The Newport Beach Public Library Foundation will host producer Robert Kline at its annual “A Night at the Oscars” event scheduled for Wednesday Feb. 20 at the Port Theater.
The program offers an insider’s look at the 2013 Oscar nominations and includes film clips from the year’s Best Picture nominees. The discussion will be led by Kline, who is a former longtime member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and was executive vice president of 20th Century Fox and a co-founder of Lifetime Television.
The event costs $75, or $60 for Library Foundation members, and includes complimentary valet parking and a wine, Champagne and hors d’oeuvres reception.
The reception will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. and the program will follow.
Organizers said they expect the event to sell out. To reserve a spot, call (949) 548-2411 or click here.
The Port Theater is located at 2905 East Coast Highway.

To view original article, click here.

7. The Port Theater. After being closed for 14 years and under renovation for ten, the New Port Theater opened in July after a sneak preview for the Newport Beach Film Festival in April; read our stories here and here. Earlier this month, the city’s Planning Commission voted to allow the theater to serve alcohol; read that story here.

Across the nation, elections, shootings and storms made headlines this year. Here in Corona del Mar, we had our own issues with candidates and gunfire — but we also had our share of good news and some downright strange stories. Here’s our Top Ten Stories for 2012 from Corona del Mar Today. Please leave a comment if you have one to add.

1. Fire Rings. The Newport Beach City Council in March voted to remove all 60 beach fire rings, and a Coastal Commission hearing could be scheduled for March. Could this be the end of an era? Read our stories here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

2. Gunfire. On Saturday Dec. 15, a man is accused of firing 54 shots in a Fashion Island parking lot. No one was hurt, but dozens of shoppers said they hid in dressing rooms and bathrooms behind locked store doors until police arrested the suspect. Later, police said the man admitted to shooting his gun several times previously — including three other times in Newport Beach — because it made him feel better. Read our stories here, here, here, here and here.

3. Diapers. Early this year, Corona del Mar Today began reporting the appearance of dirty adult diapers that were being dumped periodically on East Coast Highway near Cameo Highlands. By May, the diapers were showing up in Laguna Beach as well, and in September, police in that city identified a suspect, a Newport Coast man who later was charged with a single misdemeanor count of prohibited waste disposal. Read our stories here, here, here and here.

4. In July, the Newport Beach City Council voted to add sharrows along East Coast Highway through Corona del Mar; read our story here. The sharrows were painted on Oct. 31, earlier than planned, partly in reaction to two cycling fatalities within 24 hours in September; read our stories here, here, here and here.

5. President Obama visited Shore Cliffs in Corona del Mar for a fundraising breakfast in February, drawing crowds of protesters and supporters and leaving the city with an unpaid police overtime invoice of more than $35,000. Read our stories here, here and here.

6. Two Corona del Mar neighbors’ fight about noisy hens ended up in a City Council hearing this year, but ultimately the Council voted not to allow chickens to be kept as pets, and the owner of the so-called Goldenrod Six packed up and moved from the area. Read our stories here, here, here, here and here.

7. The Port Theater. After being closed for 14 years and under renovation for ten, the New Port Theater opened in July after a sneak preview for the Newport Beach Film Festival in April; read our stories here and here. Earlier this month, the city’s Planning Commission voted to allow the theater to serve alcohol; read that story here.

8. Traffic Study. Plans to improve the entryway to Corona del Mar at MacArthur Boulevard and East Coast Highway hinged on a traffic study to see how traffic was affected when the squeeze lane was moved. The study was installed this summer and removed Oct. 31 — and city staff said it was not a success. The issue will be on a January City Council agenda. Read our stories here, here, here, click here. To read more about the beautification project, click here or here.

9. Upper Buck Gully Trail. In May, city officials cut the ribbon and opened the newely restored nature trail, the Upper Buck Gully trail in Corona del Mar. The trail runs for about three miles from trailhead off Poppy as well as on San Joaquin Hills Road and includes four metal bridges; read our story here.

10. Marguerite Fire. A Corona del Mar man was killed in a two-alarm house fire in September in the 600 block of Marguerite Avenue. Officials never determined what started the blaze. Read our stories here, here, here, here and here.

Original Article: http://www.coronadelmartoday.com/32355/home/cdm-todays-top-stories-this-year-2/

The New Port Theater will begin showing “The Life of Pi” in 3-D on Wednesday with free soft drinks during matinee showings and half-price concessions on opening day to welcome the holiday season.

The movie, which was directed by Ang Lee and which has received rave reviews, is based on Martel’s Man Booker Prize-winning novel and tells the story of a boy called Pi who spends nearly a year on a lifeboat with a tiger.

“We really want the community to enjoy the film,” said theater spokeswoman Liga Svikss.

The film’s first showing at the Port will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, and it will run through Dec. 13. To see a complete listing of show times or to buy tickets in advance, click here.

The Port Theater also is planning discounted admissions to the movie during the Corona del Mar Christmas Walk on Dec. 2, but details were not immediately available, Svikss said.

A roller-coaster ride of a two-hour hearing about alcohol sales at the Port Theater on Thursday twisted, turned, was nearly continued, was nearly withdrawn — all before a unanimous vote that had supporters and opponents expressing satisfaction in the end.

The Newport Beach Planning Commission met Thursday to consider a use permit that would allow the theater, which opened in July after about a decade of vacancy and then construction, to sell alcohol until 11 p.m., as well as to serve alcohol at special events.

Chairman Michael Toerge asked audience members to raise their hands if they planned to speak for or against the permit, and he and other commissioners then said they wanted to be clear that they supported the theater. But, they said, there were elements to the application that raised concerns.

“This application is something more than going to the theater and having a glass of wine,” Toerge said.

Toerge said the theater’s plans to provide entertainment, such as performing arts events and public and private parties, made it “perfectly suited for an operator license.” The city began requiring operator licenses in January 2011; click here and here to read more about operator licenses.

“Not only does it make good sense,” he said, “I think it’s required. I think the code applies, and I think it’s required here.”

The commissioners also expressed concern about elements of the use permit, such as whether cutting off alcohol sales at 11 p.m. would limit alcohol consumption.

“There’s no restriction here on bottle service,” Toerge said. “There’s no restriction from someone buying that at five ’til 11 and enjoying it until midnight or 1 a.m…I’m in support of this application so long as it acts like we all want it to act.”

While the theater’s lawyer began consulting the owner about how to respond to the commissioners, including whether to withdraw or change their application, another theater representative presented a slide show about the history of the Port, which was built in 1949 and once hosted an elephant for the premier of “The Greatest Show on Earth.”

But the theater, said Jessica Prause, went from a spot where children could meet Lassie to a decrepit building with holes in the ceiling.
“It was raining in the movie in Seattle,” she said, describing one woman’s experience while watching “Sleepless in Seattle.” “It was raining in Corona del Mar, too, and it was raining in the theater. She had to use an umbrella — it may have been the first 4D movie experience.”

Owner Fariborz Maseeh renovated the theater and added state of the art projection equipment because he wanted to run a theater, she said.
“If we wanted to be a bar, we would have bought a bar,” she said. “People are not going to buy a ticket if they want to go to a bar and drink.”
The average age of a Port customer, she said, was 45.

“They are not looking to go to a loud nightclub. It’s absolutely absurd.”
After the slide presentation, theater representatives spoke. At first, they indicated that they would agree to seeking an operator license from police and also would remove all alcohol by 11 p.m. — but would want to be able to offer alcohol throughout the theater, even during all-age showings.

Toerge then suggested a continuance until January to give staff time to consider the implications of the change. But Commissioner Kory Kramer said he was ready to vote in support of the permit immediately, and the board decided to see what members of the public had to say.

Fourteen people spoke, fairly evenly divided in support and against alcohol at the Port Theater. Opponents said they worried that the theater could host large events that would cause parking congestion and noise in their neighborhood.

“They could very easily turn this into a 350-person sports bar, and that’s exactly what they are talking about,” said Corona del Mar resident Dan Purcell. “They want to start pouring liquor as much as they can because that’s where the money is.”

Corona del Mar resident Nik Froehlich said he worried that the theater was going to get bogged down in red tape and bureaucracy that would take months and months to sort out.

“If you want it to happen, you can make it happen,” he said.
After the public comments, the Port Theater’s lawyer said they withdrew the request to expand liquor service and would agree to what was included in the staff report, along with an 11 p.m. cutoff on alcohol sales and consumption. They also would agree to obtaining the operator license and, as staff originally required, would work with police on a security plan.
The commissioners and city staff then discussed and made changes to clarify the permit, including adding language that would limit bottle service to wine and the operator license requirement, and they passed the use permit in a 6-0 vote.

After the hearing, opponent Carol Ann Rohr said she thought the decision could work out.

“If they comply with they requirements, and if the police department is clear on the requirements, I think we can protect the neighborhood,” she said. “We want to be supportive, but we don’t want to be overrun.”
Maseeh and spokeswoman Prause quickly left Council Chambers after the vote without stopping to talk to anyone, including Corona del Mar Today.

On Saturday, Prause emailed the following statement: “We would like to thank the community for the tremendous support they have given us, especially those who took the time out of their evenings to attend the Planning Commission meeting and appear in favor of our request on Thursday night. We are truly humbled by the support received. The participation warmed our hearts and taught us our effort has not been expended in vain. We at Port Theater will do what it takes to provide our supporters with a first class theater deserving of our community. We believe the decision by the Newport Beach Planning Commission was well thought out, and while we received a more restrictive permit than we hoped for, we are happy with the result. We also thank the members of the Commission for their service and the time and consideration they took making their thorough decision.”
But Cho, the lawyer, said the outcome was positive.

“It is a victory for the Port Theater in the end,” he said.

Theater representatives could work with police on the operator license and security plan simultaneously, he said, and possibly complete the process in six weeks. They also needed to wait 14 days to see if anyone appealed the Planning Commission decision, and then work with the state Alcoholic Beverage Control department.

So when can movie-goers buy a drink at the Port?

“Best-case, mid February, early March,” he said.

Original Article: http://www.coronadelmartoday.com/32853/home/planning-commission-approves-alcohol-at-port-theater/

The New Port Theater will open its doors to the public at 11:30 a.m. Friday, but some of the theater’s Corona del Mar neighbors will have a chance to see two free films tonight.

About 250 tickets have been mailed to homes near the theater at 1905 East Coast Highway, said Kristin Coates, a theater spokeswoman. More tickets were donated to nearby businesses, and Coates passed out other tickets to members of the Corona del Mar Residents Association at the group’s meeting this morning.

The tickets don’t guarantee a seat; anyone with a ticket should call (949) 723-6333 to check availability, Coates said. The theater’s capacity is 100 seats, and 300 tickets were passed out.

A showing of “Bernie” will take place at 6:45 p.m. followed by “Safety Not Guaranteed” at 9 p.m.

The theater will open to the public at 11:30 a.m. Friday. The theater’s website went live Wednesday, Coates said. The site has complete movie listings as well as a link for buying tickets online.

The theater opened in the 1950s, closed in 1998 and was slated for demolition when Fariborz Maseeh purchased it and began a years-long remodeling project. The theater briefly opened in May for the Newport Beach Film Festival.

Original Article: http://www.coronadelmartoday.com/29577/home/port-theater-to-host-sneak-preview-movie-night-for-neighbors/

The old saying “Good things come to those who wait” sprang to life Friday for CdM locals who have been patiently waiting for the Port Theater to reopen. After many years of boarded up walls and empty seats, the Port returned from the dead with a glow.

“Have you been inside yet?” one local excitedly asked as she left the theater Friday. “It is amazing, I love it!”

The revamped movie palace includes a glass front, a cafe that serves decadent pastries and specialty coffees, and an overall ambience that applies comfort and design like hot fudge to a sundae. And the cherry on top? Well, that’s what the future holds, because as another old saying goes, “The best is yet to come”.

The theater features spacious rows of leather round-back seats on the bottom floor. The balcony will serve a twofold purpose, providing additional seating and a bar where people can gather, mingle and enjoy the film while sipping their pinot grigio.

That’s part of the future plan. A beer and wine license is in the works, as well as creative programming not offered anywhere in Orange County. The latter will also include children’s movies.

“This community needed a center to gather,” said owner Fariborz Maseeh. “It didn’t have an entertainment center. I thought it could be good not only for the residents to walk to but also for people to meet, a place to assemble and enjoy the films.”

The Port is already making friends with the community, opening its doors a day early on Thursday to sell discounted tickets to local residents.

Regular pricing is $15 for adults ($8 for matinees), $4 for seniors and children.

The single-screen theater shows three different movies daily. Currently playing: Bernie, which stars Jack Black and Shirley MacLaine, the documentary First Position and Safety Not Guaranteed.

“We are having a soft opening right now,” said Maseeh. “We will have a grand opening for the community soon.”

A lighted marquee will be installed in a few weeks. The owner also wants to restore the original projector and display it in the lobby with black-and-white photos that capture the history of the Port Theater.

Other coming attractions include an expanded menu that features gourmet candy and popcorn, healthy sandwiches, salads, gourmet coffee and organic fruits.

The theater is also available for private parties and corporate events.

Original Article: http://newportbeach.going.com/articles/the-new-port-theater-now-open-to-public#photo-10722920

CORONA DEL MAR, CALIFORNIA – The long awaited return of Corona del Mar’s Port Theater has finally come. The public will be welcomed back inside on Friday, a theater official announced Monday.

Located on East Coast Highway and Heliotrope, the Port has been on a hiatus since 1998 and recently underwent a facelift. The public is invited to the theater’s reopening on Friday.

“We now have a theatre again in CDM,” owner Fariborz Maseeh said in a released statement. “We hope the new Port will offer a unique experience for its patrons across the spectrum of all art and entertainment platforms.”

In April some community members got a sneak peek inside the theater when it hosted seminars and screenings during the Newport Beach Film Festival.

During its first week, the Port Theater has plans to show several films including Bernie, starring Jack Black and Shirley MacLaine, Safety Not Guaranteed which is the story of magazine reporters who respond to a cryptic classified ad and the documentary First Position which showcases the world’s top ballet competition. Theater officials say patrons will be treated to the latest in digital projection and a quality assortment of snacks and drinks to enhance the movie experience.

Maseeh descibes the new Port as, “a vibrant theatre will bring a new energy and vitality to its residential and business neighbors.”

Hours of operation are from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. For more information on movies and times, visit http://portnewport.com. The web site is expected to be live by the end of the day.

Original Article: http://newportbeach.patch.com/articles/port-theater-s-grand-reopening-friday

CORONA DEL MAR, CALIFORNIA – The new Port Theatre will open to serve the community on Friday, July 20, 2012, with a slate of quality films including Bernie, Safety Not Guaranteed, and First Position during its first week of opening. After nearly fifteen years of hiatus and extensive renovations, the theatre intends to provide the residents of Corona del Mar, Newport Beach, and beyond with a best-in-class movie going experience.

Beginning with Bernie (first showing, 1:00 p.m. on July 20th), a comedy starring Jack Black and Shirley MacLaine, the theatre will open its doors and offer the latest in digital projection and a quality assortment of edibles and beverages. First Position, a highly-acclaimed documentary on the rigors of the world’s top ballet competition, will follow, along with Safety Not Guaranteed, a darling of the 2012 Sundance Festival about magazine reporters from Seattle who respond to a cryptic classified ad. These movies will run during the theatre’s opening week; please check the website for more details.

“We now have a theatre again in CDM!” owner Fariborz Maseeh remarked. “We hope the new Port will offer a unique experience for its patrons across the spectrum of all art and entertainment platforms.”

The community can look forward to a theatre that represents its interests in entertainment and also fulfills the community’s need for a place to gather and connect with one another. A vibrant theatre will bring a new energy and vitality to its residential and business neighbors.

The new Port Theatre management and staff welcome you to be a part of what is one of the most unique theatre experiences in the country, and invite you to partake in coverage of its long-awaited public opening. Please contact the public relations representative below for additional details.

www.portnewport.com
# # #

Press Contact: Port Manager
Phone: (949) 723-6333
E-mail: manager@portnewport.com

I had been dying to see the unveiling of this iconic theater, probably more than anyone else because I grew up on Carnation and Marguerite avenues and the Port is perfectly sandwiched between the two streets. My grandma and I walked to the Port and watched foreign films after my school days at Harbor View Elementary. Yes, they mostly screened foreign films, but they were good films nonetheless and a bag of popcorn made up for the hard to read subtitles.

On Saturday the Port Theater showed off its fairytale makeover complete with a clean, modern interior with a friendly staff and a cool, local vibe. Before the seminar, Gregg Schwenk, CEO of the Newport Beach Film Festival, spoke to the audience and said he was impressed by the theater’s transformation.

“Thirteen years ago when we were all wondering what was going to become of the Port Theater,” Schwenk said. “Here we are now and this far exceeds anything we could have imagined.”

Although the Newport Beach Film Festival had teamed up with the Port for the week of the Festival to offer free programming at the theater, it was not hard to see that the big star that everyone was whispering about was the new Port Theater.

“The community has been waiting a long time to see what’s going to happen to the Port Theater,” Councilman Keith Curry said. “I think it looks great. I think they did a wonderful job and it’s going to be a great community asset. We should be very proud of it because it’s going to be a new gathering place for the community.”

A gathering place indeed. The lobby was filled Saturday with locals, filmmakers and media for nearly an hour before the doors opened for the seminar. No photography was allowed inside the theater, but I will tell you that even the Real Housewives of Orange County would be jealous of this facelift.

The lobby featured cement floors, a concession stand with beautiful marble countertops that served colorful pastries, fresh lemonade and fancy coffee drinks. I couldn’t pass up a lemonade, especially after the nice lady behind the counter announced that everything is half off for all the guests in the lobby.

Moments after I was sipping my lemonade the nice lady behind the counter announced that I was their first paying customer and the owner wanted to award me a gift. The owner, Fariborz Maseeh, said “Thank you” for being his first customer, took my picture, and said that I would be able to have half off everything for the first three months of opening. So this is what winning the lottery feels like!

The rest of the lobby features two flat screen televisions showing the Food Network, modern dinette seating, and mid-century modern type wood paneling behind the concession counter with stainless steel port holes. The bathrooms were styled with the same wood paneling and with modern chrome fixtures and sinks. The two water fountains outside the restrooms feature a backdrop of silver beads like the fringe from a Flapper girl’s dress. .

The actual theater featured main floor seating and a balcony, not currently open to the public, but will feature a full bar. There were seats for 70 people in brown leather rounded chairs that spread across the entire floor of the theater. The seating was very much like a classic supper club. The walls were filled with magenta squares that were nostalgic of a 60s hip Palm Springs house. There was still work that needed to be done inside the theater, but it was at least evident that the new Port theater was real and not a dream.

The new Port Theater will be closed until its grand opening which is scheduled for mid-summer. Plans for what type of programming have not been released yet, but whatever the plans are, this is a nice welcome back to an iconic piece of Corona del Mar history.

The newly renovated Port Theater in Corona del Mar was… (KEVIN CHANG, Daily…)

With the veil lifted, theater buffs were some of the first to see inside the renovated Port Theater during the building’s sneak preview Saturday.

The historic Corona del Mar film house hosted filmmaking seminars during the annual Newport Beach Film Festival.

Audience members oohed and aahed as wood-paneled doors opened to the public for the first time since the theater closed in 1998. One of the few remaining single-screen cinemas, the Port was originally built in the 1950s.

The new Port Theater’s mid-century modern interior has angular and minimalist décor, giving the space a clean, breezy feel. Playing on the theater’s nautical theme, port holes connect the concession stand to the auditorium.

“It feels young and hip,” said Film Festival volunteer Rand Collis, 27, who was blocking people from entering the lobby after an afternoon seminar reached capacity.

The concrete building, at 2905 East Coast Hwy., blends into the staid street scene, while inside the glass, stone and wood converge in cool tones. Flat-screen TVs line the walls.

Inside the auditorium, purple retro rectangles are mounted on tall walls. For Saturday’s screenwriting seminar, 70 stand-alone brown leather seats were spaced generously in rows, with traditional movie theater seats lining the back wall.

The seating can be transformed into tables and bar stools for a more social atmosphere. There’s also has balcony, which has a full bar, but it was off-limits for the 1 p.m. discussion.

“I like the modern feel,” said screenwriter Elliot Feld, 25, one of the panelists. “It’s really cool and intimate.”

The lobby and the theater have uncovered concrete floors. But don’t mistake that for frugality; condiment counters are made of marble.

A company representative, who asked not to be named, said that they “spared no expense.”

Generating an air of mystery, Port Theater executives have kept silent during the years-long restoration. They confounded Corona del Mar residents, who wondered what was taking so long.

“We’re not intending to be secretive,” the representative said. “We want everything to be perfect.”

Theater executives hope to have a grand opening in coming months and wanted to accommodate the Film Festival, which seeks to be a long-term partner.

http://articles.dailypilot.com/2012-04-28/news/tn-dpt-0429-port-20120428_1_screenwriting-seminar-theater-buffs-corona-del-mar

mike.reicher@latimes.com

Twitter: @mreicher