Red Rock closing further thins ranks of discount movie houses

Friday, Oct. 15, 1999 | 8:42 a.m.

One of the last remaining discount theaters in Las Vegas has run its final credits.

Redrock 11 Value Cinemas went out of business Thursday night. Redrock employees were informed of the decision by parent company Century Theaters on Wednesday, according to members of the Redrock staff, speaking on the condition of anonymity (Century representatives forbid employees from speaking to the media).

Century Theaters publicist Nancy Klasky did not return phone messages on Wednesday or Thursday from her office in Walnut Creek, Calif.

Long rumored to be in financial trouble, Redrock was the site of a fire early Monday that burned drapes and the ceiling, melted the main screen and caused an estimated $50,000 in damages. It was the third fire in less than a year at the complex. One in December and another in January are still under investigation, as is Monday's, Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski said on Thursday.

"The one Monday appeared to be arson or caused by an incendiary device, which is probably the proper way to explain it," Szymanski said. "There's no evidence it was caused by faulty wiring within the theater or anything like that. It's always possible it was started by someone dropping a cigarette, but smoking isn't allowed in the theater and there was no evidence that a cigarette butt was found."

With the demise of Redrock, just two discount theaters remain in Las Vegas --Cinema 8 and Paradise 6. Tickets at those theaters cost $1.50, compared with $7.75 at stadium-seat theaters that have been overtaking the smaller cinemas during the past few years.

"Everyone's been talking about the demise of these (discount) theaters, then we see this," David Schwarz, co-owner and general manager of both Cinema 8 and Paradise 6, said Wednesday. "It's kind of sad. Redrock was kind of a local landmark."

No longer. Redrock's demise is the latest example of a trend toward lavish multiplex cinemas with high-back chairs and digital sound. Two years ago, six discount houses stood in Las Vegas, but Torrey Pines, Mountain View and Sunrise 7 have all ceased operation.

Schwartz said he would be interested in the concept of taking over Redrock with business partner Yimaj Kadir, who invested money he made in a medical-supply company in Southern California to buy Paradise 6 and Cinema 8. However, Kadir is new to theater ownership, and Schwartz is busy renovating both theaters. Century's Cinedome 12 in Las Vegas has been mentioned by rival theater managers as a possible second-run complex.

In any case, Las Vegas is clearly losing its discount, second-run movie houses.

"I don't know if the trend will continue. I hope not," Schwartz said. "I know we offer a good thing for families at a good price. But with corporations, you never know what's going to happen."