Southlake Festival Cinema 6

The Southlake Festival Shopping Center was a $20 million plaza proposed - denied and leading to a lawsuit - by Trammel Crow in 1984. Once it got back on track after the zoning was straightened out, Dayton Hudson’s Branden’s would be an anchor and a six-screen 1,600 Cineplex Odeon multiplex would be an outparcel feature in this, the multiplex era. The area already had the 1978-built General Cinema Southlake I-II-III) and the Plitt Southlake Plaza 3 which in November 1985 was owned by Cineplex Odeon in their merger. Georgia Theatres Circuit had announced its 8-plex which was designed to expand to a 12-plex if and when needed. There would be no shortage of auditoriums by the time Cineplex Odeon was ready.

The Cineplex Odeon Southlake Plaza 6 was finished a bit behind schedule launching on April 10, 1987 - like its Georgia State Theatres counterpart - with one 70mm house but with four Dolby stereo houses and 2 THX-certified auditoriums. David Mesbur’s six-screen multiplexes were sort of a theatrical “comfort food” - inviting in their design with enough destination-centric amenities for the largest of new releases. Meanwhile, Branden’s would belly-flop and leave the Mall in early 1989.

In June of 1995, Carmike Theatres took over the Georgia portfolio of Cineplex Odeon. This venue became the Carmike Southlake Festival 6. In the 1990s, megaplexes were being built and would decimate 1970’s and 1980’s built multiplexes adjacent to them. And it was just a matter of time until the Morrow Southlake area would change. General Cinema left with its triplex on April 9, 1992. United Artists Theatre Circuit (UATC) took over a number of Georgia Theatres locations in 1996 acquiring the competing Cinemas 8. When the AMC Southlake 24 was announced, Cineplex Odeon’s Southlake 3 - which had already been downgraded to a second-run, discount house on July 22, 1994 - was next to go on September 18, 1997.

The AMC Southlake opened a month later on November 21, 1997. Carmike finally countered on March 6, 1998 dropping its Southlake Festival 6 to deep discount $1 sub-run discount status. The megaplex buildout in this era led many of the most prominent theatre circuits to declare bankruptcy. UATC declared bankruptcy and closed the Southlake Cinemas 8 on July 27, 2000 leaving the Carmike Southlake Festival as the “winner” of the multiplex era Morrow venues - although still getting crushed by the AMC Southlake 24.

Carmike Cinemas filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy two weeks after the Cinemas 8 closure on August 8, 2000. As you may have guessed, this location was among the very first locations designated for closure in that Chapter 11 reorganization. The Carmike Southlake Festival 6 closed on August 24, 2000 with “Boys and Girls,” “Center Stage,” “Frequency,” “Flintstones in VLV,” “Shanghai Noon,” and “Love and Basketball.” The space was repurposed for retail operations.

This theatre is the direct twin of another David K. Mesbur-designed jewelbox, Knoxville’s own Commons Six.

April 17th, 1987 grand opening ad in the photo section.

This theater actually stayed open for while after AMC Southlake 24 opened. It quickly changed to a dollar house but then closed not long after that.

Thanks for the photos Alonzo.

Here a aerial view.

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Here is what Southlake Festival 6 looks like today.
www.flickr.com/photos/jfb57/4784592054/

I was the manager of this location for a good while during the mid to late 90’s. I loved working there and I still look back on the time I spent there as the best experience I have ever had at a job. Not because of the super-cheap Carmike Cinemas that bought the place out after Cineplex Odeon sold, mind you, but because of the people I met there and the fun times we shared. I really miss that old building as well as that time in my life. It really was a very nice location with marble floors, velvet curtains over the screens, etc. It’s too bad that the AMC 24 came along, but it was just a sign of the times.