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Illinois & Pennsylvania
Plexes
Muvico Enters Two New
Markets With 44 Screens
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Muvico Theatres in December
announced plans to build 44 screens at two new sites.
The sites are Muvico’s first in Illinois and Pennsylvania.
A 24-plex is slated for Rosemont, Ill., about 20 minutes
from downtown Chicago, and will serve as a component
of the new Rosemont Entertainment District.
The circuit’s 20-plex in Bethlehem
Township, Pa., will be part of The Summit Lehigh Valley,
an outdoor
lifestyle center.
Each site will feature stadium-style seating
and wall-to-wall curved screens. Expanded concession
menus will feature
traditional fare as well as an array of hot meals, such
as crispy chicken breasts, mini burgers, curly fries,
popcorn shrimp and fresh-baked pizza.
Amenities for the new sites will include
valet parking and online ticket sales.
On-site playrooms will provide, for children
between the ages of three and 10, supervised environments
equipped
with a “computer zone,” reading corner, arts
and crafts space and free play area.
“It is great to be expanding into
the Illinois market, especially in such a world-class
center of business,
commerce and entertainment as the village of Rosemont,” noted
Muvico president Hamid Hashemi. “We are the perfect
fit for this community that exudes community integrity.
“We are delighted to be expanding
our presence into the Pennsylvania market as an integral
part of such a spectacular
new lifestyle center. As always, our goal is to wow moviegoers
of all ages from the moment they arrive with a breathtaking
sense of arrival, followed by the highest level of guest
service, comfort, upscale amenities and movie entertainment.”
Based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Muvico
currently operates 233 screens at 12 sites in Florida,
Maryland and Tennessee.
Los Angeles Flagship Enlarged
AMC Century City Relaunched As 15
LOS ANGELES. – AMC Theatres on Dec. 14 reopened
to the public its newly renovated flagship multiplex
in Los Angeles’ Century City.
Formerly the site of a 14-plex, it now features 15
auditoria with stadium-style seating, retractable armrests
and
floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall screens. Other amenities
include three concessions stands with digital plasma
menus, advance phone and online ticket sales, automated
box office kiosks and a guest lounge.
“AMC Century City 15 is our crown jewel; there
is no other theatre like it in the market. Every aspect
of this spectacular
theatre has been designed to create the ambiance for
moviegoing magic,” stated circuit president Phil
Singleton.
To celebrate its Dec. 14 grand opening, the 3,000-seat
facility hosted the world premiere of “The Producers:
The Movie Musical” on Dec. 12, the event benefited
UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Based in Kansas City, Mo., AMC Theatres operates 3,475
screens at 223 sites in the United States, Canada,
France, Hong Kong, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom.
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Exhibition Vet Led Motion Picture
Pioneers Merger With Will Rogers
Loews Cineplex CEO Reid
Named Pioneer Of The Year
 LOS ANGELES — Loews Cineplex Entertainment CEO Travis Reid, whose longtime
employer is in the process of merging with AMC Entertainment, will be honored
by the Motion Picture Pioneers Feb. 9 as “pioneer of the year.”
The event honoring Reid, to be held at Los Angeles’ Century
Plaza hotel, is a fundraiser benefiting the Motion Picture
Pioneers Assistance Fund.
The organization that would become known as the Pioneers
was founded in 1939 as a social enclave, but soon adopted
as its mission the creation of a “self-perpetuating
fund to assist pioneers of the motion picture industry who find themselves in
need; the assistance to consist of direct financial aid, medical care and temporary
business subsistence during periods of unemployment for eligible applicants.”
In 1951 the organization opted to broaden the scope
of its assistance program, and formally took the name
Foundation of the Motion Picture Pioneers. In
2002, the Pioneers merged with the Will Rogers Foundation, another charitable
organization
founded by showbiz professionals, this one tracing its history to 1927.
Pioneer Fund
Seeks Recipients
The Pioneers Assistance Fund is a program with five
levels of assistance offered to industry veterans
in need.
Assistance can range from a
monthly stipend to medical rehabilitation, emergency
grants or vocational
retraining.
“All are encouraged to
help identify worthy recipients of the fund’s assistance,” noted
Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation
board
member MaryAnn Anderson.
Those seeking more information
on the fund and how to seek assistance can find
more information
by visiting
www.wrpioneers.org, writing toddv@wrinstitute.org or
phoning Pioneers headquarters at (888) 994-3863. |
The Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation
(WRMPPF) today operates both the Will Rogers Institute,
which still functions primarily as a pulmonary
research
and educational program, and the Motion Picture Pioneers Assistance Fund,
which provides assistance to veterans of the movie industry. As president of the Motion Picture Pioneers, Reid led
its merger with Will Rogers. Since Reid’s arrival
at Loews, that chain has raised an average of half of
a million dollars each summer for the Will Rogers Institute.
Prior recipients of the honor in the exhibition industry
include Regal
Entertainment Group’s Kurt Hall, Metropolitan Theatres’ Bruce Corwin, AMC Theatres’ Stanley
Durwood, Viacom’s Sumner Redstone, Pacific Theatres’ Michael R. Forman,
Loews’ Bernard Myerson, Plitt Theatres’ Henry Plitt, United Artists
Theatres’ Salah Hassanein, Metropolitan Theatres’ Sherrill Corwin
and Carmike Cinemas’ Carl L. Patrick.
Reid began his career at the age of 20 working at a
drive-in movie theatre in California. Graduating from
California State University
at Hayward
with a bachelor’s
degree in business administration, he went on to hold senior film
buying positions at the General Cinema, Cinamerica and Century chains.
Joining Loews in 1991, Reid has served that chain in
several capacities, including senior vice president of
film and president of North American
operations. He
was named to his current position in 2002.
Reid and his wife Sandy live in New Jersey with their
two young sons, Jake, 14, and Dylan, 12. He also has
two adult children,
Sarah and
David.
Correction
Larry Etter is vice president of Malco Theatres. His
title was reported incorrectly in January’s “The
Cult of Corn” feature.
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