It's quizz time.

Who created the first twin theatre, where, and when?

 |  IP: Logged

 |  IP: Logged

Lance:
AMC generally gets the credit for the first, but they weren't...not by a long shot. They were superceded by two other chains, both still in existence today. I'm always supprised that neither of those chains ever argue this point.

Keep trying. I have the proof. The news stories and photos of the earlier twins.

 |  IP: Logged

 |  IP: Logged

Good work...the Edwards Alhambra in Alhambra, CA was the one that I was referring to on the west coast. It was a single that had an adjoining store within the same building converted into a 2nd auditorium. It was entered from the original lobby. Therefore it shared the same entrance, boxoffice, lobby, and restrooms as the original theatre so was indeed a twin using one staff and meeting the definition of a twin theatre. It did have a separate projection booth, but that wasn't uncommon in many twins just like it isn't uncommon even today in many megaplexes.

However... it still isn't the oldest or the first one!

Mark:
Thanks for the info on the Bexley. It is even older by several years then the Alhambra, and one I didn't know about. See what we can learn on these forums. That's why I like to ask these questions, as I'm always seeking to learn more.

The one that I think was the first was on the east coast and came into existance in the twenties.

AMC's 'claim to fame' as I understand it is having built (from the ground up) the first twin, and yes it was the Ward Parkway Twin (now 22-plex and recently dropped Ward from the name) in Kansas City, Missouri.

The question here is not who built the first twin from the ground up, but who had the idea first, and acted upon it, to have more then one auditorium in the same building and thus share the operating expenses while having the drawing potential of more then one film.

Incidentally, the Alhambra ran the same double feature in both auditoriums, as a way to make each feature available at whatever time the patron wanted to see it. They just reversed the showings in each one. The Bexley ran the same film on both screens with one print simultaneously. I don't see much advantage to that, but that's what they did.

The east coast theatre, built as a single and then enlarged to a double in the twenties, ran two separate first run films...one in each auditorium for separate admission, and shared the same marquee, vestibule, box office, and lobby. It therefore fits all the requirements to be a twin theatre. This is the one that I'm looking for.

The oldest one I know of is:
The Century/Valencia Theatres in Baltimore
around 1926 by Loew's.

 |  IP: Logged

 |  IP: Logged