Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
The water fountain is splashing in front of the Detroit Institute of Arts, the trees have blossomed at the main branch of the Detroit Public Library, and once again, spring has come to the Detroit Cultural Center.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
Even before the entertainment began on the night when the Redford Theatre celebrated its 80th birthday (April 19, 2008), I could sense a deeper, richer feeling in the theater than I usually did. This feeling brought out more of the texture and details of this ancient wonder, like the intimate lighting under the pagoda eaves and the smooth varnish of the staircase railing.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
The blank film lay on the table in the Grand Foyer of the Michigan Theater, waiting for visitors to the 46th annual Ann Arbor Film Festival to mark up frames to produce a series of images that would later be projected on the main theater screen. A few feet away, some toy animals and a moveable projector awaited other filmgoers’ attempts at stop-motion animation.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
Notes from a movie palace weekend (March 14-16, 2008):
After enjoying the focused intimacy of the Redford Theatre (Friday, March 14, 2008) and the Detroit Film Theatre (March 15), the spaciousness of the Michigan Theater on March 16 hit me very strongly. Steven Ball’s organ playing drifted out into the Grand Foyer and the street energy of downtown Ann Arbor continued into the Michigan’s auditorium.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
If I had to pick one film that tied together the interests of most visitors to the Detroit Film Theatre, Michigan Theater, and Redford Theatre, it would be Buster Keaton’s 1927 silent comedy The General. A close second would be The Phantom of the Opera (1925) with Lon Chaney.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
Africa has gotten a lot of headlines lately. U.S. President George W. Bush has been visiting the continent, helping bring more world attention to African problems like political conflict, AIDS and malaria. And one of the contenders for succeeding Bush next year has an African-born father—Barack Obama.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
An 81-year-old American silent movie and a current French film recently gave Michigan Theater audiences the chance to see how movies can entertain through different kinds of non-verbal communication.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
At the Redford Theatre’s Feb. 1, 2008 screening of Tarzan and His Mate, it was hard to imagine what might have astonished the crowd the most.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
I made my second visit today to the Detroit Historical Museum’s fascinating exhibit about movie theaters in Detroit. Detroit: The “Reel” Story is a valuable record of local history, and any movie buff should hurry to see this show and find out how the Detroit moviegoing experience has evolved through the years.
Detroit Movie Palaces Home Page
The big V in VistaVision jumped out at the audience of the Redford Theatre at the Jan. 19, 2008 showing of the 1955 Alfred Hitchcock thriller To Catch a Thief. Soon, this Paramount Pictures widescreen process was taking the Saturday night crowd on a scenic tour of the Mediterranean coast of France.
