[think] Where Have All the Wichita Movie Theatres Gone?
I did something different this holiday season: I tried to go to a movie on Christmas. From the moment I walked into the 13th Street Warren, it was clear that I was out of my league. I thought getting there 30 minutes before showtime would give us plenty of time to buy our tickets and get seated. Boy, was I wrong. Every movie for that time was sold out, most likely by people who were smart enough to buy their tickets online.
My companions and I drove home defeated, but I did manage to attend a movie the following day by purchasing tickets three hours in advance. As my mom and I settled in to enjoy the flick, elbow to elbow in the crowded theater, the welcome message began to play. You know the one, where the guy with the booming voice tells you how movie ticket sales for the Warren are up in the midst of our struggling economy. I thought to myself, “Of course they are! The Warren is the only real movie theater in town!”
Then the movie started, and I put my thoughts of local monopolies aside for two wonderful hours spent with George Clooney and his smile. But later that evening, my thoughts wandered back to movie options in Wichita. Yes, we have Northrock 14 on the east side. But what happened to Cinemas East and West? What happened to the movie theater in Towne East? Why did the Palace East have to become a church? And what about Northrock 6? They spent all that time putting in balcony seating, just to have it become an office park: why?
I guess I already know part of the answer and it gives me pangs of guilt. When the Warren opened up, it was so nice and big and new. It made Cinemas East look so pathetic. The Palace was a good place to see the latest independent films, but it seemed so shabby. Even Northrock 14, which is only about 10 years old, seemed to have a funny smell when compared to the bright and shiny Warren.
Sometimes I daydream about hitting it rich and opening up an independent movie theater here in Wichita. I can only guess, though, based on the string of theater closings in the past decade, that it must cost more and be more work than it looks.
I’m not calling for a boycott of the Warren, nor do I know how to answer my desire for a simpler movie-going experience other than trekking over to the west side to go to the Palace West. I just wish I had supported the smaller Wichita theaters more when I had the chance.
What are your thoughts about theater options in Wichita? Sound off in the comments.
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I love the Warren. I’ve always been a prolific movie-goer and spent my fair share of time down at Northrock (which used to be the bright and shiny place in town) and at the other theatres across town (even the scary place on Pawnee and Broadway where I saw Silence of the Lambs).
The Warren is more than a movie house, it’s an experience. Everything from the art deco decor to the balcony seating and canteens is made to transport you into another place and time. I buy into it. I also love that Bill Warren is a local businessman. Northrock and the other theatres were franchises of AMC and other movie chains and when it came down to it, they didn’t have the capacity to cater to the entire experience as Warren could. When the Palace opened I was all about going there, not just for cheap movies but also for that WOW experience I got inside.
Times have changed and yes, places have closed. But to me, that’s how business happens. Some businesses to it better than others and they come out on top. It’s Darwinian and capitalist, but I think it’s true. When I go to the movies I want it to be something better than just a bigger screen than I have at home – I want to be transported. Bill Warren has found a way to do that and it’s made him successful. Should there be a place to see independent and art house films? Absolutely. But does Wichita have the audience capacity willing to support that kind of a place, I don’t think so or the Palace East would still be open.
But hey, that’s my 2 cents!
One of my favorite childhood memories was watching Rocky IV at the twin lakes theatre – Fox Theatre in Newton was also popular early 90’s date night location
I don’t get to go to the movies as often as I like but I do run into the same frustrations with movies being sold out. I tried to take my girls to the movies over Christmas. Got there 35 minutes in advance only to have the Princess and the Frog sold out. We suffered through Alvin in the Chipmunks and still had fun (and when I say suffered I mean it!) but still, it was so disappointing. I grew up in a tiny area and still remember seeing Ghost Busters and Gremlins in a two theater cineplex and thinking “WOW this is big time”. So, this theory of planning your movie 3 days in advance and buying the tickets by then seems detrimental to what I deem the tradition of “lets go to the movies”. We always decided on a spur of the moment to see a movie and just walked in and paid and sat down. I miss that.
As for the Warren/Palace, I buy into it too. I love those theaters! I remember being 10yr old when the Palace was pretty new and going there with my aunt. Being from a small town and walking into a theater like the Palace, I thought I was in the movie Annie for a second, where she is shown the theater in Daddy Warbuck’s house.
It is quite the experience and one I wish I could do more often. I do miss the “old days” of spur of the moment decisions or just showing up at the theater and deciding what to see when you get there. But still, nothing replaces going to the movies! And I will still keep going, despite the differences today.
My husband and I rarely have a problem with the show we want to see being sold out. (We usually go to the West Warren.) I think the last time that happened was in 2008 at the holiday season and I was held up in line by a women buying tickets for a show that wasn’t even that night!!! But I digress… There are ways to avoid the sell outs. Mainly, wait until it’s not opening night. Then it’s not usually a problem. Also, go to a matinee. Cheaper and not as crowded.
We also take advantage of specials. Did you know the Northrock has a family special on Sundays before six? If you ask for it, you will get your tickets for $4.50 each. Ask for it again at the concessions and you’ll get a large popcorn and two large sodas for another $4.50. That’s a great deal! We don’t even have a family and we use it.
Thanks Carreen! What a great tip! I’m always looking for student discounts at the theaters, and I’m so disappointed that the Warren doesn’t offer anything! Northrock is still a nice theater, and I can’t believe how everyone forgets that place.
My favorite thing about the Warren is how clean it is. They really have a gajillion kids in there working their tails off to keep that place sparkling. I love being able to booze while I watch movies too. Old Town Warren is the best, and my bf and I are normally the only ones in the whole theater! One of these days I’d like to try their new private screening room addition… wouldn’t that be awesome?? Let me tell you, watching the premier of Watchmen with a 24-ounce pitcher of energy drink, vodka, and stuff — BEST TIME EVERRRR.
If you can find the market and capital, you should totally open an independent film theater here, Ashley! I love when they show movies at the Orpheum, Scottish Rite, and others. If only we could have more films more frequently in those areas, it would be wonderful. So few people know about those events and they are too cool to miss.
I’ve been less than happy with Mr. Warren after he pulled all his support for the Tallgrass Film Festival at the last minute this year…and I never did hear a good reason why. Of course, the coordinators pulled together a great festival anyway, but that didn’t take the sting out of it for me.
We see maybe two or three movies a year in the theatre, and those are mostly children’s movies. We have given up trying to see a movie on opening night or even within a few weeks of it’s opening. We usually wait at least two weeks unless we are going to purchase the tickets ahead of time online. During the peak hours on Friday and Saturday, that’s really the only way to guarantee that you’ll get a seat. Also, we’ve learned to arrive very early so we can sit together (we’re a large family) in a comfortable place.
For all the raving and gushing about the art deco and awesomeness of the Warren, I have never thought it all that much better than Northrock 14 was when it first opened, with it’s open and spacious aviary like lobby, marble floors, and sleek and modern feel. I have to admid that the balcony seating is nice, and the cry rooms are a great idea. While I like the idea of buying food in the canteen and carrying it into the theatre, I’m not too fond of the theatre’s where you can order food and drink during the movie itself; it’s very distracting to the people sitting near you.
I don’t think that any other movie chain, locally owned or through a large company, will suceed here while Bill Warren is running the show. I’m fairly certain that with the tax incentives he’s already recieved there is little or no local money to incite another investor, and he is unlikely to play nice should one come along.
Talk about old school, I still remember the movie theatre in the Pawnee Plaza Mall, which is where the Wal-Mart is now @ the corner of Pawnee & Broadway, the movie theatre inside the Wichita Mall, which is where Office This on Harry is located, and my mom still reminds me to this day the first movie she ever took me to was to see E.T. when I was less the a year old at the old Crest Theatre which was not to far from the corner of Central & Oliver, I think there is a AAA office there now…………………..man, I’m getting old.
I LOVE going to movies at the Warren. I don’t mind so much the ticket prices, but the concessions prices are horrible! That’s when you go to Walmart and buy the $1 candy boxes and a bottle of pop- carry them in your pocket or purse and enjoy. Many people don’t know it yet, but the Warren Old Town has $5 movies on Wednesdays and it’s in a beautiful location! So go on Wednesday and enjoy!
LESS THAN A YEAR OLD when you saw E.T.? Oz, honey, I’M old. I was five or six.
As others have noted, the Warren theaters are rarely sold out outside of the Christmas holiday season.
But it’s also worth noting… you’re lamenting the loss of theaters because the Warren was crowded. But have you counted how many *screens* there are in Wichita?
Poor Cinemas West… a loss of four screens.
21st Warren has 17 screens. 13th Ave Warren has 20 screens. Old Town Warren, “small” by current standards, has 7 screens. Warren alone, without counting the Palace or the Movie Machine (Towne West), has 44 screens.
Throw in Northrock 14 and you’ve got 58 first-run screens in quality theaters to choose from in Wichita. (Northrock isn’t the experience the Warren is, but it’s still a good theater.)
Fifty-eight. I don’t see what you’re complaining about.
Cinemas West: 4
Northrock 6: 6
Cinemas East: 4
Towne East : 4
Towne West : 5 (still open)
Crest : 1 (closed in ‘89)
Before Warren and the new Northrock, we had, at best 24 first-run screens.
Today, we have more than double that, in very nice theaters.
Whoops, missed a couple…
The Pawnee Plaza 4, and the Wichita Mall, which had three screens. So add seven more to list, but I believe that Pawnee was closed before the first Warren opened, and the Wichita Mall was well on its way to dying already. (In the 90’s, I only went to the Wichita Mall as a last resort.)
So I think my claim more or less stands… we have about twice as many screens now, in higher-quality theaters, as we did in back when the theaters you mention were open.
I think this is just the nature of the theater business… a new, fancy theater opens and an old theater closes because they can’t afford to remodel. It’s nothing new… it’s been happening since the beginning of theaters.
I’ve often had the same dream about opening up an independent movie house. In fact, I’ve had my eye on Cinema West for years, but it just got purchased by a church. Oh well, the dream will have to live on somewhere else…
I miss Cinema’s west as well. I remember going there frequently after my shift working at Drug Emporium (they also went under) to watch an indie. I think there is a devoted, although maybe not as numerous as they could be, art and indie film community here to support an indpendent theater. My problem with Cinemas West was the lack of attention to really basic details of cleanliness but most importantly sound quality and screening quality. In particular, when the sound goes completely out and you don’t do anything about it for close to 20 minutes, it kinda blows the whole film. Or when the picture runs amok and the bottom half is on top for half the show. Maybe by that time they knew they were dying and had just given up…
Still, I wish I could give them another go at it.
I remember when the Northrock 6 was the best theatre in town. I saw Jurassic Park there when it came out. Once the Warren opened up on the West side of town it became our main choice for theatres even though we lived on the East side. I went to the Northrock 14 actually a few weeks ago to see a movie. It is a dump, and smells.
I just wish the Old Town Warren would start playing just one independent film each week. I don’t see why that doesn’t make sense for them since they tend to cater to adults.
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