Justin:
In addition to Peter’s recommendation of the American Widescreen Museum, I’d also like to recommend the “70mm in New York” article that Bill Kallay and I put together a couple of years ago.
The American Widescreen Museum is a great resource for a general history of 70mm (and other widescreen processes). But do also check out “70mm in New York” if you want to know which films played in 70mm and in which theatres in the greater New York City region (including North Jersey). The films that ran in 70mm at MENLO PARK are included.
By the way, those simultaneous engagements of “Star Wars” at MENLO PARK did not begin on the same date. The Screen #1 engagement began on May 25, 1977; the Screen #2 booking began on June 10, 1977. (Sorry, I do not at present have the closing dates.)
“I still think Sound of Music ran for a year, but I have some old notes from all the grosses, I’ll look it up. I was only 12 then, so I could be very wrong.”
Yes, you very well could be wrong…and you are! :–)
My research indicates the BEVERLY’s engagement of “The Sound Of Music” ran 24 weeks. And contrary to the claim in this thread that it began in December 1965, it actually began in December of ‘66.
Perhaps the confusion and misremembering stems from the BEVERLY’s run of the film not being the first in the Chicago area. The original, exclusive, reserved-seat Chicago engagement of “The Sound Of Music” was held at the MICHAEL TODD Theatre, where it ran for 93 weeks (March 1965-December 1966).
Dolby Labs' records indicate Dolby Stereo was installed around February 1978. If this is correct then it would indicate the theatre did not have Dolby installed at the time of the twinning. It would also suggest that the original “Star Wars” did not play at Menlo Park in Dolby Stereo.
Tmannheim48:
I have a copy of that Salt Lake City newspaper article regarding the CENTRE’s “Star Wars” upgrade to 70mm! It was published in August of ‘77. Similar articles were published in many other newspapers across the country.
Atomic Age:
There were definitely 70mm blow-up prints of “Star Wars” available on the movie’s opening day. My research indicates there were eight of them and the theatres in which they were booked are identified in my retrospective article “May 25, 1977: A Day Long Remembered.”
And here’s a companion piece that lists the 70mm engagements throughout the movie’s entire run, including the upgrade locations, which includes Phoenix and the CINE CAPRI.
The 70mm presentations at the WARNER CENTER included:
Superman (1978)
Alien (1979)
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Sleeping Beauty (1981 re-issue)
The Empire Strikes Back (1981 re-issue)
Quest For Fire (1982)
Let’s Spend The Night Together (1983)
Return Of The Jedi (1983)
2010 (1984)
Return Of The Jedi (1985 re-issue)
Cocoon (1985)
Aliens (1986)
Empire Of The Sun (1987)
Cocoon: The Return (1988)
Batman (1989)
Last Action Hero (1993)
The theatre initially did not use Dolby equipment for their stereo presentations. But by the mid-1980s they had installed Dolby and also had become THX certified in their largest auditorium.
Monty-Denver:
“The Empire Strikes Back” opened on May 21, 1980, not the 20th (although some cities ran benefit screenings on the 20th). Also, if you saw the original “Star Wars” at the Cooper in its first three months, you saw it in 35mm; they didn’t get a 70mm print until August ‘77.
“2001: A Space Odyssey” was not the third movie to play at WHITE CITY. In fact, “2001” didn’t play at all at WHITE CITY. Several postings suggest there is some confusion between this theater and the SHOWCASE CINEMAS.
WHITE CITY was located on the Boston Turnpike in Shrewsbury. SHOWCASE was on Main & Southbridge in Worcester. The SHOWCASE was previously known as Loew’s Poli. “2001: A Space Odyssey” had its first-run Cinerama engagement at the SHOWCASE.
Minor correction: A few posts back “dwodeyla” wrote that “The Sound Of Music” ran at WHITE CITY for six months. My research reveals it ran for 53 weeks, which would actually make it a 12-month run. Whatever the duration, it was a very successful engagement by any standard.
On our website, Bill Kallay and I have posted a page of photos and newspaper ads from the CINEMA 23. I took the photos a few years ago when I was visiting the NYC area. One of the ads is (in my opinion) a really cool one for the theatre’s upgrading of their sound system to accommodate a run of “Star Wars” (which I believe was a moveover of the ROUTE 4’s print).
Posted on 12/12/04: May 2, 1964 Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews are starring in Walt Disney´s “Mary Poppins†at the Granada Theater.
I believe “Mary Poppins” premiered in the latter half of 1964. The May date seems much too early, especially for a town the size of Plainview. Was this a sneak preview screening? Or is 1964 a typo for 1965?
I can confirm “The Sound Of Music” was indeed the film playing at the SYOSSET on LI-Tom’s requested date of June 29, 1966. The film’s incredible run at that theatre was 6/23/65-12/20/66.
In response to Vito’s request for me to weigh in on this matter, technically, I weighed in the moment EdSolero linked to my “Sound Of Music” tribute article a few posts ago which contained the info LI-Tom was seeking.
BTW, in reading EdSolero’s last post, I’m reminded of something that has caught my attention numerous times. That being the number of folks who think that the website run by Bill Kallay and myself is called “70mm in New York” when, in fact, the website is called “From Script To DVD.” The “70mm in NY” thing is simply one article (and a large one at that!) among many articles that are posted on our site. The “Sound Of Music” tribute article to which Ed linked (although he typed into his post “70mm in NY”) is yet another article separate from “70mm in NY.”
Perhaps Bill and I created the confusion when we introduced Cinema Treasures readers to our site by providing links to the “70mm in NY” piece. We thought at the time that “70mm in NY” would be the ideal introduction to Cinema Treasures readers given the number of classic theatres mentioned in the article and year-by-year film lists and also because of the number of readers interested in the concept of “showmanship.” I guess we figured that CT readers would have explored our site in more detail once realizing there was content other than just the “70mm in NY” thing.
The “70mm in NY” project, by the way, is among our site’s most popular pages, and we no doubt have you Cinema Treasures readers to thank for that!
That booking pattern must’ve changed in the years after you left, Vito, because as mentioned a few posts back, I saw “Top Gun” (a Paramount release) at the Waikiki Twins. That was run by Consolidated, right? Durin that visit I also saw Paramount’s “Ferris Bueller’s Day off” at, I believe, the Kuhio. Which chain ran that one?
What does any of this have to do with “Raiders” and the theatre in which it played? Probably nothing! :–)
A few posts ago, “letsgotothemovies” claimed seeing “The Sound Of Music” at the FOX BELMONT in 1965. It’s easy to mistakenly assume every theatre ran the film during 1965, but the reality is only large-city roadshow houses played “The Sound Of Music” during the year 1965.
Long Beach was not considered a “roadshow” market, and as such, did not play “The Sound Of Music” until its general release in summer 1967. And even then it was at the CREST. The BELMONT finally booked it in Dec. 1967.
If you’re planning to use microfilm of one of the Cleveland newspapers for any ads for “This Is Cinerama,” the notes I have indicate it premiered in Cleveland on Nov. 14, 1956. It ran for 32 weeks.
Did “Raiders Of The Lost Ark” play its first-run engagement at the CINERAMA? I don’t have easy access to THE HONOLULU ADVERTISER microfilm for the timeframe in question, otherwise I’d check myself. Can anyone who lived or worked in Honolulu during summer 1981 recall in which Honolulu theatre “Raiders” played? (I’m asking about the first Indiana Jones movie from ‘81; I realize it’s easy to confuse movies that part of a series.)
It was written in the introductory comments at the top of the page that the CINESTAGE was Chicago’s first 70mm-equipped theatre. Actually, the first such venue in Chicago was the MCVICKERS (at least commercially).
Was screen #1 really THX certified as claimed in a post from Feb 2?
“Was Menlo Park running 70MM long before it did with ‘Star Wars’ ???”
Menlo Park did not run the original “Star Wars” in 70mm. The first 70mm engagement at Menlo Park I’m aware of was “Alien” in 1979.
Justin:
In addition to Peter’s recommendation of the American Widescreen Museum, I’d also like to recommend the “70mm in New York” article that Bill Kallay and I put together a couple of years ago.
View link
The American Widescreen Museum is a great resource for a general history of 70mm (and other widescreen processes). But do also check out “70mm in New York” if you want to know which films played in 70mm and in which theatres in the greater New York City region (including North Jersey). The films that ran in 70mm at MENLO PARK are included.
By the way, those simultaneous engagements of “Star Wars” at MENLO PARK did not begin on the same date. The Screen #1 engagement began on May 25, 1977; the Screen #2 booking began on June 10, 1977. (Sorry, I do not at present have the closing dates.)
“I still think Sound of Music ran for a year, but I have some old notes from all the grosses, I’ll look it up. I was only 12 then, so I could be very wrong.”
Yes, you very well could be wrong…and you are! :–)
My research indicates the BEVERLY’s engagement of “The Sound Of Music” ran 24 weeks. And contrary to the claim in this thread that it began in December 1965, it actually began in December of ‘66.
Perhaps the confusion and misremembering stems from the BEVERLY’s run of the film not being the first in the Chicago area. The original, exclusive, reserved-seat Chicago engagement of “The Sound Of Music” was held at the MICHAEL TODD Theatre, where it ran for 93 weeks (March 1965-December 1966).
View link
During a portion of the original ‘77 engagement, “Star Wars” played on both screens.
Regarding the recent posts about sound systems…
Dolby Labs' records indicate Dolby Stereo was installed around February 1978. If this is correct then it would indicate the theatre did not have Dolby installed at the time of the twinning. It would also suggest that the original “Star Wars” did not play at Menlo Park in Dolby Stereo.
Tmannheim48:
I have a copy of that Salt Lake City newspaper article regarding the CENTRE’s “Star Wars” upgrade to 70mm! It was published in August of ‘77. Similar articles were published in many other newspapers across the country.
Atomic Age:
There were definitely 70mm blow-up prints of “Star Wars” available on the movie’s opening day. My research indicates there were eight of them and the theatres in which they were booked are identified in my retrospective article “May 25, 1977: A Day Long Remembered.”
View link
And here’s a companion piece that lists the 70mm engagements throughout the movie’s entire run, including the upgrade locations, which includes Phoenix and the CINE CAPRI.
View link
The 70mm presentations at the WARNER CENTER included:
Superman (1978)
Alien (1979)
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Sleeping Beauty (1981 re-issue)
The Empire Strikes Back (1981 re-issue)
Quest For Fire (1982)
Let’s Spend The Night Together (1983)
Return Of The Jedi (1983)
2010 (1984)
Return Of The Jedi (1985 re-issue)
Cocoon (1985)
Aliens (1986)
Empire Of The Sun (1987)
Cocoon: The Return (1988)
Batman (1989)
Last Action Hero (1993)
For more, see: View link
The theatre initially did not use Dolby equipment for their stereo presentations. But by the mid-1980s they had installed Dolby and also had become THX certified in their largest auditorium.
Intro data claims theatre complex opened in early 1980s. Not correct! The WARNER CENTER opened in December 1978.
The original six attractions were:
Every Which Way But Loose
Lord Of The Rings
Moment By Moment
Pinocchio (re-release)
Superman
Watership Down
Monty-Denver:
Sounds like you’re a “Star Wars” fan. I predict you’ll enjoy this article:
View link
Wow…TWO whole pictures! Well, I can match that. :–)
View link
Photos:
View link
Monty-Denver:
“The Empire Strikes Back” opened on May 21, 1980, not the 20th (although some cities ran benefit screenings on the 20th). Also, if you saw the original “Star Wars” at the Cooper in its first three months, you saw it in 35mm; they didn’t get a 70mm print until August ‘77.
“2001: A Space Odyssey” was not the third movie to play at WHITE CITY. In fact, “2001” didn’t play at all at WHITE CITY. Several postings suggest there is some confusion between this theater and the SHOWCASE CINEMAS.
WHITE CITY was located on the Boston Turnpike in Shrewsbury. SHOWCASE was on Main & Southbridge in Worcester. The SHOWCASE was previously known as Loew’s Poli. “2001: A Space Odyssey” had its first-run Cinerama engagement at the SHOWCASE.
Here are a couple of links to articles that offer some clarification.
http://www.cinerama.topcities.com/scw.htm
http://www.in70mm.com/news/2004/2001/release.htm
Here’s a link to a list of the Cinerama presentations at this theatre (and other Cinerama venues in Los Angeles).
http://www.fromscripttodvd.com/cinerama_la.htm
Here’s a link to a list of the Cinerama presentations at this theatre (and other Cinerama venues in Los Angeles).
http://www.fromscripttodvd.com/cinerama_la.htm
Minor correction: A few posts back “dwodeyla” wrote that “The Sound Of Music” ran at WHITE CITY for six months. My research reveals it ran for 53 weeks, which would actually make it a 12-month run. Whatever the duration, it was a very successful engagement by any standard.
View link
On our website, Bill Kallay and I have posted a page of photos and newspaper ads from the CINEMA 23. I took the photos a few years ago when I was visiting the NYC area. One of the ads is (in my opinion) a really cool one for the theatre’s upgrading of their sound system to accommodate a run of “Star Wars” (which I believe was a moveover of the ROUTE 4’s print).
View link
Posted on 12/12/04: May 2, 1964 Dick Van Dyke and Julie Andrews are starring in Walt Disney´s “Mary Poppins†at the Granada Theater.
I believe “Mary Poppins” premiered in the latter half of 1964. The May date seems much too early, especially for a town the size of Plainview. Was this a sneak preview screening? Or is 1964 a typo for 1965?
Weighing in…
I can confirm “The Sound Of Music” was indeed the film playing at the SYOSSET on LI-Tom’s requested date of June 29, 1966. The film’s incredible run at that theatre was 6/23/65-12/20/66.
In response to Vito’s request for me to weigh in on this matter, technically, I weighed in the moment EdSolero linked to my “Sound Of Music” tribute article a few posts ago which contained the info LI-Tom was seeking.
BTW, in reading EdSolero’s last post, I’m reminded of something that has caught my attention numerous times. That being the number of folks who think that the website run by Bill Kallay and myself is called “70mm in New York” when, in fact, the website is called “From Script To DVD.” The “70mm in NY” thing is simply one article (and a large one at that!) among many articles that are posted on our site. The “Sound Of Music” tribute article to which Ed linked (although he typed into his post “70mm in NY”) is yet another article separate from “70mm in NY.”
Perhaps Bill and I created the confusion when we introduced Cinema Treasures readers to our site by providing links to the “70mm in NY” piece. We thought at the time that “70mm in NY” would be the ideal introduction to Cinema Treasures readers given the number of classic theatres mentioned in the article and year-by-year film lists and also because of the number of readers interested in the concept of “showmanship.” I guess we figured that CT readers would have explored our site in more detail once realizing there was content other than just the “70mm in NY” thing.
The “70mm in NY” project, by the way, is among our site’s most popular pages, and we no doubt have you Cinema Treasures readers to thank for that!
That booking pattern must’ve changed in the years after you left, Vito, because as mentioned a few posts back, I saw “Top Gun” (a Paramount release) at the Waikiki Twins. That was run by Consolidated, right? Durin that visit I also saw Paramount’s “Ferris Bueller’s Day off” at, I believe, the Kuhio. Which chain ran that one?
What does any of this have to do with “Raiders” and the theatre in which it played? Probably nothing! :–)
A few posts ago, “letsgotothemovies” claimed seeing “The Sound Of Music” at the FOX BELMONT in 1965. It’s easy to mistakenly assume every theatre ran the film during 1965, but the reality is only large-city roadshow houses played “The Sound Of Music” during the year 1965.
Long Beach was not considered a “roadshow” market, and as such, did not play “The Sound Of Music” until its general release in summer 1967. And even then it was at the CREST. The BELMONT finally booked it in Dec. 1967.
If you’re planning to use microfilm of one of the Cleveland newspapers for any ads for “This Is Cinerama,” the notes I have indicate it premiered in Cleveland on Nov. 14, 1956. It ran for 32 weeks.
Did “Raiders Of The Lost Ark” play its first-run engagement at the CINERAMA? I don’t have easy access to THE HONOLULU ADVERTISER microfilm for the timeframe in question, otherwise I’d check myself. Can anyone who lived or worked in Honolulu during summer 1981 recall in which Honolulu theatre “Raiders” played? (I’m asking about the first Indiana Jones movie from ‘81; I realize it’s easy to confuse movies that part of a series.)
It was written in the introductory comments at the top of the page that the CINESTAGE was Chicago’s first 70mm-equipped theatre. Actually, the first such venue in Chicago was the MCVICKERS (at least commercially).