Egyptian Theater Operator Takes Over Aero

By Jorge Casuso

March 17 -- After more than two years of negotiations, the owners of the Aero Theater have entered into a ten-year lease with the operators of Hollywood's Egyptian Theater, assuring the future of the city's only single-screen movie house, a staple of Montana Avenue since the dawn of World War II.

The deal with American Cinematheque - which plans to screen its first film in late summer with new projection and sound systems and roomer seats -- caps a four year saga that saw Robert Redford's Sundance Cinema seemingly ride to the rescue, only to pull out.

"They are a perfect fit," said James Rosenfield, co-owner of the Aero, which was built by the Donald Douglas Company in 1939 for aircraft workers and became a thriving neighborhood venue for generations of Santa Monicans. "They're just exactly what we had been looking for…. It's not only the preservation of the architecture. It's the preservation of the use."

"In terms of the geography of LA, this seems like a perfect expansion," said Barbara Smith, the executive director and co-founder of the Cinematheque, a non-profit, viewer-supported cultural organization. "A lot of people from the Westside don't get out to Hollywood very often."

Under the new operator, the Aero will offer most of the films screened at the Egyptian, whose eclectic programming includes series showcasing films from a specific country, retrospectives of directors, film classics and seldom seen movies, often accompanied by guest speakers.

"A lot of it will be the same programs," Smith said. "We'll be showing the same things twice."

While the Aero's marquee and exterior will remain intact, the new operators plan to upgrade the theater's interior, including reducing the number of seats from 600 to about 450 and installing a new concession stand that includes "real popcorn," Smith said.

"The theater is going to stay the way it is, basically," Smith said. "The main things we're going to do are to redo the projection and sound systems…. We're going to put in seats that are more comfortable, seats that are bigger and with more legroom, but we'll keep the deco side panels."

Smith said she doesn't anticipate the theater, which will operate at night, will have much of an impact on the area's parking crunch, which is most prevalent during the day.

"We're not going to be open during the day at all," said Smith, adding that there may be a few school tours.

The deal - which Cinematheque officials expected to announce later this week until word spread -- ends nearly a decade of uncertainty for the Aero's current operator, Chris Allen, who kept the theater going on a month-to-month lease for years.

Allen sent out an email after he was notified Friday that he must be out by April 14 that raised questions about the theater's future and thanked its supporters.

"This sudden change calls for public scrutiny," Allen wrote. "The Aero Theatre is part of Santa Monica's history, and as such, we need to make sure that we, as a community, know what its future will be… We want to thank everyone who has supported the Aero. We feel very fortunate to have been a part of such a great community and it has been a pleasure to have met many of you.

"Although we are sad that we will no longer be operating this Santa Monica treasure, during our last month at the theater, we intend to do everything we can to make sure that its 64-year tradition will be preserved," Allen concluded.

Rosenfield said he was thankful for Allen's "stewardship" of the theater.

"He's done an excellent job, and we've had a good relationship," said Rosenfield, who was recently appointed to the City's Landmarks Commission. "He's done his best at a very difficult time to keep it going. I'm thankful to him for the stewardship of the theater."

Allen, who could not be reached for comment, has been on a roller coaster ride since he was informed in September of 1999 that his last picture show would screen on November 6.

"All I know is I'm out," Allen said at the time. "I'm as much in the dark as anyone else."

But November came and went, and Allen continued screening second-run movies that drew a loyal neighborhood following. He hung on during negotiations with Sundance Cinema, which proposed a major overhaul of the theater.

When Sundance officials made a low-key announcement at a City Council meeting in May 2000 that "they reached an agreement with the Aero Theater," the welcome news seemed a happy ending. Redford had even gone to the movies there as a kid.

"There is romance to this story," Councilman Kevin McKeown said at the meeting. "There is an end and a beginning tonight. This is a great thing for Santa Monica."

Sundance, it turned out, had signed a 20-year lease and hammered out a plan that divided the theater into two rooms, one with 300 seats, the other with 165. There would also be a 50-seat bistro and a 25-seat café, according to published reports.

The plan, which raised concerns about parking, fizzled after General Cinema, which had been a partner, went bankrupt. But before the deal fell apart, Rosenfield had already approached American Cinemateque, Smith said.

"Jim came to the Egyptian and he really liked the Cinematheque," Smith said. "He had us meet with the Sundance people." But the Egyptian was still a new venture, Smith said, and "we were far in over our heads.