Comments from scottfavareille

Showing 126 - 150 of 387 comments

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Pussycat Guild Theatre on Oct 24, 2005 at 7:14 am

Some of the entrance area can be seen in the 1964 film “The Erotic Mr Rose” (along with the Centre next door).

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Centre Theatre on Oct 24, 2005 at 7:12 am

One more comment, the marquee was V-shaped, not a flat marquee. I am guessing the marquee was changed between 1964 & 1968 (when the Centre played Love Camp 7).

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Centre Theatre on Oct 24, 2005 at 7:11 am

The marquee and the entrance area to the theater (and also the entrance area to the Guild next door) are seen in the 1964 film “The Erotic Mr Rose”. The marquee shows the theater playing “Nude Las Vegas” & “The Christine Keeler Story”, the coming attactions has “Nudes on Credit” (ironically directed by the same director). The ticket booth is seen & a “No one under 18 years admitted” sign is under the booth.

In that same film, the main character has anewspaper ad from the SF Chronicle, the Centre is advertised as showing “BO-O-I-N-G” (a nudie-cutie fron that era).

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Cinema on Oct 22, 2005 at 9:06 am

The Peppertree Plaza theater in the north end of Santa Maria would occasionally show X-rated product in the 1970’s as well.

X-rated fare in this part of California has had significant opposition from law enforcement &/or religious groups in the past. In the early 1980’s, Pussycat bought a building (whose previous use was as a meeting hall) right outside the city limits of San Luis Obispo. After a month of showing foreign language films, they turned it to a porn house. Within a week, it got raided by the sheriff. It reopened again shortly thereafter trying to show porn only to be raided again & shut for good by the sheriff. The second time it was open about 3 days.

Around 1982, the Central Coast Theater in Pismo Beach tried showing XXX films at midnight shows. A local pastor organized a group and picketed the theater for about 2 months, and the theater decided not to show those films anymore. That same pastor then targeted stores that sold “pornographic” magazines and got many stores in the area to not sell Playboy, Penthouse, etc.

Today, there is one strip club in Santa Maria called Spearmint Rhinos.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Warfield Theatre on Oct 17, 2005 at 12:31 pm

There is a lawsuit now between the building owner & Clear Channel (tenant, who uses the theater under the Bill Graham Presents moniker). Clear Channel sold the naming rights (without the landlord’s permission) to SF Weekly & it is now advertised as the SF Weekly Warfield.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Sutter Cinema on Oct 17, 2005 at 12:27 pm

It started showing live sex shows as it was losing audience share to the Mitchell Brothers (who themselves later went the “live sex” route) and to a lesser extent DeRenzy (Screening Room, Kearney Cinema, and North Beach Movie, all showing harder edged fare) and Pussycat. It was known that Pickett & Elsters film tastes tended more towards XXX fare that seemed tamer than the competition.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Strand American Conservatory Theater (ACT) on Oct 17, 2005 at 12:23 pm

Marquee still up, building is boarded up. Side of building advertises Market St Cinema & LA Gals. Building is also red colored now (it was that color in its last few years of business).

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Centre Theatre on Oct 17, 2005 at 12:19 pm

No marquee there now. It is a retail store.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about St. Francis Theatre & Baronet Theatre on Oct 17, 2005 at 12:17 pm

Marquee still up (even advertises “Bargain Matinee to 2 PM”), but else it’s boarded up.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Metro Theatre on Oct 12, 2005 at 11:10 am

Apparently, this theater is on the market now & may not be open much longer. I read this on the DVDManiacs forum.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Art 1 & 2 Theatres on Sep 21, 2005 at 9:22 am

This was never operated by Pussycat. Pussycat operated the Guild on Market Street (about a block away) during the time this played XXX films). The Guild became a Pussycat in 1972, and changed its name to Pussycat Guild before just calling itself Pussycat in 1973. The Art 1 & 2 I first started seeing ads for was around 1972.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Rialto Cinemas Cerrito on Sep 19, 2005 at 11:10 am

There is a hearing at the El Cerrito City Council tonight with an update about the project (Contractor bids and will the city continue to help with the restoration.)

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Festival Cinemas on Sep 19, 2005 at 11:08 am

Just got back from vacation—It has been demolished.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Orinda Theatre on Sep 19, 2005 at 11:07 am

According to today’s San Francisco Chronicle, in an article about the closing of the Park Theater in Lafayette (also operated by Renaissance Rialto), it mentions that Rialto may give up on the Orinda when its lease is up a year from now. Not good news. (The Park Theater listing on Cinema Treasures has a link to the article.)

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Park Theatre on Sep 19, 2005 at 11:04 am

According to that article, it was bought by a “real estate investor”—Doesn’t sound good to me.

In that same article, it mentions that Renaissance Rialto may give up on the Orinda theater when its lease is up in a year. This is even more disturbing news.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about McClendon Triple Drive-In on Sep 19, 2005 at 10:49 am

The owner, Gordon McClendon, owned a number of drive-ins in Texas. He also made several low budget horror films in the late 1950’s, most notably The Giant Gila Monster and The Killer Shrews. McClendon now is a Burger King franchisee.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Lafayette's Park Theatre Closing on Sep 19, 2005 at 10:30 am

The Orinda Theater may be in danger according to today’s San Francisco Chronicle. Renaissance Rialto’s lease on it is up in a year and they are looking to get out when it is up. That would be an even bigger loss since it is an art deco masterpiece.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Green Parrot Theatre on Aug 30, 2005 at 6:27 am

From what I understand, it showed a lot of sci-fi triple bills in the 1960’s prior to its porn house incarnation.

Michael Copner (publisher of Cult Movies magazine) once was a projectionist here during the 1970’s.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Neptune Theatre on Aug 30, 2005 at 6:25 am

In the 1970’s, Harold Greenland operated this as one of his 3 XXX theaters in the Seattle area (along with the Garden and the Green Parrot). The Neptune had both XXX films and “live sex shows”.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Cinema 150 on Aug 26, 2005 at 6:28 am

At the end, the Regency operated as a short-lived revival house under independent operation. Lasted less than a year.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about UC Theatre Taube Family Music Hall on Aug 26, 2005 at 6:25 am

2 items not mentioned here:

  1. Prior to Gary Meyer taking over in 1976, when it became a revival house, Mann Theaters operated this as a first-run house (and the Fox theater chain prior to that)

  2. According to the 8/25/05 San Francisco Chronicle, it looks like Kimball’s East (a well known jazz club formerly in Emeryville) will be taking over, and turning it into a 650 seat facility with a restaurant, a bar, and a sidewalk cafe. This will be their new location.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Yale Theatre on Jul 28, 2005 at 12:50 pm

The LA Times stopped taking ads for “X-rated” movies in August 1977. The NY Times started that policy a few months beforehand. Shortly after the LA did this, a number of other newspapers in the US either refused to advertise X-rated films or would just advertise the film titles only(for example: The San Jose Mercury and the Sacramento Bee).

Pussycat Theaters spent over $1 million a year advertising its theaters and what was playing there just in the LA Times alone. (They also took up roughly 50% of the space for “adult theaters”) Without the LA Times, their business dropped by 10%. (The other LA paper at the time, The Herald-Examiner, still advertised adult theaters, but their circulation was about 1/5 of what the Times circulation was.)

Also, the same operator of this theater operated the Cove Theater(also XXX)

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Festival Cinemas on Jul 20, 2005 at 7:06 am

Update: This theater is slated to be torn down in September(after the Hayward Zucchini Festival, which is held at Kennedy Park across the street) and it will be replaced with a Target store.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Ritz Theatre on Jul 12, 2005 at 6:58 am

The Mitchells did change the signage shortly after acquiring the theater.

scottfavareille
scottfavareille commented about Los Angeles Theatre on Jun 24, 2005 at 6:19 am

With regard to the last comment: The photo taken by TC was likely taken in 1970(maybe late 1969). Both the Cleopatra and the Romeo and Juliet film(full title: Sex Lives of Romeo and Juliet) were Harry Novak-produced titles that played first at the Pussycat theater chain(Romeo was a 1969 release and Cleopatra came out in 1970). Some of the more popular films would get released outside of the Pussycat chain and play other theaters and even drive-ins as this time period X-rated fare was doing good business. (Trader Hornee and the later Erotic Adventures of Zorro were the two biggest crossover titles.) Also, it was not unusual for downtown theaters, with their declining attendance, to turn to “adults only” fare for a period of time.