Century Theatres

The Century Theater chain was originally named Syufy Enterprises, for its founder Raymond Syufy, Senior, who built his first theater in Vallejo, California, in 1941. The first Century theater was the Century 21 in San Jose, California, which opened November 24, 1964, adjacent to the Winchester Mystery House. The Century 21 theater was built to showcase Cinerama type movies (the left and right empty projection booths are still present), but in fact, it showed only 70mm movies. The screen was later replaced with a flat model, and has remained intact as a throwback to the domed Cinerama palaces of the 1960s. The "Century 21" name was a tactic used to convey to the viewing public a "futuristic image". This image is bolstered by the lobby's distinct modern "bubbled lights" and metallic gold accents. The large orange metal ornament on the top of the domed-theater was functional in addition to being decorative—theater employees rappelled from it when the dome's outer track-lighting needed to be maintained. The first film presented at the Century 21 was It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World in 70mm format.

The company started using the name "Century Theatres" in 1995.

Century Theatres has a long history of litigation against its much larger competitor, AMC Theatres, for alleged anti-competitive behavior. However, since the late 1990s, both sides have generally refrained from suing each other.

On August 8, 2006, Texas-based chain Cinemark Theatres announced that it had completed a purchase agreement under which Century Theatres would be acquired with a combination of cash and stock from Cinemark's parent company. The transition to Cinemark was completed on Thursday, October 5, 2006, with the exception of the Century 24, which was transferred back to its original company, Syufy Enterprises. In early 2013, it was announced that Century 21, 22, 23, and 24 theaters were soon to be redeveloped. The company's drive-in theaters and swap meets were also not part of the merger and also reverted to Syufy Enterprises ownership. They now operate under the brand name "West Wind Drive-Ins and Public Markets".

In January 2014, Century 24 was closed and demolished. At the end of March, the 50-year lease for Century 21, 22, and 23 ended and was not renewed, and the theaters closed. A preservation movement, which began the year before, was successful in getting City Historic Landmark status for the very first - the Century 21 - as a prime local example of Mid Century Modern architecture. It was also Placed on the California Register of Historical Resources, and deemed "eligible" to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Century 22 and 23 were demolished in 2019 and have been replaced by a parking garage and parking lot, respectively, while the former site of Century 24 has yet to be redeveloped.

2012 shooting

On July 20, 2012, in Aurora, Colorado, during a midnight showing of the movie The Dark Knight Rises, gunman James Eagan Holmes, shot at viewers in Theater 9 at the Century 16 theater, killing 12 people and injuring 70 others.

Cinemark held an "evening of remembrance" at the remodeled theater on January 17, 2013, inviting elected officials, victims and relatives of victims, after which movies were shown without charge. The theater reopened permanently on January 25. Theater 9 at Century Aurora is now a Cinemark XD Theatre. Instead of numbers, theaters are now identified by letters; for example, the Theater 9 is now Theater I, and Theater 8 is now Theater H.