Hollywood Cinerama Dome
6360 Sunset Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
90028
6360 Sunset Boulevard,
Los Angeles,
CA
90028
143 people
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You can find the Cinerama locations here.
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Here’s a list of all Cinerama theaters in the USA and around the world, courtesy of Roland Lataille’s excellent Cinerama website:
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Didn’t they have Cinerama Theatres in the South?
I read somewhere that one Atlanta theatre had that Cinerama process.
I been to the one that was in Los Angeles/Hollywood years ago back in 1977 when they screened “Star Wars"
in 70mm-6 track Dobly Stereo.
Nice decoration…TERRIBLE MOVIE!
that in70mm.com list is incomplete, they’ve shown some 70 prints recently at the Aero theatre, a stunning new print of “Star”, which had the best colors and clarity i’ve ever seen in my life. But really there are only a small handful of 70 prints out there in circulation, and these L.A. theatres keep showing the same 3 or 4 films over and over. Why does Oslo, Norway keep getting all the cool stuff?
I’ve heard that it’s either going to be “How the West Was Won” or “It’s a Mad,… World”. Check towards the bottom of this link:
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There are new 70 mm prints of “Grand Prix” and “Khartoum”, two single-lens Cinerama productions that had Dome engagements in the 60’s. In addition there’s a new 70 mm/DTS “West Side Story” print. Any of those would look spectacular in that screen.
JSA
Getting back on topic, has anyone heard of any Cinerama/70MM plans at The Dome to offset the September/October dry season at the movies?
The proscenium at the Chinese was not removed until Cinemiracle was installed for Windjammer. Two support columns had to be removed one to the right and the other to the left of where the stage once was and a shearing wall was installed. Those columns are visible in early pictures and in the movie Singing In the Rain. The ceiling dropped several inches when the supports were removed. The original CinemaScope picture was not very large as it was limited by the width of the stage. For the Cinemamiracle installation a 120 foot screen holder was constructed and the projection booth was moved to the lower level in the back of the auditorium because Cinemiracle required a zero degree projection angle. There was a brass plaque in the forecourt dating the Cinemiracle installation. The Cinemiracle booth has since been removed and the projection booth was rebuilt in its original location. This was done during the last major restoration. The organ was also removed at some point probably during the Cinemamiracle retrofit but I’m not sure when the organ was removed. The organ music used to come from the main chandelier as it was ducted to come from there.
:)
thanks for the corrections Roger.
So the proscenium at the Chinese wasn’t removed until Windjammer? I thought it would’ve been done for the The Robe in 1953.
It is obvious that segask does not know his history as he stated “yeah. In order to properly convert his famous movie palaces to widescreen Sid Grauman ripped out the prosceniums at his Egyptian and Chinese theaters in Hollywood.” Sid Grauman died in 1950 before the advent of widescreen! The proscenium was not taken out of the Chinese until the installation of Cinemiracle for Windjammer in the late 50’s early 60’s. The Egyptian was modified for D-150 again well after the start of widescreen and long after Sid’s death. Another fact is that Sid Grauman never owned the Chinese outright and lost everything in the stock market crash of ‘29.
Masking the bottom of the screen and bringing in the side masking would be a big improvement. The smiley effect would be minimized, the cross reflections would be reduced, and the cropping of the bottom of the frame would be gone.
Recently saw Indy 4 at the Seattle Cinerama. The flatter screen with a milder curve was still huge and impressive. Even seemed larger than the pre-remodel screen when I used to see 70mm there. I have not seen 3-Strip at the Seattle Cinerama , only the Dome. I am also sure what the screen they use for 70mm in Seattle. The masking seemed opened all the way to the ceiling, so with more height available I am guessing slightly less width for 2.2:1.
So, under J.Randell’s proposal, perhaps bringing in the wings to roughly 75-80 feet wide would do the trick. It could work. You’d still have the opulence of a ginormous screen minus the distortion issues that have the purists amongst us crying FOUL.
Rizzo, y'all willing to give this a try?
do you guys agree that the Cinerama screen should only be used for films that were shot for Cinerama, and that for first run movies a screen with the proper dimensions and curvature should be used instead?
Or maybe it should be flat actually, since the projection booth is up high above the balcony we get the smiley banana effect on a curved screen. I guess, as long as the booth is above the balcony, for best possible image quality a flat screen is necessary.
The Dome should be a lobby instead of a working auditorium???
I just threw up in my mouth…
Segask, in regard to your thoughts on the use for the Dome, I couldn’t agree with you less. I am quite happy that the Dome is here to stay as I have not seen three strip Cinerama, yet. I hope to see it in LA, Seattle or Bradford, England sometime in the near future.
In regard to Seattle, I do not believe that they have a yearly Cinerama festival. I check in with them occasionally to see if they are showing anything in “three strip”. I am always told that nothing is planned.
I’ll gladly use some frequent flier miles to make the trip.
IMHO, a lobby would be a more appropriate use of the Dome. As long as it has that overly wide, overly curved screen, the Dome has no business being a firstrun movie house, IMO. It should be a Cinerama museum and it could simultaneously double as the ticket lobby. The cafe or the gift shop/bookstore could be in the balcony maybe. Maybe one or two weeks a year all that would be cleared out and seats put in for an annual Cinerama Festival. They could show that small handful of films that were ever made for a Cinerama screen.
Why can’t they do it like the Cinerama in Seattle? From what I’ve read, the Seattle theater has a proper screen for 1.85 and 2.39 films, and once a year they spend a whole day putting up a Cinerama screen for a yearly Cinerama festival. Then when the festival is over they take down the Cinerama screen and first run movies are shown on a properly sized and curved 1.85/2.39 screen.
As a first-time visitor to the main Arclight complex in February, this New Jersey guy was very impressed with the large lobby/cafe/store area, and especially with the grand staircase leading up to the theaters. However, two nights before I’d made my 5th visit to the Dome to see Cinerama (“2001” – not 3-strip but it’s still Cinerama to me) and all I can say is I’m very grateful the Dome is still standing, against all the odds, and long may it continue to stand.
DavidM, Yes they did open a cafe in the former balcony of the Empire. But it only lasted a year or so.
I was one of many who wrote letters to help save the Dome. As to the Empire, it functions as a Grand Lobby, too, for the megaplex.
Segask, are you stating that if you were the “powers that be”, you would have sacrificed what is now one of the three theaters on Earth capable of playing three strip Cinerama for a lobby? Are you sure you are interested in theater preservation? Saying that you would turn the Dome into a lobby demonstrates the same kind of mentality that is causing us to lose the very thing we are here to preserve.
I did not like AMC’s decision to turn the Empire into a ticket lobby. By the way, they do not sell popcorn there (at least not on my last visit. Did the Times Square Cafe open in the former balcony of the theater?
The point of what “should’ve” been is moot. We are living in a day and age where theaters are not run by showmen, but by corporations. It is the way of the present movie exhibiting world, as sad as that is.
I want to thank you for the heads up as I have not been to LA to visit either The Dome or the rest of the Arclight complex. You compare the lobby to an airport; I shall now ensure that I arrive at least 45 minutes early so I can get to my gate, I mean, theater.
I was reading the AMC Empire 25 page here at cinematreasures. Cheers to AMC for spending all that money and going to all that trouble to move the old palace 200 feet down the street and saving it from a wrecking ball. Jeers to AMC for then turning the old palace into a popcorn lobby. It should’ve been the largest auditorium.
I think that was the right idea for the wrong theater. A grand old palace like that deserved to be the biggest auditorium instead of a popcorn lobby.
The Dome on the other hand could’ve been turned into the lobby for the Arclight complex. I don’t know why Pacific/Arclight needed such a huge lobby, but the lobby they built for Arclight Hollywood is like an airport, LOL. They should’ve used the Dome for that. Then the space where that huge airport like lobby is now could’ve been a 1000 seat first class theater with a large properly curved (the technique is raytracing I believe?) screen that doesn’t wash itself out and distort the picture, stadium seating, and that awesome sound system in a THX designed auditorium that doesn’t have a stupid domed ceiling that bounces the sound image all over the place.
Haines,
You also have to take into account (which I haven’t seen you really do yet) that most films in the early 50s were still shot and exhibited in @ a 1.37:1 ratio. So while people keep drawing comparisons to theaters going from 1.85 to 2.35, the reality of the day was that theaters (all of them) had to be able to go from 1.37 to 2.35, which very well could have been accomplished by altering the top/bottom masking to something closer to 1.85 while opening the sides to achieve the 2.35. You also have to remember that the 50s and 60s were also a hodgepodge of ratios and formats as studios and theaters all worked to find things that worked well (as new theaters were built in the 60s and 70s -like The National and Cinerama Dome- they were built to accommodate the width of 1.85 to 2.35). Here are the 10 best cinematography Oscar noms for 1955 and their ratios:
On the Waterfront 1.85
The Country Girl 1.37
Executive Suite 1.66
Rogue Cop 1.75
Sabrina 1.37
Three Coins in a Fountain 2.55
The Egyptian 2.55
Rear Window 1.66
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers 1.85 AND 2.55
The Silver Chalice 2.55
That’s 5 different ways to show 10 different films. I’m not saying you’re wrong about your experiences, but that perhaps there is more to be considered.
Well the SMPTE standard for scope presentation is 2.39:1, not 2.35:1 .
jesus christ you guys are still arguing about screen ratio’s?
this has got to be the most epic discussion about screen ratio’s i’ve ever seen