Customer Reviews

The Show Starts on the Sidewalk: An Architectural History of the Movie Theatre, Starring S. Charles Lee

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Having worked and managed movie theatres from the 40s thru early 70s, and now considered a "dinosaur" of that age, was completely captivated by the coverage accomplished by Ms.Valentine, especially on the accomplishments of architect Lee.She captured the "flavor" and context of that wonderful era,never to be again. And surprise of surprises,I actually managed or knew intimately of some of the theatres Mr.Lee designed or worked on! I have nearly all the books published on movie theatres,et al,but have to admit this particular tome really grabbed me emotionally with text and photos so for the while it took me to read this book(hard to put down)I re-lived that era in a way I never thought possible. (The Arden in Lynwood, Tower in L.A., the old Alhambra in Alhambra, are only a few I "set foot in again"!)..if I could give it more than 5 stars I would! A tip of my hat to Ms.Valentine, to Mr.Lee, and the great bunch of people I worked with, and for, oh, so many, many years ago

I am a brazilian architect, working now in a thesis research about movie theaters located in my city, Porto Alegre, in the south of Brazil. I found this book in B&N store, in New York. It's a great book! GOOD for my work in research end for teaching architecture design (at an architecture school)about movie theaters. (sorry for my poor english...)

I have been researching the history of my Utah town's small, historic theater (built in 1927) for the past year, and this book provided me with a wealth of information about the evolution of American movie theaters that has given more context to my research. I have no background in architecture other than a general interest and appreciation. I found the author's writing clear, accessible, and fascinating to read as a narrative history.

It was not dry, filled with jargon, or dumbed-down like some other theater/cinema history books I've come across.

I had no idea who S. Charles Lee was before I picked up this book, but don't be mislead to think this is strictly a biography. The author masterfully weaves Lee's personal and professional history into the history and social importance of movie theaters from 19th century penny arcades to modern multiplexes. Lee's high-quality work parallels the development of theater architecture over time and so it works very well to use his photos and architectural renderings as examples. There are a lot of really great historical images included in this book that make it worth purchasing even if you don't want to read about them.

My only complaint is that this book was published in 1994 and doesn't give any insight into the present-day concerns of movie theaters. That's not really a complaint so much as a request for a revised edition!

My sister has written a very intelligent and well thought out book. She deserves to be rich and famous.