Bangor theater closes suddenly Movie City Cinema’s future unclear

BANGOR – Movie City Cinemas, a well-known discount movie theater on the Odlin Road, closed Thursday night.

Whether the second-run theater is closed permanently, temporarily for renovations, or briefly because of a change in management remained unclear late Friday. Attempts to reach the Auburn-based operators, Emile Clavet and Kevin Dean, were unsuccessful Friday.

“It’s closed,” said Alex Gray, who acquired the building in July.

Though Gray owns Russell’s, the adjacent billiards hall and sports lounge formerly known as Miami North, he said he was leasing the theater facility to another party. Gray said Friday he had no additional information about the theater or its future.

By early Friday afternoon, the movie names and times had all been taken down from the theater’s marquee. Witnesses reported that representatives of companies that did business with the theater operators had visited Movie City late Thursday and early Friday to retrieve equipment and other supplies. At least one person reported some of the vendors were accompanied by law enforcement or security personnel.

In addition, the Bangor Daily News received a telephone call Thursday evening from a caller who said the theatre was closed and that future movie listings in the paper were to be cancelled.

Movie City has been a popular source for cheap flicks – especially on Tuesdays, known as “Buck Night,” when admission was just $1.

The theater was opened four years ago by Don Simpson, who opened the original Miami North on Broadway in 1992. In 1997, he moved Miami North to Odlin Road and added the cinema complex.

In 2000, Simpson sold to Tim Hogan in a seller-financed transaction. A year later, Hogan decided he did not want to operate the business and gave the assets back to Simpson.

Simpson then sold the building to Gray, who took over management of Miami North and renamed it Russell’s in memory of his late friend Russell Crouse. Gray declined comment Friday about whether he had any plans for the theater complex.