Today movie theaters andthe shows played in them are loved the world over but do you know how they gotstarted? Enter the fascinating world of movie theater history.
The theatre is a placewhere people may go to enjoy an opera, ballet, play or a movie. Other forms ofentertainment have taken place for centuries but going to the theatre to see amovie first made it's mark in the early part of the 20th century. Throughouthistory, theaters have traditionally been places that people go to forentertainment. Of all of the forms of entertainment that take place in thetheatres, movies are a newer art form.
One of the first moviepalaces was built in New York City in 1913. A movie theater was originallycalled a movie palace. They were beautiful structures where silent films wereshown and then later, films with sound. During this time, most theaterproductions were Vaudeville acts which were more expensive and harder to getseats than going to the movies. The success of movie palaces were based on itslow admission price and unreserved seating.
Popcorn was first servedin movie theaters in 1912 as a cheap and delicious snack. Between 1914 to 1922there was an expansion of movie palaces. In 1907 a movie cost only five cents.This is actually where the name "Nickel"odeon came from whenreferring to movie palaces. There were approximately 4,000 new theaters builtin the United States built during this time. The drive-in theater was verypopular during the 1950's and 1960's but they have now diminished to a fewhundred around the United States. The first multiplex for movies was built in1963. This complex had two full screens and 700 seats. The first airconditioned movie theater was built in 1922.
Many other venues werebuilt to show movies. The first drive in theater was built in 1933 and was inthe state of New Jersey. There are only a few drive-in movie theatres availabletoday. Drive-in movie theatres became very popular during the 1960's. Moviegoerswould watch the films either in their cars or on top of the hood of their car .Thesewere outdoor theaters were cars parked in front of an outdoor screen. They wereprovided with portable speakers to hear the sound or in some cases the soundcame from an FM radio frequency.
In 1905 in Pittsburgh,the first nickelodeon was built. This theater had five cent movies hence thename nickelodeon. The first permanent movie house was built in 1902 inCalifornia. This theatre was a storefront setup that was part of a factorybuilding. They soon became very popular and spread throughout the UnitedStates. In Canada, the first large scale movie theater in the world was built.This was the first time multiple movies were shown in one facility.
During the 1950's and1960's, many theaters were built across the country due to their growingpopularity. The screens became bigger and the facilities became more elaborate.The theaters were built to attract more patrons. The theaters included morecomfortable seats, air conditioning and stereophonic sound systems. The numberof seats a theater could hold increased.
As the popularity of themovie theaters continued to go, so did the size of the facilities. Multiplerestrooms and concession counters were installed. The seats were built on anelevated floor to provide visibility for all seats. Large multi-plex theaterswere built around shopping centers. The lobby sizes expanded to capacity othertheater rooms within the complex. The theaters had stadium seating withmultiple balconies.
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