed by Peters enthusiasm and obvious love for the theatre I wanted to share that all of you Paramount theatre supporters here at CT.
I wish you could have heard the excitement in his voice when he told me the marquee has been restored and will soon light up Bay Street. He is currently waiting on the permit to turn it on. Peter did an interview with NY one and here will be a follow up soon; he has invited me to join in on the next segment.
Peter still has his work cut out for him with safety issues and getting all the legalities in place to open the theatre. I have offered him my help in any way I can.
Peter has invited me to tour the space which I will do soon.
I was so happy to see those pictures. The last time I went into that building I got very depressed, it looked awefull a real disaster.
I never thought anyone would bring it back. Fortunatly the wreakers never destroyed the stage or balcony.
As for movies, the new owners (bless them) have other visions,
I belive their ideas and plans for the space are sound and intellegent.who knows, perhaps in a few years something in the form of a film festival may be in order.
I certainly hope someone steer the new owners in the direction of this site and they will comment and keep us current on the progress and plans for the theatre.
In both the Digital and 35mm formats, trailers are shown in the same aspect ratio as the feature. The difference being that the trailers, if not anamorphic, will not fil the screen just as if they were projected 1.85 Flat versions of trailers are shown with the scope lens and, in the case of 35mm, the aperture.
This just makes what happened during Bills visit that much more confusing. Perhaps there is something new going on since I retired that I am not aware of and some sort of lens adjustment is neeed when the feature begins.
For example, Jeff mentioned a “Zoom ratio” which I am not familiar with.
I just think that if Rob Marshall knew of the problem he would voice a concern to all involved. There can be no excuse for improperly masked screen images and complete lack of attention to detail such as dimming lights and use of curtains. NONE! Please, Clearview management, don’t bore me with another excuse about how this or that does not work. In my 50 years of exibition I have never heard so many lame excuses coming form one single theater in all my life.
Many of our film makers care very much about how their movies are presented in the theatres. I have written many times about the letters and presentation instructions that I received for many of the road show and premiere events.
Clearview has a responsibility with the Zeigfeld to keep showmanship alive. It’s the Ziegfeld for heavens sake, show some respect for the tradition of “putting on a show”
Shame on all involved.
A “presentation” such as the one Bill described can not be tolerated. A letter of complaint and disgust must be sent to
IATSE local 306, Clearview management and Rob Marshall.
It is bad enough when we have to endure such a lack of professionalism in out local theatres run by ushers but it can not and should not be tolerated at the Ziegfeld.
It just makes my blood boil, in my day we would have ridden those responsible out of town.
But Bill, part of the fun was waiting on those long lines :)
Here is another one, this time going back to 1954.
This was the last of MGM’s all-star biographies of great songwriters, all of which played at RCMH as the Christmas attraction. The others were “Till the Clouds Roll By” (Jerome Kern, 1946) and “Words and Music” (Rodgers & Hart, 1948).
So sorry to hear that Mark, I wish the best for you.
Yeah we did move a lot of prints at City center. Every Saturday morning I would pour over the friday grosses and play musical chairs with the prints. It is/was a bit easier in Hazlet with all the projectors in one room and the distance betwen them closer together than City Center. Still there was alot of switching of prints from one house to another, as much as 3 or 4 times a day.
A lot of that is getting much easier now with the Digital format.
You are correct Mark, Multiplex is a regestered trademark of NA.
I will inguire about it but unless some seperate deal was struck,
the name will have to change.
by the way, i had not realised you left City Center 15.
I recall when you applied for the projectionst position there I said to you “take a look at the four booths the running around and work involved and if you are crazy enough to still want the job
it’s yours” :)
Thanks Gary, perhaps the curtain issue has become a sore spot for them and wanted to assure you they would be used.
While we are clearing things up I would not want anyone here to think we choose to disrespect instructions with respect to the opening of the curtains during the sounding of the whistles. Those instructions were requests from the film makers and were not demands. The only time I can recall a situation which was in the form of a demand was from Warren Beatty regarding the proper masking and lens selection for “REDS†which was part of the contractual agreement between the theatre owners (first run) and Paramount pictures. There may have been a similar situation with Woody Allen with respect to the showings of “Manhattan†due to the proper presentation of the anamorphic image.
We always tried to respect the film makers wishes but I honestly do not recall the Robert Wise instructions asking for the curtains to be opened displaying a white sheet during the whistles. In any event we would never have agreed to that at the Syosset or Rivoli.
Gary, it was instructions like those that we received on most road show presentations. However I Am a bit confused about the opening with regard to the whistles. We did not open the curtains at the Syosset until all three whistles had sounded and I am quite sure it was the same for the Rivoli. Neither the Syosset or the Rivoli would have opened the curtains to a blank sheet (screen). Although it was close to 50 years ago I am sure the rest of the instructions were meet, they sound familiar and correct. Perhaps there were changes or a seperate directive from UA theatres.
Bill, I was very happy to hear that the instructuions were “enthusiastically accepted” and that you experiened “goose bumps”.
I was troubled, almost amused by what Gary wrote about the conversation with a manager who said the “curtains would be used†as if that were an option. My goodness I can only imagine when I ran WSS at the Syosset going to the manager at the beginning of my shift and asking “do you want curtains today†He would have thought I had gone mad.
As to the print, based on what Bill said are we to believe they are showing a 35mm mono print?
Good GOD, it’s the Apocalypse.
Gary you are a good man, it it all fails and they screw it up, as they often do, it will be through no fault of yours and those of us who tried to have the presentation done right.
Should you folks be interested I would be happy to share some of the
preparations we did before and during those wonderful Roadshow runs of days gone by.
I am not sure which downtown theatre that was. My guess would be the Hawaii which sill operates today as a live theatre venue, we also had the Liberty which was a second run grind house till it closed and the Rex which was a chinese opera house that later began showing porn films. As to the drive ins we had the Kam in Aiea which was later twinned and now closed, the Wai'alae in honolulu also closed, the Kilua in kilua and the Royal Sunset in Waipahu, also closed.
Thanks Gary, that’s all we can ask. As I am sure you are aware by reading many of the posts here that the presentation of pictures like WSS is a major part of the movie going experience for a vast majority of the people coming to the Ziegfeld. When you do things like dim the lights during the opening whistles of WSS and then part the curtains and lower the stage lights as the first beat of the overture begins you get the blood pumping, people will notice and for many who may not have experienced how movies were presented in the Road show days will think to themselves what an exciting way to present a motion picture. It’s all about putting on a show and making the experience so much more and so marvelously different from what they accustomed to at the local Plex. It’s theatres like the Ziegfeld that we can retain some of the showmanship that has been lost over the years. The Ziegfeld must go that extra mile and present the movies in a way that has been sadly forgotten. We expect that, and the movie going public deserves that. In many ways I feel you almost have an obligation to do what ever you can to keep showmanship in the theatres alive, it is after all the Ziegfeld. So Thanks, I am sure you do all you can to separate your theatre from the rest and I wish a butt in every seat for the run of WSS.
Bill we received instructions on many pictures with regard to the roadshow presention. In the case of “WSS” and “My Fair lady” specific requests were made due to the unusual overtures which included images. Most if not all requests were granted with the execption of “Hello Dolly”,Fox had asked that the curtains be fully opened as the Fox logo came up after ther overture.
That request, at least in my theatre, was denied.
Gary please see to it that they present the picture properly
At the sound of the first whistle the house lights should begin to dim and then the curtain opens with the first beat of the music over the imaged overture.
Some prefer to open the curtain(s) at the first whistle to a blank screen but I ran the picture several times, once as a roadshow for just over six months, and can tell you the effect is far better with closed curtain.
Try it I think you will like it.
Yes Bill, the Boob tube I believe we called it.
But there was a positive side, we went all out to beat tv with great advancesments like 70mm,Cinerama,CinemScope and Stereo sound. Then of course we had all those marvelous gimmicks (bless em) 3-D, odorama
and the rest. Silly stuff of course but we had fun exhibiting them and for a while anyway the audiences loved it.
The date 2/2/51
Ike,Ella,Dean and Jerry
View link
Mike, that is the forst I ever heard of that as well.
Perhaps in that pre-platter era thst theatre had only one working projector and was limited to 6k or one hour reels. Any other other excuse would be hard to justify.
For us at Consolidated Hawaii Roadshows with built in intermissions were quickly becoming a thing of the past, the decsion to add intermissions to long running movies was made on the idea that people expected the break especially at the Cinerama.
Of cousre it was good for concession sales but management felt the patrons enjoyed the bathroom/smoke break and it had become a part of the program for the epic or long running movies.
During the 70s we added intermissions at the Cinerama to such films as “Towering Inferno” and “Posiden Adventure”, plus some of the musicals like “Funny Lady” and “Mame” to name a few.
But even the biggest blockbusters presented at the Cinerama running under two hours like “Young Frankenstien” were presented without intermission.
Paul there is a great story regarding the presentation of the film including the projection of the train wreck on a larger screen image. It is described somewhere here if you have the patience to scroll around or perhaps REndres would be kind enough to repeat the marvelous story.
I agree Bill, I have a 16mm print I drag out every now and again.
Oh my goodness, how I would love to see it again at RCMH with the enhanced big screen train wreck scenes.
January 10th 1952 the World premere at RCMH of
of the “Greatest Show on Earth”
View link
I received a phone call from Peter Lisi who is one of the owners of the paramount. We had a wonderful 45 minute conversation about the theatre and his plans for operation of the space. I was so impressed by Peters enthusiasm and obvious love for the theatre I wanted to share that all of you Paramount theatre supporters here at CT.
I wish you could have heard the excitement in his voice when he told me the marquee has been restored and will soon light up Bay Street. He is currently waiting on the permit to turn it on. Peter did an interview with NY one and here will be a follow up soon; he has invited me to join in on the next segment.
Peter still has his work cut out for him with safety issues and getting all the legalities in place to open the theatre. I have offered him my help in any way I can.
Peter has invited me to tour the space which I will do soon.
Beautiful shot Bryan. I will be prining that on glossy paper.
I was so happy to see those pictures. The last time I went into that building I got very depressed, it looked awefull a real disaster.
I never thought anyone would bring it back. Fortunatly the wreakers never destroyed the stage or balcony.
As for movies, the new owners (bless them) have other visions,
I belive their ideas and plans for the space are sound and intellegent.who knows, perhaps in a few years something in the form of a film festival may be in order.
I certainly hope someone steer the new owners in the direction of this site and they will comment and keep us current on the progress and plans for the theatre.
The article in todays SI Advance just warmed my heart.
Best of luck to all involved in saving this tresaure.
View link
View link
I would agree with Al on “Auntie Mame” and add
1956 “Teahouse of the August Moon” and 1957 “Sayonara”
In both the Digital and 35mm formats, trailers are shown in the same aspect ratio as the feature. The difference being that the trailers, if not anamorphic, will not fil the screen just as if they were projected 1.85 Flat versions of trailers are shown with the scope lens and, in the case of 35mm, the aperture.
This just makes what happened during Bills visit that much more confusing. Perhaps there is something new going on since I retired that I am not aware of and some sort of lens adjustment is neeed when the feature begins.
For example, Jeff mentioned a “Zoom ratio” which I am not familiar with.
I just think that if Rob Marshall knew of the problem he would voice a concern to all involved. There can be no excuse for improperly masked screen images and complete lack of attention to detail such as dimming lights and use of curtains. NONE! Please, Clearview management, don’t bore me with another excuse about how this or that does not work. In my 50 years of exibition I have never heard so many lame excuses coming form one single theater in all my life.
Many of our film makers care very much about how their movies are presented in the theatres. I have written many times about the letters and presentation instructions that I received for many of the road show and premiere events.
Clearview has a responsibility with the Zeigfeld to keep showmanship alive. It’s the Ziegfeld for heavens sake, show some respect for the tradition of “putting on a show”
Shame on all involved.
A “presentation” such as the one Bill described can not be tolerated. A letter of complaint and disgust must be sent to
IATSE local 306, Clearview management and Rob Marshall.
It is bad enough when we have to endure such a lack of professionalism in out local theatres run by ushers but it can not and should not be tolerated at the Ziegfeld.
It just makes my blood boil, in my day we would have ridden those responsible out of town.
But Bill, part of the fun was waiting on those long lines :)
Here is another one, this time going back to 1954.
This was the last of MGM’s all-star biographies of great songwriters, all of which played at RCMH as the Christmas attraction. The others were “Till the Clouds Roll By” (Jerome Kern, 1946) and “Words and Music” (Rodgers & Hart, 1948).
View link
From Christmas 1964 when the Hall still showed a movie with the stage show.
View link
So sorry to hear that Mark, I wish the best for you.
Yeah we did move a lot of prints at City center. Every Saturday morning I would pour over the friday grosses and play musical chairs with the prints. It is/was a bit easier in Hazlet with all the projectors in one room and the distance betwen them closer together than City Center. Still there was alot of switching of prints from one house to another, as much as 3 or 4 times a day.
A lot of that is getting much easier now with the Digital format.
You are correct Mark, Multiplex is a regestered trademark of NA.
I will inguire about it but unless some seperate deal was struck,
the name will have to change.
by the way, i had not realised you left City Center 15.
I recall when you applied for the projectionst position there I said to you “take a look at the four booths the running around and work involved and if you are crazy enough to still want the job
it’s yours” :)