The following is a reference / historical listing of the roadshow presentations of “Cinerama Holiday” in the United States and Canada.
Louis De Rochemont’s “Cinerama Holiday” was the second feature-length travelogue produced in the large, deeply-curved-screen Cinerama format. The film was directed by Robert Bendick and Philippe De Lacy, and its world premiere was held February 8th, 1955, at the Warner in New York City.
“Cinerama Holiday” was presented exclusively in Cinerama-branded cinemas. The print type was 26fps 6-perf 35mm x 3 plus 35mm magnetic fullcoat interlocked 7-channel audio.
The presentations cited in this work were “hard ticket” roadshow engagements (i.e. special, long-running, showcase presentations in major cities prior to the film being exhibited as a general release). Much like a stage production, these typically featured advanced admission pricing, reserved seating, an overture/intermission/entr’acte/exit music, and an average of only ten scheduled screenings per week. Souvenir program booklet were sold, as well, and, in some locales, the film’s soundtrack album.
Out of the hundreds of first-run films released in North America during 1955, “Cinerama Holiday” was among only two given deluxe roadshow treatment (“Oklahoma!” was the other).
PART 1: THE CINERAMA / ROADSHOW ENGAGEMENTS (reserved seat policy / 3-panel Cinerama presentation)
Opening date YYYY-MM-DD … locale — cinema (duration in weeks) [notes]
1955-02-08 … New York, NY — Warner (61) 1955-02-15 … Detroit, MI — Music Hall (77) 1955-02-16 … Pittsburgh, PA — Warner (62) 1955-02-17 … Philadelphia, PA — Boyd (63) 1955-02-21 … St. Louis, MO — Ambassador (61) 1955-04-27 … Dallas, TX — Melba (52) 1955-06-15 … Chicago, IL — Palace (78) 1955-06-23 … Cincinnati, OH — Capitol (50) 1955-07-26 … Minneapolis, MN — Century (53) 1955-08-02 … San Francisco, CA — Orpheum (68) 1955-09-28 … Washington, DC — Warner (65) 1955-08-30 … Boston, MA — Boston (52) 1955-11-14 … Los Angeles, CA — Warner Hollywood (81)
1956-01-31 … Buffalo, NY — Teck (30) 1956-04-05 … Montreal, QC — Imperial (52) 1956-10-29 … Atlanta, GA — Roxy (25) 1956-11-08 … Oklahoma City, OK — Warner (10)
1957-03-12 … Kansas City, MO — Missouri (23) 1957-04-10 … Seattle, WA — Paramount (19) 1957-06-27 … Cleveland, OH — Palace (30) 1957-07-04 … Miami (Miami Beach), FL — Roosevelt (13)
1958-04-02 … Baltimore, MD — Town (3) 1958-04-08 … Toronto, ON — University (15) 1958-05-08 … Syracuse, NY — Eckel (12) 1958-05-28 … Vancouver, BC — Strand (11) 1958-09-21 … Montreal, QC — Imperial (8) [Version Francaise] 1958-12-12 … Honolulu, HI — Princess (7)
1959-08-10 … Cleveland, OH — Palace (3) [return run] 1959-11-05 … Vancouver, BC — Strand (1) [return run]
1960-04-17 … Long Island (Syosset), NY — Syosset (10) 1960-10-24 … San Francisco, CA — Orpheum (9) [return run] 1960-11-14 … Boston, MA — Boston (14) [return run] 1960-11-18 … Houston, TX — Rivoli (6) 1960-12-25 … Milwaukee, WI — Palace (17) 1960-12-25 … Minneapolis, MN — Century (16) [return run] 1960-12-25 … Montreal, QC — Imperial (14) [return run]
1961-03-21 … Toledo, OH — Paramount (11) 1961-03-22 … Columbus, OH — Grand (12) 1961-04-01 … Indianapolis, IN — Indiana (11) 1961-04-04 … Los Angeles, CA — Warner Hollywood (7) [return run] 1961-07-08 … Albany, NY — Hellman (5) 1961-09-18 … Newark (Montclair), NJ — Clairidge (14) 1961-10-19 … Louisville, KY — Rialto (13)
1962-01-11 … Memphis, TN — Palace (10) 1962-01-12 … Oklahoma City, OK — Cooper (5) [market return run] 1962-01-17 … Chicago, IL — Palace (11) [return run / seats not reserved] 1962-01-19 … Kansas City, MO — Empire (8) [market return run] 1962-03-07 … Jacksonville, FL — 5 Points (6) 1962-03-16 … El Paso, TX — Capri (5) 1962-04-18 … Scranton, PA — Strand (4) 1962-05-04 … Omaha, NE — Cooper (17) 1962-05-16 … Wichita, KS — Uptown (15) 1962-05-17 … Rochester, NY — Monroe (5) 1962-05-23 … Salt Lake City, UT — Villa (9) 1962-05-25 … Norfolk, VA — Rosna (12) 1962-06-01 … Denver, CO — Cooper (10) 1962-07-27 … Charlotte, NC — Carolina (11) 1962-08-01 … Miami, FL — Florida (11) [market return run] 1962-09-26 … Portland, OR — Hollywood (8) 1962-10-04 … Nashville, TN — Crescent (5) 1962-10-17 … Tampa, FL — Palace (9) 1962-10-31 … Erie, PA — Strand (3)
1963-02-08 … Providence, RI — Cinerama (12) 1963-03-16 … Akron (Cuyahoga Falls), OH — Falls (12) 1963-03-29 … Hartford, CT — Cinerama (12) 1963-04-26 … Chattanooga, TN — Brainerd (6) 1963-11-15 … Honolulu, HI — Cinerama (2) [market return run] 1963-11-21 … Fresno, CA — Warner (7)
1964-04-08 … Rockland County (Nanuet), NY — Route 59 (3)
1965-12-17 … San Diego, CA — Cinerama (7)
PART 2: CINERAMA MARKETS / VENUES IN WHICH “CINERAMA HOLIDAY” DID NOT PLAY
Albuquerque, NM — Fox Winrock Birmingham, AL — Ritz Dayton, OH — Dabel New Orleans, LA — Cinerama Phoenix (Scottsdale), AZ — Kachina Sacramento, CA — Esquire
This information has been principally referenced from film industry trade publications and regional newspaper promotion, with thanks to Al Alvarez, Claude Ayakawa, Jim Barg, Kirk Besse, Raymond Caple, Nick DiMaggio, Sheldon Hall, William Hooper, Bill Huelbig, Mark Huffstetler, Bill Kallay, Bill Kretzel, Mark Lensenmayer, Matthew Lutthans, Stan Malone, Gabriel Neeb, Jim Perry, John Sittig, David Strohmaier, Bob Throop, Joel Weide and Vince Young.
International presentations of this title have not been accounted for in this article.
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