Rivoli, of course. Not all that far from the Winbtergarden, which was the home of the Broadway show.
I knew the Wise/Chaplin connection to WWS, but was surprised by all the match-ups with Sound. Explains a lot about the success of both shows.
Surprised by your suggestion that the overwhelming success of Sound led to the copy-cat explosion that "done 'em in." Have to agree, though. That means, I guess, that House of Was should get the credit for killing off 3D before Hitch's Dial M for Murder could be released. Recently learned that Kiss Me Kate was also filmed in 3D. Should have guessed it from the number of things they throw at you in that film. Would like to see both films in 3D. Maybe the latest revival of the system will last long enough for me to get my wish.
There will now be a brief pause while everyone listens to: "and STEREEEEEE O PHONIC SOUND!"
Thanks, again, Matthew. Will be reading your further posts with great eagerness.
Matthew wrote:Hi Lucky,
Roadshows actually go back to the silent era, when live orchestras traveled with major films, i.e. "let's take this show on the road."
If there was a Golden Age of the roadshow, it would have been the '50s, when Hollywood was delivering reserve seat blockbusters like This is Cinerama, The Robe, Oklahoma!, Around the World in 80 Days, Ben-Hur, etc. West Side Story came along in 1961 and somewhat foreshadowed The Sound of Music. They were both directed by Robert Wise, produced by Saul Chaplin, written by Ernest Lehman, adapted from Broadway, and premiered at the Rivoli, the roadshow cinema place in New York for many years. And both had those spectacular openings!
Your memories of feeling a little taken by the higher ticket prices were shared by millions in the late '60s, dooming the roadshow. Was there one film responsible for the death of the roadshow? Would I be pelted with tomatoes for answering with The Sound of Music? Its phenomenal success incited so many would be hoped for copy cats that Hollywood was in a recession by 1969.