Things You Didn’t Know About the Laemmle Town Center 5
Laemmle Theaters, many consider it as the theatre of dreams in Los Angeles, is standing tall since 1938. It consists of several family-run art house movie theaters. Presently, Greg Laemmle and his father, Robert Laemmle, owns and operates these magnificent theaters in Los Angeles.
History of the Laemmle Town Center
History of the Laemmle Town CenterThe history of the Laemmle Town Center goes back to the time of Robert Laemmle’s uncle, Kurt, and his father, Max Laemmle. These guys were cousins of Carl Laemmle, the founder of Universal Pictures. Kurt and Max planned to bring the first movie theatre in Los Angeles in the Highland Park neighborhood way back in 1938. That was the start of what you now see as the well-decorated Laemmle Town Center 5. What started as a single theatre flick now has seven locations:
- The Royal Theatre located in West Los Angeles
- The NoHo 7 located in North Hollywood
- Claremont 5 located in Claremont
- Town Center 5 located in Encino
- Monica 4-plex located in Santa Monica
- Playhouse 7 located in Pasadena
- Music Hall 3 in Beverly Hills
Among these, the Laemmle Town Center 5 is the grandest of them all. As one of the many dentists in Encino, I agree. There was another theatre located called the Laemmle Grande 4-Plex. It was shut down in 2009 as the Regal Cinema complex opened for the viewers.
One of the reasons why the Laemmle Theaters is widely popular in Los Angeles is it has multiple screens. This allows people to watch different movies playing at different hours. It not only facilitates flexible timing but also helps film producers to get multiple screen times for their movies, such as for the Encino Man movie. Previously, Laemmle Theaters could only afford a single screen as movie theaters were very rare in Los Angeles. However, with the help of Kurt and Max, things changed for the better before Robert and his son Greg came to the helm of this group of theaters.
Laemmle Encino Theater Receives $12.8M Grant
Back in 2011, in December actually, Laemmle Theaters received a grant of $12.8 million from the Glendale City Council and Redevelopment Agency. This was for a plan to build a loft that would accommodate forty-two residential units, a Panda Inn Restaurant, and add five more screens for the theaters. This was a massive leap into modernizing theaters. Back then, no theaters had multiple screens in LA. So, Laemmle Theaters immediately came into the forefront with this venture and drew thousands of visitors from all of Los Angeles.
The construction of this entire project began in 2015. It was finally ready in 2017, and there were thousands of viewers lining up every week to watch their favorite movies and dine at one of the best restaurants.
The Secret Path To Oscar Qualifying
The Secret Path To Oscar QualifyingIn recent years, many people call the Laemmle venues, especially the Laemmle Town Center 5, as “Secret Path to Oscar Qualifying.” This is because many documentaries, short films, and independent films are being directed in these theaters. Laemmle is the only theatre organization that offers tailor-made services that can help a movie qualify for the Academy Awards.
The father-son duo charges a flat rate for film exhibitions. However, they allow the film producers to rake up 100 percent of their box office receipts after each show. Some of the top-level directors meet with the Academy directors every year to check the different categories of films that will go into the Academy Awards. These movies will qualify for the final selections.
Apart from helping films reach the pinnacle of success, this group of theaters also help film directors to book their movies outside their theaters if any committee wants to do a special screening. So, the Laemmle Theaters has now become the core group that holds the film fraternity together in Los Angeles.
