The Dollar Theater is Dead

Yesterday was the last day for O‘ahu moviegoers to see discount flicks at the theater. Restaurant Row 9 Theatres, which has been in business since 1994, ran its last movies on its 35mm film projector. Approximately 40 theater employees were laid off.

Pacific Office Properties, which owns the Restaurant Row complex, or Waterfront Plaza, paid $2.45 million to buy out the lease from Wallace Theater Holdings LLC (which owns Hollywood Theaters). During a previous story HONOLULU did on Restaurant Row, Larry Taff, the executive vice president of Pacific Office Properties, said the closing of the theater has been in the works for a while.

Part of the theater is scheduled to become an outpatient surgical center, following in the medical footsteps of the new CVS Care Plus Pharmacy, which moved into the old Sunset Grill space. No other plans have surfaced for the rest of the nine-theater space.

It was evident from yesterday’s crowds though that people will miss the discount theaters; each showing sold out. The theaters charged $1.50 per ticket, up from $1, but still significantly cheaper than the other theaters in town, even at matinee prices. The theater wasn’t always discount though. It used to be the only theater in town until Ward and Dole came on the scene. Restaurant Row 9 enjoyed a brief stint as an art house theater before becoming a dollar theater.

I, too, will miss the theaters. Sure, it’s not stadium seating like Ward or Dole and sure sometimes the theaters smell a bit off and you are seated next some unsavory characters, but it’s a $1.50! To watch a movie in theaters! I frequented the dollar theater many times in the past. If I didn’t want to throw down $10 to see a movie when it first came out, but was interested in watching it, I’d wait until it was at the dollar theater. Or, I’d go if I wanted to see a movie more than once. And lastly, the dollar theater was a cheap night or day out, and gave me a reason to try out Restaurant Row’s eateries before or after the show.

During these cash-strapped times, I think it was a good entertainment alternative, especially for families. I hope that something interesting fills the rest of the dollar theater’s space and that the other businesses in the area don’t suffer as a result of its closure. Rest in peace Restaurant Row 9.