The End of the Last Reel for the Cinedome
The Googie-Style Movie House, an Orange Institution Since the ‘60s, Yields to Modern Times


Los Angeles Times, Orange County Edition, Jan. 30, 1999

(Excerpts only)

The lights have dimmed for good at the Century Cinedome in Orange, a 30-year-old complex of domed movie theaters...

According to Century Theatres employee Andrew Poulain, the theater complex, on West Chapman near the Santa Ana Freeway, will be demolished in early February.

...The Cinedome's closure has saddened some longtime moviegoers.

"I think it's sad. That's where I had my first date," said Sherri Ricker, 45, of Anaheim, who reminisced about seeing the 1959 release of "Ben-Hur" at the Cinedome in 1969. "It was a really special place," she said. "I had to wear a fancy dress to go there."

...According to Orange Community Development Director Jack McGee, area residents seem unconcerned about the Cinedome's demise and forthcoming demolition.

Such was not the case last month in Hollywood, where preservationists and film buffs fought successfully to save that area's Cinerama Dome from major interior and exterior changes.

...According to historian and preservationist John English, who took part in the fight to save the Cinerama Dome, the theaters are priceless cultural landmarks built in a "Googie" style reflective of the optimistic fervor that swept the nation after World War II.

"It's a matter of saving a few examples of a specific time and place," English said, adding that few examples of the architecture remain in Orange County.

Preservationist Daniel Paul, 26, who frequented the Cinedome as a child and is currently working with Anaheim city officials to document the Googie style there, said the Cinedome's demise is part of an unfortunate trend.

"It's too bad to see another one of these structures go down," he said. "It seems to be happening a lot in Orange County. Any type of building of character is being replaced or eradicated with new architecture which often does not have the same character as the stuff which came before."

Century's new Stadium Promenade theater ...has the latest audio technology and stadium seating, both of which the aging domes lacked...

"It's nice in its own way," Paul said. But he added: "It reeks of sameness. . . . It's not very memorable in the long run."

...Century Theatres still owns domed cinemas in Northern California and elsewhere in the West, but the Cinedome was its last such complex in Orange County.