page_title: Century Theatres
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Century Theatres / History
caption_attribution_description: Exterior of the Century 16 Cedar Hills movie theater, of Century Theatres, at the Cedar Hills Crossing mall, in Beaverton, Oregon.
context_page_description: Century Theatres is a movie theater chain that operates many multiplexes in the western United States, primarily in California, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. In its later years, it had expanded into the inter-mountain states, the Pacific Northwest, Texas, Alaska and parts of the Midwest. Founded in 1941, the chain was headquartered in San Rafael, California until it was acquired by Cinemark Theatres from Plano, Texas in 2006. Many now-Cinemark-owned theaters continue to operate under the Century brand.
context_section_description: The Century Theater chain was originally named Syufy Enterprises, for its founder Raymond Syufy, Senior, who built his first theater in Vallejo, California in 1941. The first Century theater was the Century 21 in San Jose, California, which opened November 24, 1964, adjacent to the Winchester Mystery House. The Century 21 theater was built to showcase Cinerama type movies (the left and right empty projection booths are still present), but in fact, it showed only 70mm movies. The screen was later replaced with a flat model, and has remained intact as a throwback to the domed Cinerama palaces of the 1960s. The "Century 21" name was a tactic used to convey to the viewing public a "futuristic image". This image is bolstered by the lobby's distinct modern "bubbled lights" and metallic gold accents. The large orange metal ornament on the top of the domed-theater was functional in addition to being decorative—theater employees rappelled from it when the dome's outer track-lighting needed to be maintained. The first film presented at the Century 21 was It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World in 70mm format.
  The company started using the name "Century Theatres" in the early 1990s.
  Century Theatres has a long history of litigation against its much larger competitor, AMC Theatres, for alleged anti-competitive behavior. However, since the late 1990s, both sides have generally refrained from suing each other.
  On August 8, 2006, Texas-based chain Cinemark Theatres announced that it had completed a purchase agreement under which Century Theatres would be acquired with a combination of cash and stock from Cinemark's parent company and Front Row Joe. The transition to Cinemark was completed on Thursday, October 5, 2006, with the exception of the Century 21, 22, and 23 theatres in San Jose, which were transferred back to their original company, Syufy Enterprises, and operate under the name "Winchester Theatres" (in early 2013 it was announced that the theater property is soon to be redeveloped). The company's drive-in theatres and swap meets were also not part of the merger and also reverted to Syufy Enterprises ownership. They now operate under the brand name "West Wind Drive-Ins and Public Markets".
  At the end of March 2014, the 50-year lease for the oldest of the Century Theaters (21, 22, and 23) ended and was not renewed, and the theaters closed. A preservation movement, which began the year before, was successful in getting City Historic Landmark status for the very first—the Century 21—as a prime local example of Mid Century Modern architecture.  It was also Placed on the California Register of Historical Resources, and deemed "eligible" to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
caption: A Century Theatres location in Oregon in 2011
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