Cordova Cinemas
Cordova Cinemas was a movie theater that operated for many years at Cordova Mall on Bayou Boulevard.
The theater was developed by Giddens & Rester, which had previously operated the Florida Theatre for 11 years, and the "modernistic free-standing twin" opened on April 20, 1967.[1] According to the trade publication Boxoffice:
The two auditoriums, one seating 560 and the other 325 patrons, will be end-on-end and share a common lobby, restrooms and concession area. Walls of each auditorium are to be fully draped and seating is to be of the luxury type. The projection room will be fully automated, while the theatre front will feature a drive-in porte cochere-type entrance.[2]
A third screen was later added to the exterior building by splitting the smaller theater, while space inside the mall's food court was leased for an additional four screens in the 1980s.
The seven-screen theater was operated by Regal Cinemas in 2001 when the company filed for bankruptcy.[3] After Regal declined to renew its lease with Cordova Mall, the interior space was reconfigured for retail use, while the exterior theaters (originally slated to be retooled for watercraft and motorcycle sales[4]) were demolished and replaced by a strip mall.
References
- ↑ "Giddens & Rester Hosts About 7,500 At Meridian CP Twins' Open House." Boxoffice, August 28, 1967.
- ↑ "Fall Construction of 7 Theatres Blueprinted by Giddens & Rester." Boxoffice, September 20, 1971.
- ↑ "Curtain falls on mall's Regal Cinemas after 15 years." Pensacola News Journal, December 20, 2001.
- ↑ "Cordova Mall changing outside and in." Pensacola News Journal, July 23, 2002.
