AMC Loews Meadow 6

I’m aware of that website Justin. I often write to the editors. But there needs to be something like it to reach young people who don’t know about 70MM. If there’s a way we widescreen fans can get teen-based sites to link in70mm.com, then that would be a good start.

Here’s another site that teens need to see
http://www.superdimension70.com/history/

PS: Notable 70MM engagements at the Meadow include “Temple of Doom”, “2010”, “Stakeout”, and “Last Crusade”.

CinemarkFan, it’s called http://www.in70mm.com/ BTW, not only did the Loews in Secaucus back in its heyday before AMC took over showed stuff in 70mm, but in all three surround sound formats, including 8-channel SDDS, which is very similiar to the 70mm surround sound mixes of the past.

Top down masking, arrrggghh! I only go to places like that because it’s closer to where I live, but I’m slowly getting away from that. Now I could accept the new Kerasotes if they built it like the Showplace in Niles, Il (love that theater, and it has side-masking), but this is turning out to be just another shoebox that’s too often today. And while I never went to the Meadow, I can agree with people’s comments regarding the possible closure. Here in Chicago, theaters with super large auditoriums are becoming scarce. And I must change that.

Movie534, soon, I want to start some kind of myspace page or fansite that explains 70MM to the teenage audience of today. And I want the page to include a plea to filmmakers to shoot with a camera like the Arri 765 or the Super Dimension 70. If you know anyone who might do know how to do this, then let’s get 70MM off the ground again!

BTW, the new showplace 14 will have DLP in all of its screens for alternative content similar to NCM Fathom. CinemarkFan, just write an email to Kerasotes about expanding the theater!!! Maybe even put an IMAX screen in, although the big three chains are trying their best to do that.

I can’t believe both of these theaters are still open!!! That is until fall 2009, when Kerasotes' unleashes Showplace, a 14-screen behemoth with stadium seating and hopefully digital projection and sound. But nothing could replicate the original Meadow Six.

It looks like another one of the last “classic style” theaters is on its way out, along with its sister theater, the 8-plex. Let me just say that I despise AMC for what they’ve done with the classic theaters they aquired under the merger with Loews. Instead of keeping money makers, like the 10plex in Paramus which was still going strong, they decided to close that and open a new factory style theater at Garden State Plaza. Now it looks like these two gems will be closed as well to make way for another factory style theater with narrow screens and stadium seating. I know I’m not alone in preferring the style of these older theaters, with their wide screens and normal seating arrangement, but the younger crowd seem to be all the theater chains are going for these days and they love anything “new”. I’ve never heard one of them complain that they’re watching movies like “The Dark Knight” on the narrow screens at the AMC at Garden State Plaza, when they could have been watching them on a true wide screen at the Tenplex, or the 6-plex/8-plex for that matter. I’ll never understand why the crowds migrated from these theaters in Secaucus to that horrorible factory style theater in Clifton. Maybe I’m just getting too old because I still appreciate the classics, even with their flaws, over the newest fad. Thank God the Ziegfeld in NYC isn’t going anywhere, because after these theaters go, and I still hope that doesn’t happen, that’s going to be one of the last “classic style” theaters in the whole area. I only say that because I’m guessing the former Loews in Wayne will eventually be converted into a factory style theater in the near future as well. :(

Soon all 14 screens will be in one facility when Kerasotes brings their racist brand of movie going to the Meadows. Both AMC Loews sites are due to close at the end of the summer with Kerasotes Show Place 14 arriving for Summer 2009. It seems as if every regional, out of market chain aside from Pacific and Harkins have operated in the area with Columbia Park changing hands between Starplex, Cinemark, Interstate, Regal/UA, and now Phoenix. And of coarse we’ll have Muvico soon in the mix at in already over screened area, where neither AMCs or Columbia Park are charging full price for first run features. My guess is Kerasotes' notoriously wacky, racist and anti-teen policies, not to mention full price tickets, won’t put a dent in Columbia Park’s box office, and Muvico at Xanadu will be successful on its own groundbreaking terms.

FYI, the first Indiana Jones movie played at this theater’s predecessor, the Harmon Quad. It was re-issued at the sixplex, and then the next two movies came out at the same theater. No word yet if the new one will be playing at this one or the plaza 8, which when opened lacked 70mm but showed mostly family fare.

too bad blade runner is not playing at this theater. is it weird that this place is showing more of what the plaza 8 shows? and are all 6 screens dolby digital rather than sdds?

Both AMC Theatres in Secaucus need to replace ALL 35mm projectors and have much brighter lamps to project the picture on screen. But still have capabilities of 70mm as well. New sound systems (as in new speakers are needed). Also have all auditoriums THX Certified with the ability to read Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, SDDS, and DTS. NEW screens themselves would really help in all auditoriums too. And last but not least they do need to get at least one Digital Projector at each location. (Two per location would be better but one at each would be great).

I know that’s a VERY EXPENSIVE TALL ORDER. But I have noticed that when going to newer theatres, the picture is much brighter and way sharper and the sound is also better. If both AMC 6 & 8 in Secaucus want to be highly successful they really need to upgrade to new equipment listed above. Or they will close down to these new Multiplexes with just that kind of equipment that is listed above. Plus the fact these new theatres have stadium seating.

Regal’s venture in to North Bergen is flat out one of the stupidest movies in the history of cinema exhibition, I’m guessing they thought that Secacus and North Bergen would be considered two diffrent booking terratories, I remember when Bergen Plaza (now Cineplaza) opened, it was showing Titanic on two screens, after it had finished its run in Secacus, it has found its place though successfully showing Indian movies, whereas their other complex (opened just as Bergen Plaza switched its pricing to 3.50) Columbia Park is in a successful mall that is in a low income (3% sales tax urban enterprize zone) which eventually found success when Innerstate Theaters took it over and charged $2.00 for movies that were just comming out on DVD.

Both complexes have stadium seating but had this misfutune of not being able to run product on the same day as Loews. For a while Fox opened their movies in North Bergen (There’s Something About Mary played on 3 screens at Bergen Plaza presumably because it was the only movie making any money there, I doubt demand was that strong). Regal also played art films too, bassicly showing anything they could.

These theaters went discount I’m guessing because it needed to keep up with Ridgefield Park (a Loews house that also showed first run pictures for a lower price) and Clifton Commons and Edgewater which were successful (as they were in good locations) and had stadium seating.

From Loew’s 1982 annual report:

“During 1982 the [Theatres] Division added seventeen new screens in three ultra-modem complexes. Our new theatres, featuring spacious lobbies with giant refreshment centers, and large, wide auditoriums with wall-to-wall screens, which our research indicates the public prefers, have met with great acceptance.

“In the fast-growing Houston suburbs, a five- screen complex was opened in the exclusive Southpoint Center. A six-screen free-standing building was constructed opposite New Jersey’s mammoth shopping center, Willowbrook Mall, and another six-screen theatre is the focal point of the Harmon Meadow complex of shops, hotel, restaurants and office buildings located within sight of the New Jersey Meadowlands sports complex.”