Universal Cinema AMC at Citywalk Hollywood 19
100 Universal City Plaza,
Universal City,
CA
91608
100 Universal City Plaza,
Universal City,
CA
91608
19 people
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Universal City Cinemas was designed by Mesbur+Smith Architects, of Toronto, Canada. There are three pictures of the interior on this page. The two largest auditoriums in the complex each opened with 750 seats, and the total seating of the complex was over 6000.
The theatre no longer carries the Cineplex Odeon name. It was called the Loews Universal City 18 for a while, but it is now called the Universal Studio Cinemas, and is operated by AMC, which has swallowed Loews.
The Cineplex Universal City 18 Theatres opened on June 30th. 1987.
It should now be listed as part of AMC.
When it opened, there was no CityWalk and the drive from Ventura Boulevard ran straight to the door of the theater into a circle drive. This was removed after a “drive-up box-office armed robbery” that took place one evening about 1990. When that area was made inaccessible to cars, the CityWalk seemed to be born.
Parking was normally to the right of the driveway (southeast, where I believe there is now a two-story parking structure with a pedestrian crosswalk). I would always go to late shows on the weekend and I often saw unusual wildlife when returning to my car at 2 am.
The first year, you had no access if you were a pedestrian. My sister and I learned this the hard way. We walked from a bus on Barham up to the theater…three one-way traffic lanes and NO sidewalk! We had to walk on the dirt incline!
When they started using the multi-level lot across from the box-office, they kept no record of the number of cars and you often were stuck turning around at the top. On the way down you would pass twenty cars headed to the same fate!
I started riding my bike…
Now I always park at the bottom and walk up…but I haven’t gone in the theater for over ten years. It was one of only three theaters in Los Angeles with coffee, but that hasn’t been strong enoough to lure me back. It was once my favorite theater.
here is a marquee shot
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I have heard from a regular inqusitive customer they have one of the poorest presentations in L.A. only two projectionist, and running damaged film, even IMAX 3D scratched prints, and do not care about customer satisfaction. This is not the place to see large format films. spend your money elseware, how can Universal let this happen on their property?
This was the talk of the town in 87 when I was a projectionist there. Since it was located on the Universal Studio lot (a venture between Universal and Cineplex Odeon), perfection in presentation was an absolute priority. There used to be six projectionists on duty at any one time, some from the theater union (150), others from the studio union (165). There were so many of us on duty because this was the only studio with a theater on-site. We would have to move prints from theater to theater, up and down stairs, as needed due to business. Today, they employ two projectionist. It is completely understaffed for the massive working environment. Eventually, in 88, I moved on to the Cineplex Odeon Marina Marketplace. There, with my partner Bob Seeling, we put on a great show in what was the best run projection booth in the city, the first computerized booth in the nation. Between regular showings and studio premieres, it was making tons of money. Finally, Loews bought the Marina Marketplace in 91 and threw us out. Oh well, guess that is another story aside from Universal. Sorry people…
When the Universal City Cinemas opened in 1987, it had more screens than any other theatre in the U.S.
one of the first giant size multiplex 18 theaters in the country
They do have a large theater at Universal City, which also has a balcony. I saw the premiere of “Fierce Creatures” there several years ago.
There are 18 screens plus the Imax. I hate this theatre with a passion, the small screens are junk. I’ve never been in a large theatre. Do they even have a large theatre?!
According to the December 1999 Loews directory, the Universal City Cinema had 5504 seats and 18 screens (this is before the Imax was installed. Was the Imax an add-on, or a conversion of an existing auditorium?