If you're a longtime resident of metro Phoenix — we're talking several decades or more — you remember the original Cine Capri Theatre.
The iconic 16,500-square-foot cinema located at 24th Street and Camelback Road boasted dual colonnades outside and an enormous curved screen inside its single auditorium. Operating from 1966 to 1998, the Cine Capri screened a slew of legendary films during its lifespan, ranging from the Charlton Heston historical epic “The Agony and the Ecstasy” to the original “Star Wars” trilogy.
The Cine Capri is long gone, having been demolished 26 years ago last month, but lives on through photographs and the memories of locals who caught a flick at the famed theater. Ditto for such equally beloved local bygone spots as the AMC Fiesta Village 6 in Mesa or the Scottsdale Six drive-in.
In honor of the 96th Academy Awards this weekend, Phoenix New Times is looking back at some of the Valley’s most iconic cinemas, movie houses and drive-in theaters from over the decades, including a few that are still around these days (like Tempe’s Valley Art, Mesa's Nile Theatre and the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Phoenix).
Editor's note: Phoenix New Times would like to thank Kenneth M. Walsh, Gayle Homes Martin, Tempe History Museum, Scottsdale Historical Society, Scottsdale Public Library and Chandler Museum for their assistance and photographs.