please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article relies too much on references to primary sources . please improve this by adding secondary or tertiary sources . january 2010 learn how and when to remove this template message this article contains wording that promotes the subject in a subjective manner without imparting real information . please remove or replace such wording and instead of making proclamations about a subject s importance use facts and attribution to demonstrate that importance . december 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message harkins theatres type private subsidiary of harkins enterprises industry entertainment movie theaters founded 1933 founder dwight red harkins headquarters scottsdale arizona area served southwestern united states key people dan harkins owner & ceo mike bowers president & coo owner dan harkins number of employees about 3 000 as of may 2009 1 parent harkins enterprises llc website http www.harkinstheatres.com harkins theatres is a movie theater chain with locations throughout the southwestern united states . harkins theatres is privately owned and operated by its parent company harkins enterprises llc . the company currently operates 30 theaters with 434 screens throughout arizona california colorado oklahoma and texas . contents 1 history 1.1 founding 1.2 early years 1.3 dan harkins 1.4 expansion 2 art and independent film 3 features 4 trivia 5 main competitors 6 references 7 external links history edit founding edit in 1931 at the age of sixteen dwight red harkins left cincinnati ohio on his harley davidson motorcycle for hollywood . dwight planned to pursue a role in one of the new talkies . by the time he arrived in tempe arizona he could no longer afford to continue his quest . after several years in tempe he sought out a new career operating a movie house . in 1933 he opened the state theatre in tempe at the age of 18 after putting 50 down on the lease to take over the state theatre . the state theatre was originally the goodwin opera house opened c. 1907 . 2 3 early years edit in 1934 red harkins expanded to have an outdoor theatre in tempe beach park ; however this only lasted for one summer . the next true theatre that harkins built in 1940 was the college theatre currently harkins valley art . the theatre contained innovations such as glow in the dark carpet headphones for the hearing impaired and automatic drinking fountains . this theatre is important to tempe and its history as it is the only depression era theatre that is in tempe . the last theatre opened by red harkins was the camelview 5 theatre in 1973 . 4 the camelview 5 closed down in december 2015 and the camelview at fashion square opened as a new 14 theater space in scottsdale fashion square mall . dan harkins edit in 1974 dwight harkins died leaving the company to his eldest son dan harkins . at that time the company was near bankruptcy . after reworking the company dan extensively expanded the theatre chain from five locations in the phoenix area to the current 30 locations in five states oklahoma texas colorado arizona southern california . harkins theatres struggled financially because it was unable to book many first run movies . in 1977 dan harkins filed a lawsuit against a group of film distributors alleging they had prevented harkins from booking many top first run movie titles . movie studios began settling with harkins . as a result of the lawsuit harkins theatres was able to show a run of disney s fantasia 1940 film in may 1982 starting a string of successful releases . 5 dan harkins has won several awards for his work in the exhibitor industry and his community involvement . phoenix film festival visionary award 2010 6 arizona culture keepers 2010 7 united motion picture association of america national showman of the year 1976 1980 & 1982 8 american institute of architects community vision award 1996 9 expansion edit in the late 1980s harkins acquired several theatres operated by mann theatres . most of the theatres acquired were a result of a lawsuit . 10 in 1988 harkins re opened the cine capri theatre in phoenix . the original cine capri had the largest screen in arizona measuring more than 70 feet 21 m long . despite over 200 000 signatures in an effort to save the theatre led primarily by ktar s pat mcmahon the theatre was demolished in 1998 . 11 12 in 2003 the new version of the cine capri theatre opened at the scottsdale 101 14 multiplex . 13 harkins theatres has also built cine capri theatres at its bricktown 16 oklahoma city ok northfield 18 denver co 14 southlake 14 southlake tx and tempe marketplace 16 tempe az locations . 15 in 2006 harkins theatres opened two theatres in california moreno valley 16 moreno valley ca and chino hills 18 chino hills ca . since then two more locations were opened in california in 2016 . mountain grove 16 redlands ca and cerritos 16 cerritos ca . both theatres include harkins ultimate lounger recliner chairs reserved seating an in lobby bar that serves local craft beers and wine a playcenter and the all new cin 1 theater . cin 1 is more of a modern take of the original cin capri . cin 1 features an over 80 foot screen state of the art laser projection and dolby atmos sound . the cin 1 can also seat over 400 guests . on december 10 2009 harkins theatres began to lease the imax theatre right next to its own theatre at arizona mills from imax corporation . that location was immediately renamed the harkins arizona mills luxury 25 with imax and features arizona s only full sized imax screen . the first movie to be shown in the newly acquired theatre was james cameron s avatar from 20th century fox in imax 3d . 16 in may 2013 harkins re opened former tower theaters in tucson arizona to be called harkins arizona pavilions 12 theatre . the theater holds 12 screens and is now the second theater in tucson and the third in southern arizona . in december 2015 harkins merged two of its popular theatres together in scottsdale arizona while closing two of their former facilities . on december 7 2015 harkins closed fashion square 7 and on december 10 camelview 5 was also shut down . camelview s spirit of independent and art circuit films plus the running of mainstream movies were brought into the all new harkins camelview at fashion square 14 that opened on december 17 prior to the opening of disney s globally anticipated release of lucasfilm ltd. s star wars the force awakens . this theatre will be a moviegoer s dream come true said company owner dan harkins . we intend to transplant the soul of our beloved camelview into this amazing new cinema . independent foreign and art films are a part of our dna and we are proud to be able to continue and expand camelview s legacy to include even more films in a dazzling new venue . 17 camelview at fashion square 14 becomes the crown jewel of harkins theatres with highlights of amenities that include more art independent and foreign films than ever before ; harkins ultimate lounger plush leather reclining seats ; reserved seating ; 14 curved wall to wall screens ; 4k digital projection and dolby digital sound ; gourmet concessions stand with an expanded menu including harkins award winning popcorn and a variety of hot food items ; harkins lobby caf featuring espresso drinks enticing desserts and savory small plates ; the v rit lounge a unique amenity with an indoor outdoor rooftop terrace where moviegoers can enjoy cocktails wine and beer including local craft favorites and architecturally minimalist modern movie palace decor inside . art and independent film edit the harkins art film society brings art and independent films to the theatre chain . harkins valley art and harkins camelview at fashion square 14 are dedicated to foreign and independent films . harkins also broadcasts opera and ballet performances throughout the year . these broadcasts include both live and taped ballet performances from around the world . 18 harkins theatres hosts several film festivals each year . the phoenix film festival harkins theatres scottsdale 101 scottsdale arizona 19 the scottsdale international film festival harkins theatres shea 14 scottsdale arizona 20 the greater phoenix jewish film festival harkins theatres camelview at fashion square 14 scottsdale arizona deadcenter film festival harkins theatres bricktown 16 oklahoma city oklahoma 21 features edit in 1997 harkins theatres superstition springs 25 was the first theatre in arizona to obtain thx certification in all 25 auditoriums . citation needed in 2011 harkins theatres upgraded more than 400 of its screens to digital projection . 22 harkins theatres sells souvenir loyalty cups and loyalty t shirts each year with a different movie related theme . customers who purchase a loyalty cup can bring it back to receive 1.50 refills for the year . if they wear a loyalty t shirt they receive a free medium sized popcorn during each visit throughout the year . a percentage of the proceeds go to the center for cancer and blood disorders at phoenix children s hospital . 23 in 2001 harkins theatres began introducing playcenters in their theatres allowing parents to see a movie while their children are in a supervised environment . 24 each summer harkins theatres hosts summer movie fun which is a summer movie program for children . the program features 10 children s movies from the previous year . harkins developed the program more than 30 years ago as a way to offer parents an affordable summer activity for children . 25 trivia edit before the opening of each new theatre dan harkins and his family have a hand print dedication ceremony similar to that at grauman s chinese theater in hollywood . he then proceeds to purchase the first ticket . 26 a premiere of the bourne ultimatum was held in downtown oklahoma city on july 31 2007 at the harkins theatres bricktown 16 27 to benefit the children s center located in suburban bethany . the film was shown simultaneously on three screens . star matt damon was at the event to greet guests . 28 20th century fox held a youtube contest to determine where the world premiere of x men origins wolverine would be held . tempe arizona won the contest and the world premiere of x men origins wolverine was held at harkins theatres tempe marketplace 16 on april 27 2009 . 29 main competitors edit amc theatres cinemark theatres references edit https www.youtube.com watch v 9ccilrg5zm8 http www.azmusichalloffame.org pages bio dwight harkins.html http www.azcentral.com story news local tempe 2014 07 11 ebay find reveals tempe history 12542383 http www.azcentral.com community tempe articles 2010 03 08 20100308 tempe valley art.html http www.mobilitytechzone.com news 2008 05 08 3432921 . htm http phxated.com phxated dan harkins getting a visionary award at phoenix film fest in april http www.azcentral.com business articles 2010 09 09 20100909 biz harkins0909.html http www.eastvalleytribune.com article 0c7ac448 9b5f 5731 83e4 d5ab7eb03337.html http www.my929.com pages weeklyguests.html http www.mobilitytechzone.com news 2008 05 08 3432921 . htm https news.google.com newspapers id q1tiaaaaibaj & sjid dk4daaaaibaj & dq cine % 20capri & pg 2148 % 2c928356 https news.google.com newspapers id dsekaaaaibaj & sjid gk4daaaaibaj & dq cine % 20capri & pg 6075 % 2c4672489 http www.eastvalleytribune.com article ef029b8e e52d 5ebc a32d 24c185d5e02c.html movie theater chain enters market . march 27 2006 . http www.azcentral.com arizonarepublic business articles 0627biz tr harkins0627.html harkins acquires imax at arizona mills . december 11 2009 . harkins to replace camelview with 14 screen theater at scottsdale