Pocono News Section

Fire-Damaged Theater Reopening

Fire-Damaged Theater Reopening - Friday, January 29, 2010 at 04:38AM EST

Reported by: Mark Hiller
Friday, Jan 29, 2010 @ 04:38am EST
SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY - A fire-damaged movie theater in downtown Scranton is finally reopening.
Marquee Cinemas will welcome back movie goers Friday afternoon for the first time in 5-months.
The 8-screen multiplex has been dormant since mid-August after a devastating downtown fire.
That fire destroyed Community Bake Shop next door on Lackawanna Avenue.
The fire also caused strucural damage to 2 theaters on the east side of the Marquee Cinemas building.
Some at the time wondered if the fire might mark the end of Marquee Cinemas at this location even though it was in the middle of a lease that lasts through 2018.
But management vowed it would get back in business.
All the time, repair work continued.
Workers salvaged what theater seats and anything else they could before the rebuilding began.
At first, it was hoped the theater would reopen by the end of October.
When that didn't happen, the goal was to resume showing movies for the lucrative holiday season -- but that deadline also passed.
As the theater sat idle, about 2-dozen employees were out of work -- but the show goes on starting Friday afternoon.
The first screening of the day is at 12:15 p. m. with the movie "The Blind Side" starring Golden Globe winner Sandra Bullock.
It's a true-story about a teen-ager who overcomes many obstacles in life to become an NFL player.
Management hopes the obstacles this theater has overcome will translate into good crowds.