Seattle Aquarium's soon-to-be-opened OmniRama Theater is raved on June 2, 1979.

HistoryLink.org Essay 2187 : Printer-Friendly Format

On June 2, 1979, The Seattle Times reviews the Seattle Aquarium's OmniRama Theater, which is expected to open within the following week, and says it "eclipses" the Cinerama, which is at the time the most modern movie theater in Seattle.

The Times article states:

"The 'OmniRama Theater,' as it is called here, is to Cinerama what a modern stereo system is to the first stereo record players of the 1950s. It represents the state of the art in spectacular filmaking, eclipsing even the most refined 70-millimeter systems in fidelity of sound and image.
"The extra-large film that is used to project on the OmniRama's curved dome screen is, in fact, three times as high as 70mm. The soundtrack is separate from the film: a taped six-track stereo accompaniment that is synchronized with each performance."

The OmniRama was at the time one of only about half a dozen theaters, museums, or planetariums in the world with similar Imax technology. It was designed so that audiences could sit back in their steeply banked chairs to experience the intensity of the presentation. The initial film to be shown was "Genesis," a 33-minute production about the evolution of Earth's geography, with emphasis on plate tectonics and featuring a simulation of the creation of the universe.

Sources:
John Hartl, "Pier 59's OmniRama Theater Eclipses Cinerama," The Seattle Times, June 2, 1979, p. B-3.

By Patrick McRoberts, April 01, 2000

Travel through time (chronological order):
< Browse to Previous Essay | Browse to Next Essay >

Related Topics: Education | Media | Technology | Maritime |

Licensing: This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons license that encourages reproduction with attribution. Credit should be given to both HistoryLink.org and to the author, and sources must be included with any reproduction. Click the icon for more info. Please note that this Creative Commons license applies to text only, and not to images. For more information regarding individual photos or images, please contact the source noted in the image credit.

This essay made possible by:
Seattle Aquarium Society (SEAS)

The Seattle Aquarium, August 2002
Photo by Priscilla Long