Magic Johnson Theatres

Last updated

Magic Johnson Theatres is a chain of movie theaters, originally developed in 1994 by Johnson Development Corporation, the business holding of basketball player-turned-entrepreneur Magic Johnson, and Sony Pictures Entertainment through a partnership with Sony-Loews Theatres. [1] [2]

Contents

A 1998 merger between Sony-Loews and Cineplex Odeon Corporation caused them to become part of the new Loews Cineplex Entertainment Corp. Magic Johnson worked with Lawrence Ruisi, President and CEO of Loews Cineplex Entertainment, during the planning and development of these theaters. Currently the chain's former locations are owned by AMC Theatres, after Sony-Loews was acquired by that company in 2006. [3] Although they are still branded Magic Johnson Theatres, they are solely controlled by AMC.

Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Jr., is no longer actively involved in the management committee, strategic planning, operations, or public relations.

History

The focus of Magic Theatres was to build first-rate multiplexes in urban communities, bringing high quality facilities and technology, as well as job development, encouraging local economic growth. While Magic Theatres are patterned after the Loews Cineplex Entertainment model, they focus on urban markets. Each complex is around 60,000 square feet (5,600 m2) with multiple concession areas, 10 to 15 screens with SDDS stereo sound, stadium seating and a capacity of 3,200 to 5,000. After building the Magic Theatre in Harlem, multiple businesses followed suit including Old Navy, Disney, and HMV.

There are/were two multiplex theatres in, or near, major cities of the United States of America, namely in areas which are predominantly African-American and previously were underserved by modern cineplexes.

Johnson brought his understanding of the community to his theater operations. In his concessions he planned on his customers eating their dinner with the movie adding chicken wings and buffalo shrimp to the selection. Flavored sodas were added to emulate the Kool-Aid the kids he grew up with would drink at home.

"Used to be we couldn't afford to go to dinner and the movie afterward. I told Loews 'Black people are going to eat dinner at the movies'"

No gang colors or "hanging out" in large groups was permitted in the theaters. Johnson would personally appear before each movie:

"So we got a few policies that apply to everyone. They are not meant to disrespect. They're there so we can all have a good time. So if you have a problem, leave it in the street." [4]

Los Angeles multiplex

The venture dates back to July 1995, when the Magic Johnson Crenshaw 15 opened in the Baldwin Hills Mall in the South region of Los Angeles, California.

It was the first multiplex theatre opened, and was closed in 2010. [5] It was completely renovated and reopened as the Rave Cinemas Baldwin Hills 15 by the Rave Cinemas chain in 2011. [6] It is now owned by Cinemark Theatres and is renamed the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza 15 and XD. [7]

Other multiplexes

The only two multiplexes that were opened during the partnership with Magic Johnson, and are still operating, is the AMC Magic Johnson Harlem 9 in Harlem, New York City and the AMC Magic Johnson 12 Capital Center in Largo, MD, a suburb of Washington, D.C. [8]

The Randall Park 12 in Cleveland, Ohio; Northline 12 in Houston, Texas; and Greenbriar 12 in Atlanta, Georgia — were all closed by AMC due to lack of profitability.

The Magic Theatres Cap Center 12 in Largo, Maryland is still open and operated by AMC Theatres. The Cap Center 12 was the first multiplex opened that was not a partnership with Magic Johnson. Loews Cineplex Entertainment had used the Magic Theatres name only to brand the location.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Movie theater</span> Venue for viewing films

A movie theater, cinema, or cinema hall, also known as a movie house, picture house, picture theater or simply theater, is a business that contains auditoria for viewing films for public entertainment. Most are commercial operations catering to the general public, who attend by purchasing tickets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loews Cineplex Entertainment</span> American theater chain

Loews Cineplex Entertainment, also known as Loews Incorporated, was an American theater chain operating in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cineplex Odeon Corporation</span> Former theatre company

Cineplex Odeon Corporation was one of North America's largest movie theatre operators and live theatre, with theatres in its home country of Canada and the United States. The Cineplex Odeon brand is still being used by Cineplex Entertainment at some theatres that were once owned by the Cineplex Odeon Corporation, with newer theatres using the Cineplex Cinemas brand. The company was the result of Cineplex Corporation in 1984 purchasing and merging with Canadian Odeon Theatres, which itself was the result of a merger between Canadian Theatres and Odeon Theatres of Canada in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AMC Theatres</span> American movie theater chain

AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. is an American movie theater chain founded in Kansas City, Missouri, and now headquartered in Leawood, Kansas. It is the largest movie theater chain in the world. Founded in 1920, AMC has the largest share of the U.S. theater market ahead of Regal Cinemas and Cinemark Theatres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Century Theatres</span> Movie theater chain in the western United States

Century Theatres is a movie theater chain that operates many multiplexes in the western United States, primarily in California, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. In its later years, it had expanded into the inter-mountain states, the Pacific Northwest, Texas, Alaska and parts of the Midwestern United States. Founded in 1941, the chain was headquartered in San Rafael, California until it was acquired by Cinemark Theatres from Plano, Texas in 2006. Many now-Cinemark-owned theaters continue to operate under the Century brand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regal Cinemas</span> Movie theater chain in the United States

Regal Cinemas is an American movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. A division of Cineworld, Regal operates the second-largest theater circuit in the United States, with 6,853 screens in 511 theaters as of December 31, 2021. The three main theater brands operated by Regal Entertainment Group are Regal Cinemas, Edwards Theatres, and United Artists Theatres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rave Cinemas</span>

Rave Cinemas, formerly known as "Rave Motion Pictures", is a movie theater brand founded in 1999 and owned by Cinemark Theatres. It previously was headed by Thomas W. Stephenson, Jr., former CEO of Hollywood Theaters, and Rolando B. Rodriguez, former Vice President and Regional General Manager for Walmart in Illinois and northern Indiana. The chain was headquartered in Dallas, Texas until it was acquired by Plano-based Cinemark Theatres.

Cinemark Holdings, Inc. is an American movie theater chain that started operations in 1984 and since then it has operated theaters with hundreds of locations throughout the Americas. It is headquartered in Plano, Texas, in the Dallas–Fort Worth area. Cinemark is a leader in the theatrical exhibition industry with 521 theaters and 5,855 screens in the U.S. and Latin America as of June 30, 2022. It is also the largest movie theatre chain in Brazil, with a 30 percent market share.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cineplex Entertainment</span> Canadian entertainment company and movie theater chain

Cineplex Inc. is a Canadian operator of movie theater and family entertainment centers, headquartered in Toronto. It is the largest cinema chain in Canada; as of 2019, it operated 165 locations, and accounted for 75% of the domestic box office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Empire Theatres</span> Defunct Canadian movie theater chain

Empire Theatres Limited was a movie theater chain in Canada, a subsidiary of Empire Company Ltd., the holding company of the Sobey family conglomerate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carmike Cinemas</span>

Carmike Cinemas was an American motion picture exhibitor headquartered in Columbus, Georgia. As of March 2016, the company had 276 theaters with 2,954 screens in 41 states, and was the fourth largest movie theater chain in the United States. The company billed itself as "America's Hometown Theatre" and Carmike theaters were largely positioned in rural or suburban areas with populations under 200,000. The company's theaters operated under various names and generally had a name followed by the number of auditoriums at that location; for example, "Carmike 15".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinemex</span> Cineplex company based in Mexico

Cinemex is a Mexican chain of cinemas. It operates multiplexes in cities such as Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Toluca, Cd. Juarez, Leon, Tijuana, Mexicali, Puebla and other Mexican cities.

A cineplex is a multiplex, a movie theatre with several screens, coming from the words cinema and complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National CineMedia</span> American cinema advertising company

National CineMedia, Inc. (NCM) is an American cinema advertising company. NCM displays ads to U.S. consumers in movie theaters, online and through mobile technology. NCM presents cinema advertising across a digital in-theater network, consisting of theaters owned by AMC Entertainment, Cinemark, Regal Entertainment Group and other regional theater circuits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Star Theatres</span>

Star Theatres was an American movie theatre chain, initially owned and operated by Loeks Star Partners and Loews Cineplex Entertainment, and later by AMC Theatres.

Megabox Joongang is a multiplex cinema chain in South Korea, and the third largest multiplex theater company in the country, after CJ CGV and Lotte Cinema. It is headquartered in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It was established in 2000 as a joint venture between Orion Confectionery and Loews Cineplex Entertainment, owned jointly by Sony Pictures and Universal Studios. It later merged with Cinus, owned by JoongAng Group's Media Network, in 2010. Currently, it operates 722 screens at 105 locations nationwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multiplex (movie theater)</span> Movie theater complex

A multiplex is a movie theater complex with multiple screens or auditoriums within a single complex. They are usually housed in a specially designed building. Sometimes, an existing venue undergoes a renovation where the existing auditoriums are split into smaller ones, or more auditoriums are added in an extension or expansion of the building. The largest of these complexes can sit thousands of people and are sometimes referred to as a megaplex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HHLA (mall)</span> Shopping mall in Los Angeles, California

HHLA is a two-level outdoor mixed-use center that features a blend of entertainment, dining, and shopping venues located at the Howard Hughes Center in Westchester and adjacent to Playa Vista both Westside Los Angeles districts in the city of Los Angeles, California. It is also close to the Fox Hills district in Culver City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MovieTickets.com</span> Movie ticket sales website

MovieTickets.com is an online movie ticketing website founded by AMC Theatres and Hollywood.com in 2000; CBS Corporation, Famous Players, and National Amusements all came on board prior to launch; and it is now a subsidiary of Fandango Media. MovieTickets.com provides movie times for all theaters, and online ticket purchasing for all Clearview Cinemas and National Amusements theaters, among other smaller chains; such as Mann Theatres in Los Angeles. In 2010, MovieTickets.com sold over 16 million tickets for over 200 exhibitors, with 14,000 screens.

References

  1. ↑ "Magic Johnson". Magic Johnson. Archived from the original on 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2013-05-16.
  2. ↑ Vincent, Roger (28 March 2012). "Magic Johnson built business empire after court glories ended" – via LA Times.
  3. ↑ Amter, Charlie (20 February 2009). "Magic Johnson" – via LA Times.
  4. ↑ Leon-Guerrero, Anna (16 September 2010). Social Problems: Community, Policy, and Social Action. ISBN   9781412988056.
  5. ↑ Rothman, Tibby (25 November 2010). "A Magic Johnson Theatre Era Ends".
  6. ↑ "Former Magic Johnson Theaters reopens as Rave Cinemas". 28 June 2011.
  7. ↑ "Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza 15 and XD - Los Angeles, CA - Cinemark Theatres". www.cinemark.com.
  8. ↑ "AMC Magic Johnson Harlem 9". www.amctheatres.com.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.