Alamo Drafthouse
Encyclopedia
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It has screens in nine locations across Texas and one in Winchester, Virginia
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...
. Its headquarters is located in Austin.
History
The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema was founded by Tim and Karrie League at 409 Colorado St, in an Austin, TexasAustin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
warehouse-district building that was being used as a parking garage. The company began as a second-run movie theater, and distinguished itself by the food and drink service offered inside the theater, including cold beers. The seating is arranged with rows of cabaret style tables in front of each row of seats, with an aisle between each row to accommodate waiter service. Customers write their orders on slips of paper, which are picked up by black-clad waiters moving quietly between the rows. Soon after opening, the original downtown theater began offering occasional unique programming such as silent movies scored by local bands playing live accompaniment, food-themed films such as Like Water for Chocolate
Like Water for Chocolate
Like Water for Chocolate is a popular novel published in 1989 by first-time Mexican novelist Laura Esquivel.The novel follows the story of a young girl named Tita who longs her entire life to marry her lover, Pedro, but can never have him because of her mother's upholding of the family tradition...
served with a dinner matching the meals shown on screen, and retrospectives of various directors and stars.
In 2001, the Leagues renovated a four-screen art-house theater at 2700 Anderson Lane in North Austin which had recently closed, and opened it as an Alamo Drafthouse which specialized in first-run movies. With this new Alamo Drafthouse Village, the downtown location ceased showing second-run movies and began to concentrate almost exclusively on unusual programming including classics, cult classics, independents, documentaries, special guest appearances, and audience participation shows.
In 2003, the Alamo Drafthouse, under the direction of new CEO Terrell Braly, moved even further north, to 13729 Research Blvd in far northwest Austin. The Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek has seven screens, all dedicated to new movies. Almost simultaneously, the Alamo granted their first franchise, which opened in the West Oaks Mall
West Oaks Mall (Houston, Texas)
West Oaks Mall is a retail shopping mall in the Alief area of Houston, Texas, USA, that opened in 1984. It is located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Westheimer Road and Highway 6. Anchor stores include Dillard's, Macy's, and Sears...
in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
.
Company sold
In July 2004, Tim and Karrie League sold the brand, including the brand name, intellectual property and rights to all future Alamo Drafthouse expansion to the Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas CEO Terrell Braly, John Martin and David Kennedy, but retained an irrevocable license for the Austin locations (Village, Lamar, Downtown), which includes their Rolling Roadshow. In May 2003, Travis Doss opened the first Alamo franchise location (West Oaks MallWest Oaks Mall (Houston, Texas)
West Oaks Mall is a retail shopping mall in the Alief area of Houston, Texas, USA, that opened in 1984. It is located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Westheimer Road and Highway 6. Anchor stores include Dillard's, Macy's, and Sears...
) in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
with six screens. In August 2004, the largest Alamo (Westlakes) opened in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
with nine screens. Since February 2005, the new company has purchased the original franchise unit from Doss, opened a theater in the Katy Area and in Harris County, Texas
Harris County, Texas
As of the 2010 Census, the population of the county was 4,092,459, White Americans made up 56.6% of Harris County's population; non-Hispanic whites represented 33.0% of the population. Black Americans made up 18.9% of the population. Native Americans made up 0.7% of Harris County's population...
and has built a new-build multi-screen theater in the Rio Grande Valley
Rio Grande Valley
The Rio Grande Valley or the Lower Rio Grande Valley, informally called The Valley, is an area located in the southernmost tip of South Texas...
; though it was announced in 2006 and scheduled to open in 2008, the building has remained unfinished since the original owner was foreclosed upon in November 2008. A second San Antonio theater opened in 2009 (Park North), with six screens. A third San Antonio location (Stone Oak) opened November 5, 2010, with six screens. In 2009, the first outside of Texas was opened in Winchester, Virginia.
In June 2010, founder Tim League was brought back in as CEO of the franchise operations.
Locations
ColoradoColorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
- Alamo Drafthouse at Aspen Grove - LittletonLittleton, ColoradoLittleton is a Home Rule Municipality contained in Arapahoe, Douglas, and Jefferson counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. Littleton is a suburb of the Denver-Aurora Metropolitan Statistical Area. Littleton is the county seat of Arapahoe County and the 20th most populous city in the state of...
(under construction)
Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
- Alamo Drafthouse at the Ritz (Downtown) – Austin (2 screens; opened November 2007); Previous downtown location (single screen; 1997–2007)
- Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar – Austin (6 screens; opened March 7, 2005)
- Alamo Drafthouse Village – Austin (4 screens; opened July 2001)
- Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek – AustinAustin, TexasAustin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
(7 screens; opened May 2003) - Alamo Drafthouse West Oaks MallWest Oaks Mall (Houston, Texas)West Oaks Mall is a retail shopping mall in the Alief area of Houston, Texas, USA, that opened in 1984. It is located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Westheimer Road and Highway 6. Anchor stores include Dillard's, Macy's, and Sears...
– HoustonHouston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
(6 screens; opened May 2003) - Alamo Drafthouse Mason Park – Katy AreaGreater KatyThis article is in reference to the area around the City of Katy, Texas. For more information regarding the City itself, please go directly to Katy, Texas....
(7 screens; opened February 2006) - Alamo Drafthouse Westlakes – San AntonioSan Antonio, TexasSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
(9 screens; opened August 2004) - Alamo Drafthouse Rio Grande Valley – Edinburg (6 screens; the building, originally planned for a 2007 opening, has remained unfinished and unopened as of June 2011)
- Alamo Drafthouse Park North - San Antonio (6 screens; opened November 2009)
- Alamo Drafthouse Stone Oak - San Antonio (6 screens; planned opening November 5, 2010)
- Alamo Drafthouse Slaughter Lane - Austin (7 screens; set to open November 2011)
- Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow - Mobile unit operates worldwide
Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
- Alamo Drafthouse Winchester - Kernstown, VirginiaKernstown, VirginiaKernstown is an unincorporated community within the independent city of Winchester, Virginia. Parts of Kernstown also lie within Frederick County. It is centered along the Valley Pike U.S. Highway 11. During the American Civil War, the first and second Battles of Kernstown were fought here.- See...
(10 screens; opened October 2009)
Worldwide.
In August 2005, Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
named the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema "The #1 movie theater in the country doing it right".
Events
Austin: every year in September, the Alamo South Lamar location throws a week long film festival called Fantastic FestFantastic Fest
Fantastic Fest is an annual film festival in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2005 by Tim League of Alamo Drafthouse, Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra, and Tim McCanlies, writer of The Iron Giant and Secondhand Lions. The festival focuses on genre films such as horror,...
dedicated to the horror, sci-fi, fantasy, Asian and "cult" film genres; Alamo Lake Creek holds the annual Zombie Film Festival (Dismember the Alamo) and the Off-centered Film Festival; The Ritz and South Lamar locations also participate in the SXSW Film Festival
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
in March.
Other events include:
- Austin Air Guitar - each competitor has 60 seconds to perform air guitar to a song of one's own choosing
- Austin Air Sex - same as the above except for sexual acts
- Big Screen Classics - classic movies shown on a CinemascopeCinemaScopeCinemaScope was an anamorphic lens series used for shooting wide screen movies from 1953 to 1967. Its creation in 1953, by the president of 20th Century-Fox, marked the beginning of the modern anamorphic format in both principal photography and movie projection.The anamorphic lenses theoretically...
screen - Celebrity Guests - special event where a famed film industry person or starMovie starA movie star is a celebrity who is well-known, or famous, for his or her starring, or leading, roles in motion pictures. The term may also apply to an actor or actress who is recognized as a marketable commodity and whose name is used to promote a movie in trailers and posters...
speaks - Cinema Cocktails - bar service with at-seat waitered service during movies at the Ritz location
- The Dionysium - monthly arts variety show including debate panels, lectures, forums, and socializing
- Fantastic Fest - annual genre film festival (September 24, 2009-October 1, 2009) at the South Lamar location
- Filmmaking Frenzy - ongoing filmmakingFilmmakingFilmmaking is the process of making a film, from an initial story, idea, or commission, through scriptwriting, casting, shooting, directing, editing, and screening the finished product before an audience that may result in a theatrical release or television program...
competition with annual awards - Food & Film Events - special mealMealA meal is an instance of eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes specific, prepared food.Meals occur primarily at homes, restaurants, and cafeterias, but may occur anywhere. Regular meals occur on a daily basis, typically several times a day...
service for certain movies - Foleyvision - films which replace original audio with live commentary; formerly "Buzz Moran's Kung Fu Masterpiece Theater"
- Kid's Club - free children's movie screenings last Saturday each month
- Master Pancake Theater - live movie mockery; a panel of comedians mock a movie as its shown with live comedy voice-overs, real-time commentary, and some pre-selected movie editing; a successor to the former special event "Christmas Show"; content frequently Rated R. Previously called "Mister Sinus Theater", until a cease and desistCease and desistA cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....
court order filed by Best BrainsBest BrainsBest Brains, Inc. is an entertainment company based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. It is best known for its creation and production of the comedy/sci-fi television program Mystery Science Theater 3000, aka MST3K . The company ceased producing the program in 1999 and closed its studio...
, holder of the Mystery Science Theater copyright, brought about the name-change. - Music Monday - weekly Monday music-related film showing
- Open Screen Night - weekly; patrons show their own videos
- Quote-Alongs - patrons can sing, quote, and perform along with a movie, typically a cult filmCult filmA cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
- Rocky Horror Picture Show - weekly live performance tribute to the movie of the same name
- Rolling Roadshow Tour - somewhat annual 35mm movie screenings of famous movies in famous film-related locations across the United States
- Sing-Alongs - weekly open mikeOpen mikeAn open mike or open mic is a live show where audience members may perform at the microphone. Usually, the performers sign up in advance for a time slot with the host or master of ceremonies. These events can be focused on poetry and the spoken word, music, comedy, and the open format of open...
night - Terror Tuesdays - weekly horror movie showing
- Weird Wednesday - weekly eclectic movie showing for $1 at midnight
- Mondo Mystery Movie - infrequent event where the movie is unknown until it's played. Typically admission includes a poster.
Downtown theater
Of the first seven theaters, the downtown theater was unique for being the host of many important film events in Austin, such as the Quentin Tarantino Film FestivalQuentin Tarantino Film Festival
The Quentin Tarantino Film Festival, or QT-Fest, is a semi-annual film and multimedia event held by the Austin Film Society in Austin, Texas and attended by film director Quentin Tarantino. Most recently, the Alamo Drafthouse theater in downtown Austin, Texas has been the selected venue...
and Harry Knowles
Harry Knowles
Harry Knowles is known for his website called Ain't It Cool News. Knowles is a member of the Austin Film Critics Association.-Biography:...
's annual Butt-numb-a-thon
Butt-numb-a-thon
Butt-Numb-A-Thon is an annual film marathon held every December since 1999 in Austin, Texas.It is hosted by Harry Knowles of the Ain't it Cool News website in celebration of his birthday. This mini-festival shows 24 hours of vintage films as well as premieres.-Event admission:The marathon is...
.
In 2006, due to rising rent in downtown Austin, theater owners took steps to hand the theater over to a non-profit group called the "Heroes of the Alamo" foundation, operating the theater as a cultural arts center. However, with the historic Ritz Theater
Ritz (Austin, Texas)
The Ritz is a historic theater in the 6th Street district in Austin, Texas. The building's history includes use as a movie theater, music hall, club, and comedy house. It reopened after renovations in fall 2007 as the new downtown location for the Alamo Drafthouse.-History:The Ritz was built in...
on 6th Street offered as an alternative location, the original Alamo was closed. The final event at the original location consisted of a special triple-feature event the evening of June 27, 2007. The final movie shown was Night Warning
Night Warning
Night Warning is a 1982 exploitation horror film directed by William Asher; it was nominated for a Saturn Award for the Best Horror Movie of 1982 by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror...
, with star Susan Tyrrell
Susan Tyrrell
Susan Tyrrell is an American actress of Irish descent, known for her role as Ramona Rickettes in the film Cry-Baby.-Background:...
attending. At the conclusion of the movie, audience members were allowed to disassemble their seats and take them home as mementos of the theater.
After six months of construction, the Alamo Drafthouse at the Ritz opened on November 2, 2007 with a triple feature of Matango: Attack of the Mushroom People
Matango
, also known as Matango, Fungus of Terror and Attack of the Mushroom People, is a 1963 Japanese tokusatsu movie. It was directed by Ishirō Honda, written by Takeshi Kimura based on the story "The Voice in the Night" by William Hope Hodgson , and had special...
, with a five course mushroom feast; a sneak preview of No Country For Old Men
No Country for Old Men (film)
No Country for Old Men is a 2007 American crime thriller directed by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, and starring Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin. The film was adapted from the Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name...
; and a Terror Thursday screening of War of the Gargantuas
War of the Gargantuas
The War of the Gargantuas, released in Japan as , is a 1966 Kaiju film, sequel to Frankenstein vs. Baragon.It introduces two giant, hairy humanoids called Gargantuas, which spawned from the discarded cells of Frankenstein's monster from the previous film and are described as brothers...
, introduced by Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
who flew out from Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
for the night to attend the opening.
Rolling roadshow
The original Alamo Drafthouse team hosts 35mm screenings of famous movies in famous places all over the world with their traveling portable projection system with a blow-up screen. Past events include:Fistful of Dollars at Cortijo el Sotillo, Spain, A Christmas Story
A Christmas Story
A Christmas Story is a 1983 American Christmas comedy film based on the short stories and semi-fictional anecdotes of author and raconteur Jean Shepherd, including material from his books In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash, and Wanda Hickey's Night of Golden Memories. It was directed by Bob Clark...
in Cleveland, OH, The Lost Boys
The Lost Boys
The Lost Boys is a 1987 American teen comedy horror film directed by Joel Schumacher and starring Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Kiefer Sutherland, Jami Gertz, Corey Feldman, Dianne Wiest, Edward Herrmann, Alex Winter, Jamison Newlander, and Barnard Hughes....
in Santa Cruz, CA, It Came From Outer Space
It Came from Outer Space
It Came from Outer Space is a 1953 science fiction 3-D film directed by Jack Arnold, and starring Richard Carlson, Barbara Rush, and Charles Drake. It was Universal's first film to be filmed in 3-D.- Plot :...
3D in Roswell, NM, The Goonies
The Goonies
The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
in Astoria, OR, Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a 1977 science fiction film written and directed by Steven Spielberg. The film stars Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, and Cary Guffey...
at Devil's Tower, WY, The Warriors
The Warriors
The Warriors is a 1979 American cult action/thriller film directed by Walter Hill and based on Sol Yurick's 1965 novel of the same name. Like the novel, the film borrows elements from the Anabasis by Xenophon.-Plot:...
in Coney Island, NY, Clerks
Clerks
Clerks is a 1994 independent comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, who also appears in the film as Silent Bob. Starring Brian O'Halloran as Dante Hicks and Jeff Anderson as Randal Graves, it presents a day in the lives of two store clerks and their acquaintances...
in Red Bank, NJ, Jaws
Jaws (film)
Jaws is a 1975 American horror-thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley's novel of the same name. In the story, the police chief of Amity Island, a fictional summer resort town, tries to protect beachgoers from a giant man-eating great white shark by closing the beach,...
at Martha's Vineyard, MA, Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams
Field of Dreams is a 1989 American fantasy-drama film directed by Phil Alden Robinson and is from the novel Shoeless Joe by W. P. Kinsella...
at the Field of Dreams, IA, The Shining
The Shining (film)
The Shining is a 1980 psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, co-written with novelist Diane Johnson, and starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, and Danny Lloyd. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. A writer, Jack Torrance, takes a job as an...
at the Stanley Hotel, CO, Poseidon Adventure on the Queen Mary, CA, Escape from Alcatraz
Escape from Alcatraz (film)
Escape from Alcatraz is a 1979 American thriller film, directed by Don Siegel and starring Clint Eastwood. It dramatizes possibly the only successful escape attempt from the maximum security prison on Alcatraz Island. The film co-stars Fred Ward, and also features Patrick McGoohan as the...
on Alcatraz, CA just to name a few.
Past event details
Burt-a-thon / Smokey & The Bandit Scavenger HuntAugust 14–15, 2007
August 14, 2007 at the Starlight Six Drive-In http://www.starlightdrivein.com/ in Atlanta the Rolling Roadshow presented Burt-a-thon,http://www.originalalamo.com/Show.aspx?id=4589 a triple-feature of Burt Reynolds movies. Showing were Smokey and the Bandit
Smokey and the Bandit
Smokey and the Bandit is a 1977 American film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. It inspired several other trucking films, including two sequels, Smokey and the Bandit II, and Smokey and the Bandit Part 3...
, White Lightning
White Lightning (1973 film)
White Lightning is a 1973 American action film from United Artists starring Burt Reynolds as Gator McKlusky. The film, directed by Joseph Sargent and written by William W. Norton, also starred Jennifer Billingsley, Ned Beatty, Bo Hopkins, R.G. Armstrong, and Diane Ladd...
and Sharky's Machine
Sharky's Machine (film)
Sharky's Machine is a 1981 motion picture directed by Burt Reynolds, who stars in the title role. The movie is an adaptation of William Diehl's first novel Sharky's Machine , with a screenplay by Gerald Di Pego....
. All three movies involved Atlanta, Georgia and Texarkana, Arkansas. People who came to the event in Pontiac Trans Am's we allowed VIP parking, and drinks. Event was sponsored by Ain't It Cool News
Ain't It Cool News
Ain't It Cool News is a website founded and run by Harry Knowles, dedicated to news, rumors and reviews of upcoming and currently playing films and television projects, with an emphasis on science fiction, fantasy, horror, comic-book and action genres...
, New Line Cinema, http://www.newline.com/ and Dewars Scotch Whiskey. http://www.dewars.com
The next day on August 15, 2007, six teams met with the Rolling Roadshow http://www.originalalamo.com/Signature.aspx?id=50 crew to go on the Scavenger Hunt. They met at 8 am at the Starlight http://rollingroadshownews.blogspot.com/ and were given a list of items to take pictures of related to the film, Smokey & The Bandit. Originally the owners had said they would only allow 20 teams to participate, and closed the registration a few weeks prior to the event. A total of 16 teams signed up at $25 each. However, only 6 teams showed up on the day of the event. This may have been in part to the previous night's films running until nearly 3 am.
Not much is known about all of the participants, but there was a team who drove to Atlanta from Baltimore, Maryland, getting in at 6 am, only to have to meet up and leave again at 8 am. One team consisted of three men in costume (including crash helmets, fake mustaches and opera capes) the entire trip. One team was made up of only one person. His partner had dropped out the night before. One team was made up of four women, the self-titled "Team BANDIT". All teams were issued the photo list and their registrations were taken from them and put into a sealed bag. This was an attempt to keep the teams from speeding and getting in trouble with the law. For, if opened, the team would be disqualified.
The teams were to meet up in Texarkana (one of the two named cities in the original film) at the Four State Fairground by 9 pm CST. http://www.originalalamo.com/Show.aspx?id=4588 There, the Roadshow crew would be showing "Smokey" again, for free. The teams arrived as close to 9 pm as possible, after driving over 700 miles from Atlanta. After checking all the photos submitted by the teams, and each team doing one last 'event', a conversation on microphone in 'trucker lingo' in front of the assembled crowd of hundreds for the last 107 points, it was announced that "Team BANDIT" had won the prize. The first-place prize was a 1979 Firebird Trans Am with over 378,000 miles on it. http://rollingroadshownews.blogspot.com/2007/06/bandit-car-grand-prize-in-smokey.html It has since been named "The Alamo", in recognition of the people who gave it to them, as well as they would always, "Remember the Alamo."
The second-place team won a Tomtom GPS unit with directions narrated by Burt Reynolds himself. http://rollingroadshownews.blogspot.com/2007/08/smokey-and-bandit-gps-style.html
The third place team was the one with only one driver. Though there was not an official prize for 3rd place, he was awarded a lot of Dewar's Scotch Whiskey.
- Smokey and the BanditSmokey and the BanditSmokey and the Bandit is a 1977 American film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams, and Mike Henry. It inspired several other trucking films, including two sequels, Smokey and the Bandit II, and Smokey and the Bandit Part 3...
Road Rally (July 27, 2003) - Teams were assembled at the Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek in the morning. They were instructed to seal their driver's licenses in an envelope and handed several sealed numbered envelopes with their clues. At the sound of the starting gun teams raced to their cars, Le MansLe MansLe Mans is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.Its inhabitants are called Manceaux...
style, and they and opened the first envelope. Each team, by solving a puzzle in the envelope, were directed to a location where they received a number representing the next envelope they needed to open. Along the way participants were also instructed to collect scavenger items representing key themes from the movie. The final destination for the teams was Austin Film SocietyAustin Film SocietyThe Austin Film Society is a non-profit film society based in Austin, Texas. Founded in 1985 to exhibit independent, experimental, foreign and various other non-mainstream art films, the film society has grown from just film exhibition to fostering independent filmmaking in Texas and has served as...
's studios at the former site of the Robert Mueller Municipal AirportRobert Mueller Municipal AirportRobert Mueller Municipal Airport served the Austin, Texas, United States, area until it was replaced by the Austin Bergstrom International Airport and subsequently closed in 1999...
where the Drafthouse collected the scavenger items and scored the teams. Any team who had to open the envelope with their driver's licenses (due to traffic tickets; or porn, alcohol or cigarette purchases) had points deducted. Smokey and the Bandit was projected on the side of an old airport after an opening show from Scott H. BiramScott H. BiramScott H. Biram, aka Scott Biram, SHB, Hiram Biram, or The Dirty Old One Man Band is an American blues, punk and country music musician, based in Austin, Texas.-Biography:...
. - Camp HackenSlash (August 9, 2003) - A day camp for adults featuring crafts (e.g. duct tapeDuct tapeDuct tape, or duck tape, is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure sensitive tape often sealed with polyethylene. It is very similar to gaffer tape but differs in that gaffer tape was designed to be cleanly removed, while duct tape was not. It has a standard width of and is generally silver or black...
wallets, T-shirt embroidery) and games (e.g. dodgeballDodgeballDodgeball is any of a variety of games in which players try to hit other players on the opposing team with balls while avoiding being hit themselves. This article is about a well-known form of team sport with modified rules that is often played in physical education classes and has been featured...
, sloshball).- Games
- dodgeballDodgeballDodgeball is any of a variety of games in which players try to hit other players on the opposing team with balls while avoiding being hit themselves. This article is about a well-known form of team sport with modified rules that is often played in physical education classes and has been featured...
- sloshball
- tubingTubingTubing may refer to:* Tubing , flexible hose or pipe * Tubing , the act of riding an inner tube* Structural tubing* Plumbing tube used in domestic water systems* Inserting a tube* Brass instrument tubing...
- capture the flagCapture the flagCapture the Flag is a traditional outdoor sport generally played by children, where two teams each have a flag and the objective is to capture the other team's flag, located at the team's "base," and bring it safely back to their own base...
- relay gamesRelay raceDuring a relay race, members of a team take turns running, orienteering, swimming, cross-country skiing, biathlon, or ice skating parts of a circuit or performing a certain action. Relay races take the form of professional races and amateur games...
- hot-dog eating contestCompetitive eatingCompetitive eating, or speed eating, is a sport in which participants compete against each other to consume large quantities of food in a short time period. Contests are typically less than 15 minutes in length, with the person consuming the most food being declared the winner...
- dodgeball
- Films
- Freddy vs. JasonFreddy vs. JasonFreddy vs. Jason is a 2003 American slasher film directed by Ronny Yu. The film is a crossover between the A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th franchises...
- world premiere with Q&A from Ronny YuRonny YuRonny Yu Yan-Tai is a Hong Kong director, producer, and movie writer. Yu was born in Hong Kong and graduated from Ohio University. He has worked on both Hong Kong and American films.- Career :...
(director), Robert EnglundRobert EnglundRobert Barton Englund is an American actor, voice-actor and director, best known for playing the fictional serial killer Freddy Krueger, in the Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors in...
(Freddy) and Ken KirzingerKen KirzingerKen Kirzinger is a Canadian stuntman and actor best known for his portrayal of Jason Voorhees in Freddy vs. Jason and of Pa in Wrong Turn 2: Dead End . He also played "Mason" Jason Voorhees character spoof in the horror film parody, Stan Helsing.-Role as Jason Voorhees:At he is one of the...
(Jason). - Sleepaway CampSleepaway CampSleepaway Camp is a 1983 cult classic slasher film written and directed by Robert Hiltzik—who also served as executive producer. The film is about teen campers getting killed at a summer camp...
- with Q&A from Jonathon Tierston (Ricky). - Madman
- Wet Hot American SummerWet Hot American SummerWet Hot American Summer is a 2001 satirical comedy film written by David Wain and Michael Showalter, and directed by Wain. The film takes place during the last day at a fictional Jewish summer camp in 1981, before closing for the summer...
- Freddy vs. Jason
- Games
- ZaireekaZaireekaZaireeka is the eighth studio album by the alternative rock band The Flaming Lips. Released on October 28, 1997, the experimental rock album consists of four compact discs. Each of its eight songs consists of four stereo tracks, one from each CD...
(July 24, 2005) - a pre-show from local bands PongPongPong is one of the earliest arcade video games, and is a tennis sports game featuring simple two-dimensional graphics. While other arcade video games such as Computer Space came before it, Pong was one of the first video games to reach mainstream popularity...
(at YouTube) and Austin Theremonic Orchestra (at YouTube) was followed by an exhibit of the Flaming Lips's simultaneous four CD music experiment played alongside four inflatable screens showing videos made by the Drafthouse staff and Wiley WigginsWiley WigginsWiley Ramsey Wiggins is an American film actor and blogger. A native of Austin, Texas, he is the nephew of Lanny Wiggins, who was a member of Janis Joplin's early band, The Waller Creek Boys....
. (Clip of event at YouTube.)
External links
- Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas, Ltd. - Official website; includes all Alamo locations
- Alamo Drafthouse Posters - Unofficial Website; Largest Online Reference for Alamo Drafthouse Posters
- Austin Alamo Drafthouse - branches owned by founders Tim and Karrie League (Mobile)
- Dionysium.com - Official event website
- FilmmakingFrenzy.com - Official organization website
- Facebook: Alamo Quote-Alongs - Official event fan page
- Facebook: Austin Air Guitar Championships - Official event group
- Facebook: Master Pancake Theater Fan Club - Official event fan page
- Facebook: Air Sex World Championships - Official event group