cinelog.org

Be it the result of a theatre’s lackluster later years tainting memories or an “out with the old, in with the new” mentality, many, formerly popular, cinemas fade from the public’s collective consciousness soon after closing. Then, one finds a theatre, like Anaheim’s Century 21, which never managed to enter this public awareness in the first place.

Opened in June of 1965, Anaheim’s Century 21 had all the ingredients for a highly successful movie theatre. Featuring a cavernous 1,200 seat auditorium, high end amenities, and an eye catching modern exterior, the Century 21 should have been a local movie going hotspot. Even the location, near the five freeway and adjacent to the, then popular, Anaheim Plaza mall, pointed towards potential success. Yet, the theatre never managed to capture a sizeable audience during it’s brief run.

Struggling, almost from the onset, the Century 21 rotated through four separate chains over the course of it’s fourteen years of operation. These chains attempted county exclusive film engagements and, in 1974, the theatre was twinned, to keep pace with the burgeoning multi-screen era. However, the efforts never proved fruitful, as the Century 21 was quietly closed in the Spring of 1979.

Shortly after closing, the property was redeveloped in to a set of fast food restaurants and an office complex; a Taco Bell, on the corner of Euclid and Glenn Oak, is now positioned where the Century 21’s lobby once stood. Today, few locals know their neighborhood was formerly the home of a luxurious theatre and even lifelong residents strain to recall a memory of the Century 21.