Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Cedar Point IMAX Sandusky, Ohio?

This is topic Cedar Point IMAX Sandusky, Ohio? in forum Large Format Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Joshua Waaland (Member # 287) on 07-19-2004, 10:24 PM:

Anyone know what happened to the IMAX at Cedar Point? I grew up just half a mile from this amusement park and remember seeing IMAX movies there. When I became a projectionist I tried to get a job there for 3 summers in a row. They would never return my calls. I was there last summer and it wasn't there anymore. They were just using it for some stupid amusement park themed plays.

I miss going there and enjoying the air conditioning after walking around the park while taking in the awesome experience that is known as IMAX. Would just like to know what happened there. Thanks.

Josh

Posted by Adam Martin (Member # 641) on 07-20-2004, 12:55 AM:

The amusement park closed the theater in 2000 and converted it to a Peanuts on Ice show.

Posted by Robert Stawiarski (Member # 1842) on 07-20-2004, 01:11 AM:

A shame, too. Out of the three, and only, 950+ seat auditoriums IMAX built in amusement parks in the '70s, there is only one still in operation -- in Gurnee, IL.

Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 07-20-2004, 06:26 AM:

I was there the first weekend it opened...I think it was 1975. I was so blown away by MAN BELONGS TO THE EARTH that I saw it 5 straight times, leaving the theatre and going right to the pre-seating area.

I did not like the seating system. I insist on sitting precisely in the center of any theatre I attend, and that was difficult at Cedar Point. They had a pre-seating area identical to the main theatre, where a short entertainment was provided before the show. Then, the doors would open and you would enter the theatre by rows. They kept pushing people to the side to allow new people to come in. I just stopped at my center seat and asked people to go around me.

MAN BELONGS TO THE EARTH is still one of my favorite IMAX features, with an especially fine multi-channel, polyrhythmic musical score by the late Don Ellis.

Never figured out why they used Peavey speakers, though.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-20-2004, 08:48 AM:

"The amusement park closed the theater in 2000 and converted it to a Peanuts on Ice show."
_________________________________________________________________

I have to laugh because the show probably costs them peanuts to do campared to the costs of Imax system. Wasn't that Imax projector #2 or 3 there. I remember it was a very low serial number machine.

Mark @ CLACO

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-20-2004, 09:49 AM:

Like most of the early IMAX installs the rates would have been peanuts [Smile]

At Cinesphere we also require the patrons to move directly across the theatre to the end of the row leaving no empty seats. Also we don't let people stop in the middle.
In a large venue with a short turnaround it is the only way to do it We used to turn 825 seats around in 11 min.
In the evenings we ran with researved seating with an admission charge during the day it was included in the part addmission

Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 07-20-2004, 09:01 PM:

The Cedar Point projector was number 3.

Posted by Steve Scott (Member # 630) on 07-21-2004, 01:52 PM:

Cedar Point owns Valleyfair in Shakopee, MN... they still run their IMAX theater at the far end of the park, but I'm not sure what they're playing there this year.

I remember taking a tour of that booth in 5th grade, I went to school with the son of one of the General Managers of the park.

Posted by Joshua Waaland (Member # 287) on 07-26-2004, 07:00 AM:

Just for curiosity sake, does anyone know what happens to the old equipment when it is taken out? Does IMAX get it or does some field tech that does the job get it? Thanks.

Posted by Dick Vaughan (Member # 540) on 07-26-2004, 07:47 AM:

AFAIK there was a clause in most of the contracts that gave IMAX first option at buying back the system from the owners if the theatre closed. This of course dates back to the good old days when you could actually buy a system not just lease it.
Several of these buy backs were recycled and used in other locations