NEW THEATER DRAWS CROWDS; SIMI MOVIE HOUSE BUSTLES DURING HOLIDAY WEEK.Byline: Sylvia L. Oliande Staff Writer With its bright red sign, its neon neon (nē`ŏn) [Gr.,=new], gaseous chemical element; symbol Ne; at. no. 10; at. wt. 20.179; m.p. −248.67°C;; b.p. −246.048°C;; density 0.8999 grams per liter at STP; valence 0. Neon is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas. accents and its rows and rows of stadium seating, the new Regal Civic Center Plaza 16 attracted hordes Hordes may refer to:
The cinema was the talk of the town for months as it was being built, and Regal Cinema officials had said they were determined to open Nov. 19, in plenty of time to take advantage of this weekend's expected box office crowds. While theater managers would not comment and corporate officials did not return phone calls Saturday, Regal's customers were happy to sing the praises of the new movie house. They went because it is brand new and because its state-of-the-art features are a first for the east side of the city. ``It's nice to see Simi get something like this on this end of town,'' said Monica Standage, who grew up in Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. , but moved to Phoenix five months ago. ``This side didn't have much.'' Standage, who stood in line with her husband, Brad, and her niece NIECE, domestic relations: The daughter of a person's brother or sister. Amb. 514; 1 Jacob's Ch. R. 207. and nephew NEPHEW, dom. rel. The son of a person's brother or sister. Amb. 514; 1 Jacob's Ch. R. 207. , said a draw is the theater's stadium seating - tiered rows of plush, high-backed seats, each with an unobstructed view of the screen. Such seating has quickly become an industry standard, but was not available in Simi Valley before Regal opened. Historically, the Thanksgiving Thanksgiving annual U.S. holiday celebrating harvest and yearly blessings; originated with Pilgrims (1621). [Am. Culture: EB, IX: 922] See : America Thanksgiving national holiday with luxurious dinner as chief ritual. [Am. Pop. holiday weekend - a four-day break from work and school for many people - has been the largest of the year. This year was no exception. This holiday period is expected to shatter shat·ter v. shat·tered, shat·ter·ing, shat·ters v.tr. 1. To cause to break or burst suddenly into pieces, as with a violent blow. 2. a. last year's take, based on Wednesday and Thursday's numbers, industry sources say. Leading the pack of films out now is ``Toy Story 2'', which had already taken in more than $23 million dollars by Friday. Arnold Schwartzenegger's new film ``End of Days'' opened to more than $11 million and the new James Bond movie ``The World Is Not Enough'' took in $10.7 million in ticket sales during the first part of the long weekend period. The appeal for many theatergoers on Saturday was having some time off, coupled with the fact that aside from the summer blockbuster block·bust·er n. 1. Something, such as a film or book, that sustains widespread popularity and achieves enormous sales. 2. A high-explosive bomb used for demolition purposes. 3. releases, Hollywood rolls out its best beginning this weekend. ``It's become almost a tradition,'' said A.J. Tielman, who waited in line at Regal to see ``Toy Story 2'' with his wife and three daughters. ``You have dinner, then see movies all weekend.'' His wife, Angie Tielman, said another reason the weekend is a draw is that many people have holiday guests and try to find ways to entertain them over four or five days. ``It's time It's Time was a successful political campaign run by the Australian Labor Party (ALP) under Gough Whitlam at the 1972 election in Australia. Campaigning on the perceived need for change after 23 years of conservative (Liberal Party of Australia) government, Labor put forward a to relax a bit before the shopping starts,'' she added. But some theatergoers were oblivious to the buzz surrounding sur·round tr.v. sur·round·ed, sur·round·ing, sur·rounds 1. To extend on all sides of simultaneously; encircle. 2. To enclose or confine on all sides so as to bar escape or outside communication. n. the holiday and simply went to the movies to have a good time. ``This is just a day out with my kids,'' said Theresa Brayton. She brought her son and two daughters to the Edwards 10 Cinemas, on the west side of town, to see ``Toy Story 2''. ``I didn't know it was the biggest weekend,'' Brayton said. She said she likes the Edwards, and has not been to the new Regal theater on Tapo Canyon Road. The Edwards is ``clean, the theaters are big, the seats are comfortable and the service is good,'' she said. Edwards Simi Valley Plaza 10 assistant manager Jose Martinez said the chain, which also includes Edwards Mountain Gate 7, geared up for the big weekend by pulling in extra workers to staff the ticket booths and the snack bar. He also said that while the theater would normally order three or four boxes of each food item, the managers beefed up the order to five and 10 of each. Martinez said despite the high-tech features the larger cineplex boasts, Regal's opening has not taken his customers away. While Edwards has averaged about 1,500 people each day of the first part of the holiday weekend, which began Wednesday night, on Friday that number doubled to 3,000 in one night. ``It's not hurting us at all,'' he said. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO (color in Verb 1. color in - add color to; "The child colored the drawings"; "Fall colored the trees"; "colorize black and white film" color, colorise, colorize, colour in, colourise, colourize, colour Simi edition only) Film fans line up outside the new Regal Civic Center Plaza 16 on Saturday afternoon during Thanksgiving week. Phil McCarten/Staff Photographer |
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