FUN FACTS
ABOUT MOVIE THEATRES IN MICHIGAN
From single-screen movie houses to drive-ins to megaplexes, each movie theatre is unique in history and operation. Below are some fun facts about threatres located in Michigan.
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AMC THEATRES got its beginning in 1920 (that’s more than 100 years ago!) as a family-owned business in Kansas City, Missouri. Today it is the largest theatrical exhibitor in the United States and the world. AMC Theatres is credited with several innovations, including opening the world’s first multiplex (1962) and megaplex (1995), and the first theatre chain to add cupholder armrests (1981).
The Bel-Air Drive-In opened in 1950 with a car capacity for 1,800. It eventually expanded to four screens and a capacity of 3,000 cars. Today BEL-AIR LUXURY CINEMA is located on the site of the former drive-In and is Detroit’s only operating first-run movie theatre.
The CELEBRATION CINEMA chain of movie theatres got its start in 1965 as Studio 28, the iconic one-screen theatre in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
THE EATON THEATRE in downtown Charlotte, Michigan, opened in 1931 with one screen and 750 seats. A second screen was added in 1960. During the COVID-19 shutdown, the theatre sold popcorn to go. Its current owner previously managed the theatre for 18 years.
The single-screen ELK RAPIDS CINEMA in Elk Rapids, Michigan, is home to the world’s largest black-light mural, displayed on the ceiling.
EMAGINE was the first theater chain in the world to convert to 100% digital projection. Cinema Hollywood (now Emagine Birch Run) was the first theater in Michigan to open with all stadium seating (1997).
The FORD-WYOMING DRIVE-IN—named for its location near the intersection of Ford Road and Wyoming Avenue in Dearborn, Michigan—is one of approximately 300 drive-ins remaining in the United States and just nine in Michigan. At one time, there were more than 4,000 countrywide. With five screens and a 3,000-car capacity, today it is one of the largest drive-ins in the world. It offers double features all-year long, providing plug-in heaters during the winter.
The small-town IDEAL THEATRE in Clare, Michigan, is thought to be one of the first theaters constructed for showing "talkies" (motion pictures with sound). The 1930 building was redone, from the basement to the roof, before reopening after the pandemic.
MJR THEATRES took its name from its original 1980s slogan, Movies Just Right. It’s Troy location features one of Michigan’s largest cinema screens.
Neighborhood Cinema Group—branded as NCG CINEMAS—is a family owned and operated chain headquartered in Owosso, Michigan. It has expanded to other states, including Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, New York, North and south Carolina, and Tennessee.
The classic State-Wayne Theater, now owned and operated by PHOENIX THEATRES, opened in 1946 after a six-year building hiatus due to World War II. Today Phoenix Theatres operates a total of 69 screens in Michigan, Iowa, Massachusetts, and Ohio.
THOMAS THEATRE GROUP was founded in 1922 to provide local entertainment to Northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Throughout its history, the company has remained a family business. Today its three theaters in Escanaba, Quinnesec, and Marquette, are owned and operated by the great-grandson of the Thomas Theatre Group founder.
VICKERS THEATRE in Three Oaks, Michigan, showed its first movies back in 1911. Throughout its history, the theatre has had five names - The Fairyland, Lee’s Theatre, The Family Theater, The Oak Theater, and finally The Vickers Theatre. The building that houses the theatre today was originally a livery and feed store.
VASSAR THEATRE in downtown Vassar, Michigan, opened in 1937. Over the decades, it has survived floods, extended closures, vandalism, economic hardships, and changes in ownership.