I heard that the projection booth was attached to the rear of the building and that the fire company rescued the projectionists by ladder. When I was in the union there were still guys who were around in those days.
I saw “The Dirty Dozen” there in 1967 when on R&R from Vietnam. Projected in 70mm the image was super big. Interestingly, the film was subtitled but when the Germans were speaking the subtitles were in Japanize. As a projectionist later in the US I was surprised that 70mm prints did not happen there.
The projection booth had periscopes that raised the beam over the heads of people in the balcony. They did not have 70mm capability as questioned in an earlier post.
While not the same theater, Theater #1 was located on the main Post. It seated about 1000 and had a full stage. Theatre # 1 was demolished as I suspect was also the 1930s thearer.
Saw “Letters From Home” on May 27, 2018. Uploaded several new photos of the theater and booth.
Rick
commented about
Cinema 7on
Feb 27, 2018 at 4:54 am
I worked here in the early 1970s as part of a swing job including the Rosslyn Plaza and Crystal City. My girlfriend (now wife) would bring my dinner to the booth and then stay to watch the movie. We lived at Southern Towers at the time.
My first projection booth experience in 1958. I visited the booth and asked the operator what kind of machines the projectors were. He replied “its all Simplex”, to which I answered it look complex to me. I had been told that one wall of the booth had window so patrons could look in. The operator said that had been many years before.
The original projection booth was so tight that the dimmer handles protruded almost to the back of the #1 lamphouse, causing the operator to have to turn sideways when passing by.
The firs film I remember seeing at the Warner was “Seven Wonders of the World” in 3-strip Cinerama. Later “Ben Hur”, “El Cid” and “Dr. Zhivago” during their roadshow engagements.
In the late 1960s while working as a projectionist I learned the booth at the Warner (among others). It was equipped with Norelco DP70 machines and Ashcraft lamps. “Pop” Shannon was still the projectionist and at 90 years old and was hefting those huge reels like a 30 year old. He had some great stories going back to the days when it was the Earle. He said projectionists actually got a raise during the depression.
I also worked many of the downtown theaters before they all but disappeared. Greatly missed!
I used to go to the Kennedy when I was a kid. I remember Tony Rinaldi working the candy stand when they were short handed. Didn’t Tony have a brother who was also a manager?
I was a projectionist at the Baronet in the early 1970s while the regular operator, Fred Kelley, was recovering from health issues. I ran the matinees of Wizard of Oz mentioned above and remember the overflow crowds. The booth had Simplex XL projectors with Peerless Magnarc lamps running 7mm positive and 6mm negative trim. It also had Motiograph magnetic penthouses that were no longer functional. The house lights were controlled by a bank of radial dimmers mounted near the ceiling. I have some pictures somewhere that I’ll try and post. Overall I really enjoyed my time there. That staff was really friendly and occasionally we’d all party together. A regular occurrence was pizza at the Zebra Room down at Wisconsin & Macomb Streets in DC.
I heard that the projection booth was attached to the rear of the building and that the fire company rescued the projectionists by ladder. When I was in the union there were still guys who were around in those days.
There are booth pictures on film-tech.com in the warehouse – pictures.
I saw “The Dirty Dozen” there in 1967 when on R&R from Vietnam. Projected in 70mm the image was super big. Interestingly, the film was subtitled but when the Germans were speaking the subtitles were in Japanize. As a projectionist later in the US I was surprised that 70mm prints did not happen there.
The photo is in the projection booth and the person in the middle is showing a reflector for the arc lamp.
The projection booth had periscopes that raised the beam over the heads of people in the balcony. They did not have 70mm capability as questioned in an earlier post.
Nice booth, but the photo is reversed.
While not the same theater, Theater #1 was located on the main Post. It seated about 1000 and had a full stage. Theatre # 1 was demolished as I suspect was also the 1930s thearer.
Saw “Letters From Home” on May 27, 2018. Uploaded several new photos of the theater and booth.
I worked here in the early 1970s as part of a swing job including the Rosslyn Plaza and Crystal City. My girlfriend (now wife) would bring my dinner to the booth and then stay to watch the movie. We lived at Southern Towers at the time.
My first projection booth experience in 1958. I visited the booth and asked the operator what kind of machines the projectors were. He replied “its all Simplex”, to which I answered it look complex to me. I had been told that one wall of the booth had window so patrons could look in. The operator said that had been many years before.
The original projection booth was so tight that the dimmer handles protruded almost to the back of the #1 lamphouse, causing the operator to have to turn sideways when passing by.
The firs film I remember seeing at the Warner was “Seven Wonders of the World” in 3-strip Cinerama. Later “Ben Hur”, “El Cid” and “Dr. Zhivago” during their roadshow engagements.
In the late 1960s while working as a projectionist I learned the booth at the Warner (among others). It was equipped with Norelco DP70 machines and Ashcraft lamps. “Pop” Shannon was still the projectionist and at 90 years old and was hefting those huge reels like a 30 year old. He had some great stories going back to the days when it was the Earle. He said projectionists actually got a raise during the depression.
I also worked many of the downtown theaters before they all but disappeared. Greatly missed!
I used to go to the Kennedy when I was a kid. I remember Tony Rinaldi working the candy stand when they were short handed. Didn’t Tony have a brother who was also a manager?
I was a projectionist at the Baronet in the early 1970s while the regular operator, Fred Kelley, was recovering from health issues. I ran the matinees of Wizard of Oz mentioned above and remember the overflow crowds. The booth had Simplex XL projectors with Peerless Magnarc lamps running 7mm positive and 6mm negative trim. It also had Motiograph magnetic penthouses that were no longer functional. The house lights were controlled by a bank of radial dimmers mounted near the ceiling. I have some pictures somewhere that I’ll try and post. Overall I really enjoyed my time there. That staff was really friendly and occasionally we’d all party together. A regular occurrence was pizza at the Zebra Room down at Wisconsin & Macomb Streets in DC.