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Author Topic: Strange Booths Jean-Michel Grin Expert Film Handler Posts: 222 From: Geneva & Lausanne, Switzerland Registered: Jul 2002 posted 10-09-2003 05:23 PM                        One of our booth in Geneva at the Rialto theater (a 7-plex) Is placed on a elevator situed between two audioriums. The wish of the owner was to made a "Pre-show" when we lifted up the booth after the customers took a seat. But we abandoned quickly this trick, because in theses auditorium the shows was not sheduled at the same times. If You're interested, send me an email and I show You somes pics. Bye,  |  IP: Logged Manny Knowles "What are these things and WHY are they BLUE???" Posts: 4247 From: Bloomington, IN, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 10-10-2003 04:31 PM                     The first theatre I ever worked at had the stairway to the booth at the back of the #1 theatre. I never worked there, but the AMC Omni 10 in Miami had quite a few individual booths and I believe some of those were accessed from within the auditoria. Still, I don't recall being disturbed by any projectionists. My memory is that there was a lot of timer action going on. The shows seemed to run themselves. The Omni 10 is closed now. One of the theatres here has four booths for six screens. It makes for a lot of stair-climbing. Strangest booth I have seen is the result of dividing a twin into a 4-plex. Catwalks over the audience take you from the original booth to the new booth (around the halfway mark of the original throw).  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 10-10-2003 04:38 PM                     I owned the Bob White Theatre in Portland, Oregon back in the 60s and you had to go through the men's restroom (which was located at the top of the balcony) to get to the booth. I also worked in a theatre in Sacramento which was in a converted store and the booth was located in the back corner of the building. However, the masking eliminated any noticable keystone.  |  IP: Logged Manny Knowles "What are these things and WHY are they BLUE???" Posts: 4247 From: Bloomington, IN, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 10-10-2003 04:39 PM                     Why wasn't your theatre called "The Bob Allen Theatre" ?  |  IP: Logged Jeff Stricker Master Film Handler Posts: 481 From: Calumet, Mi USA Registered: Nov 1999 posted 10-11-2003 07:00 AM                     The twin Jerry Lewis cinemas that were built here in the '70s had the booth stairs in the Men's rest room. They were never operated by the Jerry Lewis chain - they were sold to an investor prior to opening.  |  IP: Logged German Marin Expert Film Handler Posts: 227 From: Verbania (VB), Italy Registered: Jul 2001 posted 10-14-2003 10:45 PM                     Cinex Broadway, 3 Screen (auditorium 1 is 750 seats, old style) Caracas, Venezuela. It was a single screen early 70's. At end of 80's was added a second screen. The auditorium had a balcony, and the booth runned a changeover. At the begin of the 90's the balcony become a little third auditorium. The booth was transformed at platter system. Look out. Left, Potts AP5 feed the two Westrex; center the projector use a couple of mirrors to send the image up to the screen 3; right the projector for the screen 2. The first mirror sends the light up. The second mirror is almost 3 meters above the first, passing throught an ugly ceiling. I don't know how is this working? If I touch these things I'm afraid it won't work again 'cause it's TOO old. They looks like a home made system.  |  IP: Logged Peter Hall Master Film Handler Posts: 314 From: London, UK Registered: Dec 2000 posted 10-15-2003 05:17 AM                        The Delta (now gone) in Auckland New Zealand had it's booth sliced diagonally by a road widening scheme. To get to projector 1 you had to dive under the lamphouse of projector 2. We've just done an install in the smallest booth we've seen - 1.2m deep x 2.2m wide. Mixed use venue, mainly theatre and arts centre use but bi weekly films. We have installed a Vic 4 with a vertical lamphouse, plus a customised tower (12000' spools) with the motors combined in a rack housing the house dimmers and sound system. The place is roller city but the picture on screen is great and the sound fair (is fed into the theatre's house system) No access to the rear of the V4 at all, so the electrics are housed in a box on the front wall. There's a mirror on the wall behind the V4 to check the oil and oil is filled from the operating side. All works well but is a real pain to run - you cant access any of the dimmers when a film is running, and are likely to lose fingers if adjusting the sound whilst rewinding. All controls are remoted but is still a pain to have to remove the film spools to get to the rack.  |  IP: Logged Warren Smyth Expert Film Handler Posts: 158 From: Auckland ,New Zealand Registered: Aug 2003 posted 10-15-2003 06:41 AM                     The Regent Theatre Taihape had a projection room located above the front veranda which protruded out over the footpath. To get to the booth one went through a door at the back of the upstairs circle, straight along a catwalk on top of the roof, then turned left through a door into the projection room. The catwalk was out in the open air, so you got wet when it rained. Now this was not particularly unusual as many country towns had theatres and halls with this configuration, however, an event makes the design worth mentioning. The rewind bench was located along the rear wall in line with the exterior door. One night, whilst winding, one of the spools came off, and you've guessed it, catapulted along the rear of the booth and out through the door. It continued down to the street below, rolling on it's edge. A boy rescued it and kindly brought the partly full reel of film up to the projection room. The projectionist was very grateful to be in possession of both reels of film. The only problem, the film from the spool on the winder went down the side of the building, through the front door, through the lobby, up the stairs, through the circle and finally into the projection room where it met the some what battered reel. Clearly the boy had too much respect for the film to break it. I was assured by the manager that the story is true.  |  IP: Logged Robert E. Allen Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1078 From: Checotah, Oklahoma Registered: Jul 2002 posted 10-15-2003 08:24 PM                     Manny: It was called the "Bob White" after the bird. That was it's name when I bought it.  |  IP: Logged Frank Angel Film God Posts: 5305 From: Brooklyn NY USA Registered: Dec 1999 posted 10-16-2003 04:34 AM                        I worked in a theatre in Caldwell Texas named the Mattsonian. You had to climb up a vertical rung ladder into the wooden hang ceiling and walk along rotting planks that were just laying over ceiling beams. The place was noted for the smell of dead rats, hence its nickname among the staff as the "Ratsonian." Being a New Yorker, I was shocked to find that there was a side entrance marked "Colored." There was no port glass and the entertainment of those patrons in the balcony, mostly young black kids, was to see who could get a popcorn or soda cup into the booth through one of the ports. The first time a cup came flying past my shoulder and hit the back wall, I nearly pissed my pants. This theatre had a walkway between the outer wall and the inner false wall which went the length of the building in which he had put in rickey wooden shelving from floor to about 15 feet high with cubby holes. There, in that rodent ridden building, he had saved every 1 and 3-sheets of every picture that had run in the theatre starting from 1936 to the present (then, 1966). Mr. Mattson was probably about 90 at the time so I don't believe the theatre lasted much longer. And back in 1966, I am sure they considered 1 and 3 sheets as not much more than junk. I sure wish I knew then what I know now! Frank  |  IP: Logged Peter Hall Master Film Handler Posts: 314 From: London, UK Registered: Dec 2000 posted 10-16-2003 07:02 AM                        Maybe a new thread - wierd New Zealand cinemas ?? The Regent Tauranga (from memory) had a 8 rung staircase going the full width of the booth, sort of a mirror image of the stadium seating outside. You could see only the bottom spools from the main booth area and winder. Oddest situation I ever saw was when MidCity opened in Auckland. 4 screens, all automated, (Baurs with ST200s I think) one good sized square booth with a projector in each corner. At the time, around 1986, the projectionist union in NZ had a "one operator per screen" rule, so you would visit and see 4 guys sitting around wondering what to do. I guess it was a good time to have shares in Lion Red or the "Office" (if anyone gets this reference I'd love to hear from them !) Another wierd working rule was that the operator could not leave the booth during the film, which was enforced by the union "to keep standards up". Great sentiment, but in the days of platters and automation (and single screens) it resulted in guys sitting in small, dark rooms bored to death . I was for a time manager operator of a small 200 seat single screen in Auclkand and was "caught" in the managers office during a film - such a cardinal sin almost resulted in the site having it's film supply pulled. I was told that the union's rule was there to protect my own welfare... Yeah, right, I am supposed to be better off stuck in a 8 x 8 room by myself dying for a pee instead of making sure the film and failsafes were OK and being free to roam and maintain the site, help myself to tea coffee and post mix and flirt with the floor staff. Mind you, I ended up 15 years later still with one of these floor staff, now 2 kids a mortgage and nearing middle age - perhaps it would have been better for my welfare if I was locked in the booth catching up on my Tolstoy !  |  IP: Logged Rachel Craven Madam Moderator Posts: 2190 From: Pensacola, FL Registered: Dec 2000 posted 10-16-2003 12:21 PM                     The Strand, where I work was once a single screen but converted to 6 screens - with add ons. Each of the 6 screens has seperate booths...ranging from the 2nd floor to the 4th floor. There are a couple clever passage ways in the older part of the theater for enterance into one of two of the booths. The booth on the 4th floor (which was the original) has a catwalk with an enterance through the ceiling- or so I was told...leading into a wall. I've never even looked up there though, its too scary!  |  IP: Logged Chris Hipp Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1462 From: Mesquite, Tx (east of Dallas) Registered: Jul 2003 posted 10-19-2003 02:22 AM                     I think every booth has a "ghost." There are so many things in booth moving and making noise and everyone thinks it's a ghost. Chances are if you see something, it is a platter spining or the light reflecting off of the glass. If you hear something, it is probably the AC/HVAC system.  |  IP: Logged Daryl C. W. O'Shea Film God Posts: 3977 From: Midland Ontario Canada (where Panavision & IMAX lenses come from) Registered: Jun 2002 posted 10-19-2003 02:54 AM                        What about booths that have no port glass, platters or AC/HVAC systems?  |  IP: Logged Peter Hall Master Film Handler Posts: 314 From: London, UK Registered: Dec 2000 posted 10-19-2003 10:42 AM                        Astor Perth, WA. No glass, no HVAC, no platter and a wall full of valves and a original Western Electric system (still in situ circa 1988). Owner scheduled his films around his wifes dance school (in the circle foyer) and even asked if the 20 minute reels could be split in half to burn the carbon butts! (He went bust, but maybe his fiscal attitide could have taken him far in the middle management of todays chains !!!) Circle was shut for safety reasons, but you could hear the operator singing along (mainly classic films) in the stalls.  |  IP: Logged

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