Loew's Jersey Theatre

Bill,

Accurate dimensions and aspect ratio is available on the Loew’s Jersey Wikipedia entry:

View link

(Robert, a member of the Projection crew, reviewed the entry.)

It was a fun night at the Loews friday although I wish TCF could have furnished a better print of “Miracle On 34th St.” It seemed like every time there was a skip in a scene there was sigh from the audience. But everything else was first rate including hearing the Organ played for over 30 minutes before the film.

I believe the screen is 50 feet wide. Just to give good examples for each ratio, I’ve seen “The Haunting” and “2001” (Panavision 2.35) and “King Kong” and “The Wizard of Oz” (Aacademy 1.33) presented properly there. As for 70mm, the theater inherited 70mm projectors from another Loew’s theater that closed (the details should be somewhere up above in this post), but I don’t think they’ve been installed in the projection booth. Just getting them up there would be a major undertaking!

That is still the best place to eat when you’re in a hurry to catch a show at the Loew’s Jersey.

“Journey” at the Loew’s – wow. I really hope that comes to pass. The last time I saw the movie in 35mm it had faded to pink, but even that way it’ll still be worth seeing at the Loew’s.

I just watched “Miracle on 34th Street” on cable and the print was fine. It looks even better on DVD. I think theatres such as this should shame the studios into providing the best prints possible. Of course, striking a decent print costs money and I guess it’s not practical in most cases. I’m hoping that Loew’s Jersey will have a 40th Anniversary “Planet of the Apes” showing (another 20th Century-Fox film), but I also hope with a very good print! Otherwise, why bother? You’re better off just watching a DVD on a big plasma display. Another 20th Century-Fox movie the Jersey should think about booking is “Journey to the Center of the Earth.” 2009 is that movie’s 50th Anniversary!

Print quality for both films, while not terrible, was indeed spotty, with dropouts, pops, scratches and blemishes, especially for “Miracle on 34th Street. I was told that 20th Century-Fox prints tend to be that way due to poor preservation and care (whereas Warner Bros. prints, for example, tend to be among the best). The technical crew worked well with what they had and the presentations went smoothly, with a bright pictures and super-clear sound.

In a surprising twist, audience size on Friday was actually higher than on Saturday (whose evening shows usually have the highest turnout). Box office tallies indicated that attendance on Friday was close to 300 (with the organ concert no doubt being a major draw) and low 200s on Saturday (perhaps due to the windy chill outside and looming threat of a winter storm later that night). There were many children in attendance (especially for “Mary Poppins”). Strangely, to my eyes, the auditorium on Saturday looked fuller. Regardless, it was two nights of great family entertainment, enjoyed by all who were there!

As a volunteer staffer, I also want to personally express gratitude to those loyal and generous patrons who really got into the “holiday spirit” of giving â€" several made an extra “donation” to the Friends by purchasing tickets and telling us to “keep the change”…one group even remarked that they “love this place.” Thank you!

So there are plans to screen silent films at the Loews once the organ is fully operational? That’s great news! Would be great to see an epic silent film like Wings, Ben Hur or The Iron Horse on the large screen at the Loews.

Thanks for that insight Bob – it solves a minor mystery of mine.

The onstage lightboard has a controller panel for the organ lift with “up”, “down” and “picture” positions but the GSTOS team tells me it was never actually connected. I guess since there was no need for the organist to be in position to see and accompany the film, the 1928/29 installers saw no need to connect the panel.

The GSTOS team currently raises, rotates and lowers the organ “by eye” with a handheld controller. They are installing the necessary limit switches and position indicators so that when everything is all done, the organ will have the three positions but that is an event yet to come.

And to clarify…

At this moment, there will not be any organ sing-along or performance on Saturday, Dec. 15.

But please keep your eye on the Loew’s Jersey website or call the theatre, as things sometimes change at the last minute.

Hey… Does anyone know when the organ music starts this Saturday the 15th? The website lists a 6pm showtime for MARY POPPINS – but I’m not sure if this includes the organ sing-along portion of the show. The listing for MIRACLE ON 34th STREET on Friday the 14th specifically states the organ show will begin 30 minutes before the 7:30 screening. I want to bring the kids along on Saturday and would like to make sure to catch the entire program. Thanks!

Loew’s Jersey’s newly restored “Wonder Morton” organ will make its formal public performance “debut” on Friday, December 14th, 2007 with a short Holiday “Sing-Along” Concert (followed by the 60th anniversary screening of “Miracle on 34th Street”). A fabulous evening of family entertainment, presented with the help of the Garden State Theatre Organ Society!

The organ plus “Mary Poppins” sounds like an ideal family show. I’m going to make every effort to make the journey “…‘cross the river to the Jersey side” (per Tom Waits) with kids in tow!