Northpoint
Theatre, San Francisco, December 1976. Courtesy Dolby Labs.
The following is a reference / historical listing of the 70-millimeter
engagements of “A Star is Born” in the United States and Canada. These were
the cinemas worth seeking out to experience this motion picture.
“A Star is Born” was among four confirmed first-run films released in 1976
with 70mm prints for selected engagements. The Warner Bros. release was
directed by Frank Pierson and starred Barbra Streisand and Kris
Kristofferson.
The 70mm print run of “A Star is Born” featured a dual inventory of discrete
six-track stereophonic sound* and pillarboxed imagery (approximately 1.85:1)
blown up from spherical 35mm. (*A few of the prints — noted in the listing
below — were encoded with Dolby Noise Reduction, only the second known usage
of Dolby in connection with the 70mm format, the first being “Logan’s Run.”)
Pre-release screenings included the film’s world premiere held December 18th
at the Village in Los Angeles. The film’s east coast premiere was held
December 23rd at the Ziegfeld in New York. Prior to release, a series of
projection- and audio-format bake-off test-screenings were held at Cine
Capri in Phoenix.
Opening date YYYY-MM-DD … city — cinema (duration in weeks) [notes]
Asterisk = Six-Track Dolby Stereo
No asterisk = Six-Track Stereo
1976-12-19 … Los Angeles, CA — Chinese* (10)
1976-12-19 … Los Angeles, CA — Village* (9)
1976-12-25 … Boston, MA — Cinema 57 Twin* (12)
1976-12-25 … New York, NY — Ziegfeld* (8)
1976-12-25 … San Francisco, CA — Northpoint* (13)
1976-12-25 … San Jose, CA — Town & Country (25)
1976-12-25 … Syosset, NY — Syosset (7)
Note that some of the presentations included in this listing may have been
presented in 35mm during the latter week(s) of engagement due to print
damage and the distributor’s unwillingness to supply a 70mm replacement
print or because the booking was moved to a smaller, 35mm-only auditorium
within a multiplex. As well, the reverse may have been true in some cases
whereas a booking began with a 35mm print because the lab was unable to
complete the 70mm print order in time for an opening-day delivery or the
exhibitor negotiated a mid-run switch to 70mm. In these cases, the 35mm
portion of the engagement has been included in the duration figure.
SUBSEQUENT 70MM ENGAGEMENTS & SCREENINGS
1977-02-18 … Beverly Hills, CA — Wilshire (17)
1977-02-18 … Portsmouth, VA — Plaza Triplex* (5)
1977-06-29 … Carmel, IN — Woodland Twin (1)
1977-07-15 … Albuquerque, NM — Fox Winrock (2)
1977-09-21 … Carmel, IN — Woodland Twin (1)
1977-09-23 … Bloomington, MN — Southtown (2)
1977-10-07 … Norridge, IL — Norridge 4-plex (2)
1977-10-07 … Skokie, IL — Old Orchard Triplex (2)
1977-10-14 … Minneapolis, MN — Academy (1)
1977-11-04 … Dallas, TX — Preston Royal (1)
1980-12-12 … Las Vegas, NV — Parkway Triplex [Fri/Sat midnight]
1981-09-18 … Cleveland, OH — Colony (4 days)
1981-09-28 … Cleveland, OH — Colony
1981-10-02 … Salt Lake City, UT — Trolley Corners Triplex (1) [w/ “Funny
Girl”]
1982-10-13 … Portland, OR — Bagdad Triplex (4 days) [70mm festival]
1982-10-22 … Lincoln, NE — Cooper/Lincoln (1)
1984-03-23 … Wichita, KS — Dickinson’s Mall [Fri-Sat midnight]
The information in this article was principally referenced from film
industry trade publications and regional newspaper promotion, with thanks to
Don Beelik, Louis Bornwasser, Jim Cobb, Bill Kallay and Bill Kretzel.
International 70mm engagements of this title have not been accounted for in
this work.
If you believe this article contains any errors or omissions, please
consider emailing the
author or editor.
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More in 70mm reading:
70mm Engagements
70mm Blow Up List
Dolby Stereo
70mm Cinemas in North
America
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