10 other theaters
After its exclusive, week-long debut at the UA Westwood, The Rocky Horror Picture Show was scheduled to open in 8 or 10 Theaters (depending on who you ask) in the U.S. and Canada as part of a general release beginning on Friday, October 3, 1975.
The Varsity Theater in Austin, Texas was amongst the first to show the film starting October 3. Opening night featured a costume contest ($30 grand prize..."dress as your favorite horror character") and an on-stage Time Warp line-dance at the 8:30 show. The film got a positive review from local papers and ran for several weeks, foreshadowing the importance of Austin as a force in the film's future as a cult success.
Other areas ran scathing reviews of the film, which resulted in the engagement dropping, most notably in New York City, where it had been booked but dropped before the opening date of October 3.
The take in its opening week at the 7 or 8 remaining theaters outside of Westwood was so low, that it did not register on any charts, and the film disappeared quickly. The 10 US prints of The Rocky Horror Picture Show circulated as "exclusive showings" at various theaters and at Revival House Screenings of ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' over the next few months until it was reissued (and more prints were struck) in October, 1976. Most of the engagements included midnight screenings, some of which were the biggest draw at the early engagements. The push was to get the film into in more "college town" theaters, and to help draw in audiences it was paired with 20th Century Fox's Phantom of the Paradise, which also had a small, but growing cult following at the time.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show was tested in several theaters as a midnight-only movie beginning in early 1976 with a handful of engagements before the most famous booking at The Waverly Theater in New York City. By mid 1977, it was playing in The First 30 US Theaters in a regular rotation in the U.S.
Contents
Known Standard Release Theatrical Engagement Locations
UA Westwood - Westwood, CA
The Riverside Twin - Austin, TX (10/3/75)
Colony Cinema (Colony 2) - Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (10/75)
Strand Theater - Brandon, Manitoba Canada (12/5/75-12/6/75)
Poplar Movie House - Memphis, TN (10/75)
Arcadia Theater - Philadelphia, PA (12/19/75)
Metro 2 - San Francisco, CA (12/19/75)
Strand Theatre-Dundalk, Maryland (Dates Not Verified - 1975)
UA Cinema Center - Westwood, CA (12/75-3/76 and 9/76-early 77)
Fairfax Theater - Marin County, CA (1/7/76-1/13/76)
Paramount Theater Lethbridge Center - Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada (2/7/76-2/8/76)
Varsity Theatre - St Louis, MO (3/76-4/76)
Holly Theater - Hollywood, CA (3/76-9/76)
Parkway Theater - Las Vegas, NV (4/28/76-5/4/76)
Magic Lantern Theater - Isla Visa (near Santa Barbara), CA (5/76)
UA Chris-Town Mall Cinemas 6 - Phoenix, AZ (5/76)
Des Moines, IA (5/16/76)
5th Avenue Cinema - Portland, Oregon (7/14/76)
U Ark Theater - Fayetteville, Arkansas (8/76)
3 Penny Cinema - Chicago, Il (8/12/76)
Gentilly Orleans Theater -New Orleans, LA (9/76) concurrent with midnight run on weekends
Towne Theatre - Oak Park, Michigan (9/29/76)
Town Cinema 2 - St. Paul, MN (9/76)
Cinema Colorado - Pasadena, CA (10/76)
Egyptian Theater - Hollywood, CA (10/6/76) with Phantom
United Artists Cinema 4 - Tyler Mall - Riverside, CA (10/6/76) with Phantom
Cinema West - Westminster, CA (10/6/76)
Costa Mesa Cinema Center - Costa Mesa, CA (10/76)
Orange Cinema Center - Orange County, CA (10/76)
Warner Theater - Prange County, CA (10/76)
Sky View Theater - Ventura, CA (10/76)m
Mission Theater - San Juan Capistrano, CA (10/76)
Tri-City - Loma Linda, CA (10/76)
Covina Cinema - Covina, Ca (10/76)
The Ventura - Ventura, CA (10/76)
UA Pasadena - Pasadena, CA (12/76)
Plaza 3 - Yuma, AZ (1/77)
UA Marketplace 6 - Long Beach, CA (1/77)
Peppertree 3 - Reseda, CA (1/77) with Phantom
Bay Theater - Pacific Palisades, CA (2/77) with Phantom - 2 week engagement
Guild Theater - Albuquerque, NM (4/77)
Valley Art Theater - Tempe, AZ (8/77) with Phantom
Standard Release At Drive In Theaters
The Fort Drive In - Frederick, MD (9/2/76) with Phantom
Fiesta 3 Drive In - Pico Rivera, CA (10/76) with Phantom
Los Altos 2 Drive-In Long Beach, CA (10/76) with Phantom
Tri-City Drive-In - Loma Linda, CA (10/76) with Phantom
UA El Monte Drive-In - El Monte, CA (10/76) with Phantom
Pickwick Drive-In - Burbank, CA (10/76) with Phantom
Stadium Drive-In - San Leandro, CA (2/77)
Special Midnight Engagements
Fox Venice Theater - LA, CA (9/25/75) Invitation-only advance midnight screening
Graceland Twin Cinema - Columbus, OH (2/76) Limited engagement
The Stage Door Theater - Madison, WI (3/76) Limited engagement
Three-Penny Cinema - Chicago (8/13/76) Premiere Engagement
ShoppingTown 1 - Syracuse, NY (10/16-17/76)
Kings Court Theater - Pittsburgh, PA (10/22/76)
Utah 1 - Salt Lake City , UT (12/23-24-25/76)
The Plaza - El Paso, TX Movies 'til Dawn Marathon (1/28/77)
Bank Cinemas - Pittsburgh, PA (4/15/77)
Glendale 2 - Indianapolis, IN (5/77)
Other Special Engagements
Eastgate 1 - Joplin , MO (7/8-9, 15-16-17/ 1976) at 10:15 PM
The Boston - Muscatine, Iowa (10/17-18-19/ 1976)
The First 32 Midnight-Only Theatrical Engagement Locations ('75-'77)
Waverly Theater - New York, (4/3/76)
Varsity Theatre - St Louis, MO (3/76-4/76) Began as prime-time feature in March 1976, and became midnight-only in April 1976.
Riverside Twin II - Austin, TX (5/12/76)
New Yorker - New York City, NY (7/9/76)
Gentilly Orleans Theater -New Orleans, LA (9/3/76)
TLA Cinema - Philadelphia, PA (1/77)
Strand Theatre - Ocean Beach, CA (3/77)
Westwood Theatre - Toledo, OH (8/19/77)
Art Theatre - New Brunswick, NJ (4/77)
The Sombrero Playhouse - Phoenix, AZ (4/77)
Village Theater, Dallas, TX (4/29/77)
Sherman Theater - Sherman Oaks, CA (5/77)
Graceland Twin Cinema - Columbus, OH (6/3/77)
Tiffany Theater - West Hollywood, CA (6/10/77)
Alabama Theater - Houston, TX (6/11/77)
Ogden Theatre - Denver, CO (6/25/77)
Grove Art Cinema - Miami, FL (7/2/77)
Neptune Theatre - Seattle, WA (7/29/77)
State Theatre - Pittsburgh, PA (8/19/77)
Heights Art Theater - Cleveland, OH (8/19/77)
Westwood Art Theater - Lakewood OH (8/19/77)
University Cinema - Baton Rouge, LA (8/19/77)
Strand - San Francisco, CA (8/19/77)
Cove Theater - Hermosa Beach, CA (8/19/77)
Balboa Theatre - Newport Beach, CA (8/19/77)
Northwest - San Antonio, TX (9/9/77)
Riverside Twin I - Austin, TX (9/16/77)
Valley Art Theater - Tempe, AZ (9/77)
Whitehaven Theatre - Memphis, TN (9/77)
RKO Proctor's Theatre- New Rochelle, NY (9/23/77)
UC Theatre - Berkeley, CA (9/23/77)
Key Theatre - Washington, DC (12/2/77)
Honorable mention to long-time early theaters:
Loft Cinema - Tucson, AZ (1/6/78)
Rialto Theatre - South Pasadena, CA (1/7/78)
International Engagements of Note
Rialto Cinema - London (8/75-9/75)
Highpoint Thetre - Johannesburg, S Africa (2/76-?/76--12+ weeks)
