MPol
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Cinestudioon
Jul 11, 2008 at 11:07 pm
Although I live roughly 2 hours east of Hartford, CT (just outside Boston, MA), and have never been there, I looked at the website and it looks like a beautiful theatre. I’m planning to drive down there sometime during the 2nd weekend of August, to take in a screening of West Side Story, because I always like to see that one on a great big, wide movie theatre screen, with the lights down low.
Although, as I said before, that this sounds like a sad story, it’s also a very interesting one, because the fact that unions have been pretty much spurned here in the United States for almost 40 years (the decline of unions in this country actually began in the late 1960’s, when Nixon took power, and then continued to snowball, and, for the past 25 years, we’ve really begun to see the consequences) imo, clearly helps explain why the movie theatre experience isn’t what it used to be, and why there are so many non-professionals working the projectors who don’t know what they’re doing due to improper training. This, I believe, has all but killed the movie business, which is really unfortunate, because, imho, there’s nothing greater than taking an opportunity to be out of the house in the evenings or whatever and seeing movies on a great big, wide screen, in a real movie theatre, with the lights down low, and sharing the experience with lots of other people, whether one knows them or not.
The Orson Welles Cinema was a real keeper. As a student during the 1970’s, and through the miod-1980’s, after I’d gotten out of school, I’d go to movies pretty regularly there. Back in the seventies, an evening would be made of it, by having dinner at the nearby Orson Welles Restaurant before it burned down, and then attending a movie at the Cinema. For several years after I finished school, I lived right around the corner from Orson Welles Cinema, and I’d still go to movies pretty regularly there. Among the movies that I saw at Orson Welles cinema were Bonnie & Clyde, Performance, Road Warrior, The Harder They Come, Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”, and, not to mention some others, last but not least, West Side Story.
The Opera House is beautifully renovated and is very baroque-looking inside. I had the opportunity to see a production of “NutCracker Suite” in the Opera House, which was a wonderful experience through and through.
Since the Embassy Theatre was located in Walthem, which was one of the towns that abutted my old home town, we used to go there frequently as kids, and, often enough, we’d often see other kids that we knew from my old hometown there at the theatre, on a Saturday afternoon, for both good and bad. Since Grover Cronin’s Department Store (which has since been converted into condos) was pretty much right across the street, some times a whole day would be made of it; shopping at Grover Cronin’s, and a movie at the Embassy Theatre. I remember that the Embassy Theatre was very baroque-looking inside, so going to the theatre itself was an artistic experience. Alas, the Embassy was torn down, making way for the more sterile and antiseptic-looking multiplex cinema(s) that now exist.
The Providence Performing Arts Center is also another beautiful old theatre palace that’s perfect for showing old classics, etc., and alsoi has a balcony. Up until several years ago, they, too had classic film series. I saw my alltime favorite movie, West Side Story, which played as part of the film series that year, in 2000, which was also coincided with a big promotion of Wurlitzer Organ that they were having. Before the movie started, however, the audience was treated to rather schmaltzy organ renditions of several prominent WSS songs, which resembled the kind of music that’s frequently heard on a skating rink or a ballpark during a baseball game. The organist went on just a bit too long, and I thought he would never get off, especially since the movie had started. Finally, the organist and organ, both of which and who had been sitting on a small piece of the floor that was automatically pulled down below the stage was whisked down below the platform by some sort of motor and pulleys, or whatever, and, we all enjoyed the film. Although there were only 600 people in a 3500-seat theatre, we all enjoyed the film. Just going to the PPAC and even looking at the outside was a wonderfully artistic experience in itself. Since I had a parttime job at a nearby piano dealer shop as a floor tuner, I drove down to Providence, RI, from the Bay State quite frequently. It was only an hour and a half south of where I live—no big deal.
A couple of years later, I got to see a wonderful stage production of WSS, which was an equally wonderful experience. On several occasions, I tuned the piano backstage of the theatre, which was kind of neat, also.
One movie that I saw at NYC’s renowned Radio City Music Hall was the film version of the musical “1776”, back in the early 1970’s. My friend and I found that film so boring that we both walked out in the middle of it—something that I generally never, ever do.
Almost 30 years later, I was fortunate enough, courtesy of some friends of mine who’d lived in my area but moved down to NYC many years before, to have the great honor of being present for the special 40th-year anniversary screening of the film “West Side Story”. What a Saturday night out that was! Shown on the great, big wide screen at RCMH, this great classic seems to take on a magical, almost 3 -dimensional quality. From the romancing Tony & Maria to the warring Jets & Sharks, all the characters seem to move much more fluidly, and in a much bigger, much more open space, plus the scenery seemed more expansive, and the richly-colored costumes and photography, the dancing, and the great Bernstein musical score all seemed more intense. Radio City Hall was always very handsome, and it still is. Sharing this great experience of RCMH, as well as the great film WSS with 5-6,000 other people was terrific. I’d driven down from the Bay State to the Big Apple for this, and it was all worth it. My friends and I had a wonderful time.
Digital and IMAX Cinema: I wonder what the chances are of a lot of the great, golden oldie-but-goody classic films, such as WSS, Dr. Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, etc., have of being re-mastered, reprinted, cleaned up., etc., and then made to be presented in Digital or IMAX Cinema Theatres? That, imho, could be interesting, if it could/would be done.
Hi—I’ve just returned here to the Cinema Treasures forum after a long time of being unable to post here because I’d forgotten how to log in. Now, I’m back, glad to be back, and I’m ready to join this online community in earnest. Regarding my opinion of this essay: the title is appropriate. I, too, am a big movie buff who especially likes many of the older 1960’s and early 1970’s Classic films, although I have seen some newer ones that’re good, too. Back in the early 1980’s, not long after (then) President Ronald Reagan first took office, the United States Supreme Court voted, by ONE vote, to allow movies to be copied onto and played on VCR’s. This, in turn, ultimately led to DVD’s and DVD players. That being said, however, I also agree that the multiplex cinemas have taken over, playing all kinds of schlock, and very few of the real, true-blue movie palaces remain. As recent as the 1980’s, there were many repertory/revival movie houses in our area. Unfortunately, with the advent of VCR and DVD, iPod and many other newer, higher technology stuff, as well as big-assed TV’s, most of these movie palaces have gone the way of movie theatre heaven, if one gets the drift. However, I’m grateful for having the Coolidge Corner Theatre (of which I’m a member), the Brattle Theatre, and the Somerville Theatre, all near by. However, I also agree that corrupt politicians (voted in the people, of course), the lack of interest in movie theatres by average, ordinary people with families, who work long hours, as well as by other people who, fed up with the high prices of admissions to screenings and the concession stands, rude audiences, long lines for waiting to get inside the theatre(s), and, for whatever reason(s), the desire to stay at home. Long gone is a favorite pasttime of people of almost all ages going to the movie theatres with family, friends, etc. Now that pasttime is replaced by the whole family, or a bunch of friends getting together to watch a movie on DVD, or whatever. The advent of rather large, elaborate home-theatre systems have also made the loss of most real-deal movie palaces possible
So sorry to read/hear of Joe Zina’s departure. He definitely was a pillar of the Coolidge Theatre. Here’s hoping that they find an executive who did as great a job as he did, and that it remains the kind of theatre that it presently is.
The Coolidge Corner Theatre, right along up there with the Brattle and the Somerville Theatres, is a favorite theatre of mine. Since I have a yearly membership at the Coolidge, I take as much advantage of it as I can, and have seen some wonderful classics there, including WSS. I like the marquee that they have up on top…it’s so cool. I even attended the lighting ceremony of the Coolidge Theatre marquee afew years ago, and it was so cool, seeing all those lights go on for the first time! It added a whole new look to the theatre, making it look even more like a movie palace. I like the new facelift that the entrance and the main theatre received. The chairs are down to four hundred and something now from 600, but it’s worth it, especially because the seats are far more comfortable. However, I only wish that the restrooms were a little bit brighter.
I also might add that I’m glad that the Brattle Theatre was renovated. The chairs are far more comfortable, and, even though some chairs were taken out of the theatre when it received a facelift, so to speak, it’s well worth it, imo.
The Brattle Theatre, which is also a wonderful repertory arts movie house, is another movie house that I enjoy freqenting when there’s a good older classic film playing. I’ve seen some James Bond movies there, as well as Easy Rider, Gimme Shelter & Monterey Pops as a double feature, Raging Bull, Night at the Opera, Yellow Submarine, Georgy Girl, Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner, and, not withstanding afew others, last but not least, I’ve seen several screenings of my alltiime favorite film, West Side Story at the Brattle. Just this past may, when the 90th Anniversary of United Artists Films series arrived, they showed both an afternoon and an evening screening of West Side Story. Since WSS is a hard film for me to resist, I attended both screenings. Since the Brattle Theatre and the Somerville Theatre are the only two theatres in this area left that have balconies, I always love sitting on the balcony when I view the film West Side Story.
The experience that I remember distinctly is back in the late 1950’s-early 1960’s, when my sister and I were both preteens, when my parents would pile everybody into the family lime-green Rambler station wagon, going out to dinner, and then to the Fresh Pond Drive-In, which was Right on Fresh Pond Pkwy, in Cambridge, MA. It was kind of a neat experience, seeing movies from a car, in blankets. A couple of movies I remember seeing at the Fresh Pond Drive-In were “The Time Machine” and “The Mouse That Roared” Cool films. Sure wish I could see West Side Story at a Drive-In cinema sometime.
On October 10th, 2006, I drove down to the Big Apple from Boston to take in a wonderful screening of the great, venerable, golden oldie-but-goody classic film, West Side Story, with a cousin, who lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. It was a beautiful print, and my cousin and I both had a wonderful time. We both liked the fact that the screen was long and narrow, and that a film such as WSS was a perfect fit for such a movie theatre screen. What was striking about the Ziegfeld Theatre is how incredibly cavernous and palatial-looking it was, both inside and out. There were no rude customers, the projectionist was good, and the exuberant, friendly crowd really was into the film, too. Another striking thing about the Ziegfeld Cinema were the restrooms; they, too were sort of cavernous-looking, and clean. The ladies' room had a fancy, high-heeled boot over the entrance, while the mens' room had a fancy hat/beltbuckle. What a cool place, and a perfect place to view a film such as WSS
Hi. Was just reading your “Philadelphia Movie Palaces, where art thou?” article, which I read with much interest and enjoyment. I remember seeing the film West Side Story at the Charles Cinema in Boston back in the summer of 1976, where it played for 3 whole weeks. Since WSS is my alltime favorite film, I took full advantage of the 3-week stint of this great classic at the above-mentioned cinema and attended a showing of this great classic film every other night for all 3 weeks. What a wonderful way to see such a great film, and, how sad it is that very few, if any of these great movie palaces or cinematic treasures, if any, are left. Other wonderful films that I viewed at the Charles Cinema in Boston are Lawrence of Arabia, Star Wars I, Dr. Zhivago, to mention afew.
Although I live roughly 2 hours east of Hartford, CT (just outside Boston, MA), and have never been there, I looked at the website and it looks like a beautiful theatre. I’m planning to drive down there sometime during the 2nd weekend of August, to take in a screening of West Side Story, because I always like to see that one on a great big, wide movie theatre screen, with the lights down low.
Although I’m not saavy enough to moderate and/or organize a message board, I think it would be cool to have one on here.
Although, as I said before, that this sounds like a sad story, it’s also a very interesting one, because the fact that unions have been pretty much spurned here in the United States for almost 40 years (the decline of unions in this country actually began in the late 1960’s, when Nixon took power, and then continued to snowball, and, for the past 25 years, we’ve really begun to see the consequences) imo, clearly helps explain why the movie theatre experience isn’t what it used to be, and why there are so many non-professionals working the projectors who don’t know what they’re doing due to improper training. This, I believe, has all but killed the movie business, which is really unfortunate, because, imho, there’s nothing greater than taking an opportunity to be out of the house in the evenings or whatever and seeing movies on a great big, wide screen, in a real movie theatre, with the lights down low, and sharing the experience with lots of other people, whether one knows them or not.
I remember seeing the movie “Popeye” with a friend of mine, back in 1980. It was a cool theatre.
The Orson Welles Cinema was a real keeper. As a student during the 1970’s, and through the miod-1980’s, after I’d gotten out of school, I’d go to movies pretty regularly there. Back in the seventies, an evening would be made of it, by having dinner at the nearby Orson Welles Restaurant before it burned down, and then attending a movie at the Cinema. For several years after I finished school, I lived right around the corner from Orson Welles Cinema, and I’d still go to movies pretty regularly there. Among the movies that I saw at Orson Welles cinema were Bonnie & Clyde, Performance, Road Warrior, The Harder They Come, Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”, and, not to mention some others, last but not least, West Side Story.
The Opera House is beautifully renovated and is very baroque-looking inside. I had the opportunity to see a production of “NutCracker Suite” in the Opera House, which was a wonderful experience through and through.
That sounds like a sad story, bigred.
Since the Embassy Theatre was located in Walthem, which was one of the towns that abutted my old home town, we used to go there frequently as kids, and, often enough, we’d often see other kids that we knew from my old hometown there at the theatre, on a Saturday afternoon, for both good and bad. Since Grover Cronin’s Department Store (which has since been converted into condos) was pretty much right across the street, some times a whole day would be made of it; shopping at Grover Cronin’s, and a movie at the Embassy Theatre. I remember that the Embassy Theatre was very baroque-looking inside, so going to the theatre itself was an artistic experience. Alas, the Embassy was torn down, making way for the more sterile and antiseptic-looking multiplex cinema(s) that now exist.
The Providence Performing Arts Center is also another beautiful old theatre palace that’s perfect for showing old classics, etc., and alsoi has a balcony. Up until several years ago, they, too had classic film series. I saw my alltime favorite movie, West Side Story, which played as part of the film series that year, in 2000, which was also coincided with a big promotion of Wurlitzer Organ that they were having. Before the movie started, however, the audience was treated to rather schmaltzy organ renditions of several prominent WSS songs, which resembled the kind of music that’s frequently heard on a skating rink or a ballpark during a baseball game. The organist went on just a bit too long, and I thought he would never get off, especially since the movie had started. Finally, the organist and organ, both of which and who had been sitting on a small piece of the floor that was automatically pulled down below the stage was whisked down below the platform by some sort of motor and pulleys, or whatever, and, we all enjoyed the film. Although there were only 600 people in a 3500-seat theatre, we all enjoyed the film. Just going to the PPAC and even looking at the outside was a wonderfully artistic experience in itself. Since I had a parttime job at a nearby piano dealer shop as a floor tuner, I drove down to Providence, RI, from the Bay State quite frequently. It was only an hour and a half south of where I live—no big deal.
A couple of years later, I got to see a wonderful stage production of WSS, which was an equally wonderful experience. On several occasions, I tuned the piano backstage of the theatre, which was kind of neat, also.
One movie that I saw at NYC’s renowned Radio City Music Hall was the film version of the musical “1776”, back in the early 1970’s. My friend and I found that film so boring that we both walked out in the middle of it—something that I generally never, ever do.
Almost 30 years later, I was fortunate enough, courtesy of some friends of mine who’d lived in my area but moved down to NYC many years before, to have the great honor of being present for the special 40th-year anniversary screening of the film “West Side Story”. What a Saturday night out that was! Shown on the great, big wide screen at RCMH, this great classic seems to take on a magical, almost 3 -dimensional quality. From the romancing Tony & Maria to the warring Jets & Sharks, all the characters seem to move much more fluidly, and in a much bigger, much more open space, plus the scenery seemed more expansive, and the richly-colored costumes and photography, the dancing, and the great Bernstein musical score all seemed more intense. Radio City Hall was always very handsome, and it still is. Sharing this great experience of RCMH, as well as the great film WSS with 5-6,000 other people was terrific. I’d driven down from the Bay State to the Big Apple for this, and it was all worth it. My friends and I had a wonderful time.
Digital and IMAX Cinema: I wonder what the chances are of a lot of the great, golden oldie-but-goody classic films, such as WSS, Dr. Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, etc., have of being re-mastered, reprinted, cleaned up., etc., and then made to be presented in Digital or IMAX Cinema Theatres? That, imho, could be interesting, if it could/would be done.
Hi—I’ve just returned here to the Cinema Treasures forum after a long time of being unable to post here because I’d forgotten how to log in. Now, I’m back, glad to be back, and I’m ready to join this online community in earnest. Regarding my opinion of this essay: the title is appropriate. I, too, am a big movie buff who especially likes many of the older 1960’s and early 1970’s Classic films, although I have seen some newer ones that’re good, too. Back in the early 1980’s, not long after (then) President Ronald Reagan first took office, the United States Supreme Court voted, by ONE vote, to allow movies to be copied onto and played on VCR’s. This, in turn, ultimately led to DVD’s and DVD players. That being said, however, I also agree that the multiplex cinemas have taken over, playing all kinds of schlock, and very few of the real, true-blue movie palaces remain. As recent as the 1980’s, there were many repertory/revival movie houses in our area. Unfortunately, with the advent of VCR and DVD, iPod and many other newer, higher technology stuff, as well as big-assed TV’s, most of these movie palaces have gone the way of movie theatre heaven, if one gets the drift. However, I’m grateful for having the Coolidge Corner Theatre (of which I’m a member), the Brattle Theatre, and the Somerville Theatre, all near by. However, I also agree that corrupt politicians (voted in the people, of course), the lack of interest in movie theatres by average, ordinary people with families, who work long hours, as well as by other people who, fed up with the high prices of admissions to screenings and the concession stands, rude audiences, long lines for waiting to get inside the theatre(s), and, for whatever reason(s), the desire to stay at home. Long gone is a favorite pasttime of people of almost all ages going to the movie theatres with family, friends, etc. Now that pasttime is replaced by the whole family, or a bunch of friends getting together to watch a movie on DVD, or whatever. The advent of rather large, elaborate home-theatre systems have also made the loss of most real-deal movie palaces possible
So sorry to read/hear of Joe Zina’s departure. He definitely was a pillar of the Coolidge Theatre. Here’s hoping that they find an executive who did as great a job as he did, and that it remains the kind of theatre that it presently is.
The Coolidge Corner Theatre, right along up there with the Brattle and the Somerville Theatres, is a favorite theatre of mine. Since I have a yearly membership at the Coolidge, I take as much advantage of it as I can, and have seen some wonderful classics there, including WSS. I like the marquee that they have up on top…it’s so cool. I even attended the lighting ceremony of the Coolidge Theatre marquee afew years ago, and it was so cool, seeing all those lights go on for the first time! It added a whole new look to the theatre, making it look even more like a movie palace. I like the new facelift that the entrance and the main theatre received. The chairs are down to four hundred and something now from 600, but it’s worth it, especially because the seats are far more comfortable. However, I only wish that the restrooms were a little bit brighter.
I also might add that I’m glad that the Brattle Theatre was renovated. The chairs are far more comfortable, and, even though some chairs were taken out of the theatre when it received a facelift, so to speak, it’s well worth it, imo.
The Brattle Theatre, which is also a wonderful repertory arts movie house, is another movie house that I enjoy freqenting when there’s a good older classic film playing. I’ve seen some James Bond movies there, as well as Easy Rider, Gimme Shelter & Monterey Pops as a double feature, Raging Bull, Night at the Opera, Yellow Submarine, Georgy Girl, Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner, and, not withstanding afew others, last but not least, I’ve seen several screenings of my alltiime favorite film, West Side Story at the Brattle. Just this past may, when the 90th Anniversary of United Artists Films series arrived, they showed both an afternoon and an evening screening of West Side Story. Since WSS is a hard film for me to resist, I attended both screenings. Since the Brattle Theatre and the Somerville Theatre are the only two theatres in this area left that have balconies, I always love sitting on the balcony when I view the film West Side Story.
Summer movie memories:
The experience that I remember distinctly is back in the late 1950’s-early 1960’s, when my sister and I were both preteens, when my parents would pile everybody into the family lime-green Rambler station wagon, going out to dinner, and then to the Fresh Pond Drive-In, which was Right on Fresh Pond Pkwy, in Cambridge, MA. It was kind of a neat experience, seeing movies from a car, in blankets. A couple of movies I remember seeing at the Fresh Pond Drive-In were “The Time Machine” and “The Mouse That Roared” Cool films. Sure wish I could see West Side Story at a Drive-In cinema sometime.
The Ziegfeld Cinema….ahhhh, yes!
On October 10th, 2006, I drove down to the Big Apple from Boston to take in a wonderful screening of the great, venerable, golden oldie-but-goody classic film, West Side Story, with a cousin, who lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. It was a beautiful print, and my cousin and I both had a wonderful time. We both liked the fact that the screen was long and narrow, and that a film such as WSS was a perfect fit for such a movie theatre screen. What was striking about the Ziegfeld Theatre is how incredibly cavernous and palatial-looking it was, both inside and out. There were no rude customers, the projectionist was good, and the exuberant, friendly crowd really was into the film, too. Another striking thing about the Ziegfeld Cinema were the restrooms; they, too were sort of cavernous-looking, and clean. The ladies' room had a fancy, high-heeled boot over the entrance, while the mens' room had a fancy hat/beltbuckle. What a cool place, and a perfect place to view a film such as WSS
Having read the new Comments Policy, it sounds like a sound one, with hard and fast rules. That’s the best way to go, imo.
Hi. Was just reading your “Philadelphia Movie Palaces, where art thou?” article, which I read with much interest and enjoyment. I remember seeing the film West Side Story at the Charles Cinema in Boston back in the summer of 1976, where it played for 3 whole weeks. Since WSS is my alltime favorite film, I took full advantage of the 3-week stint of this great classic at the above-mentioned cinema and attended a showing of this great classic film every other night for all 3 weeks. What a wonderful way to see such a great film, and, how sad it is that very few, if any of these great movie palaces or cinematic treasures, if any, are left. Other wonderful films that I viewed at the Charles Cinema in Boston are Lawrence of Arabia, Star Wars I, Dr. Zhivago, to mention afew.