Carmike Cinemas

Carmike movie theater in Statesboro, Georgia

Carmike Cinemas Inc. is a motion picture exhibitor headquartered in Columbus, Georgia in the United States of America. As of October 1, 2013 it operates or has an interest in 247 theaters with 2,521 screens in 36 states, making it the fourth largest theatre company in the United States.

Carmike was founded when Carl L. Patrick, Sr. acquired Martin Theatres from Fuqua Industries in 1982.^[1] The theater name comes from a combination of Carl L. Patrick, Sr.'s two sons, Carl Jr. and Michael, hence Carmike.

Carmike theaters are largely positioned in rural or suburban areas with populations under 200,000.^[2] The company bills itself as "America's Hometown Theatre".

The Company's theatres are operated under various names and will generally have a name followed by the number of auditoriums at that location, for example "Carmike 15". Names currently in use include Carmike, Wynnsong, GKC, Cine, Cinema, Movies, Stadium, and other local variants such as "Fleming Island 12" in Fleming Island, FL.

Bankruptcy proceedings

Carmike sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2000 after failing to make $9 million in interest payments. The company had about $650 million in debt. Since declaring bankruptcy, many theaters (mostly smaller single, twin, and triple theatres) in dead markets were closed down, and some were renovated or relocated in areas with desirable market potential. Most of these newer theaters are 10 screens or larger. The number of theaters owned or operated by the company dropped from 448 to just over 300.

During Bankruptcy, the company was forced to sell or close several historic theaters, including the Villa Theatre in Salt Lake City, Utah and The Indian Hills Theater in Omaha, Nebraska, the latter of which contained a 70-foot (21 m) wide Cinerama screen, the largest in the United States. The Indian Hills was later demolished in August 2001. Actress Patricia Neal called the destruction of the theater "a crime."^[3]

Carmike exited bankruptcy in early 2002, having successfully restructured its debts and operations.^[4]

Recent Acquisitions

In 2005, Carmike purchased 30 GKC Theaters (263 screens) from the heirs of George Kerasotes for US$66 million. His George Kerasotes Corporation was the result of a split with other family members who jointly owned Kerasotes Theatres. In 2011, Carmike Cinemas acquired MNM Theatres, adding three locations (40 screens) in the Atlanta area.^[5]

In October 2012, Rave Cinemas, signed an agreement to sell 16 theaters with 251 screens to Carmike Cinemas for $19 million in cash and $100.4 million of assumed lease obligations. Of the 16 theaters being acquired, six are in Alabama, four in Florida, two in Indiana, and one each in Illinois, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas. This is Carmike's first try with IMAX. The sale also included 7 IMAX screens.^[6] Before the sale Rave owned or managed 62 theaters and 939 screens located in 21 states across the country.

On July 18, 2013 Carmike Cinemas announced that they would buy 3 more theatres from Rave Cinemas a division of Cinemark located in Louisville, KY, Voorhees, NJ and Hickory Creek, TX. With this change, the Voorhees and Louisville locations switched to Screenvision from National CineMedia while Hickory Creek remains with Screenvision. The sale also included an 8th IMAX screen. ^[7] The sale was closed on August 16, 2013. ^[8]

On November 4th, 2013, Carmike Cinemas agreed to purchase Muvico Theaters, LLC. This acquisition includes Muvico's nine locations in Florida, California, and Illinois for just under $31.8 million. All Muvico Theaters being acquired by Carmike Cinemas also feature D-BOX MFX seats. 2 IMAX screens, 2 MuviXL screens, 2 Bogart's restaurants are also included in the sale. After the sale closes, the MuviXL screens will be re-branded as Carmike's BigD. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2013. ^[9]

Change in management

Carmike Cinemas Inc.'s board of directors removed Michael Patrick as its chief executive on January 20, 2009, citing struggles with earnings and the company's $1 a share stock price, down from $26 a share in January 2007. S. David Passman III was selected as a temporary non-executive chairman.^[4]

On June 4, 2009, the company announced that effective immediately, S. David Passman III, had been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer and that current Board member, Roland C. Smith, would succeed Mr. Passman as Carmike's Chairman of the Board. Fred Van Noy and Richard Hare remained with Carmike as Chief Operating Officer and as Chief Financial Officer.

Digital Projection & 3D

Carmike Cinemas headquarters in Columbus, Georgia

In 2005, Carmike Cinemas launched a contract with Christie Digital Systems to convert all its auditoriums to Texas Instruments DLP projection technology. This rollout was completed in 2007 and all of the company's first run theatres were converted to Digital Projection.

As of October 2013, the company remained a leader in Digital Projection with 2,418 digital screens of which 954 were capable of showing Real-D 3D movies.

References

• "Company News; Judge Approves Chapter 11 Plan For Carmike Cinemas". (January 4, 2002). The New York Times. Retrieved on August 23, 2007.
• Thiessen, Mark (July 18, 2001). "Historic Theater Threatened". CBS News. Retrieved on August 23, 2007.

External links

• Company website
• Company Investor Website