Windjammer: The North American Cinemiracle and Cinerama Roadshow Engagements | Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter |
| Compiled by: Michael Coate | Date: 11.05.2025 |
 The following is a reference / historical listing of the Cinemiracle and Cinerama roadshow presentations of Windjammer in the United States and Canada. Louis de Rochemonts Windjammer was the first and only feature-length travelogue produced in the large, deeply-curved-screen Cinemiracle format. The film, about the voyage of the Christian Radich, world premiered April 8th, 1958, at the Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. Windjammer was presented exclusively in Cinemiracle- and Cinerama-branded cinemas. The print type was 26fps 6-perf 35mm x 3 plus 35mm magnetic fullcoat interlocked 7-channel audio. The presentations cited in this work were hard ticket roadshow engagements (i.e. special, long-running, showcase presentations in major cities prior to the film being exhibited as a general release). Much like a stage production, these typically featured advanced admission pricing, reserved seating, an overture/intermission/entracte/exit music, and an average of only ten scheduled screenings per week. Souvenir program booklet were sold, as well, and, in some locales, the films soundtrack album. Out of the hundreds of first-run films released in North America during 1958, Windjammer was among only eight given deluxe roadshow treatment and one of only two in a large-aperture 3-panel format (South Seas Adventure in Cinerama was the other large-aperture 3-panel release). PART 1: THE CINEMIRACLE AND CINERAMA ROADSHOW ENGAGEMENTS (reserved seat policy / 3-panel presentation w/ 7-track stereophonic sound) Opening date YYYY-MM-DD city cinema (duration in weeks) [notes] *CineMiracle presentation **Cinerama presentation (Produced in CineMiracle, Presented in Cinerama) ***Cinerama presentation (no references to CineMiracle in promotional material as by this point Windjammer was owned by Cinerama, Inc) 1958-04-08 Los Angeles, CA Chinese* (37) 1958-04-09 New York, NY Roxy* (24) 1958-06-20 Chicago, IL Opera House* (14) 1958-08-13 St. Louis, MO Ambassador** (11) 1958-08-27 Boston, MA Boston** (33) 1958-08-28 Kansas City, MO Missouri** (15) 1958-09-11 Pittsburgh, PA Warner** (9) 1958-10-16 Washington, DC Warner** (9) 1958-10-29 Philadelphia, PA Boyd** (16) 1958-11-04 North Las Vegas, NV Nevada Drive-In* [test screening] 1958-11-20 Minneapolis, MN Century** (31) 1958-12-18 Denver, CO Tabor* (15) 1958-12-25 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Fox* (15 [52]) [moveover from Chinese] 1959-01-23 Seattle, WA Paramount* (13) 1959-04-24 San Diego, CA Fox* (7) 1959-05-08 Portland, OR Hollywood* (13) 1959-05-15 Houston, TX Uptown* (7) 1959-06-09 Cleveland, OH Palace** (6) 1959-06-19 Oklahoma City, OK Cooper* (17) 1959-06-24 Vancouver, BC Strand* (17) 1959-07-01 Asbury Park, NJ St. James* (3) 1959-07-22 Stamford, CT Ridgeway* (?) 1959-08-21 Milwaukee, WI Strand* (17) 1959-09-25 St. Paul, MN Strand* (7) 1959-10-14 Cincinnati, OH Capitol** (19) 1959-11-17 San Francisco, CA Orpheum** (32) 1959-12-25 Chicago, IL McVickers* (22) [market return run] 1959-12-25 Memphis, TN Crosstown* (6) 1959-12-25 Tampa, FL Park* (7) 1959-12-25 Upper Montclair, NJ Bellevue* (37) | More in 70mm reading: Louis de Rochemont's "Windjammer" produced in Cinemiracle 70mm Cinemas in North America in70mm.com's list of films blown up to 70mm 70mm Engagements by Title 35mm to 70mm Engagements by Year Large Format 7OMM Engagements Month by month premiere list of wide gauge and 3-strip films Chronological premiere list of major 70mm films 70mm Blow Up List Dolby Stereo |
 1960-02-19
Baltimore, MD Mayfair* (12)1960-02-23 Montreal, QC Imperial** (20) 1960-03-04 Norfolk, VA Norva* (4) 1960-03-23 Detroit, MI Music Hall** (39) 1960-05-25 Albany, NY Hellman* (5) 1960-06-17 Buffalo, NY Granada* (8) 1960-06-28 Syosset, NY Syosset** (20) 1960-07-06 Ballston Lake, NY Super 50 Drive-In* (3) [market return run] 1960-07-20 Cincinnati, OH Twin Drive-In* (3) 1960-07-21 Bronxville, NY Bronxville* (9) 1960-07-29 Atlantic City, NJ Warren* (6) 1960-09-01 Salt Lake City, UT Villa* (16) 1960-10-12 Glenside, PA Keswick* (10) 1960-10-23 Lancaster, PA King* (9) 1960-12-23 Toronto, ON Eglinton* (52) 1961-01-25 Dallas, TX Wynnewood* (9) 1961-02-14 Scranton, PA West Side* (13) 1961-03-15 Dayton, OH McCook* (14) 1961-04-01 Springfield, MA Arcade* (8) 1961-05-15 Boston, MA Boston*** (23) [return run] 1961-06-12 Minneapolis, MN Century*** (21) [return run] 1961-09-18 Detroit, MI Music Hall*** (12) [return run] 1962-02-14 Miami, FL Florida*** (7) 1962-03-01 Toledo, OH Paramount*** (15) 1962-03-23 Oklahoma City, OK Cooper*** (5) [return run] 1962-04-21 Montclair, NJ Clairidge*** (21) [market return run] 1962-05-02 Montreal, QC Imperial*** (3) [return run] 1962-05-16 Milwaukee, WI Palace*** (13) [market return run] 1962-05-23 Columbus, OH Grand*** (13) 1962-05-29 Cincinnati, OH Capitol*** (3) 1962-05-30 Louisville, KY Rialto*** (13) 1962-06-06 Kansas City, MO Empire*** (8) [market return run] 1962-06-07 Charlotte, NC Carolina*** (7) 1962-06-07 Indianapolis, IN Indiana*** (10) 1962-07-06 Toronto, ON Eglinton* (6) [return run] 1962-07-18 Cleveland, OH Palace*** (3) [return run] 1962-07-19 Rochester, NY Monroe*** (5) 1962-08-31 Omaha, NE Cooper*** (13) 1963-01-08 Wichita, KS Uptown*** (13) 1963-01-10 Atlanta, GA Martin Cinerama*** (9) 1963-01-10 Chattanooga, TN Brainerd*** (8) 1963-02-07 Nashville, TN Crescent*** (9) 1963-02-20 Erie, PA Strand*** (7) 1963-02-27 Cleveland, OH Palace*** (2) [return run] 1963-09-02 Jacksonville, FL 5 Points*** (3) 1963-09-18 Honolulu, HI Cinerama*** (6) 1963-10-10 Fresno, CA Warner*** (6) 1963-10-11 Birmingham, AL Ritz*** (6) 1963-11-14 Vancouver, BC Strand*** (14) [return run] 1964-04-29 New York, NY Loews Cinerama*** (8) [market return run] 1964-12-23 Albuquerque, NM Fox Winrock*** (5) 1965-02-24 Wichita, KS Uptown*** (4) [return run] 1965-04-15 Providence, RI Cinerama*** (11) 1965-06-23 Sacramento, CA Esquire*** (8) PART 2: NORTH AMERICAN CINERAMA MARKETS AND VENUES IN WHICH WINDJAMMER DID NOT PLAY Akron (Cuyahoga Falls), OH Falls El Paso, TX Capri Hartford, CT Cinerama New Orleans, LA Cinerama Phoenix (Scottsdale), AZ Kachina Rockland County/Nanuet, NY Route 59 Syracuse, NY Eckel Note there was an early 1970s re-release in standard 35mm. There is no record of any tri-panel Cinemiracle/Cinerama or 70mm prints utilized during this re-release. This information has been principally referenced from film industry trade publications and regional newspaper promotion, with thanks to Al Alvarez, Claude Ayakawa, Jim Barg, Kirk Besse, Raymond Caple, Nick DiMaggio, Sheldon Hall, William Hooper, Bill Huelbig, Mark Huffstetler, Bill Kallay, Bill Kretzel, Mark Lensenmayer, Matthew Lutthans, Stan Malone, Gabriel Neeb, Jim Perry, John Sittig, David Strohmaier, Bob Throop, Joel Weide and Vince Young. International presentations of this title have not been accounted for in this article. If you believe this article contains any errors or omissions, please consider emailing the author or editor. | |
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