to bigjoe59; screen size, and flat or curved is mostly personal preference as is picture luminance. There are standards of course but that doesn’t mean one pays close attention to the standard. As for picture size it is how far away you are from the screen. An 80" screen isn’t too overwhelming if your twelve to twenty feet away. Back when I had a film screening room in my basement the screen was a lot bigger than 80" and brighter that 18FL. I’m not sure what would cause eye fatigue or vision problems. Dolby Vision is really bright a lot more light than has ever been used before. But as long as you can get at least 1.5 times as far from the screen as it is wide you should be fine.
Again it is personal taste I can sit in the front row at the Dome for HTWWW now that is a little overwhelming.
The brightness on a video monitor or a TV can be adjusted If you get a video projector and a good sound system you can adjust the picture size as well as the brightness. 7.1 and 5.1 sound systems are common. I have a 7.1 sound system sitting in storage that I am wondering what to do with. I have a computer with a 7.1 sound card. That same computer has multiple video outputs so I can have a combination of monitors and projectors.
to bigjoe59; screen size, and flat or curved is mostly personal preference as is picture luminance. There are standards of course but that doesn’t mean one pays close attention to the standard. As for picture size it is how far away you are from the screen. An 80" screen isn’t too overwhelming if your twelve to twenty feet away. Back when I had a film screening room in my basement the screen was a lot bigger than 80" and brighter that 18FL. I’m not sure what would cause eye fatigue or vision problems. Dolby Vision is really bright a lot more light than has ever been used before. But as long as you can get at least 1.5 times as far from the screen as it is wide you should be fine.
Again it is personal taste I can sit in the front row at the Dome for HTWWW now that is a little overwhelming.
The brightness on a video monitor or a TV can be adjusted If you get a video projector and a good sound system you can adjust the picture size as well as the brightness. 7.1 and 5.1 sound systems are common. I have a 7.1 sound system sitting in storage that I am wondering what to do with. I have a computer with a 7.1 sound card. That same computer has multiple video outputs so I can have a combination of monitors and projectors.
There will be theaters private and public. The Director’s Guild and The Academy just spent a lot of money upgrading and in new construction. The Legion on Highland in Hollywood is running film and digital and this is a new install. The Egyptian is getting a redo. So these sites and others are going to be around for a while just for the true movie buffs.
Meanwhile all the real money, the general public, have purchased big screen televisions or set up their own home theater and are happy with that. There is no shortage of product for a home theater. I’m sure the Pirates love day and date release.
Historic monument? You are referring to landmark status the Chinese has that inside and out yes they can do only part of the building. So not sure what the status is of the Dome but I doubt its in danger.
That doesn’t mean they have to run things like 2001 in 70mm or How the West Was Won in 3 strip Cinerama. I can see the Dome being used for special screenings and private rentals.
As for all the box cinemas built in the last two decades they are all in danger. AMC is all but bankrupt others are looking at buying some of their sites. A large percentage of the cinema going audience has been lost. Executives at the studios have been wanting to do day and date release for years not caring that it will damage the theaters. Now they are running to day and date like rats to peanut butter.
Thanks for your response not sure how many people check this site any more as it seems the sun is setting on the movies and the theaters that show them.
I don’t think the Dome is in danger of being torn down anytime soon but the site is used less and less as time goes on. Before the pandemic and the lock-downs the Dome was closed more than it was open for business.
But cinema fans should check out the people at the Legion in Hollywood. The Legion Theater is state of the art. They turned the parking lot into a drive-in theater; the first drive-in in Hollywood.
Filmmakers tweak their films that’s what they do and many times they tweak using audience reactions in the case of IAMMMMW that was done during the roadshow. Now its done with a test audience.
After watching this monster time and time again I can see the desire to trim it as it runs a bit long even now. But for the sake of history I am all for preservation so I am glad to have what we there is.
I was at the 25th anniversary showing of MMMMW premier night back years ago and the only print available was a 35mm optical that was borrowed from one on the archives. It wasn’t in the best of shape but it was better than the print they ran for the public for the week following that premier night. For the public in the Cinerama Dome they ran a mono optical TV print. Yes a pan and scan print of a Ultra-Panavision film.
During intermission someone asked me if it was worth saving the negatives and original elements from these old films. My reply was for the sake of history save as much as possible in it original form.
There are Ultra-Panavision 70mm prints of MMMMW in circulation and they run it at the Dome every once and a while.
I bought a Kubrick fan I knew a ticket for the new restoration of 2001 when it played in 70mm at the Dome. I bought seat row BB center so he sat in the Cinerama Zone and was just blown away.
Many people who saw the original roadshow of MMMMW remember it fondly because it was an event. Hard ticket and only at a Cinerama theater. Of course eventually it ran in neighborhood theaters but many people went to see the roadshow presentation and they just loved seeing all those celebrities on the Cinerama screen.
That was back when the Chinese had carbon arcs three Norelco’s in the main booth and they could go from 35 to 70 mm on a changeover and it was impressive. To go from a small 1:85 picture for the trailers in mono to a full Todd-AO picture with six channels of a great six channel mix an experience that only comes once in a while
On second look thats the lower projection room but those are Century projectors. Those lamps look like the ones that were on the DP70’s they are the same exact lamps
Its so funny someone posted a picture of what may have been the old booth. Captioned: Another look at the projection booth at the Astor here in 1959 with 70mm Norelco projectors with Ashcraft lamps. The picture shows two 35mm Century projectors with magnetic sound for CinemaScope. The DP70’s were installed in 1960 and located in a new projection room.
The film print looks great especially if you sit in the Cinerama zone I didn’t get to go see this showing a lot of my friends did. I saw a previous showing of the film version and knew there a lot of people out there who wanted to see it.
How the West Was Won in three projector Cinerama nearly sold out could it be the combination advertising and running the original film version? The digital shows of Cinerama films don’t sell nearly as well same publicity. 2001 the film version 70mm nearly sold out.
Ask jsittig70mm he should know the history. The curve of the screen at the dome is extreme. In the past there were problems with light spill side to side.
It’s just an experience seeing a Cinerama print off the original negative. The difference between the Cinerama footage and the Ultra-Panavision scenes is something to look for.
The Dome was built to run 3 projector Cinerama or the Ultra Panavision version. The three projectors were never installed but the portholes and projector stations were installed. They could have installed the projectors and run three strip. The original screen was a Cinerama screen made up of hanging strips. There has been many modifications over the years.
They the powers that be are trying hard to push digital. Digital is the new new thing and it does keep getting better. It’s nice to see a film presentation especially if it’s good. Turner film festival ran a print of sound of music at the Legion theater on highland. This was a 70 mm print off the original negative on Kodak vision three stock. It was incredible.
The Legion Theater on North Highland is testing its newly renovated theater equipped with two DP70 film projectors. The 70mm is stunning picture and sound.
The Chinese sound system is not the best. The Chinese is a huge space and hard to fill and there are problems with the acoustics. The El Capitan has a much better sound system and is one of the best if not the best in California. The newly renovated Theater at American Legion Post 43 in Hollywood has better sound than the Chinese.
to bigjoe59; screen size, and flat or curved is mostly personal preference as is picture luminance. There are standards of course but that doesn’t mean one pays close attention to the standard. As for picture size it is how far away you are from the screen. An 80" screen isn’t too overwhelming if your twelve to twenty feet away. Back when I had a film screening room in my basement the screen was a lot bigger than 80" and brighter that 18FL. I’m not sure what would cause eye fatigue or vision problems. Dolby Vision is really bright a lot more light than has ever been used before. But as long as you can get at least 1.5 times as far from the screen as it is wide you should be fine.
Again it is personal taste I can sit in the front row at the Dome for HTWWW now that is a little overwhelming.
The brightness on a video monitor or a TV can be adjusted If you get a video projector and a good sound system you can adjust the picture size as well as the brightness. 7.1 and 5.1 sound systems are common. I have a 7.1 sound system sitting in storage that I am wondering what to do with. I have a computer with a 7.1 sound card. That same computer has multiple video outputs so I can have a combination of monitors and projectors.
to bigjoe59; screen size, and flat or curved is mostly personal preference as is picture luminance. There are standards of course but that doesn’t mean one pays close attention to the standard. As for picture size it is how far away you are from the screen. An 80" screen isn’t too overwhelming if your twelve to twenty feet away. Back when I had a film screening room in my basement the screen was a lot bigger than 80" and brighter that 18FL. I’m not sure what would cause eye fatigue or vision problems. Dolby Vision is really bright a lot more light than has ever been used before. But as long as you can get at least 1.5 times as far from the screen as it is wide you should be fine.
Again it is personal taste I can sit in the front row at the Dome for HTWWW now that is a little overwhelming.
The brightness on a video monitor or a TV can be adjusted If you get a video projector and a good sound system you can adjust the picture size as well as the brightness. 7.1 and 5.1 sound systems are common. I have a 7.1 sound system sitting in storage that I am wondering what to do with. I have a computer with a 7.1 sound card. That same computer has multiple video outputs so I can have a combination of monitors and projectors.
There will be theaters private and public. The Director’s Guild and The Academy just spent a lot of money upgrading and in new construction. The Legion on Highland in Hollywood is running film and digital and this is a new install. The Egyptian is getting a redo. So these sites and others are going to be around for a while just for the true movie buffs.
Meanwhile all the real money, the general public, have purchased big screen televisions or set up their own home theater and are happy with that. There is no shortage of product for a home theater. I’m sure the Pirates love day and date release.
Historic monument? You are referring to landmark status the Chinese has that inside and out yes they can do only part of the building. So not sure what the status is of the Dome but I doubt its in danger.
That doesn’t mean they have to run things like 2001 in 70mm or How the West Was Won in 3 strip Cinerama. I can see the Dome being used for special screenings and private rentals.
As for all the box cinemas built in the last two decades they are all in danger. AMC is all but bankrupt others are looking at buying some of their sites. A large percentage of the cinema going audience has been lost. Executives at the studios have been wanting to do day and date release for years not caring that it will damage the theaters. Now they are running to day and date like rats to peanut butter.
Thanks for your response not sure how many people check this site any more as it seems the sun is setting on the movies and the theaters that show them.
I don’t think the Dome is in danger of being torn down anytime soon but the site is used less and less as time goes on. Before the pandemic and the lock-downs the Dome was closed more than it was open for business.
But cinema fans should check out the people at the Legion in Hollywood. The Legion Theater is state of the art. They turned the parking lot into a drive-in theater; the first drive-in in Hollywood.
to bigjoe59
Filmmakers tweak their films that’s what they do and many times they tweak using audience reactions in the case of IAMMMMW that was done during the roadshow. Now its done with a test audience.
After watching this monster time and time again I can see the desire to trim it as it runs a bit long even now. But for the sake of history I am all for preservation so I am glad to have what we there is.
I was at the 25th anniversary showing of MMMMW premier night back years ago and the only print available was a 35mm optical that was borrowed from one on the archives. It wasn’t in the best of shape but it was better than the print they ran for the public for the week following that premier night. For the public in the Cinerama Dome they ran a mono optical TV print. Yes a pan and scan print of a Ultra-Panavision film.
During intermission someone asked me if it was worth saving the negatives and original elements from these old films. My reply was for the sake of history save as much as possible in it original form.
There are Ultra-Panavision 70mm prints of MMMMW in circulation and they run it at the Dome every once and a while.
I bought a Kubrick fan I knew a ticket for the new restoration of 2001 when it played in 70mm at the Dome. I bought seat row BB center so he sat in the Cinerama Zone and was just blown away.
Many people who saw the original roadshow of MMMMW remember it fondly because it was an event. Hard ticket and only at a Cinerama theater. Of course eventually it ran in neighborhood theaters but many people went to see the roadshow presentation and they just loved seeing all those celebrities on the Cinerama screen.
Great story
That was back when the Chinese had carbon arcs three Norelco’s in the main booth and they could go from 35 to 70 mm on a changeover and it was impressive. To go from a small 1:85 picture for the trailers in mono to a full Todd-AO picture with six channels of a great six channel mix an experience that only comes once in a while
The first film in Todd-AO run on the newly installed DP-70’s
On second look thats the lower projection room but those are Century projectors. Those lamps look like the ones that were on the DP70’s they are the same exact lamps
Its so funny someone posted a picture of what may have been the old booth. Captioned: Another look at the projection booth at the Astor here in 1959 with 70mm Norelco projectors with Ashcraft lamps. The picture shows two 35mm Century projectors with magnetic sound for CinemaScope. The DP70’s were installed in 1960 and located in a new projection room.
The film print looks great especially if you sit in the Cinerama zone I didn’t get to go see this showing a lot of my friends did. I saw a previous showing of the film version and knew there a lot of people out there who wanted to see it.
It was packed almost sold out.
How the West Was Won in three projector Cinerama nearly sold out could it be the combination advertising and running the original film version? The digital shows of Cinerama films don’t sell nearly as well same publicity. 2001 the film version 70mm nearly sold out.
Ask jsittig70mm he should know the history. The curve of the screen at the dome is extreme. In the past there were problems with light spill side to side.
It’s just an experience seeing a Cinerama print off the original negative. The difference between the Cinerama footage and the Ultra-Panavision scenes is something to look for.
The Dome was built to run 3 projector Cinerama or the Ultra Panavision version. The three projectors were never installed but the portholes and projector stations were installed. They could have installed the projectors and run three strip. The original screen was a Cinerama screen made up of hanging strips. There has been many modifications over the years.
They the powers that be are trying hard to push digital. Digital is the new new thing and it does keep getting better. It’s nice to see a film presentation especially if it’s good. Turner film festival ran a print of sound of music at the Legion theater on highland. This was a 70 mm print off the original negative on Kodak vision three stock. It was incredible.
That’s what I’m led to believe. I have campaigned for the film version I know they have a print. And it’s listed as film
Tickets are selling fast all the good seats are going fast. It great they finally listened and are running it it the original three projector format.
i hope they run it in 3 strip
The Legion Theater on North Highland is testing its newly renovated theater equipped with two DP70 film projectors. The 70mm is stunning picture and sound.
The Chinese sound system is not the best. The Chinese is a huge space and hard to fill and there are problems with the acoustics. The El Capitan has a much better sound system and is one of the best if not the best in California. The newly renovated Theater at American Legion Post 43 in Hollywood has better sound than the Chinese.
Good list. There was a lot of mag back in the day.
There were, and may still be, single strip 35mm IB tec prints of The Brothers Grimm.
I look forward to seeing the three strip next year when they get their s*it together
Thank you