fumanstan

My experience going to the Sacramento dome was seeing a used condom on the floor a couple years ago.

Navinabob

That's super sad. I can't even count how many movies I've seen there. The first movie I remember ever seeing was Return of the Jedi.

Kal-El

I saw my first movie when I migrated to the states there. Saw Episode II at midnight there as well. I always thought they just needed a little refurbishment because the carpet has started to smell over time. I was kinda looking forward to the tent city that I assume would have gone up there next year for Episode VII.

RoboDad

Very sad. I grew up in the Bay Area, and saw many films at the Century theater in Pleasant Hill before that one went away. I saw everything there from 2001 to The Godfather to The Road Warrior to E.T.

And of course Star Wars and Raiders

Good memories.

shizawn

Never been to that one in Sunnyvale as I assume it closed down awhile ago. I grew up on the Peninsula, so when the Laurel Theater in San Carlos closed, that one really bummed me out. The earliest moviegoing experience I can remember was seeing Empire Strikes Back in that theater.

Alan Smithee

People were VERY mad about the Pleasant Hill dome being torn down, so it's sad that this is happening to the main ones less than a year later. There's a city council meeting tonight at 7:00 in San Jose where this will be addressed, I hope to watch it online. I'm really ready to just swear off theaters at this point, as so many new ones are small and overpriced, not to mention the digital standard is a joke (scope movies are letterboxed, and they're zoomed on screens that actually have proper side-masking. The frame should have either been native 2.35 or used an anamorphic lens like film has.)

Alan Smithee

Watched tonight's San Jose city council meeting online, lots of people arguing for preserving the theaters. Final outcome wasn't too clear as I don't get all the legalese, but it looks like at least the original dome will end up being considered an "Historic Landmark" by the state.

asianxcore

Thanks for keeping all of us updated! Glad to see at least the original dome is being saved!

Alan Smithee

Made a day trip over to see my last movie (Divergent) at the 22. They're still running 35mm, picture was very dark but still got goosebumps from a few shots on that huge screen. Cried a bit in the middle thinking about this theater not being there anymore. Going back on Sunday for Raiders of the Lost Ark at the 21, friend talked me into going. At least that one stands a bit of a chance of being saved, but still disgusted that these are closing while tiny shoebox theaters continue to open. Will have a few pictures tomorrow, gonna cry myself to sleep right now.

Alan Smithee

Outside the theater. "Divergent" was playing in the largest dome. Could have snuck into the 2 smaller ones after, but since those movies were in 3D and being shown here on film in 2D, I didn't want to see them that way. Pretty sure the smaller dome on the left is where I saw Pete's Dragon. The roofs are pretty plain, they originally had 'starburst' designs which were much cooler looking, plus lights along them that lit up at night.

Alan Smithee

Inside the big dome looking at the ceiling. When I was a kid, I used to be afraid of losing gravity and floating to the top, then falling back down. Theater was very poorly lit yesterday so I couldn't get more pictures that did it justice. (The lighting used to light up the green part of the ceiling very brightly.) Theater has 960 seats. A single dome is next to this 3-screen complex, and another one is across the street that was sadly split into 2 theaters with a wall down the middle so I didn't care about that one- the two in Sacramento are like that also. There were 2 more big domes in San Jose a few blocks from these but both were split in the 70s and were torn down this year. It must have been nice to have had FIVE of these big theaters at one time.

Navinabob

Sure...this you get pics of...

Alan Smithee

"Theatres Closing" message added to the marquee


In happier times:

chente

Bummer. I saw lots of movies there during the early 80s when my family lived in San Jose. ET, Road Warrior, Wargames.

Alan Smithee

Good news is that tomorrow night's showing of Raiders of the Lost Ark has already sold out all 950 or so seats! That's gotta count for something among those who are deciding whether these theaters stay or go. Showing will only be on 35mm however as I've been told all the 70mm prints (which the theaters can still play) have faded.

Alan Smithee

Pre-movie speech from the "Retro Dome" group who has been leasing the theater on weekends for showing older movies (sorry for the crappy camerawork, and kind of gets boring a few minutes in- posted this mainly for the explanation of the trouble these theaters are in) :
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jg6nG9a2Eg4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Going in, they showed a few old pictures of the theater on the screen along with quotes about the theaters that people had entered on one of the websites to help save it- this one was my quote!


Got to see the projection booths for all the theaters afterwards too. I'd always wondered what they looked like. Heard the Sacramento domes may not have much time left now either, which I don't care so much about as long as they're still split in half. I'm REALLY bummed about losing these though. The new leaseholders are real douches who seem set on not having theaters there anymore, even if that's what everyone else in the world wants. These could be Northern CA's equivalent to the Arclight in the right hands, but they just want to tear them down for more generic office buildings.

Alan Smithee

Mark Honbo

Seems to be a clear case of failure of imagination on the part of developers and the city of San Jose.

The Cinerama Dome in LA was derelict and decaying, and instead of tearing it down, the Arclight restored it, and also built an entire multiplex alongside it. Now, it is the centerpiece of a sought-after movie destination. The Cinerama became relevant again!

No reason why the same couldn't be done for the Century 21--other than stupidity.

davidh777

Alan Smithee

Heard the screens have been ripped in order to remove the speakers, seats have been taken to another theater, a lot of functional equipment has ended up in dumpsters (since hey, film is dead now!) At least there aren't any definite demolition plans yet, so there's still some hope. Sign the petition if you haven't already! http://www.change.org/petitions/save...nchester-domes

"Tom Ofyourlife" posted this on Facebook- read or sing it to the tune of Elton John's "Candle in the Wind":

Goodbye movie domes,
Though I never came to see a film
You had the grace to hold yourself
While those around you twinned.
They carved up all your cousins,
And they bulldozed your brothers,
They built new screens by the dozens
And made shoeboxes of others.

And it seems to me you lived your life
Like a xenon in the wind.
Never fading with the credits,
As home video set in.
And I would've liked to have seen 70 Millimeter,
But I was just a kid.
Your lamp house burned out long before
Your legend ever did.

Goodbye movie domes,
From the young man in the balcony
Who sees you as something more than a movie house,
More than just our Century.

Alan Smithee

Theaters are still standing, and I'll be at tonight's San Jose City Council meeting where they'll decide whether to at least declare the Century 21 a historical building. I'll be speaking in favor of saving both the 21 and 22- it'll be such an incredible loss if these theaters are demolished, and nothing built in their place could ever compare to them.

Its a 2-hour + drive for me, so anyone closer should definitely go tonight.

mrhan

Thanks again for keeping up with what's going on with the theatres. Please keep us updated.

Alan Smithee

Good news- the oldest theater has been granted historical status! There's still a long ways to go- the property owners are being real dicks about not wanting to run it as a theater even if they can't tear it down, and this doesn't protect the 22 complex, but this was better than what many expected.

http://www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-...entury-21-dome

Alan Smithee

Video will be up later at: http://www.sanjoseca.gov/index.aspx?NID=191

mrhan

From the article:

"I don't see the building as very old and I don't see it as very historic," said Mayor Chuck Reed.

What an ass. Glad he will be out of office soon.