Multiplex (movie theater)

A multiplex is a movie theater complex with multiple screens, typically more than one screen within a single complex. They are usually housed in a specially designed building. Sometimes, an existing venue undergoes a renovation where the existing auditoriums are split into smaller ones, or more auditoriums are added in an extension or expansion of the building. The largest of these complexes can sit thousands of people and are sometimes referred to as a megaplex.

Definitions

Definitions of what constitutes a multiplex versus a megaplex is related to the number of screens, but often the comparison is arbitrary. For example, 2 to 20 screens constitute a multiplex, whereas theaters above 20 screens may be branded a megaplex. Megaplex theaters sometimes feature stadium seating and other amenities often not found at smaller movie theaters. Multiplex theatres often feature regular seating.

History

Origins

About 1915, two adjacent theatres in Moncton, New Brunswick, under the same ownership were converted to share a single entrance on Main Street. There were separate ticket booths once patrons entered the door and different programs were shown. The arrangement was so unusual it was featured by Robert Ripley in his Believe It or Not! comic strip. In 1937, James Edwards twinned his Alhambra Theater in the Los Angeles area by converting an adjacent storefront into a second "annex" screen. While both screens would show the same feature movie, one would also offer a double bill. It did not convert to showing different movies on both screens until some time after Taylor. On February 25, 1940, the Patricia Theater made news by becoming what is believed to be the first two-screen theater showing different movies when operator H. Bert Ram added a screen to an adjoining building and shared a common box office. The main screen remained the Patricia Theatre and the Patricia Annex became known as the Little Patricia.