“Man of La Mancha”: The North American Roadshow and 70mm Engagements | Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter |
| Compiled by: Michael Coate | Date: 20.04.2023 |
 The following is a reference / historical listing of the roadshow presentations of “Man of La Mancha” in the United States and Canada. These were the first and best cinemas in which to experience this motion picture.The presentations cited in the Part 1 section of this work were “hard ticket” roadshow engagements and were special, long-running, showcase presentations in major cities prior to the film being exhibited as a general release. Much like a stage production, these presentations featured advanced admission pricing, reserved seating (typically sold in advance), and an average of ten scheduled screenings per week (one per evening, plus a matinee on weekends, Wednesdays and holidays, though this policy varied by locale and/or was modified during the latter phase of engagement). Souvenir roadshow programs were sold as well, and the presentation included an overture. (Many roadshows included an intermission, entr’acte and exit music or combination of, as well, though “La Mancha,” as with some notable exceptions, lacked such components.) Roadshow presentations, compared to general release and the average moviegoing experience of the era, typically were booked into larger cinemas and offered a superior projection and sound experience in addition to the other roadshow amenities. The print types utilized during the film’s roadshow release were, depending on the booking, (1) 70-millimeter (2.20:1 blow-up from spherical 35mm) with discrete magnetic six-channel stereophonic sound, (2) 35-millimeter with discrete magnetic four-channel stereophonic sound and optical monaural sound, (3) 35-millimeter with optical monaural sound. United Artists, the distributor of “Man of La Mancha,” elected not to promote the film’s presentation tech details, though it is believed the majority of the film’s reserved-seat presentations featured stereophonic sound: 4-track for 35mm prints and 6-track for the coveted 70mm prints. The United Artists release was directed by Arthur Hiller (“Love Story,” “Silver Streak”) and starred Peter O’Toole, Sofia Loren and James Coco and was based upon the novel “Don Quixote” and the Broadway musical. The world premiere was held December 11th, 1972 at the Rivoli in New York City. Out of the hundreds of films released in North America during 1972, “Man of La Mancha” was among only three given deluxe roadshow treatment and among only six issued with 70mm prints. PART 1: THE ROADSHOW ENGAGEMENTS (reserved seat policy / 70mm* presentation) *Note that these bookings did not explicitly or consistently promote 70mm, suggesting they may have been screened in 35mm. Premiere/opening date YYYY-MM-DD … locale — cinema (duration in weeks) [notes] 1972-12-11 … New York — Rivoli (15) 1972-12-12 … Long Island (Woodbury) — Cinema 150 (15) 1972-12-12 … Newark (Paramus) — Paramus 2 (18) 1972-12-13 … Cincinnati — Valley (12) 1972-12-13 … Detroit (Southfield) — Northland (18) 1972-12-13 … Los Angeles (Beverly Hills) — Fox Wilshire (17) 1972-12-13 … Montreal — Place du Canada (12) 1972-12-13 … Toronto — University (12) 1972-12-13 … Vancouver — Park (12) 1972-12-13 … Washington — Uptown (18) 1972-12-14 … Boston — Cinema 57 Twin 1 (12) 1972-12-14 … Chicago — McClurg Court (14) 1972-12-14 … Chicago (Northbrook) — Edens 2 (11) 1972-12-14 … Cleveland — Colony (19) 1972-12-14 … Denver — Aladdin (1+) 1972-12-14 … Houston — Tower (13) 1972-12-14 … Milwaukee — Southgate (18) 1972-12-14 … Minneapolis — Academy (10) 1972-12-14 … Orange — Cinedome 20 (15) 1972-12-14 … Philadelphia — SamEric (16) 1972-12-14 … Philadelphia (Pennsauken) — Eric (10) 1972-12-14 … Pittsburgh — Manor (18) 1972-12-14 … St. Louis — Cinerama (13) 1972-12-14 … Salt Lake City (South Salt Lake) — Century 21 (16) 1972-12-14 … San Diego — Loma (16) 1972-12-14 … San Francisco — Golden Gate 1 (16) 1972-12-14 … San Jose — Century 24 (14) 1972-12-14 … Seattle — Uptown (20) 1972-12-20 … Dallas — Cine II (12) 1972-12-20 … Miami — Twin Gables-2 (10) 1972-12-20 … Miami (Deerfield Beach) — Ultravision-2 (10) 1972-12-20 … Miami (North Miami Beach) — Sunny Isles-2 (10) 1973-02-07 … Atlanta — Atlanta (6) 1973-02-07 … Baltimore (Randallstown) — Randallstown Plaza (10) 1973-02-07 … Hartford — Cinerama (9) 1973-02-07 … New Orleans — Cinerama (10) 1973-02-07 … Rochester (Henrietta) — Towne II (14) 1973-02-14 … Kansas City — Midland (9) 1973-02-14 … Phoenix (Scottsdale) — El Camino (9) 1973-02-21 … Sacramento — Century 21 (6) 1973-03-07 … Dayton — Dabel (6) 1973-03-21 … Buffalo (Amherst) — Plaza-North (7) 1973-03-21 … Des Moines — River Hills (4) 1973-03-28 … Albuquerque — Sunshine (6) 1973-03-28 … Honolulu — Cinerama (8) 1973-03-28 … Omaha — Admiral (5) 1973-03-28 … Portland — Hollywood (4) PART 2: SUBSEQUENT 70MM ENGAGEMENTS (second run / revival / unreserved seating) 1973-05-09 … Ventura, CA — Fox (1) 1973-10-19 … Anaheim, CA — Cinemaland (3) [w/ “Fiddler on the Roof”] 1973-10-24 … Beverly Hills, CA — Wilshire (1) [w/ “Fiddler on the Roof”] 1975-07-25 … San Francisco, CA — Royal (2) [w/ “The Wind and the Lion”] 1978-10-13 … Chicago, IL — McClurg Court (1) The reserved-seat policy, in some instances, was relaxed during the latter weeks of the run. Any non-roadshow portion of such an engagement has been included in the duration figure. This information has been principally referenced from film industry trade publications and regional newspaper promotion, with thanks to Sheldon Hall, Bill Kallay, Bill Kretzel and Paul Linfesty. The film’s international roadshow/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. | More in 70mm reading: 70mm Cinemas in North America in70mm.com's list of films blown up to 70mm 70mm Engagements by Title 35mm to 70mm Engagements by Year Large Format 7OMM Engagements Month by month premiere list of wide gauge and 3-strip films Chronological premiere list of major 70mm films 70mm Blow Up List Dolby Stereo |
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