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Hollywood Theaters temporarily closed
Saipan big screen movie lovers may have to wait about a month as the Hollywood Theaters in San Jose, the only movie house in the CNMI, suffered extensive damage from Super Typhoon Yutu.
Powerful winds ripped apart a huge portion of a concrete wall in the back left side of the building.
Winds blew away a big part of the building’s tin roof. A huge portion of the ceiling also collapsed, Saipan Tribune learned yesterday.
As of press time, Saipan Tribune was still contacting the theaters’ general manager, William Santos, to know the target re-opening date.
There was also no comment yet from the Tennessee-based Regal Entertainment Group, which owns Hollywood Theaters.
A construction worker said the ripped wall was in Auditorium 7 and that another auditorium also sustained minor damage.
Hollywood Theaters has seven auditoriums.
Saipan Tribune noticed that the affected wall is only about 2 inches thick.
At least four air-conditioners were also damaged.
The worker estimated that their company may complete the repairs within a month.
The company temporarily installed tarps on the roof to prevent rainwater from getting inside the building.
Hollywood Theaters also suffered severe damage after Typhoon Soudelor devastated the CNMI in August 2015 and it took the movie house several months to re-open.
Hollywood Theaters first opened in September 1999. In April 2008 it shut down reportedly due to the bad economy and rising operational costs.
Due to strong public demand, the movie theater re-opened on May 23, 2008.
