Nationwide Theatres Corp history

Although the early 1960's were looking good for drive-ins, with many ozoners out-grossing indoor theatres and enjoying better margins to boot, attendance began to fade by the mid to late 1960's.

1961 Stanley Durwood becomes CEO of the company and renames it American Multi-cinema.

1962 AMC opens the world's first multiplex, the Parkway Twin in Kansas City.

DST was in full swing by 1967 nationwide, and it is often reported as a reason for declining attendance at drive-ins, due to the later start times.

In 1968 in San Jose, California the company opened its first theater to use so-called "stadium" seats, in which each succeeding row is positioned higher than the one in front, allowing patrons an unobstructed view of the screen.

1972 All businesses are brought together under The Marcus Corporation umbrella; company goes public.

1974 First Budgetel Inn opens in Oshkosh, Wis.; concept developed by Steve Marcus.

He died from cancer at the age of 75 on May 13, 1975 in his home in Villanova PA. Although his family petitioned the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences numerous times to recognize Richard's efforts, his achievements were never formally acknowledged by the motion picture industry.

In 1977, the Egyptian Theatre was closed and the property given over to the city of DeKalb.

The now infamous quote, from the early 1980's, came from none other than Sumner Redstone, who operated National Amusements, a company who had built or bought 60 drive-ins by then, was as follows; "Drive-Ins are rapidly becoming part of our nostalgic past.

The company decided in 1981 to aggressively target the first-run film market in Las Vegas, Nevada, and that year it opened a new multiplex there, supplementing the drive-ins it already had been operating.

In 1982, Preservation of the Egyptian Theatre, Inc. (PET) qualified for a $2.3 million grant from the state of Illinois.

When the theatre opened again in 1983, it was host to dozens of events a year.

In 1984 a new 8-plex was introduced, and the following year the Mountain View ten-screen theater opened on the site of the former Syufy-owned Moffet Drive-in.

In 1986 Syufy purchased the 650-seat Presidio single-screen theater, an art house.

The company also was continuing to open new theaters throughout its territory, such as the 12-screen Century Park 12 in Tucson, which opened in 1989 on the former site of one of its drive-ins.

By 1990 Syufy Enterprises had 325 screens.

1991 Introduces Clip®, a "film strip" character to serve as an ambassador of the brand and its Silence is Golden® program.

1992 Greg Marcus joins the company.

1993 Marcus Hotels purchases the former Playboy Club in Lake Geneva, Wis.; now the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa.

1995 AMC opens the world's first megaplex.

In 1997 Century opened its two largest theaters ever, the Century 24 in Albuquerque, New Mexico and the Century 25 in Orange, California.

1999 Marcus Theatres unveils its first UltraScreen® premium large-format screen.

2000 AMC co-founds online ticket services to add convenience to even the busiest AMC theatres like Empire 25 in New York City, which is recognized as the busiest theatre in the world.

2001 Marcus Hotels opens the new Hilton Madison Monona Terrace in Madison, Wis.

2002 AMC becomes the first theatre chain to introduce the circuit-wide gift card.

2004 Limited-service lodging division, including Baymont Inns & Suites (formerly Budgetel), sold for $415 million.

In August of 2005, John Nagelschmidt, and Loren Knapp, who was the long time projectionist at the Midway Drive In, together formed Black River Drive-In, Inc.

On August 18, 2006 the Black River Drive-in Theatre reopened it's doors to the public.

2007 AMC partners with IMAX to bring approximately 125 IMAX large-screen digital projection systems to AMC locations around the country.

2008 AMC launches Dine-In Theatres.

2009 AMC partners with Sony and RealD to implement digital and 3D technology.

2010 AMC acquires Kerasotes theatres and expands its presence in the Midwest.

2011 AMC launches its AMC Stubs rewards program, which provides members with new benefits like concessions upgrades and dollars back for every dollar they spend.

2012 AMC is acquired by the Beijing–based Wanda Group, which enables funding to ensure a massive escalation of AMC's world-class amenities, including recliner seating, better sight & sound presentation and MacGuffins bars.

2013 AMC goes public on the New York Stock Exchange.

NYSE: AMC 2015 AMC and Dolby partner to create Dolby Cinema at AMC, a premium large format experience that includes Dolby Vision laser projection, Dolby Atmos sound and AMC's comfortable power recliners.AMC acquires Starplex Cinemas.

2016 Completely renovated Country Club Hills Cinema opens in Illinois; 6th location in greater Chicago.

2017 Marcus Theatres opens first BistroPlex℠ “restaurant that serves movies” in Greendale, Wis.

2018 Marcus Hotels & Resorts assumes management of The Murieta Inn and Spa in Rancho Murieta, Calif.