Classic 1924 PETER PAN at Disney's El Capitan Theatre April 29th!
Robert Birchard
Ernest Torrence, Esther Ralston and Mary Brian will indeed be shown at
the El Capitan Theatre located at 6838 Hollywood Boulevard in
Hollywood--but the date is SATURDAY, APRIL 29, 2000. The show will
start at 7:30 p.m.
The film will be accompanied by well-known organist Dennis James on
the Mighty Wurlitzer pipe organ recently installed at the El Capitan,
The 4 manual 37 rank organ was originally installed in the Fox Theatre
in San Francisco, and is a legendary theatre organ. Anyone who has seen
Dennis's many film concerts around the country know what a great job he
will do with this classic film.
Also on the program will be "Alice's Wild West Show" (1924) one of
Walt Disney's Alice in Cartoonland series featuring the first
Alice--Virginia Davis. Virginia Davis has promised to be there in
person!
Leonard Maltin will introduce the show. Program notes have been
supplied by somebody named Bob Birchard!
The 1924 silent PETER PAN was acquired by Walt Disney in 1938 to
serve as a model for his anticipated animated version, which finally
reached theatres in 1953. The Disney studio only kept a 16mm dupe
negative, and the film was thought to be lost in 35mm until a print
turned up at the Eastman Theatre in Rochester, New York in the 1950's.
The print had been used to train musicians in scoring and playing for
silent films, and apparently had been forgotten after the arrival of
sound. Black and White prints have been available for years, but the
print to be shown at the El Capitan will be the new restoration which
was recently completed by the George Eastman House with the assistance
of Disney Library Restoration. The new print preserves the color tints
and tones of the original release. This will be the first time the
restored print has been publicly screened in a Los Angeles Theatre.
The El Capitan Theatre was built in the late 1920's as a legit
house. After extensive remodeling in the art moderne style, the theatre
became known as the Paramount and served as a showcase film house for
many years. Citizen Kane and Reap The Wild Wind are among the films
that premiered there. When the Disney Company took a lease on the
theatre, they made a commitment to restore the El Capitan to it's
original 1920's rococo splendor. The restoration has proved to be a
great success, and today the El Capitan is the highest-grossing single
screen theatre in the country!
The El Capitan Theatre alone is worth a look, but you can't afford
to miss this one-time only chance to see PETER PAN on the big El Capitan
screen with Dennis James at the Mighty Wurlitzer.
Tickets are only $12.00 bucks each. For ticket information call
(818) 559-6244, or you can order them over the web at:
http://www.elcapitantickets.com
Go to the date page and scroll down to the APRIL 29 PETER PAN
event.
You may have seen PETER PAN on video, but don't be fooled. Here is
a rare opportunity to see the film as it was meant to be seen. Drive,
sail, fly, or come by horseback, but don't miss this one!
--
Bob Birchard
bbir...@earthlink.net
http://www.mdle.com/ClassicFilms/Guest/birchard.htm