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New Multi For the Phoenix Suburb of Avondale
Harkins Celebrates
Opening of 18-Plex
AVONDALE, Ariz. – Harkins Theatres rolled out its
new Gateway Pavilions 18-plex Nov. 14 with the Harkins
family’s traditional hand imprint ceremony.
 In
addition to wall-to-wall curved screens, stadium-style
seating, digital sound and high-backed rocker love
seats, the facility boasts specialty foods such as
jalapeno
poppers, cheese sticks, fruit smoothies and spicy popcorn
chicken.
The
multi also features the Southwest’s second
in-house children’s play center, equipped with
a professional staff and four security cameras as well
as wristbands and silent pagers to link children with
their guardians.
“We
are thrilled to continue to deliver the best movie-going
experience to Arizona,” said circuit CEO
Dan Harkins. It’s a state-of-the-art complex
with all of the new technology available.” 
January Opening
Malco 14
For Memphis
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Malco Theatres oversaw in January
the completion of its 55,000-square-foot Memphis,
Tenn., 14-plex.
 The
new flagship, located in White Station Commons at the
intersection of Polar and Mendenhall,
was designed to resemble an Italian palace,
with a
bronze and marble
fountain as the centerpiece of its lobby. Adorned
with two balconies, outdoor seating and spiral
stairs overlooking
the central courtyard lobby, the facility also
includes a 50-foot screen for large format
film capability.
The multi features 24-inch-wide plush rocker
seats with retractable cupholder armrests,
stadium-style seating,
digital surround sound and specially designed
Klipsch
speakers. Four auditoriums feature THX sound.
Along
with an expanded concession menu, the site offers a
gourmet ice cream parlor, a coffee
bar,
a pizza café,
party rooms, a large video arcade with private screening
room for parties, lounge areas, an Internet café,
Internet ticketing and self-service ticketing
kiosks.
Memphis-based
Malco currently operates 279
screens at 34 sites.
Bridging University of Penn.
National Amusements
Unveils Philly 6-Plex
PHILADELPHIA – National Amusements and CineBridge
launched their second Bridge multi Nov.
6, following up the high-profile The Bridge 17-plex they
launched
two summers ago in Los Angeles.
The
1,150-seat Philadelphia 6-plex is home to the “12
Lounge,” a full-service bar and restaurant open
for coffee in the mornings and serving lunch, appetizers,
desserts and drinks throughout the day to both ticketed
and non-ticketed patrons. Free wireless Internet access
and café-style seating is available.
 In
conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania, the
site features a Media
Immersion Room
unique to this location.
The room employs six plasma screens
to show multimedia art provided by Penn
students, as well as coming
attraction previews and footage from “fun-cams” in the
facility.
“Working
with the University of Pennsylvania has enabled us
to incorporate a number of elements into this theatre
that reflect the uniqueness of this
community,” said
NA president Shari E. Redstone.
Located
at 40th and Walnut Street, the multi offers four hours
complementary
parking, online and phone
ticketing
and a concierge-style taxi/hotel
calling service.
Massachusetts-based
NA currently operates more than 1,425 screens
in the United
States, the
United Kingdom
and
Latin America. Signature’s
ShoWester
Harris To Receive
Top Exhib Award
 LAS
VEGAS – Signature Theatres founder and NATO vice chairman Philip Harris
will be honored March 4 as “ShoWester of the Year.
”The
award each year honors
an individual who has
throughout his or her
career demonstrated a
dedication to the betterment
of the exhibition industry
and its causes.
Previous
recipients include Kurt
Hall, Michael Campbell,
Raymond and Joseph Syufy,
Bruce Corwin, Jerome
Forman, Bill Kartozian,
George Kerasotes, Barrie
Lawson Loeks, Lee Roy
Mitchell, Henry Plitt,
D. Barry Reardon, Summer
Redstone and Paul Roth.
“Phil
Harris has quickly emerged
as one of the brightest
and most respected exhibitors
in the country,” noted
ShoWest organizer Robert
Sunshine. “The
rapid and successful
expansion of Signature
Theatres is a testament
to Phil’s knowledge
of and expertise in the
business of exhibition.”
Chain
Adds Large Format
Regal
Signs
For Imax Screens
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Regal
Entertainment Group (REG) announced Oct. 30 that it had signed an agreement to
install Imax theatre systems in four of its Edwards and one of its United Artists
locations.
The
installation increases
the number of REG-operated
Imax facilities to a
total of 11 – the
largest of any exhibitor.
REG’s
decision came after Imax’s
introduction of Digital
Re-mastering (DMR), which
enables the conversion
of 35mm live-action films
to the Imax format.
“We
are excited by the upcoming
film slate for Imax theatres
and by the potential
of Imax DMR to add even
more Hollywood content,” said
REG co-CEO Michael Campbell.
The
new systems are slated
to be installed by the
end of the year.
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Virtual
Space Debuts
Pacific Transforms
Auditorium For Gaming
SAN DIEGO – Pacific Theatres, with the help of interactive pioneer ESports,
has transformed an auditorium of its San Diego Gaslamp Quarter 15-plex into a
multi-player game center. The center celebrated its inaugural U.S. opening Jan.
1.
 Stadium-style
seating was replaced with individual game stations,
a new digital projector and an ESports Arena broadcast
system. Reopened in January, the room
now features screens of various sizes hanging throughout, allowing players
to view contests simultaneously.
Gamers
can purchase a 2-hour ticket from machines outside
for the same price as a movie ticket, and are issued
a photo ID smart card with birth date to
keep track of room time and prevent minors from accessing restricted games
and Websites.
Ticketed
movie patrons may receive a complimentary smart card
and 40 minutes free access to the arena.
ESports
recently announced it will follow the Gaslamp room
with an estimated 400 additional game center openings
over the next four years. John Varley,
founder and CEO of San Diego-based ESports, has pioneered game tournament
operations in 14 countries, including the United States, Canada, Mexico,
Great Britain,
Japan and Korea.
Stars
Over Stayton
Oregon Couple Reopen
Vintage Downtown Single
STAYTON, Ore. – Folks in the Salem, Ore., suburb of Stayton were able to
ring in the 2002 holiday season with the Nov. 8 reopening of the renovated Star
Cinema.
 The
418-seat single had been shuttered since late 2000.
Improvements include new carpeting, a paint job, new wallpaper, and a reinforced
stage that enables the facility to host community events, such as the local
high school cake and pie auction held two weeks after the reopening.
“We
basically just went in there and spruced her up a bit – gave
her some class,” said Robin Mexico, who operates
the facility with husband Jeffrey.
The
couple maintained the vintage 1948 “look” of
the site, keeping the original neon marquee while bringing
in Dolby Surround Sound and replacing some of the seats
and concession equipment.
The
facility is open Friday through Monday, with a top
admission price of $5 for adults and a $3 matinee.
Popcorn, candy and soda are offered at the site, but chewing gum has been permanently
banished.
“After
going around on my hands and knees scraping gum off
the seats and floors with a screwdriver and a putty
knife, I said to myself every time, ‘We will
not sell gum in here,’” said Robin Mexico.
A
NATO Thanksgiving
419 Families
Receive Dinners
 MILWAUKEE, Wis. – NATO of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan took part in its
annual Thanksgiving “Cinemas Care to Share” event Nov. 24.
At
3 a.m., volunteers from local cinemas, schools and
community groups began delivering traditional Thanksgiving
meals to 419 families in five cities in North Central
Wisconsin.
The
event, which began in Rhinelander, Wis., in 1995, is
set to become a statewide project within the next few
years.
Participating
cinemas included: Rouman Cinema in Rhinelander, Cedar
Creek Cinema in Wausau and three Rogers Cinema sites
in Stevens Point, Marshfield and Wisconsin Rapids. Nova
Exceeds 100 Screens
Houston 8-Plex
Changes Names
 HOUSTON – Nova Cinetech surpassed the 100-screen mark Nov. 15 with the
opening of the Nova Meyerland 8-plex at 100 Meyerland Plaza in South Houston.
Concessions
are available at a reduced rate – popcorn and drinks are
priced at $1 all day. Other features include self-service Pepsi fountain drinks
and “one-stop” ticketing.
The
1,650-seat plex offers digital sound in all of
its auditoriums.
Originally
built in 1995 by General Cinema, the Plaza as
operated by Entertainment Film Works
before Nova took it over. The new site will
host the annual Worldfest-Houston
International Film Festival April 4-13.
The
Illinois-based exhib currently operates 101 screens
at 15 sites.
Ohio
5-Plex Destroyed
Cinema Manager
Saves
50 Patrons From Tornado
VAN WERT, Ohio – As
patrons were trailing out of the Twin Cinema 5-plex Nov. 10, theatre manager
Scott Schaffer was eyeing the tornado warning, and decided to huddle his customers
together in the stronger portions of the facility.
In
less than 30 minutes the entire structure, except
for the “safe havens” Shaffer directed
everyone into, was completely demolished by a half-mile
wide tornado that tore through the building, sweeping
cars and debris into the stages, bathrooms, concession
stand and seating areas.
None
of the patrons inside the site, situated nearly
100 miles northwest of Columbus, were seriously
injured as the twister passed over them.
Exactly
one month after the tornado hit, Schaffer was honored
with two National Weather Service awards for helping
to usher 50 kids and parents to safety.
St.
Louis Suburb
Wehrenberg 10
Returns To Illinois
FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS, Ill. – Following three months of renovation, Wehrenberg
Theatres reopened on Nov. 15 its St. Clair 10 Cine in the St. Louis suburb
of Fairview Heights, Ill. Renovations
included the implementation of stadium-style seating
in all auditoria, wall-to-wall screens and digital
sound systems.
Other
areas of the facility also received a makeover – new
fixtures for the restrooms, an Americans With Disabilities
Act-approved restroom added off
the lobby, new carpeting, a fresh paint job and a larger and more convenient
concessions area. A widened lobby and games area was also created.
St.
Louis-based Wehrenberg, the nation’s oldest family-run circuit, currently
operates 15 sites in Missouri and Illinois. |
