Castro Theatre
429 Castro Street,
San Francisco,
CA
94114
429 Castro Street,
San Francisco,
CA
94114
75 people
favorited this theater
Showing 51 - 75 of 185 comments
I bookmarked this from SF.Curbed.com and meant to post it a couple of weeks ago on the 95th anniversary of the theatre’s opening. Alex Bevk’s great article on the history of the Castro and it’s evolution into the 21st century also has some photos throughout the years.
Mid `60’s photo added via the opensfhistory.org website.
Just picked up a schedule a few days ago – Lawrence of Arabia will be shown in 70mm Oct 1 and 2, Vertigo in 70mm Oct 14, 15, 16. Would love to see the Transparent event but will be out of town that week. Most of the cast will be in attendance. They are showing the first 2 episodes of season 3 as the “premier”. There is also a showing of a restored print of Multiple Maniacs with Divine Sept 16 (schedule says a print has been unavailable for decades).
Exterior photos from July 2015.
I’ve added 4 new photos – 3 exteriors showing the wider sidewalks and tile work in front of the theater and a long shot taken from an apartment balcony on Twin Peaks showing the bulk of the theater from above.
We were fortunate to catch a Sunday matinee of the recent Vertigo 70mm screening while vacationing in San Francisco. The pre-movie pipe organ concert fully contributed to the “event” vibes that accompany a movie at the Castro.
So true hdtv 267. The new multiplexes come and go with a shelf life usually of 18 years. Easy to tear down and build anew than modify or upgrade. Plus it’s all leased property.
This is one of my favourite San Francisco theatres and will hopefully remain showing film for many more years as my other favourites The Coronet and Metro are no longer with us.
1960’s photo added, credit The LIFE Images Collection / Getty Mickey Pfleger.
I feel the same way, Moviemanforever. I live for movies as well, and live in L.A. where there are a few houses left that screen 35mm classics!
Major efforts are underway to save the San Francisco Castro Theatre’s Mighty Wurlitzer. Please visit our CODA (Castro Organ Devotees Association) 501©(3)’s website at: http://www.sfcoda.org to make a tax-deductible donation via PayPal and/or sign up for our newsletter to keep up-to-date on our progress. Thanks!
A couple more photos of the Castro in 2000 here including a stage one showing the top of the organ. Sad it might be moved out of such a fitting setting :–(
CASTRO EXTERIOR
CASTRO STAGE
A rescued (from an under-exposed negative) photo of the Castro interior taken in March 2000, showing a part of this magnificent theater :–
CASTRO SPLAY WALL
I also was wondering why it was in 1.33, since I know that when it was released to theatres, it was in 1.85. Maybe it was the full-screen edition for television. But they announced from the stage prior to the showing that it was a DVD.
I wonder where they got a DVD of that movie as it’s never officially been released in that format anywhere in the world. Also, it should have been 1.85 widescreen.
They announced that there was no 35mm print available, but they got permission to show the collectors edition DVD. It was in 1.33:1 and masked properly on the sides, but was slightly out of focus.
The Castro installed its first digital projector in 2009. The Castro remains capable of showing film in many formats, including 70mm.
The showing of “Love with Proper Stranger” was part of of a tribute to Natalie Wood series of films and it is possible that a good quality 35mm print was unavailable (something that, sadly, is going to be increasingly the case) and perhaps the Castro felt it was better to project a DVD version rather than totally disappoint patrons since the event had been publicized for at least a month prior.
Does the theater even have a 2k or 4k digital projector for new films? Because if it doesn’t, then the DVD is projected thru what I will call the slide projector and I would never pay a nickel to see it that way. For that matter, I’m not interested at all in movie theater projection of DVDs. Some movies are being put on 2k or 4k, and that’s a different discussion.
I visited this beautiful theatre yesterday for the Natalie Wood film festival. GYPSY was in 35mm scope, and the projectionist did an outstanding, making sure every reel was in sharp focus. But the second feature, LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER, was on DVD and was a little out of focus throughout. I know DVD projectors can be focused, because I have operated them. Why then, did he take extra care on GYPSY, but for LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER he just turned the projector on and didn’t fine-tune the focus?
Screen masking is used when widescreen films are shown to achieve a screen size with the appropriate ratio; the Castro can show just about any film format, including 70mm films (except, of course, for three-panel Cinerama). I saw “Lawrence of Arabia there some years ago; it looked magnificent. They will soon be showing a 70mm print of “Vertigo”.
The screen looks very square and small and not capable of showing movies in scope.
A few 2011 photo can be seen here, here and here.
I met Keith Arnold, the Castro’s new programmer and general manager, by chance in front of the theater just an hour ago. He tells me the internet rumor that the theater will not be showing film after Dec 31 was spread by a disgruntled former employee and is totally false. This has also been confirmed on The Castro’s Facebook page.
Hi Chuck,
I would love to see those pictures of the Hartford, CT Cinerama/Colonial theatre that you have.
Thanks!
Roland
http://cineramahistory.com
KTVU-2 news last night reported that the Castro Theater will now be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays starting in April. This is due to the decline of available product to play in the theater (“revival film product) and a drop in attendence. The report did state that the Castro is still "in the black”. The same report also mentioned that the Red Vic Theater is having similar problems.