Blog posts matching ‘if movie showtimes’ (2024)

Theaters

From The Los Angeles Times: Magic hour in Los Angeles can be intoxicating in the dreamy haze of dusk, skies aglow in pinks and purples like a gauzy scene straight out of the pictures. At the New Beverly Cinema, the last pure bastion for 35-mm film in La La Land, the sun fades into extra romance every night for movie lovers waiting outside the box office under its iconic red-lettered marquee.

On a recent Friday at magic hour, standing patiently in line for a standby ticket to a sold-out double feature of “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” (1985) and “Ed Wood” (1994), is cinephile Cody Chavez, 27, who sports a homemade Pee-wee Herman costume and a giant grin on his face.

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Industry

From The Hollywood Reporter: New technology is shaking up the entertainment business, but John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theatre Owners, argues that box office is thriving even as TV and home video take a hit and streaming services up their investments. “Three-fourths of (those) interviewed are spending more evenings at home now. Slightly more than half are going to the movies less often, although formerly they were confirmed and in most cases very heavy moviegoers.” — U.S. News & World Report

New technology has upended the movie theater industry, disrupting production and distribution; movie theaters are dying.

You’d be forgiven if you thought I was talking about today, the internet and movie streaming services like Netflix and Amazon. The report above actually is from 1955, the disruptive technology was television, and the disruption was real. There were other factors, such as the Paramount Consent Decrees, which forced studios to divest their movie theater properties, but the body blow to theaters that television represented was a complete revolution in the entertainment ecosystem. Theaters no longer held a monopoly on recorded audio-visual entertainment, and box-office revenue hit bottom at $875 million in 1962, down 48 percent from 1946, with admissions off 78.5 percent. The box office would not return to 1946 levels until 1974.

But what about today? Have the internet and movie streaming to the home caused a fresh disruption in the theater industry?

Despite a fairly constant drumbeat of impending doom and decline facing the cinema industry, the reality is otherwise. Since 2004 — following two rather anomalous years that peaked at over 1.5 billion admissions — movie admissions have moved up and down over a fairly narrow range, from 1.27 billion to 1.48 billion annually. Some of that fluctuation is a reflection of the movies in the marketplace, and some is surely because of increased competition from the home market.

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Openings

From dmagazine.com: If recent trends in new theater openings in North Texas can tell us anything, it may be that people really enjoy eating and drinking while watching a movie, simplifying the classic “dinner and a movie” combination. We’ve also seen the rise of zero tolerance policies for cell phones, extra-cinematic programming, and the promise of “luxury” seating as theater attendance continues to decline.

A more traditional experience hasn’t completely lost its sway with moviegoers, however. It’s too early to call it a comeback, but a new drive-in theater opening Friday in Lewisville could qualify as at least a tentative revival of a throwback American night out.

It’s the third such venture from Coyote Drive-In Theaters and Canteen, which opened its first outpost in Fort Worth in 2013 and expanded to Leeds, Alabama earlier this year. (The two Coyotes join the Galaxy Drive-In in Ennis and the Brazos in Granbury on North Texas’ lineup of drive-in theaters.)

The theater, at 1901 Midway Rd. off the 121 Tollway, will have five screens digitally projecting double features of first-run movies seven nights a week, according to a press release. Most of the screens — there are plans for a sixth — stand about 55 feet tall and 75 feet wide. The complex can fit about 1,500 cars.

There are, of course, plenty of modern amenities added to this nostalgia trip. Audiences in the drive-in heyday of the ’50s never knew the unique, late capitalism joys of “Pepsi Spire 5.0 drink systems,” for example. Per the press release from Coyote:

In the center of the grounds stands a Canteen – a restaurant and bar pavilion with indoor and outdoor covered seating for 300 guests, fitted with ten high-definition big-screen TVs – perfect for football, baseball and soccer game days.

Within the Canteen area, patrons can enjoy hand-crafted pizza, burgers, wings and tenders from the full-service kitchen in one hand and the traditional concessions like giant pretzels, churros, popcorn, candy in the other. Coyote Drive-In comes complete with a Beer & Wine bar, featuring many craft beer favorites and frozen wineritas. Coyote also prepares Sno-Cones and Cotton Candy on site and has a Merchandise Shop. And to top it off, the theater is one of the first in Texas to carry Pepsi Spire 5.0 drink systems, a state-of-the-art refreshment dispenser with over one hundred Pepsi flavor combinations to choose from.

Some people will try to tell you America used to be greater than it is now, but in what other era could you choose from 100 Pepsi flavor combinations?

Tickets to the Coyote Drive-In are $7 for adults, $5 for kids between the ages of 5 and 11, and free for children younger than 4. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. and showtimes begin just after sunset.

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Events

From BroadwayWorld.com: In 1980, after the last credit rolled off the big screen at the final showing, the Roxy movie theater closed it doors, reopening three years later as a live performance theatre.

Now, over three decades later, Roxy Regional Theatre Executive Director Ryan Bowie is bringing film back to the corner of Franklin and First in historic downtown Clarksville with the “Planters Bank Presents…” film series.

“After years of our box office fielding calls about what movies were being shown, and with the introduction of many new programs at the theatre this season, the timing was perfect to bring film back to the Roxy,” Bowie notes. “Our goal, moving forward, is to try to appeal to the needs and wants of the entire community. If Clarksville wants film back in this iconic theatre, then we are going to work that into our programming for the future.”

Sponsored by Planters Bank, the series will feature vintage flicks and modern classics, presented on Sunday afternoons in the theatre’s 153-seat auditorium.

“Planters Bank is thrilled to be involved with film being introduced back at the Roxy Theatre,” says Suzanne Langford, Middle Tennessee Senior Marketing Executive for Planters Bank. “There are many people who have fond memories of going to the movies at The Roxy and Capitol Theatres in downtown Clarksville so many years ago. The film series will provide a great way for family and friends to spend Sunday afternoons in downtown Clarksville, making new memories while enjoying the jewel that is our Roxy Theatre. Planters Bank is delighted to play a part in this exciting new endeavor.”

In anticipation of Halloween, the inaugural showing in the series will be the 1993 comedy Hocus Pocus on Sunday, October 23, at 2:00pm.

Originally purchased for a project through the Tennessee Arts Commission’s Creative Placemaking grant program, the equipment for screening the films is on permanent loan to the theatre from the Clarksville-Montgomery County Arts & Heritage Development Council.

“The Arts & Heritage Development Council recently collaborated with the Roxy in airing a film series about Clarksville’s past, present and future. The series was produced through a grant from the Tennessee Arts Commission, and funds from the grant purchased a projector and screen,” says Ellen Kanervo, Executive Director for the Clarksville-Montgomery County Art & Heritage Development Council. “We thought there could be no better way to continue the spirit of the grant than by bringing downtown Clarksville’s past — when locals gathered at the Roxy to see the latest "picture show” — into its present and future — when locals can again gather at the Roxy to see some of those same productions. We are pleased to offer the projector and screen to the Roxy to show movies once again in this historic venue."

Admission to each film in the “Planters Bank Presents…” series is $5 (cash or check only). Tickets will only be available at the door one hour prior to showtime, and popcorn and bottled water will be available as concessions. Upcoming films include the following:

HOCUS POCUS Sunday, October 23 @ 2:00pm

Halloween night will never be the same after three 17th century witches (Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy) are accidentally conjured up in present-day Salem, where they brew a hilarious cauldron of mischief and mayhem!

Rating: PG
Runtime: 95 minutes
Release Year: 1993
Director: Kenny Ortega

ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN Sunday, October 30 @ 2:00pm

Two hapless freight handlers (Bud Abbott and Lou Costello) find themselves encountering Dracula (Bela Lugosi), Frankenstein’s creature (Glenn Strange) and the Wolf Man (Lon Chaney Jr.) in this 1948 American horror comedy classic.

Rating: NR
Runtime: 83 minutes
Release Year: 1948
Director: Charles Barton

THE WIZARD OF OZ Sunday, November 6 @ 2:00pm

In this much-loved musical adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s classic novel, Kansas girl Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked by a tornado into the magical land of Oz, where they are joined by the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion on an adventure down the Yellow Brick Road to persuade the Wizard to help her find her way home.

Rating: G
Runtime: 101 minutes
Release Year: 1939
Director: Victor Fleming

E.T. THE EXTRA TERRESTRIAL Sunday, November 13 @ 2:00pm

Elliott, a lonely young boy, summons the courage to help a friendly alien escape Earth and return to his home-world in this classic sci-fi adventure which captures that strange moment in youth when the world is a place of mysterious possibilities, and the universe seems somehow separate from the one inhabited by grown-ups.

Rating: PG Runtime: 115 minutes Release Year: 1982 Director: Steven Spielberg

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK Sunday, November 20 @ 2:00pm

Archaeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis in this action-packed adventure, the first in the original trilogy cooked up by the dream team of Steven Spielberg and George Lucas.

Rating: PG Runtime: 115 minutes Release Year: 1981 Director: Steven Spielberg

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE Sunday, November 27 @ 2:00pm

In Frank Capra’s classic holiday comedy/drama, an angel (Henry Travers) helps a compassionate but despairingly frustrated businessman, George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart), by showing what life would have been like if he never existed.

Rating: PG Runtime: 129 minutes Release Year: 1946 Director: Frank Capra

WHITE CHRISTMAS Sunday, December 4 @ 2:00pm

A successful pair of nightclub entertainers (Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye) become romantically involved with a sister act (Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen) and team up to save the failing Vermont inn of their former commanding general in this musical romantic comedy featuring the songs of Irving Berlin.

Rating: NR
Runtime: 120 minutes
Release Year: 1954
Director: Michael Curtiz

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Theaters

From The Asbury Park Press: Glenn Harrison has distinct memories of growing up in Lakewood — some fond, others a tad more awkward.

It was 1969, and like many pre-teens, Harrison was venturing in the world of dating. He took his crush to the Strand Theater, which used to solely operate as a movie theater.

“I probably shouldn’t even tell you this,” Harrison said, “but I remember being 13 years old and taking a girl on my first date (to the Strand). I saw the movie ‘To Sir, With Love’ with Sidney Poitier. I spent the whole time trying to get my arm around her. I was pathetic.”

Today, Harrison is 60, and he’s reunited with his first love.

No, not the girl. The theater.

The Strand Theater in Lakewood is approaching its 95th anniversary, and for many the venue has an air of nostalgia. Harrison, who serves as president of the board, is one of the many people working tirelessly behind-the-scenes to keep the theater relevant and make sure it remains an arts center.

Behind-the-scenes

Walking inside the theater, visitors are greeted by maroon, blue and tan colored walls and ceilings — all adorned in gold leaf accents.

The Strand puts on about 150 shows throughout the year. There’s local and national acts, including musicals, ballets, comedy acts and live music.

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Industry

After coming slow onto the scene, Fandango has introduced an app for the iPad with some brand new features.

Fandango, a unit of Comcast Interactive Media, developed the app in-house, as it has all its mobile initiatives. Highlights of the app include a feature called The Pulse that shows the top-selling events and movie tickets purchased through Fandango, movie reviews from professional critics and film fans, and movie-related tweets.

The app also includes mapping technology that detects a user’s location and offers her nearby event and movie titles, theaters and showtimes as well as enabling her to purchase tickets. That feature helps consumers away from home find movies playing in the area—even if they don’t know their current ZIP code.

Read more at Internet Retailer.

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Closings

FAIRFIELD, IL – The owner of two theaters in southern Illinois, the Showtime Cinema and the Grand in Du Quoin has closed both of them due to poor attendance. Both are triplexes, though the Grand opened in the 1920s as a single screen theater.

Rich Baker, the owner of Showtime Cinema in Fairfield and the Grand Theater Du Quoin, said he will reassess his finances over the next two weeks before deciding if the closures are permanent. “I just can’t seem to get the public involved,” Baker said. “I’ve put everything I’ve made back into the Fairfield theater since I took over in November 2007. I’ve never made a profit. The only people making money are the movie companies and my employees.”

There is more in the Courier Press/

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Events

EAST GREENVILLE, PA — On October 24th at 2pm the Grand Theater will showcase the 1920 silent version of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, starring Mr. John Barrymore, just in time for Halloween! The film will be accompanied by world-renowned organist Mr. Jeff Barker playing on the theater’s 1923 2/7 Marr and Colton organ. Tickets can be purchased in advance or prior to the show for $15.

This will be the third silent film screened at the 329-seat theater since it reopened after an extensive 11-month $¾ million dollar restoration in 2004-5. “Phantom of the Opera” was the first silent film featured on October 4th, 2009, on the Grand’s 85th anniversary. More recently showcased was “Steamboat Bill Jr” this past August.

The Grand Theater originally opened on October 4th, 1924. The organ now installed in the Grand is from the Rivoli Theater in Chicopee, MA. Instead of having an organ orginally, the Grand featured an in-house orchestra to accompany silent films until talkies first came to the theater in 1929. This of course was due to the co-founder of the Grand, Mr. Warren Fenstermacher being the conductor for the local East Greenville Orchestra!

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Memories

[This is a revised and updated version of an article published in 2005 to commemorate the film’s 40th anniversary.]

THE SOUND OF MONEY:
CELEBRATING THE 45TH ANNIVERSARY OF “THE SOUND OF MUSIC”

By Michael Coate

So you’re impressed with the box-office performance of AVATAR, eh? Never before has a movie made so much money so quickly? Well, flash back a few decades and consider another movie that rocked the industry.

Never mind that THE GODFATHER and THE EXORCIST grossed $100 million. Never mind that JAWS grossed $200 million. Forget the umpteen times you returned to see STAR WARS, helping propel its original box-office performance close to $300 million. Forget the $350 million E.T. made. And ignore the $600 million amassed by TITANIC. Before all of those spectacular feats there was another motion picture that brought in huge sums of money from the get-go and spawned an insane amount of repeat business. The movie in question was THE SOUND OF MUSIC, the beloved film production of the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical which in turn was based upon the real-life adventures of the von Trapp family and the German films DIE TRAPP-FAMILIE (1956) and DIE TRAPP-FAMILIE IN AMERIKA (1958). The award-winning 1965 film performed as a blockbuster before the industry knew just what a blockbuster was.

So…whether you believe the hills are alive with the sound of music or alive with the sound of mucus, I hope you’ll take a moment to enjoy this look back at the original exhibition history of THE SOUND OF MUSIC on the occasion of its 45th anniversary. Included herein will be references to hundreds of “Cinema Treasures” from a bygone era. I predict reading this will conjure up memories of when and where you saw the film for the first time (and the second time… and the third…).

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Events

(I’m volunteering at the CT Film Fest HQ all week in Danbury. FYI: The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, HQ’d in downtown Danbury until July [starring Winona Ryder, Julianne Moore, Alan Arkin, Keanu Reeves and Robin Wright-Penn] will be shooting downtown on the opening night of the CTFF {May 20} next to the Palace Theatre at 165 Main Street.)

Sundance, Telluride, Cannes, Connecticut?

The Connecticut Film Festival 2008 (May 20-25, CTFilmFest.com)

By Dave Bonan

At any given time around the world, there are 2,500 film festivals taking place and each has to attract visitors with a unique hook. The Connecticut Film Festival (www.ctfilmfest.com), now in its second year (sans the original Bethel Film Festival) distinguishes itself from the competition by being the only statewide festival in a 9-month “traveling tour”, stopping at various cities and towns to educate and entertain.

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