I can sympathize with “bluejack’s” horrendous “Spiderman” experience at the Lewis & Clark toward the end of its life, but what made this theatre a treasure is what it was, not what it became. But it sounds like the treasure had already turned to trash by the end, and I’m sure there was no going back.
I went to this theatre almost every week between the years of 1963 and 1966. Then it was truly a rather “posh” mid-century modern movie palace in its own way. Even if it wasn’t the ornate sort of Hollywood movie palace of the 20s and 30s, it was still a far cry from the utilitarian black-box multiplexes of today. Yes, there was only one very large screen. You walked up a long plushly-carpeted curving incline to get to the theatre, and it split halfway up and another long curve went up to a very spacious balcony. The theatre was always impeccably clean, and the seats were comfortable.
I couldn’t even think of listing all the great early 60s movies I saw there. The original “Pink Panther” and “The World of Henry Orient” both with Peter Sellars, “Charade” with Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant, just to name three.
Movie audiences — not yet in the habit of watching most of their movies in their own living rooms — were just a tad more civilized then. There were ushers, who stood in the back of the theatre during the showings, and if anybody talked out loud during the movie or created any other type of commotion, they got a talking-to, and were summarily “ushered” out if they didn’t shape up.
Yeah, the Bowling Alley was pretty blue-collar, but so was my family. We used to often go there after the show and have a burger and fries, and it was quite a treat.
I’m glad I never saw the sub-divided horror they turned it into.
This is the theatre where “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” played its original run in Seattle in 1976. The theatre was known as the Moore Egyptian at that time, and “Rocky Horror” played on a double bill with Brian DePalma’s “Phantom of the Paradise” for quite a long time. I saw it multiple times during the summer and fall of that year. Around this same time, the Moore Egyptian was also one of the first Seattle theatres to show “underground” midnight movies. They had the first Seattle showing of all the early John Waters classics, such as “Pink Flamingos” and “Female Trouble” as part of this series. Ah…the memories!
I can sympathize with “bluejack’s” horrendous “Spiderman” experience at the Lewis & Clark toward the end of its life, but what made this theatre a treasure is what it was, not what it became. But it sounds like the treasure had already turned to trash by the end, and I’m sure there was no going back.
I went to this theatre almost every week between the years of 1963 and 1966. Then it was truly a rather “posh” mid-century modern movie palace in its own way. Even if it wasn’t the ornate sort of Hollywood movie palace of the 20s and 30s, it was still a far cry from the utilitarian black-box multiplexes of today. Yes, there was only one very large screen. You walked up a long plushly-carpeted curving incline to get to the theatre, and it split halfway up and another long curve went up to a very spacious balcony. The theatre was always impeccably clean, and the seats were comfortable.
I couldn’t even think of listing all the great early 60s movies I saw there. The original “Pink Panther” and “The World of Henry Orient” both with Peter Sellars, “Charade” with Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant, just to name three.
Movie audiences — not yet in the habit of watching most of their movies in their own living rooms — were just a tad more civilized then. There were ushers, who stood in the back of the theatre during the showings, and if anybody talked out loud during the movie or created any other type of commotion, they got a talking-to, and were summarily “ushered” out if they didn’t shape up.
Yeah, the Bowling Alley was pretty blue-collar, but so was my family. We used to often go there after the show and have a burger and fries, and it was quite a treat.
I’m glad I never saw the sub-divided horror they turned it into.
This is the theatre where “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” played its original run in Seattle in 1976. The theatre was known as the Moore Egyptian at that time, and “Rocky Horror” played on a double bill with Brian DePalma’s “Phantom of the Paradise” for quite a long time. I saw it multiple times during the summer and fall of that year. Around this same time, the Moore Egyptian was also one of the first Seattle theatres to show “underground” midnight movies. They had the first Seattle showing of all the early John Waters classics, such as “Pink Flamingos” and “Female Trouble” as part of this series. Ah…the memories!