My dream is to reopen this theater with no concern about turning a profit. I’d install a 70mm projector for special screenings of Lawrence of Arabia and 2001, while also showing funky midnight shows of whatever I pleased (Beyond the Valley of the Dolls would be awesome!). I would make the three extra smaller theatres into two, with top-of-the-line sound systems.
Ushers would keep a constant eye on patron’s behavior. Cell phone reception would be blocked. There’d be no commercials before screenings. Projection and sound would be flawless for every showing. And, I’d allow smoking in the balcony if it wasn’t banned in Philly.
Saw The Simpsons Movie and 1408 this summer – my first drive-in experience! Nice big screen and all, and I like that the sound comes through the car stereo, but every loud noise from the movie caused the sound to shift into mono for a bit.
Anyway, both movies were 2.35 widescreen which filled the screen exactly…I think seeing 1.85 movies would be distracting with the blank space at each side…
Mouse problem? I remember when this was the classier option compared with the Pennsauken and Cherry Hill Erics. It was the Twin PLAZA Moorestown. No horror or B-flicks here, no – they would get the more highbrow mainstream releases like Woody Allen movies.
Other theaters in New Jersey (like the plexes in Burlington and Cherry Hill) regularly schedule Indian films. Wonder if the movies are subtitled if they’re not in English; they’ve got to be, right?
This needs to be changed to “demolished,” as the site is now a Target.
Saw several movies here when I was a teen: “Coming to America,” “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle,” “The Hidden,” “Jacob’s Ladder,” “Naked Gun 2,” “A Few Good Men,” “Hope and Glory.”
Not much to say about the theatre. Its days were numbered when the megaplex in Burlington opened. Doesn’t seem to be missed.
I remember the Eric too. When I was a kid we would drive by it every week to my grandmother’s house on the White Horse Pike. Reading the marquee, I thought “Terms of Endearment Yentl” was one movie. Later I saw a few movies there like “Gremlins 2” and “Ghostbusters 2” and a couple of others that weren’t sequels (“Ferris Bueller” was one). “Ishtar” played on both screens when it opened. Oops! Cruddy twin. It was originally a single screen, is that right?
Anyway, the Westmont played movies no one else did: “The Quiet Earth,” “UFOria,” “Desert Hearts,” “In the Shadow of Kilimanjaro.” That was pretty cool.
I’ve been going to the Ritz since it opening in the late ‘90s and it’s by far the best plex in suburban New Jersey. Never any problem with projection, and it always has an eclectic selection, for good or bad. Last time there, for “A Prairie Home Companion,” I shared my perplexion with the ticket ripper on the theatre’s choice in showing “Click” and the usher agreed with me (“I can’t believe you’re showing that!” “Neither can I”).
Most if not all houses have stadium seating, but if, like me, that’s not your bag, there’s plenty of seating up front.
So much better than that gawdawful megaplex in Cherry Hill. The Ritz is the only reason Philly’s better than NYC.
What does this merger mean for the AMC Marlton 8? It was my favorite place to see movies until the Ritz opened, but last time I was there (for “Rent”) it didn’t have much life.
That’s across 38, next to the mall in the Cherry Hill Plaza. The old Eric Twin Route 38 is now a Chuckie Cheeses.
As for the “new” Loews, does anyone like going there? It’s so generic, lacking in character, and the past two times I’ve been there (Ladder 49 and Alexander) the sound was muffled and the image blurry.
And I hate computerized marquees. I’d rather kick it old school at the AMC Marlton with hand-changed titles.
And what’s going on next door to the Target shopping center with those two apartment-hi-rise-looking buildings?
Are they gonna resume midnight shows of “Rocky Horror”? I went every weekend for two years. I even got to run a letter of the “message” (I thought I was so cool).
I was an usher at the Eric Pennsauken 5 in 1989-90. I was 15, and it was my first real job (I was a paperboy for the Courier-Post for three years before). I’d been going there for years beforehand; I credit their lax MPAA policies for warping my pre-teen mind by allowing me unguarded access to movies like “Blue Velvet” and “Angel Heart.” Since it was only a fifteen minute bikeride, I was there every other weekend, forever corrupting my morals.
What a crappy theatre it was then. Sure, that huge house (#5), was great (even if the balcony wasn’t being used), but the other four houses each had their own problems. Number 1 was large, but didn’t have stereo. Number 2 had the entrance door on only one side of the house (which was directly beside the concession stand, allowing a lot of lobby noise to be heard during the movie), so anyone who wanted to sit on the right side had to walk all the way down, cross, and walk back up the other aisle. And this house especially sucked in the daytime, since sunlight flooded it everytime the door opened. Number three was shaped like a shoebox and had a very small screen (and also no stereo).
And number 4 was the worst. It smelled like garbage and urine, the drapes were torn, the curtain was damaged by fire, the house lights were too dim, the projector light was too dim, and the screen couldn’t hold 2.35:1 movies (the movie would spill over the sides and bottom). And there was usually a then-unfamiliar odor eminating from it. (After a screening of “Downtown” I asked an older usher what the smell was. He informed me the scent was of the cannabis variety.)
But Theatre 4 didn’t completely suck. Since it was in such lousy shape, it frequently held B-movies that never did much money (“Some Girls,” “Action Jackson,” “The Wraith”) but rocked my adolescent mind. Horror flicks were always welcome; an “Elm Street” or “Halloween” sequel would inevitably work its way there. I saw “Evil Dead II” there three times. “Cannibal Holocaust” (sans subtitles) unspooled there for a week. And this was where my “Rocky Horror” cherry was popped (I thought it was a slasher flick, so I freaked out when people started yelling at the screen.)
It was also the only theatre in the area brave enough to show “Do the Right Thing” (it sold out the entire first weekend.) I don’t know what management was worried about; we never had a problem with “urban” movies. (Trouble seemed to follow Jean-Claude Van Damme movies; “Kickboxer” and “Lionheart” attracted the type of crowds that instigated fights.)
But back to #5. In the spring of ‘89 there was a staff meeting meant to prepare us for the onslaught of summer blockbusters, notably “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.” So we were prepared for the long lines and general craziness that followed by showing it on two screens for a month. But later that year brought the biggest lines we ever had, and we were unprepared for it this time since much of the staff had turned over since summer. I swear, the box office line was halfway out to Route 73 one Saturday night. Who could have known a John Travolta movie would do so well? I still flash back to those lines whenever “Look Who’s Talking” pops up on TV.
The things some customers did in the darkened theatres then. During a matinee of “Major League” I observed a man with his legs up and a girl on her knees between them. I speculated why we were cleaning up uneaten hot dogs with no buns after showings of “Roadhouse” (could women really have been using them for sexual purposes?). And the crap thrown at the screens during “Wired,” while understandable (it’s one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen), was a bitch to get off.
But I was fired in January 1990. The official reason was that I failed to lock up a supply closet after my shift, therefore allowing hundreds of soft drink cups to be stolen. I was framed; I mean, really: who would steal empty soda cups? But I figured that management was too much of a wuss to lay me off after the Christmas rush (led by “Back to the Future II”) subsided. Either that or she didn’t want me to be eligible for unemployment or something.
I rarely returned. There was some old biddy who’d been working the box office for years, and she was a humorless, stuck-up rhymes-with-witch. I wonder if she’s still there, since the last time I patronized the Eric Pennsauken 5, it was the UA Pennsauken 11. What a lousy layout the place now is. That huge theatre that made Indy 3 such an amazing experience was now chopped into several shoeboxes. When I went to see “Alien 3” the walk through the lobby and corridor was seemingly endless. The houses are arranged so haphazardly that it approaches the scene in “Bachelor Party,” with arrows pointing every which way. Ugh. And since I hate theatres with the aisle down the center, if I’m ever in the area again and in the mood for a movie I’ll go to the AMC Marlton (where I also ushered, but only in the Summer of ‘93 during college break).
A six plex? I think it’s now seven screens, but they’re so small and nondescript that one is better off going to that new plex down Route 38 across from the Cherry Hill Mall. The last movie I saw there (“The People Vs. Larry Flynt”) was in a house that couldn’t have held more than a hundred seats. Blech.
Not that the old two-screen layout was much better. The balcony for some reason was always closed, and the sound system was awful. (Every time I see “The Abyss” I’m reminded of when the speakers in the theatre sounded like they were going to break in pieces when the soundtrack emitted low rumbles.)
Do Rowan students even know this theatre exists? It’s within walking distance from the campus. When I was a student there it took only about twenty minutes to schlep there on foot; I recall seeing “The Mask,” “Sommersby,” and a special screening of “Rear Window” there, and the classic decor was a refreshing alternative to the McMultiplexes of the area. (And tix were only $3!) It’s a good way to spend a dull weekday evening if you don’t have a car to get to Deptford or Washington Township. Perhaps the Pitman chamber of commerce should do a little advertising at the college.
I remember once going to the Westmont to see a movie as a kid in 1985 or ‘86 (don’t remember if it was a Budco or AMC then). It was for a rerelease of “Song of the South.” Turns out that was the last time Disney allowed it to be seen in this country. Glad I saw it when I could.
No, this one’s where Route 73 and US 130 intersect, where Route 90 (from the Betsy Ross Bridge) ends.
Now that ballroom is some kind of Christian church. The screen next door still stands.
Across the street are piles of dirt and concrete from what used to be the Mart and the UA. Nothing seems to be happening there.
My dream is to reopen this theater with no concern about turning a profit. I’d install a 70mm projector for special screenings of Lawrence of Arabia and 2001, while also showing funky midnight shows of whatever I pleased (Beyond the Valley of the Dolls would be awesome!). I would make the three extra smaller theatres into two, with top-of-the-line sound systems.
Ushers would keep a constant eye on patron’s behavior. Cell phone reception would be blocked. There’d be no commercials before screenings. Projection and sound would be flawless for every showing. And, I’d allow smoking in the balcony if it wasn’t banned in Philly.
All I do is dream…dream dream dream…
Saw The Simpsons Movie and 1408 this summer – my first drive-in experience! Nice big screen and all, and I like that the sound comes through the car stereo, but every loud noise from the movie caused the sound to shift into mono for a bit.
Anyway, both movies were 2.35 widescreen which filled the screen exactly…I think seeing 1.85 movies would be distracting with the blank space at each side…
Mouse problem? I remember when this was the classier option compared with the Pennsauken and Cherry Hill Erics. It was the Twin PLAZA Moorestown. No horror or B-flicks here, no – they would get the more highbrow mainstream releases like Woody Allen movies.
Other theaters in New Jersey (like the plexes in Burlington and Cherry Hill) regularly schedule Indian films. Wonder if the movies are subtitled if they’re not in English; they’ve got to be, right?
I too prefer the last row of the front section of stadium houses – I like to look up at the screen. Always the center of the aisle too.
Usually get pretzel bites and a Coke, sometimes with either Reese’s Pieces, Twizzlers or gummy fish.
Rare that I go opening weekend – the crowds usually are loud and distracting. A mid-week show — sometime between 3 and 9 pm — works for me.
I did this a couple of times, years ago. One was for “Batman,” and I had to sit in the first row, it was so packed.
Second was “Dick Tracy.” You had to buy a special T-shirt that was more than the normal ticket price.
Haven’t been to a midnight movie for a new release in years.
This needs to be changed to “demolished,” as the site is now a Target.
Saw several movies here when I was a teen: “Coming to America,” “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle,” “The Hidden,” “Jacob’s Ladder,” “Naked Gun 2,” “A Few Good Men,” “Hope and Glory.”
Not much to say about the theatre. Its days were numbered when the megaplex in Burlington opened. Doesn’t seem to be missed.
I remember the Eric too. When I was a kid we would drive by it every week to my grandmother’s house on the White Horse Pike. Reading the marquee, I thought “Terms of Endearment Yentl” was one movie. Later I saw a few movies there like “Gremlins 2” and “Ghostbusters 2” and a couple of others that weren’t sequels (“Ferris Bueller” was one). “Ishtar” played on both screens when it opened. Oops! Cruddy twin. It was originally a single screen, is that right?
Anyway, the Westmont played movies no one else did: “The Quiet Earth,” “UFOria,” “Desert Hearts,” “In the Shadow of Kilimanjaro.” That was pretty cool.
Wow, the area has really changed, and not for the better.
Are those pics right? ‘Cause they sure don’t look like they’re taken from the Black Horse Pike..
That’s why it’s much better to go to the Ritz.
How I miss House 5 at the old Eric Pennsauken. It had at least a thousand seats.
Saw “World Trade Center” here last week and was pleased to see ushers patrolling the theatre.
And I like that’s there’s a bar to get one’s buzz on.
Two reasons this beats the ghastly Riverview.
I’ve been going to the Ritz since it opening in the late ‘90s and it’s by far the best plex in suburban New Jersey. Never any problem with projection, and it always has an eclectic selection, for good or bad. Last time there, for “A Prairie Home Companion,” I shared my perplexion with the ticket ripper on the theatre’s choice in showing “Click” and the usher agreed with me (“I can’t believe you’re showing that!” “Neither can I”).
Most if not all houses have stadium seating, but if, like me, that’s not your bag, there’s plenty of seating up front.
So much better than that gawdawful megaplex in Cherry Hill. The Ritz is the only reason Philly’s better than NYC.
What does this merger mean for the AMC Marlton 8? It was my favorite place to see movies until the Ritz opened, but last time I was there (for “Rent”) it didn’t have much life.
My grandparent lived down the street on the Pike, and the marquee was amazing. I’d never seen one wrap around the theatre like that.
But that was when it was Capa’s. Never went inside, but it was a beautiful building.
That’s across 38, next to the mall in the Cherry Hill Plaza. The old Eric Twin Route 38 is now a Chuckie Cheeses.
As for the “new” Loews, does anyone like going there? It’s so generic, lacking in character, and the past two times I’ve been there (Ladder 49 and Alexander) the sound was muffled and the image blurry.
And I hate computerized marquees. I’d rather kick it old school at the AMC Marlton with hand-changed titles.
And what’s going on next door to the Target shopping center with those two apartment-hi-rise-looking buildings?
The Tower Theatre can be seen in 1988’s “The In Crowd” as the location of the Perry Parker Show.
Are they gonna resume midnight shows of “Rocky Horror”? I went every weekend for two years. I even got to run a letter of the “message” (I thought I was so cool).
I was an usher at the Eric Pennsauken 5 in 1989-90. I was 15, and it was my first real job (I was a paperboy for the Courier-Post for three years before). I’d been going there for years beforehand; I credit their lax MPAA policies for warping my pre-teen mind by allowing me unguarded access to movies like “Blue Velvet” and “Angel Heart.” Since it was only a fifteen minute bikeride, I was there every other weekend, forever corrupting my morals.
What a crappy theatre it was then. Sure, that huge house (#5), was great (even if the balcony wasn’t being used), but the other four houses each had their own problems. Number 1 was large, but didn’t have stereo. Number 2 had the entrance door on only one side of the house (which was directly beside the concession stand, allowing a lot of lobby noise to be heard during the movie), so anyone who wanted to sit on the right side had to walk all the way down, cross, and walk back up the other aisle. And this house especially sucked in the daytime, since sunlight flooded it everytime the door opened. Number three was shaped like a shoebox and had a very small screen (and also no stereo).
And number 4 was the worst. It smelled like garbage and urine, the drapes were torn, the curtain was damaged by fire, the house lights were too dim, the projector light was too dim, and the screen couldn’t hold 2.35:1 movies (the movie would spill over the sides and bottom). And there was usually a then-unfamiliar odor eminating from it. (After a screening of “Downtown” I asked an older usher what the smell was. He informed me the scent was of the cannabis variety.)
But Theatre 4 didn’t completely suck. Since it was in such lousy shape, it frequently held B-movies that never did much money (“Some Girls,” “Action Jackson,” “The Wraith”) but rocked my adolescent mind. Horror flicks were always welcome; an “Elm Street” or “Halloween” sequel would inevitably work its way there. I saw “Evil Dead II” there three times. “Cannibal Holocaust” (sans subtitles) unspooled there for a week. And this was where my “Rocky Horror” cherry was popped (I thought it was a slasher flick, so I freaked out when people started yelling at the screen.)
It was also the only theatre in the area brave enough to show “Do the Right Thing” (it sold out the entire first weekend.) I don’t know what management was worried about; we never had a problem with “urban” movies. (Trouble seemed to follow Jean-Claude Van Damme movies; “Kickboxer” and “Lionheart” attracted the type of crowds that instigated fights.)
But back to #5. In the spring of ‘89 there was a staff meeting meant to prepare us for the onslaught of summer blockbusters, notably “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.” So we were prepared for the long lines and general craziness that followed by showing it on two screens for a month. But later that year brought the biggest lines we ever had, and we were unprepared for it this time since much of the staff had turned over since summer. I swear, the box office line was halfway out to Route 73 one Saturday night. Who could have known a John Travolta movie would do so well? I still flash back to those lines whenever “Look Who’s Talking” pops up on TV.
The things some customers did in the darkened theatres then. During a matinee of “Major League” I observed a man with his legs up and a girl on her knees between them. I speculated why we were cleaning up uneaten hot dogs with no buns after showings of “Roadhouse” (could women really have been using them for sexual purposes?). And the crap thrown at the screens during “Wired,” while understandable (it’s one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen), was a bitch to get off.
But I was fired in January 1990. The official reason was that I failed to lock up a supply closet after my shift, therefore allowing hundreds of soft drink cups to be stolen. I was framed; I mean, really: who would steal empty soda cups? But I figured that management was too much of a wuss to lay me off after the Christmas rush (led by “Back to the Future II”) subsided. Either that or she didn’t want me to be eligible for unemployment or something.
I rarely returned. There was some old biddy who’d been working the box office for years, and she was a humorless, stuck-up rhymes-with-witch. I wonder if she’s still there, since the last time I patronized the Eric Pennsauken 5, it was the UA Pennsauken 11. What a lousy layout the place now is. That huge theatre that made Indy 3 such an amazing experience was now chopped into several shoeboxes. When I went to see “Alien 3” the walk through the lobby and corridor was seemingly endless. The houses are arranged so haphazardly that it approaches the scene in “Bachelor Party,” with arrows pointing every which way. Ugh. And since I hate theatres with the aisle down the center, if I’m ever in the area again and in the mood for a movie I’ll go to the AMC Marlton (where I also ushered, but only in the Summer of ‘93 during college break).
A six plex? I think it’s now seven screens, but they’re so small and nondescript that one is better off going to that new plex down Route 38 across from the Cherry Hill Mall. The last movie I saw there (“The People Vs. Larry Flynt”) was in a house that couldn’t have held more than a hundred seats. Blech.
Not that the old two-screen layout was much better. The balcony for some reason was always closed, and the sound system was awful. (Every time I see “The Abyss” I’m reminded of when the speakers in the theatre sounded like they were going to break in pieces when the soundtrack emitted low rumbles.)
Do Rowan students even know this theatre exists? It’s within walking distance from the campus. When I was a student there it took only about twenty minutes to schlep there on foot; I recall seeing “The Mask,” “Sommersby,” and a special screening of “Rear Window” there, and the classic decor was a refreshing alternative to the McMultiplexes of the area. (And tix were only $3!) It’s a good way to spend a dull weekday evening if you don’t have a car to get to Deptford or Washington Township. Perhaps the Pitman chamber of commerce should do a little advertising at the college.
I remember once going to the Westmont to see a movie as a kid in 1985 or ‘86 (don’t remember if it was a Budco or AMC then). It was for a rerelease of “Song of the South.” Turns out that was the last time Disney allowed it to be seen in this country. Glad I saw it when I could.