my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Ground Level   » Cobb Theatres back and expanding

Author Topic: Cobb Theatres back and expanding Evans A Criswell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1579 From: Huntsville, AL, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 02-06-2003 02:46 PM                        I saw in the Huntsville Times today that Cobb Theatres is building a new theatre in Tuscaloosa, AL. According to the article, it will be a 16-plex with stadium seating, curved screens, the latest in audio and video [???!!!] equipment, automated ticket machines, and large concession stands. I wonder if Cobb is going to build this one in the style of their old theatres with screens that are 1.85:1-only or 2.00:1-only with no adjustable masking in many of the smaller auditoriums. Supposedly, Regal, in addition to finally fixing this problem in the old Cobb Theatre locations here in Huntsville, is fixing this problem in all of the theatres they acquired from Cobb. I'd hate to see Cobb come back and build a bunch more of these. Is anyone familiar with any theatres that Cobb currently runs in Florida or Alabama, or at least familiar enough with the company nowadays to know if this will be the case? The company is headquarted out of Birmingham, AL, so I'm wondering if this is the same old Cobb, or basically a new company with the old name.  |  IP: Logged Richard Fowler Film God Posts: 2392 From: Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA Registered: Jun 2001 posted 02-06-2003 03:54 PM                     It is Bobby Cobb who has reentered the business and all of the new locations they have picked in Florida have been successful. Richard Fowler Kinoton America Inc.  |  IP: Logged Dennis Benjamin Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1445 From: Denton, MD Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-06-2003 04:33 PM                        I helped open the Dolphin Mall 19 In South Miami. I believe it may be the 6th busy theatre in Florida (?) I respect Mr. Cobb very much and wish him all the luck in the world. BTW - The theatres are designed by the same architect as before (Rodney Sartain) but you will notice that they resemble a lot of the newer Regals.  |  IP: Logged Mike Williams Master Film Handler Posts: 255 From: Knoxville, TN Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-06-2003 07:27 PM                     Dennis, Didn't Rodney Sartain work with Regal after the Cobb takeover? I know he designed the Palace.  |  IP: Logged Dennis Benjamin Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1445 From: Denton, MD Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-06-2003 08:04 PM                        Makes sense doesn't it?  |  IP: Logged Jerry D. Cox Film Handler Posts: 35 From: Nashville, TN, USA Registered: Dec 2000 posted 02-06-2003 08:31 PM                     R.C. Cobb sold his theater's in Birmingham,Al. to Regal The day after the sale he had A hart attack an died.That was about ten yrs. ago,I work for him in 1956 in Oneonta,Al.  |  IP: Logged Evans A Criswell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1579 From: Huntsville, AL, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 02-06-2003 09:32 PM                        quote: I helped open the Dolphin Mall 19 In South Miami. I believe it may be the 6th busy theatre in Florida (?) I respect Mr. Cobb very much and wish him all the luck in the world. So are all of the screens capable of showing flat and scope, or are these newer Cobb locations like the old ones, with many screens that are "one ratio only" and unadjustable? I'm hoping that all of the new ones are built properly.  |  IP: Logged Tom Wienholt Master Film Handler Posts: 371 From: Towson, MD, USA Registered: Dec 2002 posted 02-07-2003 12:11 AM                     Hi I currently operate a 6 screen location in Bradenton, Florida that was owned by Cobb at one time and then by Regal. All six of the screens are a 1.85 to 1 flat aspect ratio. I still don't know why Cobb built the theatre this way. It makes absolutely no sense. Also, I have visited the Cobb Parkway 8 theatre in Sarasota, Florida several times. This is a discount theatre that surprisingly has screens able to accomodate scope and flat films. Way to go Cobb!  |  IP: Logged Mike Williams Master Film Handler Posts: 255 From: Knoxville, TN Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-07-2003 06:41 AM                     The Regal takeover of cobb was in August of 97.  |  IP: Logged Evans A Criswell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1579 From: Huntsville, AL, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 02-07-2003 09:41 AM                        quote: I currently operate a 6 screen location in Bradenton, Florida that was owned by Cobb at one time and then by Regal. All six of the screens are a 1.85 to 1 flat aspect ratio. Wow. At last in our theatres, 4/16 at H16 when built, and 4/12 at MS12 had adjustable masking, with all others 1.85:1. Cobb built the Cobb Cinema 8 in the old A&P grocery store with all screens except one at 2.00:1 fixed ratio. One screen had adjustable masking. Oh yeah, all these screens had exit signs shining on one side of them too! Ugh. I'll bet the Cobb second run you mention with adjustable masking was built by someone else and taken over by Cobb. The Regal takeover of Cobb was August 1, 1997. Can anyone please verify whether Cobb is still building "one size only" unadjustable screens in their NEW theatres? That's the main piece of information in which I'm interested. By the way, I have a 1954 Film Daily Year Book and Cobb is not listed as a theatre company in the back section. What year did Cobb Theatres begin to exist? [ 02-07-2003, 02:28 PM: Message edited by: Evans A Criswell ]  |  IP: Logged Dennis Benjamin Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1445 From: Denton, MD Registered: Feb 2002 posted 02-07-2003 10:46 PM                        Evans - No the NEW theatres have the adjustable masking. As a matter of fact, if I recall - Auditorium #1 at the Dolphin Mall may be the largest screen in Miami (in scope). Freddie Dobbs did the install and Bobby spent the money to make it a NICE theatre. If I recall (and this is going back a bit) Cobb Theatres goes back to the forties. For some reason the year 1946 sticks in my mind.  |  IP: Logged Evans A Criswell Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1579 From: Huntsville, AL, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 02-07-2003 11:25 PM                        It's good to hear that the new ones have the adjustable masking. You mentioned the largest screen having it, and hope you mean that even the smallest ones do too. Earlier this afternoon, I heard that Cobb may be interested in "coming back to town" by either buying back some of the Regal theatres that they originally sold to Regal (like the Jasper Movies 4), or building new theatres. They're building a new one in Tuscaloosa. If they're coming back to Huntsville, I certainly hope they're past all their bad design decisions from the past, like building in an old grocery store or cutting costs by not providing for image ratio standards that have been with us for nearly 50 years. When the Tuscaloosa location is done, I'll have to go check it out. I'd like to see a new Cobb theatre and check out the smaller auditoriums, but they're quite a distance from where I am. I think the closest Cobb is in Jasper, but it's an old one that I'm sure has some malformed screens [I may be wrong, since I've never gone in it]. Benjamin, maybe Film-Tech could use a photo session for one of the new Cobb locations. Show us a large auditorium and a small auditorium with the maskings set for scope. By the way, I have some more Film Daily Yearbooks coming from the 50s and 60s. They're a great reference.  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.