Sweet Charity: The North American Roadshow and 70mm Engagements |
Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter |
| Compiled by: Michael Coate | Date: 24.09.2022 |
 The
following is a reference / historical listing of the 70-millimeter
engagements of Sweet Charity in the United States and Canada. These were
the cinemas worth seeking out to experience the best presentation of this
motion picture.The Universal release was directed by Bob Fosse (Cabaret, All That Jazz) and starred Shirley MacLaine, John McMartin, Chita Rivera, Paula Kelly, Stubby Kaye, Sammy Davis Jr., and Ricardo Montalban. The presentations cited in the main section of 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 an average of only ten scheduled screenings per week, advanced admission pricing, reserved seating, and an overture/intermission/entracte/exit music. Souvenir program booklet were sold, as well, and, in some locales, the films soundtrack album. The print types utilized during the films roadshow release were, depending on the booking, 70-millimeter with discrete magnetic six-channel stereophonic sound or 35-millimeter with discrete magnetic four-channel stereophonic sound or 35mm with optical monaural sound. (Technically, the four-channel magnetic prints were mag-optical whereby they contained both a 4-channel magnetic track and an optical mono track and cinemas sent such a print had the option of presenting in either format.) Also, there were two cuts of Sweet Charity: one with a happy ending and another with a sad ending; the different versions, in North America at least, were not promoted. Out of the hundreds of films released during 1969, Sweet Charity was among only ten released with 70mm prints (three from 65mm origination and seven blow-ups) and only seven released with a reserved-seat roadshow policy. The 70mm prints of Sweet Charity were promoted as 70mm/Panavision with Full Dimensional Sound and featured discrete six-channel stereophonic sound and full-frame imagery blown up from anamorphic 35mm. PART 1: THE ROADSHOW ENGAGEMENTS (reserved seat policy and [believed to be] 70mm except where noted) Premiere/Opening date YYYY-MM-DD locale cinema (duration in weeks) [notes] 1968-12-06 Phoenix, AZ Bethany [sneak preview] 1968-12-07 Chicago (Oak Brook), IL Cinema 150 [sneak preview] 1969-02-11 Boston, MA Saxon (19) [simultaneous premiere at Music Hall] 1969-02-27 Miami (Miami Beach), FL Colony (19) 1969-03-19 Philadelphia, PA Stanley (16) 1969-03-21 Pittsburgh, PA Nixon (13) 1969-03-27 Chicago, IL Bismarck (13) 1969-03-27 Cincinnati, OH Carousel (9) 1969-03-27 Columbus, OH Cinestage (18) 1969-03-27 Detroit, MI United Artists (14) 1969-03-28 Los Angeles, CA Pantages (20) 1969-03-28 San Francisco, CA St. Francis (9) 1969-04-01 Cleveland (South Euclid), OH Fox Cedar-Center (15) 1969-04-01 Denver, CO Centre (12) 1969-04-01 New York, NY Rivoli (19) 1969-04-01 Providence, RI Elmwood (1+) 1969-04-03 Toronto, ON University (13) 1969-05-14 Dayton (Trotwood), OH Salem Mall (6) 1969-05-15 Charlotte, NC Carolina (8) 1969-05-15 Dallas, TX Inwood (11) 1969-05-15 Fort Worth, TX Opera House (12) 1969-05-15 Phoenix (Scottsdale), AZ Kachina (15) 1969-05-15 San Diego, CA Cinerama (13) 1969-05-16 Houston, TX Alabama (12) 1969-05-16 New Haven (Hamden), CT Cinemart (15) 1969-05-16 Portland, OR Fox (8) 1969-05-22 Buffalo (Amherst), NY Plaza-North (5) 1969-05-22 Des Moines, IA Ingersoll (11) 1969-05-22 Hartford (West Hartford), CT Elm (7) 1969-05-22 Honolulu, HI Kuhio (11) 1969-05-22 Louisville, KY Showcase 1 (6) 1969-05-22 Montreal, QC Seville (10) 1969-05-22 Salt Lake City, UT Villa (11) 1969-05-22 Springfield (West Springfield), MA Palace (12) 1969-05-22 Toledo, OH Showcase 1 (10) 1969-05-23 Atlanta, GA Georgia (8) 1969-05-23 San Antonio, TX Broadway (5) 1969-05-27 Kansas City, MO Capri (10) 1969-05-28 Atlantic City, NJ Virginia (11) 1969-05-28 Oklahoma City, OK Quail 1 (8) 1969-05-28 Richmond, VA Westhampton (8) 1969-05-28 St. Louis, MO Ambassador (6) 1969-05-28 Syracuse (DeWitt), NY Shoppingtown II (8) 1969-05-29 Jacksonville, FL 5 Points (8) 1969-06-05 Indianapolis, IN Georgetown (10) [35mm] 1969-06-06 Nashville, TN Belle Meade (7) 1969-06-06 Orlando, FL Beacham (6) 1969-06-10 Sacramento, CA Century 22 (6) 1969-06-11 Worcester, MA Showcase 1 (4) 1969-06-12 Calgary, AB Odeon (7) 1969-06-12 Fresno, CA Country Squire (11) [35mm] 1969-06-12 Las Vegas, NV Cinerama (11) 1969-06-12 Moline (Rock Island), IL Capri (6) [35mm] 1969-06-12 Vancouver, BC Park (7) [35mm] 1969-06-12 Wichita, KS Sunset (7) 1969-06-12 Winnipeg, MB Kings (7) [35mm] 1969-06-19 Akron, OH Fairlawn (8) [35mm] 1969-06-19 Harrisburg, PA Eric (1+) 1969-06-19 New Orleans, LA Saenger-Orleans (9) 1969-06-20 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine (6) 1969-06-25 Albany, NY Hellman (7) 1969-06-25 Birmingham, AL Ritz (5) 1969-06-25 Edmonton, AB Avenue (6) [35mm] 1969-06-25 Milwaukee, WI Wisconsin 1 (5) 1969-06-25 Long Island (Hicksville), NY Twin South (8) 1969-06-25 Newark (Union), NJ Union (15) 1969-06-25 Omaha, NE Indian Hills (7) 1969-06-25 Washington, DC Uptown (13) 1969-06-25 Youngstown, OH Uptown (8) 1969-06-26 Baltimore, MD New (5) 1969-06-26 Norfolk, VA Lee (5) [35mm] 1969-06-26 Ottawa, ON Nelson (5) 1969-06-26 Rochester (Henrietta), NY Towne 1 (6) 1969-06-27 St. Petersburg, FL Crossroads (7) 1969-07-09 Lawrence, MA Showcase 1 (7) 1969-07-09 Seattle, WA Paramount (6) 1969-07-16 El Paso, TX Northgate (4) [35mm] 1969-07-16 Minneapolis (St. Louis Park), MN Cooper (16) 1969-07-18 Hamilton, ON Centre Twin West (7) 1969-08-06 San Jose, CA Century 25 (11) 1969-08-07 Memphis, TN Paramount (8) 1969-11-12 Reno, NV Century 21 (2) PART 2: SUBSEQUENT 70MM ENGAGEMENTS AND SCREENINGS (unreserved seating / general-release policy) 1969-10-15 King of Prussia, PA Plaza (2) 1969-10-15 Moorestown, NJ Plaza Moorestown (2) 1969-10-17 Calumet City, IL River Oaks (2) 1969-10-17 Oak Brook, IL Oakbrook (2) 1969-11-05 Moorestown, NJ Plaza Moorestown (2) 1969-11-20 Newport News, VA Newmarket (2) 1970-02-11 Knoxville, TN Capri (1) 1975-09-10 Bloomington, MN Southtown (1) [70mm musical festival] 1992-07-24 Los Angeles, CA LACMA Leo S. Bing [70mm festival] Sweet Charity screened at the Cannes Film Festival, out of competition, on May 8th, 1969. The first roadshow engagement held outside North America was in London (at Odeon Leicester Square) and commenced February 25th, 1969. The first foreign-language roadshow engagement was in Mexico City (at Cine Manacar) and commenced June 19th, 1969. The first of thousands of domestic (mostly) 35mm general-release engagements were held during the summer of 1969. The information included in this article was principally referenced from film industry trade publications, regional newspaper promotion, and print enclosures. Special thanks to Bill Kallay and Bill Kretzel. International 70mm engagements of this title have not been accounted for in this article. If you believe this article contains any errors or omissions, please consider emailing the author or editor. |
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