The Capistrano Insider

That Wasn't OUR Mission SJC that was Vandalized

A lot of electronic news traffic about black spray-paint marring Mission San Juan Capistrano. Seems some vandal wrote "ATM" on the wall of the 200-year-old church ...

BUT WAIT. That's not Mission San Juan Capistrano in San Juan Capistrano. It's the Mission San Juan Capistrano in Texas.

Here's the story from a paper in San Antonio.

 



Capistrano's Fiesta Board Selects Officers

The Fiesta Association, the all-volunteer group that puts on the Swallows Day Parade and related activities, elected its board of directors this month for the 2011 parade season. Here's the officials:

Steve Weekes, President/Sponsorship

Ben Dixon, Parade Chair

Dave Faylor, 1st VP/Assistant Parade Chair

Jeff Schroeder, Publicity Chair

Kathy Hooper, 2nd VIP/Mercado

Olivia Cuellar, Events

Cindy Carden, Assistant Sponsorship

Ron Haskell, Merchandise

Jone Clay, Events

Greg Kendrick, Sherriff

Chris Phillips, Assistant Mercado

Carol Spear, Membership/Taste of San Juan

 

New board members:

 

Karen Bambauer, Secretary

Eric Bergstrom, Assistant Sherriff

Mike Rosenberger, Treasurer

Here's Regency's Release on the New Capistrano Theater

REGENCY THEATRES ANNOUNCES THE GRAND OPENING OF ITS SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO THEATER

Beer, Wine & Movies!

Regency’s New San Juan Capistrano Theater to Feature
Rick’s Café & Wine Bar and Reserved Stadium Seating

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, May 3, 2010

Contact: David Woodworth

  Regency Theatres 
 

 

 

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA -- Regency Theatres is pleased to announce the grand opening of the Regency San Juan Capistrano Theater located in downtown San Juan Capistrano in the Franciscan Plaza.  The theater opens on Friday, May 7, 2010.

 

Regency’s San Juan Capistrano Theater will play first-run commercial films with state-of-the-art Dolby Digital Sound and will also offer films in 3D. The theater boasts a total of four auditoriums with stadium-seating and an upstairs VIP auditorium featuring reserved seating, high-back leather chairs and in-seat dining.

 

Stepping into the Regency San Juan Capistrano Theater is like stepping into a scene right out of the classic film CASABLANCA, with its Moroccan motif and Rick’s Café, a beer and wine bar with a complete restaurant menu.  While watching movies at the Regency San Juan Capistrano Theater, patrons can have their food and beverages delivered to their seats. The theater will also offer concession stand favorites including fresh hot popcorn with real butter, ice cold Pepsi products and world-famous Eisenberg Hot Dogs.

 

“We are extremely excited about the opening of our new theater in San Juan Capistrano.  The addition of our full-service restaurant, Rick’s Café, and the ability to offer our guests wine, beer and great food while enjoying their favorite films in luxurious seats is a dream realized” said Lyndon Golin, President of Regency Theatres.

 

Movies premiering on opening day include the highly anticipated IRON MAN 2 presented in both 2D and 3D, Disney’s spectacular nature documentary, OCEANS, as well as the romantic comedy THE BACKUP PLAN starring Jennifer Lopez.

 

The theater is located only steps away from the San Juan Capistrano Amtrak train station. 
The Regency San Juan Capistrano Theater is located at 26762 Verdugo Street, San Juan Capistrano, CA. 92675.  Movie information and ticketing is available at Regency Theatres’ website www.regencymovies.com.

 

Based in Calabasas, family-owned Regency Theatres was founded in 1996 and operates 21 locations in Southern California as well as Denver, Colorado. The new San Juan Capistrano Theater will be a great addition to Regency’s five other locations in Orange County.

VIP Movie Opening Wednesday: Ironman 2 There This Weekend

Invitations are in e-mail boxes all over town for a long-awaited VIP opening of the Regency theaters in Capistrano. It's been closed a decade -- Regency took over about a year ago.

The 1942 hit "Casablanca" will be shown. That's a favorite of Regency chief Lyndon Golin. It's also the inspiration for "Rick's Cafe," the second-floor bar and restaurant area of the theater, and for the decorations throughout the four-screen moviehouse.

The theater will open in earnest this weekend, screening "Ironman 2."

Here's some photos of a sneak-in tour I took with Councilman Mark Nielsen a few days ago:

Moroccan light fixtures over the lobby and in the center of the upstairs "Rick's Cafe."

Nielsen in the VIP theater, which will cost a few dollars more but feature waiters who bring food and drinks -- the theater will serve beer and wine, too -- to your seat. The armrest to his right lifts up to make it a loveseat. The VIP seats are a bit nicer than those in the other theaters, but not much. They're all nice.

Not a great shot -- from my Blackberry -- but this is the upstairs bar in Rick's Cafe. Not like any theater I've ever seen.

Unquestionably, the opening of the theater is the most exciting thing to happen in the downtown in more than a decade.

1949 Cartoon Features Swallows Return to Mission Capistrano

When Jan Siegel and I were discussing her discovery of an old black-and-white film that featured Mission San Juan Capistrano, she mentioned a Looney Tunes cartoon about the swallows returning to the Mission.

Called "Swallow the Leader," the cartoon is a cute depiction of Mission San Juan Capistrano and the swallows. It was released in October, 1949.

Here's a snyopsis (caution, it gives away the ending!) from www.imdb.com:

Migrating swallows are making their annual spring return to San Juan Capistrano, and a hungry cat awaits them with a radar scope and with his mouth and head disguised as a bird's nest. The clever advance scout for the flock of swallows tricks the cat into ingesting a metallic statue of a swallow, then uses a magnet to pull the cat through pipes and the prongs of a ladder. Hundreds of swallows then dive-bomb the cat with light bulbs and thumb tacks. Written by Kevin McCorry <[email protected]>

And here's the link:

http://www.slashcontrol.com/free-tv-shows/looney-tunes/3342257076-swallow-the-leader

I say we get the new Regency theater in town to screen it next year in March ... or maybe the Chamber can incorporate it in it's annual farewell to the swallows in October?