JSA: I’ve always wondered about that too. I saw that double bill, when I was 15. It ran 5 ½ hours, and it was my first time seeing “Around the World in 80 Days”. I can recall both films looking great up on that screen (it was also my first time at the Ziegfeld) and I could swear they had multi-track stereo sound. I talked myself into believing that both films were shown in 70mm at the time, but of course I had no way of knowing for sure. I didn’t know then about the oval-shaped cue marks (35mm) vs. the round cue marks (70mm) at the end of every reel.
This is an excerpt from Michael Musto’s blog at the Village Voice:
“What are YOU doing on the PATH train?” asked a bemused commuter last Saturday, his jaw dropping to the spit-out gum on the floor. Well, believe it or not, I do venture out of Manhattan every few yearsâ€"especially when there’s a screening of All About Eve in the glorious Loews Jersey City Theater, featuring a live appearance by its only surviving star, Celeste Holm. I expected to be completely alone out there, only to find swarms of peopleâ€"all kinds of peopleâ€"lining up for the event and fastening their seatbelts for a night that made them pretty happy rabbits.
Irv: to give the Loew’s its due, they did already screen both “Ben-Hur” and “The Ten Commandments”, and both were excellent shows. “All About Eve” isn’t a big film on the scale of those two, unless you take its record-setting 14 Oscar nominations into account, but it sure was a one-of-a-kind experience seeing it with that many other people who loved the film so much.
Sorry if I phrased that wrong, but even many of the supporting players (Marilyn Monroe, Barbara Bates) in the cast have died. I’ll check this out on IMDB right now:
35 actors are listed as the full cast. Three of them are still alive: Craig Hill as Leading Man (a non-speaking role), William Pullen as Clerk and Helen Mowery as Reporter. So I’d say that among all the actors credited at the beginning of the film, Celeste Holm is the only one left.
Tonight’s showing of “All About Eve” was exceptional for several reasons. Celeste Holm, the only surviving cast member, was in attendance and was interviewed after the movie. The line to get tickets was the longest I’ve seen for any theater in years, stretching behind the theater down Magnolia Ave. nearly all the way to Tonnelle Ave., and that’s a long way. The print, from the Fox vault, was absolutely flawless. And the audience reaction featured the most applause I’ve ever heard during an actual movie, not just for the credits or at the end. We applauded favorite lines, plot developments, even actors' facial expressions. It was a blast!
Gary: You probably know three Honor Blackman films. She had a small but very moving role in “A Night to Remember” as a mother of two young children who has to leave her husband behind on the Titanic as it’s going down. Laurence Naismith, who played Argus, the builder of Jason’s ship, was also in that film as the Titanic’s captain.
I’m glad you came to the Lafayette and that you enjoyed it. We do live in a first-class area for classic movie screenings (I just got back from an amazing “All About Eve” show at the Loew’s Jersey).
I wonder if there were any big arguments between Lucas and Spielberg over digital projection? They’re on completely opposite ends of the spectrum on that issue.
I’ve only seen one movie at the Chinese, “School of Rock”, which doesn’t show the theater and screen off to its very best advantage, but I’d say the Dome has the better screen between the two. It’s that curve – some people say it’s a liability but I think it’s amazing. It’s the best place to show “Indiana Jones”.
I don’t know of any Arclight sponsored 70mm events coming up, but we are working with AFI in getting more of their 100s in 70mm especially after the huge success of 2001.
posted by Rizzo on Feb 12, 2008 at 9:35pm
Most people think “Temple of Doom” was the worst Indiana Jones film, but I actually prefer it to “The Last Crusade”. The third one was a good movie, especially whenever Sean Connery was onscreen, but I felt it was a comedown after “Temple of Doom”. It was so much a retread of “Raiders” (the Nazis, etc.), it felt like they were playing it safe, running for cover. I’m the only Indy fan I know who hopes the new one is more like the second film than the third.
I can only hope that lousy projectionist is not on duty, or has been transferred to some digital-only operation, when my favorite Bond film, “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”, plays the Ziegfeld in 2 weeks.
I just got back from “Shine a Light”. There were more people at the Ziegfeld than I expected, considering it’s playing on 42nd St. and also in Imax. We all gave it a nice round of applause at the end. It doesn’t seem all that long ago that I saw another Martin Scorsese concert film, “The Last Waltz”, at the Ziegfeld. But it’s been 30 years.
The bad news: admission is now $14! That’s probably the case all over midtown Manhattan, or else it soon will be when the summer movie season gets going.
That’s true, Bob, about the condition of the prints, but in the end it all comes down to who’s running the show. If the projectionist you had was running “Porgy and Bess”, it would’ve been a real disaster. Fortunately someone with the skill and committment of yourself (or Jeff, Pete, Vito, REndres) was up in the booth that night.
To give the Ziegfeld some reel-to-reel credibility, last fall’s screening of “Porgy and Bess” went out of focus several times, but the projectionist was right on top of it and corrected it almost instantly. Too bad that person was not on duty for “Planet of the Apes”.
Bob, sorry you had a bad show. I’m going there tonight for “Shine a Light”, but it’ll be digital so it should be OK. I’ll bet you wanted to go into that booth yourself and show them how it’s done.
The admission price for “Apes” was less than $3, probably $2 or $2.25. My cousin and I started going to movies on Broadway fairly often starting in 1969, and that was the ticket price range in all the Times Square theaters (except on 42nd St. where it was much cheaper). I remember quite well when it jumped up to $3: “Love Story” at Loew’s State 1 in December 1970. We didn’t have much money on us in those years, and we almost didn’t go in because of that.
The roadshow prices for “2001” at the Capitol ranged from $2.50 to $4.25:
Rory sent another ad, this one from the New York Times. He added the color himself. Notice how the costumes look exactly the way they did in the movie (he is the expert, after all):
Between “Apes” and “2001”, 1968 was one of the glory years of science fiction movies, perhaps THE glory year. Others that come to mind are 1951 (“The Day the Earth Stood Still” and “The Thing”), 1956 (“Forbidden Planet” and “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”), 1977 (“Star Wars” and “Close Encounters”) and 1982 (“Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan”, “E.T.” and “Blade Runner”).
Paul, thanks for that great story. I always wanted to know what that show was really like. The only eyewitness account I’d seen before yours was in one of the Kubrick books. The author described the sad sight of the Star Child’s eyes staring at the backs of the people streaming up the aisles and out of the theater before the picture was over.
With all due respect to Judith Crist and the others, I’d say time has unequivocally proven you right!
I can’t go till Monday night (“Goldfinger”) but I will post a full report.
OK, thanks JSA. That means my first 70mm experience at the Ziegfeld must have been “That’s Entertainment” in 1974, followed by “2001” later that year.
JSA: I’ve always wondered about that too. I saw that double bill, when I was 15. It ran 5 ½ hours, and it was my first time seeing “Around the World in 80 Days”. I can recall both films looking great up on that screen (it was also my first time at the Ziegfeld) and I could swear they had multi-track stereo sound. I talked myself into believing that both films were shown in 70mm at the time, but of course I had no way of knowing for sure. I didn’t know then about the oval-shaped cue marks (35mm) vs. the round cue marks (70mm) at the end of every reel.
This is an excerpt from Michael Musto’s blog at the Village Voice:
“What are YOU doing on the PATH train?” asked a bemused commuter last Saturday, his jaw dropping to the spit-out gum on the floor. Well, believe it or not, I do venture out of Manhattan every few yearsâ€"especially when there’s a screening of All About Eve in the glorious Loews Jersey City Theater, featuring a live appearance by its only surviving star, Celeste Holm. I expected to be completely alone out there, only to find swarms of peopleâ€"all kinds of peopleâ€"lining up for the event and fastening their seatbelts for a night that made them pretty happy rabbits.
Irv: to give the Loew’s its due, they did already screen both “Ben-Hur” and “The Ten Commandments”, and both were excellent shows. “All About Eve” isn’t a big film on the scale of those two, unless you take its record-setting 14 Oscar nominations into account, but it sure was a one-of-a-kind experience seeing it with that many other people who loved the film so much.
Sorry if I phrased that wrong, but even many of the supporting players (Marilyn Monroe, Barbara Bates) in the cast have died. I’ll check this out on IMDB right now:
35 actors are listed as the full cast. Three of them are still alive: Craig Hill as Leading Man (a non-speaking role), William Pullen as Clerk and Helen Mowery as Reporter. So I’d say that among all the actors credited at the beginning of the film, Celeste Holm is the only one left.
“Jones” will be there at least until July 18th when “Mamma Mia” opens at the Ziegfeld, hopefully for an exclusive run.
Tonight’s showing of “All About Eve” was exceptional for several reasons. Celeste Holm, the only surviving cast member, was in attendance and was interviewed after the movie. The line to get tickets was the longest I’ve seen for any theater in years, stretching behind the theater down Magnolia Ave. nearly all the way to Tonnelle Ave., and that’s a long way. The print, from the Fox vault, was absolutely flawless. And the audience reaction featured the most applause I’ve ever heard during an actual movie, not just for the credits or at the end. We applauded favorite lines, plot developments, even actors' facial expressions. It was a blast!
Gary: You probably know three Honor Blackman films. She had a small but very moving role in “A Night to Remember” as a mother of two young children who has to leave her husband behind on the Titanic as it’s going down. Laurence Naismith, who played Argus, the builder of Jason’s ship, was also in that film as the Titanic’s captain.
I’m glad you came to the Lafayette and that you enjoyed it. We do live in a first-class area for classic movie screenings (I just got back from an amazing “All About Eve” show at the Loew’s Jersey).
I wonder if there were any big arguments between Lucas and Spielberg over digital projection? They’re on completely opposite ends of the spectrum on that issue.
Thanks, Rizzo. It’s a comforting feeling to know that someone who cares about Cinerama as much as you do is on the case!
I’ve only seen one movie at the Chinese, “School of Rock”, which doesn’t show the theater and screen off to its very best advantage, but I’d say the Dome has the better screen between the two. It’s that curve – some people say it’s a liability but I think it’s amazing. It’s the best place to show “Indiana Jones”.
OK thanks, Chris. Maybe there’ll be a reason to make a trip to the Dome for Cinerama in 2009.
Earlier post by Rizzo:
I don’t know of any Arclight sponsored 70mm events coming up, but we are working with AFI in getting more of their 100s in 70mm especially after the huge success of 2001.
posted by Rizzo on Feb 12, 2008 at 9:35pm
Is it something to do with this?
Must be 3-strip Cinerama, right? Can my budget bear two trips from NJ to the Dome in one year? …
Most people think “Temple of Doom” was the worst Indiana Jones film, but I actually prefer it to “The Last Crusade”. The third one was a good movie, especially whenever Sean Connery was onscreen, but I felt it was a comedown after “Temple of Doom”. It was so much a retread of “Raiders” (the Nazis, etc.), it felt like they were playing it safe, running for cover. I’m the only Indy fan I know who hopes the new one is more like the second film than the third.
Make that 3 weeks.
I can only hope that lousy projectionist is not on duty, or has been transferred to some digital-only operation, when my favorite Bond film, “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”, plays the Ziegfeld in 2 weeks.
I just got back from “Shine a Light”. There were more people at the Ziegfeld than I expected, considering it’s playing on 42nd St. and also in Imax. We all gave it a nice round of applause at the end. It doesn’t seem all that long ago that I saw another Martin Scorsese concert film, “The Last Waltz”, at the Ziegfeld. But it’s been 30 years.
The bad news: admission is now $14! That’s probably the case all over midtown Manhattan, or else it soon will be when the summer movie season gets going.
That’s true, Bob, about the condition of the prints, but in the end it all comes down to who’s running the show. If the projectionist you had was running “Porgy and Bess”, it would’ve been a real disaster. Fortunately someone with the skill and committment of yourself (or Jeff, Pete, Vito, REndres) was up in the booth that night.
To give the Ziegfeld some reel-to-reel credibility, last fall’s screening of “Porgy and Bess” went out of focus several times, but the projectionist was right on top of it and corrected it almost instantly. Too bad that person was not on duty for “Planet of the Apes”.
Bob, sorry you had a bad show. I’m going there tonight for “Shine a Light”, but it’ll be digital so it should be OK. I’ll bet you wanted to go into that booth yourself and show them how it’s done.
The admission price for “Apes” was less than $3, probably $2 or $2.25. My cousin and I started going to movies on Broadway fairly often starting in 1969, and that was the ticket price range in all the Times Square theaters (except on 42nd St. where it was much cheaper). I remember quite well when it jumped up to $3: “Love Story” at Loew’s State 1 in December 1970. We didn’t have much money on us in those years, and we almost didn’t go in because of that.
The roadshow prices for “2001” at the Capitol ranged from $2.50 to $4.25:
View link
Rory sent another ad, this one from the New York Times. He added the color himself. Notice how the costumes look exactly the way they did in the movie (he is the expert, after all):
View link
Rory asked me to post this ad from Billboard Magazine, late February 1968:
View link
Between “Apes” and “2001”, 1968 was one of the glory years of science fiction movies, perhaps THE glory year. Others that come to mind are 1951 (“The Day the Earth Stood Still” and “The Thing”), 1956 (“Forbidden Planet” and “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”), 1977 (“Star Wars” and “Close Encounters”) and 1982 (“Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan”, “E.T.” and “Blade Runner”).
Paul, thanks for that great story. I always wanted to know what that show was really like. The only eyewitness account I’d seen before yours was in one of the Kubrick books. The author described the sad sight of the Star Child’s eyes staring at the backs of the people streaming up the aisles and out of the theater before the picture was over.
With all due respect to Judith Crist and the others, I’d say time has unequivocally proven you right!