6360 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90028 | map |
The News: The Dome and the adjacent ArcLight multiplex are still closed and boarded up. There had been gossip about a 2025 reopening of the complex by its owner, the Decurion Corporation, but there's no real word. Here's their website: www.cinerama.com
Opened: The Dome opened November 7, 1963 with a 70mm run of
"It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World." There was a press preview on November 2.
The film ran 67 weeks.
At 60+ the theatre is still an arresting sight at Sunset and Vine.
Note the newer 14 screen ArcLight complex showing at the rear. Thanks to Don Solosan for this 2009 dusk view taken for the
Los Angeles Historic Theatre Foundation.
Phone: 323-464-1478 Email: inquiries@pacifictheatres.com
Seating: 937 originally, 856 at present.
Owners: The Dome was a project of Pacific Theatres, Inc, a company that was
started by William R. Forman in 1946 and, in its early years, was largely a
drive-in operator. Saul Pick was the developer working with Pacific on
the Dome project. He had previously owned the land and would run the project for Pacific.
Forman's other adventure at the time was taking over Cinerama, Inc., a publicly traded company that once had been controlled by Stanley-Warner Theatres. In "L.A. Man Buys Cinerama Loan of $15 Million," a February 18, 1963 L.A. Times story, they noted that he had bought the indebtedness that had been held by Prudential Insurance. By December 1963 he had control of the company. Later it became a subsidiary of Pacific Theatres.
In 1968 Pacific acquired the southern California and Texas assets of Stanley-Warner Theatres, including the other Cinerama venue in Hollywood, the Warner. In 1970 Pacific picked up the remaining 133 theatres of the combined RKO and Stanley Warner chains. After the founder's death, Pacific was operated by his son
Michael. Later, the Pacific Theatres and ArcLight brands, as well as
the real estate arm Robertson Properties, were rolled into a holding
company called Decurion Corporation, headed by Christopher Forman, William Forman's grandson.
Architect: Welton Becket and Associates. Pierre Cabrol was the firm's lead architect on the project. Stacy and Skinner were the structural engineers. The Cinerama Dome was the
first concrete geodesic dome constructed and was built in just 16 weeks. It's
composed of 316 pre-cast concrete panels, most of which are hexagonal,
each weighing approximately 3,200 lbs.
The archives of Becket's firm are in the collection of the Getty Research Institute. Thanks to Kurt Wahlner for locating a finding aid for the Welton Becket Architectural Drawings and Photographs that they have. It's listed as job #5038, Pacific Cinema Center. On the plans they have it's called the Pacific Cinerama Center.
A 1960 photo of Becket with images and drawings of another of his many projects, the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. His firm was also responsible for the Capitol Records Building, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the Mark Taper Forum and the Ahmanson Theatre. The photo is in the Herald Examiner collection of the
Los Angeles Public Library. It's unknown when Becket became involved with the project. Cinerama, Inc. had already been working with other architects on dome theatre designs that could be used around the country.
A preliminary dome theatre plan from the John Sittig collection dated September 11, 1962. Click right and download for a closer inspection. As noted in the title block, this was a Cinerama, Inc. design and not one by Becket.
A section view from September 1962. Many
changes were made to this generic design by Becket's team, including raising the dome onto a foundation wall, raising the level of the booth and getting it off the marquee and going to stadium seating in the upper section. The whole thing became taller and had less wasted space. One casualty was that it was no longer a zero degree projection angle. Many thanks to John Sittig for sharing these two plans from his collection.
Cinerama, Inc. was promoting the idea of a dome theatre as a radical new look for their venues even before the Hollywood project. The earliest Cinerama installations had been conversions of existing theatres and the other purpose-built Cinerama projects of the early 60s (including those in Seattle, St. Louis and New Orleans) had all been fairly conventional, boxy-looking structures. Thanks to the
Adsausage Archives for sharing this early 1963 trade magazine ad on a Facebook post.
That lower illustration in the trade magazine ad also made an appearance with a February 6, 1963 Times article titled "Film Exhibitors Told of New Dome Theatre." At a gathering of theatremen at the Ambassador Hotel, Cinerama president Nicholas Reisini said he envisioned the construction of 300 domed theatres in the U.S. and Canada and an equal number elsewhere in the world. The Times didn't mention the Hollywood project but noted:
"What, in effect, Cinerama was offering to theatre owners and showmen was a compact new playhouse built on the 'geodesic dome' principle and especially adapted to the curved-screen process. A typical Cinerama dome theater would consist of 1,000 seats and would cost approximately $250,000, about half as much as a conventional theater of comparable sise, and take only half as long to construct...
"Blueprints would be made available to 'selected' exhibitors desiring to erect dome theaters, with equipment to be furnished by Cinerama. Some expectation that Reisini would announce a single projector 'throw' of film to replace the present three-projector, three panel process failed to materialize. However, the Cinerama president did indicate that the new dome theater would use a single booth."
The initial designs that Cinerama was promoting were produced by Geometrics, Inc. of Cambridge, Massachusetts in association with theatre architect John J. McNamara.
The
design continued to evolve with the upper drawing getting closer to what was actually built. The lower drawing is of the company's earlier design concept. This March 4, 1963 article appeared in an unidentified trade magazine. Thanks to Roland
Lataille for locating it for the 1963 section of his fine site
In Cinerama. And don't miss his page on the
Cinerama Dome.
The April 11, 1963 press conference held just before the groundbreaking. It was on the lot of the Muller Bros. service station that would become the site of the Dome. The demolition work was by the firm that had taken down many theatres, Cleveland Wrecking Co. Note that the drawings they displayed didn't reflect the latest design changes.
Thanks to long time Pacific Theatres projection supervisor John Sittig for sharing the photo from his collection. The signs on the table: Dick Shawn, Buddy Hackett, Arnold Picker (UA executive), Stanley Kramer, Hon. James Harvey Brown (city councilman).
The April 11, 1963 groundbreaking ceremony with Stanley Kramer and stars of what would be the opening film, "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World." Participants in the back row were Edie Adams, Phil Silvers, Buddy Hackett, Dorothy Provine, Mickey Rooney and Dick Shawn. That's Spencer Tracy and Stanley Kramer front and center. Thanks to John Sittig for sharing this photo from his collection.
A
look at another one of the early designs for the Dome. At the time they
were envisioning an inner suspended ceiling and were still planning on
installing equipment for 3-strip projection. Note the projector near
that "3" in the "Charlie" end of the wraparound booth. Thanks to Kevin
Charbeneau for sharing the image from his collection. It
was included in a post of 61 Cinerama Dome items on the Facebook page
Lost Angeles. Kevin worked at the Dome and other Pacific theatres from 1985 until 1987.
A
drawing of the Dome and one version of the hotel that was supposed to
be part of the project. Here it's envisioned as being south of the
theatre. Image: Kevin Charbeneau collection
A
model of another version of the project. Here the Dome is with an office building to be located west of the theatre. Thanks to Alison Martino for sharing the photo on
the
Vintage Los Angeles
Facebook page. The model was stashed away in Becket's office for
decades and went on display at the theatre for the 50th anniversary
celebration.
A rendering from Becket's office titled "Office Building - Hollywood Center." Thanks to Alison Martino for spotting this one on
eBay and sharing it as a post on her
Vintage Los Angeles Facebook page.
Cinerama gave the press a look at the new 70mm version of Cinerama on June 6 at their test house, the
Forum Theatre on Pico Blvd, a venue that they started calling the Cinerama Studio. Scenes from "Mad World" were shown on that theatre's 146 degree louvered screen. The Times covered the event in their June 7 story titled "
Single Lens Cinerama Process Makes Its Bow."
An article from the Boxoffice magazine issue of September 9, 1963. The sign says "'It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World' opens in 12 weeks." Total construction schedule was 16 weeks. Thanks to Roland Lataille for the find. It's on the
Cinerama Dome page of InCinerama.com. Head to our
exterior views page here on this site for more construction photos.
Construction news about the snackbar "mural" that appeared in the October 21, 1963 issue of Boxoffice.
The Dome was designed with a wraparound projection booth to accommodate the three projectors of the original 35mm 3-strip Cinerama process. Evidently they wanted to keep the option of 3-strip a possibility but that process had been abandoned in favor of 70mm even before the groundbreaking. They still installed the patented and deeply curved (and louvered) Cinerama screen. The early Cinerama installations used a screen encompassing 146 degrees of arc and more deeply curved in the center and flattening out toward the sides. The new layout, which is what the Dome got, used 126 degrees of arc and a uniform curvature.
The first film at the Dome was also the first 70mm film branded as being in Cinerama. "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World" was
photographed in Ultra Panavision, a 70mm process which took the
2.21 aspect ratio of TODD-AO and added a squeeze during filming and a
1.25 expansion anamorphic lens during projection to end up with a 2.76
to 1 aspect ratio image. See the
projection page for more information.
The two page ad that appeared the Sunday before the opening. Thanks to John Sittig for sharing this from his collection. The copy in the lower left:
"A whole new concept in rapturous theatre decor / striking innovations in interior appointments, color and lighting / luxurious seating custom-designed for unbelievable comfort / richly fabricated carpet and drapes / refrigerated climate control air conditioning / lavish lounge and powder rooms / the first CINERAMA single-lens system ever installed / an endless network of electrical wiring and electronic marvels, operating with computer-like efficiency to power this magic city under the geodesic dome -- the dreamland that is Pacific's Cinerama Theatre."
The suppliers credited in the ad:
"Pacific Theatres & The Stanley Kramer Co. express their appreciation to these noted construction and equipment specialists, whose cooperation has helped to make Pacific's Cinerama Theatre a showplace of unparalleled grandeur. Huber, Hunt and Nichols General Contractors • Advance Neon Co. • Alta Roofing Co. • Altec-Lansing Corp. • American Seating Co. • Ampex Corp. • Angelus Carpet Co. • C. F. Bolster Co. • J. P. Carroll Painting Contractors • Robert H. Carter Landscape Architect • Citro Lathing Co. • Cleveland Wrecking Co. • Climate Air Conditioning • The Coca-Cola Co. • C. D. Draucker Electrical Contractors • Film Effects of Hollywood, Inc. • Melvin Genser Co. • R. L. Grosh & Sons Draperies • Lihap Structural Steel Industries • Los Angeles Hardware Co. • Motion Picture Catering, Inc. • National Theatre Supply Co. • Albert G. Ruben Insurance Co. • Shine-Phillips Trucking Co. • Sinicrope & Sons • Smith Emery Testing Labs • Technicolor Corp. • Valley Crest Landscape, Inc. • Wailes Precast Concrete Corp. • Washington Ornamental Iron Works."
A November 7, 1963 ad for the theatre's opening film. Thanks to Michael Coate for sharing it on
In70mm.com, the website devoted to all things 70mm. It's from "
It's a Long Long Long Long List," his 2010 article about roadshow engagements for the film.
Opening night. Photo: Kevin Charbeneau collection
Ribbon cutting with Mickey Rooney, Stanley Kramer, Ethel Merman, Sid Caesar, Barrie Chase, Phil Silvers and others. Photo: Kevin Charbeneau collection
A "Mad World" premiere view from the collection of John Sittig. Left to right it's theatre owner William R. Forman, Phil Silvers, Stanley Kramer, Milton Berle and Jonathan Winters.
Another shot of Phil, Ethel and Sid. Photo: Kevin Charbeneau collection
Zsa Zsa arrives. Photo: Kevin Charbeneau collection
The booth's copy of the initial week's schedule. Thanks to Kevin Charbeneau for sharing the image.
Photos of the opening that appeared in the November 18, 1963 issue of Boxoffice. Thanks to Roland Lataille for reproducing the item on his Cinerama Dome page.
Other early runs at the Dome:
"The Greatest Story Ever Told" (February 18, 1965) 43 weeks
"Battle of the Bulge" (December 17, 1965) 27 weeks
"Khartoum" (June 26, 1966) 24 weeks
"Camelot" (November 2, 1967) 51 weeks -- 70mm, but not advertised as a Cinerama production
"Grand-Prix" (December 23, 1966) 44 weeks
"Ice Station Zebra" (October 24, 1968) 29 weeks
"Krakatoa East of Java" (May 15, 1969) 23 weeks
The top of the letterhead for the theatre. Thanks to Kevin Charbeneau for sharing the image.
If you didn't want to buy a souvenir program for the show you saw at the Dome, you could always take home a book of matches. Thanks to Mark Ortiz for posting this matchbook shot on the
Photos of Los Angeles Facebook page.
Another more solid souvenir was this cast model of the building. Thanks to Kevin Charbeneau for sharing the photo from his collection. It
was included in his 61 item post about the Dome on the Facebook page
Lost Angeles. It's unknown how many of these models were made or what the material was. Kevin comments:
"I have only seen photos and would think that they were perhaps of pewter and made by William Forman and given as gifts to various people within the Cinerama and Pacific organizations. I have looked for over 30 years for one, and never seen one in auction or collection for sale."
At the December 17, 1965 "Battle of the Bulge" premiere. Thanks to John Sittig for sharing this photo from his collection. Left to right it's William R. Forman, Mr. and Mrs. Telly Savalas, Barbara Were and Mr. and Mrs. Robert Shaw."
Looking for usherettes. It's a February 1, 1967 ad.
A December 27, 1970 ad for "Song of Norway," running in 70mm but not advertised as being "in Cinerama." The film had opened November 10 for what would be a 35 week run. Thanks to Cliff Carson for locating the ad for a post on the
Friends of 70mm Facebook page. See Michael Coate's article about the film's roadshow engagements on the site
In70mm.
An ad for the 1973 reissue of
"This Is
Cinerama." But for this run it was a 70mm composite print made
from the 3 original 35mm negatives. Not until 2002 would the equipment
necessary for 3-strip presentations be installed. The ad is from
Roland Lataille's In Cinerama collection.
Here's your ticket for the premiere of "Zoot Suit" in 1981. Thanks to James Kroeper for sharing it. It played the Dome in 70mm and
Sensurround Plus. The 70 prints used dbx encoding and provided enhanced low-frequency response via the Sensurround processor. For this film one of the tracks also had cuing for special lighting effects in the auditorium.
Chuck Heston showed up for the May 16, 1990 opening night of the one-week reissue run of the 1956 film "The Ten Commandments" in
"Super VistaVision," a 70mm print with 6 track Dolby sound. The
Crest got a 35 Dolby print. The 70 print
then played the
Bruin for two weeks beginning May 25. Thanks to Michael
Coate for sharing the ad and data in his article "'
The Ten Commandments': The North American 70mm Re-Release Engagements" on the site In70mm.com. That site's
Cinerama Dome Gallery has a shot from the John Sittig collection taken May 16.
A September 14, 1990 ad for a 70mm reissue of "Ben-Hur." Thanks to Michael Coate for sharing the ad. The original 1959 roadshow run for the film had been at the Egyptian. It was not a Camera 65/Ultra Panavision anamorphic print. Dylan Wern comments: "It was the 2.2 extraction. The chariot race was letterboxed to the original Camera 65 aspect ratio, though."
The Dome was declared a City of Los Angeles Cultural-Historic Monument in 1998 after Pacific Theatres threatened demolition as part of their planning for a new theatre new complex. Doug Haines commented in a letter that appeared in the L.A. Times on April 20, 2021:
"In the late 1990s, I nominated the Cinerama Dome as a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in response to owner Pacific Theatres' proposal to gut the Hollywood landmark. The charade that followed had little to do with historic preservation and much to do with politics. Pacific Theatres was allowed to pick and choose what it wanted to destroy and what should be landmarked. So, the geodesic dome is a landmark, while the supporting ring is not (because Pacific wanted to put an escalator through it). The lobby isn't landmarked, because Pacific wanted to convert it into a Koo Koo Roo restaurant (remember them?).
"What saved the dome was the threat of litigation by preservation group Hollywood Heritage, and Pacific Theatres' desire for a free $45 million parking garage courtesy of the Community Redevelopment Agency. As a result, the theatre was saved through a settlement agreement and covenant. I wish I could say that the fight for historic preservation in Los Angeles has improved since then, but it sadly has gotten only far worse."
After a two year closure and a refurbishment, the Dome reopened in 2002 along with the new ArcLight Cinemas complex that wraps around it. Attending the Dome still felt like an event.
Also noteworthy was that in 2002, due to the efforts of John Sittig, the booth was finally equipped with 3 Century Cinerama projectors and a separate 7 track sound dubber so the theatre could run screenings of some of the original 3-strip Cinerama productions including "This Is Cinerama" and "How the West Was Won." See the
projection page for some photos of the equipment.
A 2002 ad for "This is Cinerama" in the "Original Three Projector Presentation." Thanks to the site From Script To
DVD for the ad. It's on their Cinerama Dome/ArcLight page.
While digital projection has been used
for regular runs at the Dome for years, the theatre still retains 35 and 70mm capability for special showings.
The 2020 shutdown: The theatre closed in March 2020 due to Covid restrictions.
The theatre's entrance on June 1, 2020. On the
right note the signage still up for "The Hunt," the last film running
before the March virus shutdown. Thanks to Brad Stubbs for sharing his photo.
On April 12, 2021 the Decurion
Corporation announced that they were not going to reopen any of its theatres using the Pacific Theatres and ArcLight brands. Their Vineland Drive-In was
operating at the time but none of the indoor locations had tried reopening even as
pandemic restrictions were easing. 300 screens were involved.
While Decurion owns the
land under the Dome, they evidently lease the property under the adjoining ArcLight
complex. Pamela
McClintock had the sad news in "Arclight Cinemas and Pacific Theatres to Close," an April 12, 2021 story for The Hollywood Reporter. Also see stories from Deadline, the L.A. Times and Variety. A
Decurion statement noted:
"This was not the outcome anyone wanted, but
despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company
does not have a viable way forward... To our guests and members of the
film industry who have made going to the movies such a magical
experience over the years: our deepest thanks. It has been an honor and a
pleasure to serve you."
Tom Nunan had a nice April 13 story for Forbes: "Iconic Movie Chain Closes In Los Angeles; 5 Predictions For Future Of Cinemas Nationwide." Variety asked "...Who Will Rescue the Cinerama Dome?" in an April 13 followup
story. They mention the "outpouring of grief" on social media and note one
fan left a floral bouquet at the theatre as a tribute. The article
discussed the Pacific Theatres owners, the Forman family, and outlines
several possibilities.
Jessica Gelt had an April 14 story for the Times titled "Could a developer demolish the Cinerama Dome? Yes, but here's what would have to happen first..." The print edition ran the story with a happier headline: "Reasons to
expect a happy ending." Mark Olsen and Jen Yamato compiled the Another
April 14 story for the Times titled "'I can't imagine Hollywood without the ArcLight.' Filmmakers explain why the loss matters."
Variety continued the tributes with Pat Saperstein's April 14 story "The Cinerama Dome: A Landmark of Hollywood History in Photos." Ryan Faughnder's April 16 story for the times asked "After ArcLight Cinemas' closure, what happens next?" Patt Morrison offered a nice album of vintage theatre postcards and
muses about the fate of various L.A. theatres over the last 100+ years
in "Financial ruin. Possible destruction. What will be the Cinerama's Hollywood ending?," an April 20, 2021 L.A. Times article. Thanks to Donavan S. Moye and Jonathan Raines for spotting the story.
"ArcLight and Cinerama Dome: Potential Suitors Line Up"
was a May 5 story by Pamela McClintock in The Hollywood Reporter. In
the text she called it the "Cinemara Dome." And it appears that Marcus
Theatres was the only one to say publicly "bring it on, we're ready to
talk." Thanks to Stephen Russo for spotting the story.
The Pacific Theatres Exhibition Corporation, part
of the Forman empire, filed
for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on June 18 so that they could have protection
while they liquidated their assets and paid creditors. This company, PTEC,
did NOT have a stake in the Cinerama Dome or that ArcLight location --
that's separate and not affected. The plan was to sell off whatever was part of PTEC: seats, projectors, popcorn machines, etc. at both company owned
and leased locations.
Included was whatever equipment the landlords
didn't claim at the leased ArcLight locations in Culver City, Santa
Monica, Sherman Oaks, El Segundo, Pasadena, La Jolla, Chicago, Boston
and the D.C. area. Also affected were the Pacific locations (some
owned, some leased) in Lakewood, Northridge, Chatsworth (the Winnetka),
Sherman Oaks (the 5 plex), City of Industry (Vineland D-I), the Grove,
and Glendale (Americana at Brand). Deadline had the story: "Pacific Theatres Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy."
In Variety's June 18 story, also titled "Pacific Theatres Files for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy," they noted that creditors, including landlords and film studios, might get little or nothing:
"According
to the bankruptcy filings, the six entities that filed for bankruptcy
on Friday had $69 million in liabilities, and just $4.8 million in total
assets. The only secured debt is a $6.4 million obligation to Bank of
America, which means that all the unsecured creditors — including
landlords, taxing authorities, former employees, vendors, various
litigants, and gift card holders — will likely wind up with little or
nothing. The unsecured creditors also include all the major film
studios, along with many smaller distributors, who were still owed box
office revenue when Pacific’s theaters closed last year. Disney is owed
$1.26 million, followed by Warner Bros. ($779,000), Universal
($619,000), Paramount ($501,000), Sony ($389,000) and indie distributor
Neon ($231,000). In sum, 25 distributors are owed $4.26 million."
Variety also discussed a transaction between two components of the Decurion Corporation:
"The
Decurion Corporation — the parent company of Pacific Theatres —
arranged a deal last November in which it kept the right to use the
ArcLight and Pacific brand names at the ArcLight Hollywood and the
Cinerama Dome — a strong indication that Decurion intends to reopen the
location... According to the filing, Decurion paid Pacific Theatres
$10.5 million to terminate its lease on the property. Pacific turned
around and gave most of the money to Bank of America to pay down debt.
"As
part of the transaction, Pacific and ArcLight Cinemas gave Decurion
'certain intellectual property licenses,' and agreed not to operate
under the Pacific and ArcLight brand names in the Hollywood area. In
other words, if some other operator were to take control of Pacific and
ArcLight with an eye toward reviving the brands, that company would be
barred from opening a theater under those names in Hollywood — because
doing so would compete with Decurion. Variety reported on Tuesday that industry sources said they expected Chris Forman to restore and reopen the Hollywood location."
The boarded-up theatre in July 2021. Photo: Bill Counter
Slow moves toward a reopening: Deadline discussed
an application for a liquor license transfer to a
Decurion-owned entity called "DT Operator LLC" in their December 17, 2021 story "Cinerama Dome Isn't Planning to Re-open Imminently; Here's What's Really Going On." Anthony D'Alessandro and Patrick Hipes noted that the complex had grossed over $15 million in 2019 and there were discussions about a refurbishment but no word of any imminent plans.
Decurion is planning a second bar location in the complex and were anticipating going more
upscale with the restaurant. Gene Maddaus had the news in the June 2022
Variety story "
Cinerama Dome Returning With New Name. Plans For Two Bars and Restaurant." That new name thing, not significant at the moment, was what they called the operation on their liquor license application:
Cinerama Hollywood. In 2022 they
got the liquor license that was applied for in December 2021.
Status: Perhaps we'll see a 2025 reopening but nothing has been announced. The complex is still owned by the Forman family's Decurion Corporation, a holding company that once included Pacific Theatres and ArcLight among their subsidiaries.
The
Pacific Winnetka 21 will be repurposed as a Tesla facility. Pacific's Vineland Drive-In continues to operate. There's no word on the closed Sherman Oaks 5. The
Pacific Lakewood 16, a leased situation, reopened as a Starlight Cinemas operation in July 2023. The company still owns the Warner Hollywood but that one's been boarded up for years.
Other ArcLight locations: The Beach Cities and Santa Monica locations remain closed. Regal took over the
ArcLight Sherman Oaks in 2021. A November 2021
Deadline story announced that Landmark Theatres was taking over the ArcLight Glen Town Center in Glenview, Illinois. The ArcLight NewCity in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood went to AMC, a December 2021
Deadline story reported.
In February 2022 a
Boxoffice story noted that AMC was taking over the former ArcLight locations in La Jolla and at the Westfield Montgomery in Bethesda, MD. "
Tiger Group Auction..." was a March 2022 Boxoffice story about the first of two big sales of equipment from various ArcLight and Pacific locations.
Deadline had a December 2022 story about the AMC takeover of the 13-screen ArcLight in the Boston development The Hub at Causeway. The complex had opened in December 2019 and closed three months later.
The Culver City ArcLight reopened in December 2022 as
The Culver Theater, a six screen complex under Amazon management. In April 2023 Regal, still in the middle of bankruptcy proceedings, announced that they had leased the Pasadena ArcLight, rebranded as the
Regal Pasadena. The Hollywood Reporter had an April 13 story: "
Regal to Reopen Former ArcLight Movie Theater in Pasadena." Thanks to Jonathan Raines for spotting the news. They reopened June 2, 2023.
The Cinerama Dome in Feature Films:
We get an aerial view of the Dome in "Earthquake" (Universal, 1974). The screenshot comes from Clifford Scott Carson on
Vintage Los Angeles. The film ran at the
Chinese, where Ted Mann put a net under the ceiling, allegedly to catch debris falling during the earthquake scenes.
A fine view of the Dome from "Hollywood High" (Peter Perry Pictures, 1976). Patrick Wright directed the film starring Suzanne Severeid, Sherry Hardin and Rae Sperling. The cinematography was by Jonathan Silveira. Thanks to Eric Schaefer for spotting the theatre in the film and getting the screenshot. He says: "Long live the Dome!"
The Dome is seen in this shot that
appears during the opening credits of "The China Syndrome" (Columbia
Pictures, 1979). We're looking south along Vine St. Thanks to Jonathan
Raines for spotting the theatre in the film and Eric Schaefer for the screenshot. Nope, we don't see it
again. The back of the Pantages can also be seen to the left of the
Capitol Records building. And, if you look closely, the Hollywood
Playhouse/Avalon is across the street at 1735 Vine. James
Bridges directed the story about safety cover-ups at a nuclear power
plant. Jack Lemmon, Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas star. The
cinematography was by James Crabe.
We're in the parking lot behind the Dome in Wim Wenders film
"The State of Things" (Gray City, 1983). The director of a film that ran out of money while shooting in Portugal comes to
L.A. in search of his missing producer. Patrick Bauchau, Allen Garfield,
Samuel Fuller, Roger Corman and Isabelle Weingarten are among those featured. Henri Alekan was the cinematographer with Fred Murphy doing the L.A. portion. Thanks to Eric Schaefer for the screenshot. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for views of the Nuart and Warner Hollywood from the film.
Aspiring filmmaker Kevin Bacon is with Jennifer
Jason Leigh shooting a music video for a band called the Pez People in Christopher Guest's "The Big Picture"
(Columbia, 1989). The film also features Michael McKean, Emily
Longstreth, J.T. Walsh, Teri Hatcher,
Martin Short, Eddie Albert and June Lockhart. The cinematography was by
Jeffrey Jur. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for four more "top of the Dome" views as well as shots from a scene at the Vista Theatre.
We look down on the Cinerama Dome in a flyover of Hollywood in Julien Temple's "Earth Girls Are Easy" (Vestron Pictures, 1989). We don't stop as we're headed over the hills to the Valley. In "Earth Girls" we later get a shot of the Studio City Theatre. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres In Movies post for that one.
David Frost (Michael Sheen) and his girlfriend Caroline (Rebecca Hall) go to the Dome in "Frost / Nixon" (Universal, 2009) for the premiere of "The Slipper and the Rose," a 1976 film on which he served as a producer. Thanks to Jonathan Raines for spotting this one. Several more shots from the scene at the Dome are on the
Historic L.A. Theatres In Movies post.
The Dome appears at the end of David Chase's "Not Fade Away" (Paramount Vantage, 2012) in a 60s scene when John Magaro crosses the street and then Meg Guzulescu dances on the centerline. The film also features Bella
Heathcote, Will Brill, Jack Huston, Molly Price,
Dominique McElligott and James Gandolfini. The cinematography was by
Eigil Bryld. "Mediterranean" is on the marquee, presumably an homage to 1965's "Mediterranean
Holiday," a film that played the Warner Cinerama. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres In Movies post for several more shots from the scene.
In "Keanu" (Warner/Fine Line, 2016) We get a look at the Dome after our two stars, Jordan Peele and Keegan-Michael Key, come out of a Liam Neeson movie. On the end panel: "Substitute Teacher." In this film about a lost cat we also see the Palace, Los Angeles and Vine theatres. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres In Movies post for more shots from the film.
Heather Graham plays an aspiring screenwriter in "Half Magic," her debut film as a
director (Momentum Pictures, 2018). She and her friends
Angela Kinsey and Stephanie Beatriz share their tales of woe about work,
sex and other issues in Hollywood. Over the end credits we see that
Graham has got a film into the Dome. See the
Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post for a couple more shots.
The Dome, dressed as if it were running "Krakatoa, East of Java," is seen in Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" (Sony, 2019). It stars
Leo DiCaprio and his friend Brad Pitt as an actor and stuntman trying to find work in the business in 1969. The Manson murder case also figures into the plot as the guys live next door to Sharon Tate, played by
Margot Robbie. It's a J.S. Lewis photo. See the Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies pages for ten shots of the shooting at the Dome as well as lots of action at the Earl Carroll, the Vogue, Pussycat/Ritz, Fox Westwood, Bruin, Pantages and Vine theatres.
The Dome in Shorts and Documentaries:
Dome construction was underway with a model of the theatre and the never-built office building/hotel in the foreground. It's a shot appearing in David Strohmaier's
documentary "Cinerama Adventure" (C.A. Productions, 2002). See the
Historic L.A. Theatres in Movies post about the film for a view as the camera pans up from this plus four Cinerama-era shots of the Warner Hollywood.
We get to see the Dome in the David Strohmaier Cinerama film "In The Picture" (2012).
Leonard Maltin
did a blog post about the film and the rest of the "Cinerama at 60"
festival. The photo here from his post is of the Dome, as it appeared in
three-strip at the Dome itself.
Also on YouTube are several shorts by Michael Cahill about film
historian Strohmaier shooting new 3-strip Cinerama footage:
"Cinerama 2012" Part 1 |
Part 2 
The five minute "Cinerama Dome - Short Documentary" (2013) about the building of the theatre is on the ArcLight Cinemas channel on YouTube. It features terrific views of the planning, construction and opening along with a discussion about the Cinerama process.
Don't miss the 15 minute 2019 epic "Cinerama Dome Projection Booth Visit Screening 'How the West Was Won.'" It's also on You Tube.
Australian director Rob Murphy pays a visit to the Dome in "Splice Here: A Projected Odyssey"
(Picture Start, 2022). His film tracks the decline of projection on
film and interviews projectionists, archivists and historians who are
helping keep the tradition alive. Local interviewees include
Quentin Tarantino, Leonard Maltin,
Douglas Trumbull, Cinerama restorer Dave Strohmaier, former Cinematheque
programmer Dennis Bartok and projectionists Paul Rayton, Mike
Schleiger and Ben Tucker. The cinematography was by Joanne
Donahoe-Beckwith. The film also visits the Warner Hollywood, the Egyptian and the Chinese. See the trailer on Vimeo.
More information: See the page on
Cinema Treasures
for many discussions about the Dome by enthusiastic fans. The
Cinema Tour page on the Cinerama Dome has lots of photos (including booth views) and a brief history. From Script To DVD has a nicely done
Cinerama Dome page.
The
L.A. Times had an October 2013 story about the theatre turning 50.
Wikipedia has an article about the Dome.
The
name "Cinerama" and the distinctive zig-zag logo are trademarks of
Cinerama Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Pacific Theatres/Decurion Corporation.
Head to the bottom of the
projection page for links to sources for details about 70mm projection and 3-strip Cinerama.
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A mortal sin if The Cinerama Dome is not saved!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing all this wonderful information!!
ReplyDeleteGreat updates, Bill, to an already fantastic page!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteAnd photos of the proyection room
ReplyDeleteDoes that mean you didn't find them? Here's the projection page: https://losangelestheatres.blogspot.com/2017/02/cinerama-dome-projection.html Or see the link at the top and bottom of this or the other Cinerama pages.
Delete