I only used that reclining button one time. I think it was one of the Harry Potter movies. I promptly fell asleep and woke up 10 minutes before the end. I never used that feature again.
I just saw Doctor Zhivago from the front row of this magnificent theater. It was overwhelming. The screen seemed at least as big as the one at the dear departed Ziegfeld.
Just saw Napoleon here. Excellent sound system and a bigger screen than I expected in a multiplexed older theater. It first opened in 1928 and I’m glad it’s still here.
Can’t wait to see “2001” here. I saw “Lawrence of Arabia” here in 70mm many years ago. Now I can see it again. This is a great way to keep midtown Manhattan’s last single-screen theater alive.
The movie features the things that all humans have in common: being born and dying; eating, drinking, sleeping and breathing; going to the bathroom (one character talks about it, another is shown going to the zero gravity toilet); having a birthday. It’s all in there.
The Franklin Institute is like the Philadelphia equivalent of the Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium in New York. They showed “2001” in their Omnimax theater on the occasion of the movie’s 50th anniversary. It was projected on the ceiling, on a huge curved screen. There was lots of distortion, even more than with Cinerama, but the visual impact was overwhelming. I’d say it was the largest screen I’ve seen it on since the Capitol. It’s a safe area, not far from the museum with the Rocky steps. If it ever gets shown there again, I’ll post about it here.
I did meet Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood, three times. Twice at the Chiller Theatre celebrity convention in Parsippany NJ, and once at a screening of the movie at the Lafayette Theater in Suffern, NY. Two very nice guys.
Nothing can compare to that first time at the Capitol, but I’ve seen “2001” in a theater many more times since then. 105 times, to be exact. I saw it in 70mm in Fort Lee, NJ just last month, and it’s scheduled to play the Village East in Manhattan in 70mm during the week of July 14th.
The closest non-Cinerama experience was an Omnimax screening at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia in 2018. I went back to see that 4 times. I hope they bring it back someday.
Today is the 55th anniversary of my one and only trip to the Capitol, for “2001”, not long before it was torn down. June 15, 1968. I think it was demolished in September of that year.
ABC News just showed the Ziegfeld. Harry and Meghan were there last night before they were chased by paparazzi. Sadly, the reporter called it a theater, instead of the ballroom it’s been turned into.
I did want to see that at the Ziegfeld but never got around to it. It ended well for me, though, because I got to see it in real Cinerama in Dayton, Ohio in 1996.
Really a beautiful theater. The screen was at least 40 feet wide. It reminded me of the screen at the Ziegfeld. Last night I saw my favorite James Bond movie, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and next Saturday they’re showing 2001: A Space Odyssey in 70mm. The #158 bus from Manhattan takes you right to it.
bigjoe: It’s not first run and never really was, but the Loew’s 175th St. in Manhattan, now known as United Palace, shows classic movies once in a while. They recently showed The Godfather and Raiders of the Lost Ark. I saw All About Eve there recently. The theater itself has been restored beautifully.
I didn’t go to any of the 70mm musicals, but I wish I had. I also wish I’d sat closer to the screen for Krakatoa. With Cinerama, the closer the better. When The Exorcist was blown up to 70mm, I saw it here. The sound was overwhelming. But one big drawback: the warning bell on one of the projectors was broken and it went off continuously. Whoever was in the booth that day obviously didn’t care. Or, it couldn’t be fixed. Good thing the movie was so loud.
vindanpar: I got to see most of the Warner Cinerama because I saw Krakatoa East of Java at what was then called just the Cinerama, in 1969. As I recall, it really was quite a big theater, even without the balcony.
My dad loved the Capitol. He went there all the time in the Big Band years. He took me to see 2001 that day, but he was a little disappointed because the theater had been completely transformed into something else than what he remembered from the ‘40s.
I was lucky to have seen the Capitol. I also got to see Nicholas and Alexandra at the Criterion. But I missed the Roxy, the Warner Cinerama, the State, the DeMille. Strange for a 67-year-old to say this, but if only I were a few years older…
I only used that reclining button one time. I think it was one of the Harry Potter movies. I promptly fell asleep and woke up 10 minutes before the end. I never used that feature again.
I just saw Doctor Zhivago from the front row of this magnificent theater. It was overwhelming. The screen seemed at least as big as the one at the dear departed Ziegfeld.
Time for my annual comment on the day I saw “2001” at the one-and-only Loew’s Capitol, June 15, 1968. And it was a Saturday, like it is this year.
Just saw Napoleon here. Excellent sound system and a bigger screen than I expected in a multiplexed older theater. It first opened in 1928 and I’m glad it’s still here.
I wonder if West Side Story (1961) holds the record for number of admissions. It played at the Chinese for an entire year.
Can’t wait to see “2001” here. I saw “Lawrence of Arabia” here in 70mm many years ago. Now I can see it again. This is a great way to keep midtown Manhattan’s last single-screen theater alive.
The movie features the things that all humans have in common: being born and dying; eating, drinking, sleeping and breathing; going to the bathroom (one character talks about it, another is shown going to the zero gravity toilet); having a birthday. It’s all in there.
In as few words as possible, it’s the story of the evolution of the human race: past, present and future.
The theater at the Franklin is officially known as the Tuttleman IMAX Theater. Here’s a link to its Cinema Treasures page.
The Franklin Institute is like the Philadelphia equivalent of the Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium in New York. They showed “2001” in their Omnimax theater on the occasion of the movie’s 50th anniversary. It was projected on the ceiling, on a huge curved screen. There was lots of distortion, even more than with Cinerama, but the visual impact was overwhelming. I’d say it was the largest screen I’ve seen it on since the Capitol. It’s a safe area, not far from the museum with the Rocky steps. If it ever gets shown there again, I’ll post about it here.
I did meet Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood, three times. Twice at the Chiller Theatre celebrity convention in Parsippany NJ, and once at a screening of the movie at the Lafayette Theater in Suffern, NY. Two very nice guys.
Nothing can compare to that first time at the Capitol, but I’ve seen “2001” in a theater many more times since then. 105 times, to be exact. I saw it in 70mm in Fort Lee, NJ just last month, and it’s scheduled to play the Village East in Manhattan in 70mm during the week of July 14th.
The closest non-Cinerama experience was an Omnimax screening at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia in 2018. I went back to see that 4 times. I hope they bring it back someday.
Today is the 55th anniversary of my one and only trip to the Capitol, for “2001”, not long before it was torn down. June 15, 1968. I think it was demolished in September of that year.
ABC News just showed the Ziegfeld. Harry and Meghan were there last night before they were chased by paparazzi. Sadly, the reporter called it a theater, instead of the ballroom it’s been turned into.
I did want to see that at the Ziegfeld but never got around to it. It ended well for me, though, because I got to see it in real Cinerama in Dayton, Ohio in 1996.
Really a beautiful theater. The screen was at least 40 feet wide. It reminded me of the screen at the Ziegfeld. Last night I saw my favorite James Bond movie, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and next Saturday they’re showing 2001: A Space Odyssey in 70mm. The #158 bus from Manhattan takes you right to it.
The ad for Gandhi didn’t specify anything. It just listed the three showtimes. I posted a Gandhi ad in Photos.
I posted an ad in Photos which gives the 3 showtimes that day: 1, 5 and 9 pm. That movie was even longer than Gandhi.
I think even Ryan’s Daughter played that way in 1970-71. The reserved seat era was coming to a close.
No special schedule. 3 shows a day, at 12, 4 and 8. There was an intermission. I saw it there about 6 or 7 times.
bigjoe: It’s not first run and never really was, but the Loew’s 175th St. in Manhattan, now known as United Palace, shows classic movies once in a while. They recently showed The Godfather and Raiders of the Lost Ark. I saw All About Eve there recently. The theater itself has been restored beautifully.
I didn’t go to any of the 70mm musicals, but I wish I had. I also wish I’d sat closer to the screen for Krakatoa. With Cinerama, the closer the better. When The Exorcist was blown up to 70mm, I saw it here. The sound was overwhelming. But one big drawback: the warning bell on one of the projectors was broken and it went off continuously. Whoever was in the booth that day obviously didn’t care. Or, it couldn’t be fixed. Good thing the movie was so loud.
vindanpar: I got to see most of the Warner Cinerama because I saw Krakatoa East of Java at what was then called just the Cinerama, in 1969. As I recall, it really was quite a big theater, even without the balcony.
I forgot the Rivoli. I saw Jaws there in 1975. It was years after the roadshow glory days, but at least it was still standing.
My dad loved the Capitol. He went there all the time in the Big Band years. He took me to see 2001 that day, but he was a little disappointed because the theater had been completely transformed into something else than what he remembered from the ‘40s.
I was lucky to have seen the Capitol. I also got to see Nicholas and Alexandra at the Criterion. But I missed the Roxy, the Warner Cinerama, the State, the DeMille. Strange for a 67-year-old to say this, but if only I were a few years older…