Quo Vadis Center - 3 Theaters Under 1 Roof 4 thaters thrive on a single site Togetherness pays off By JOHN FINLAYSON Detroit News Amusement Editor A unique and flourishing four-theater complex should easily give the suburban Shafer family - Charlie, his brother, Martin, and the latter's wife, Dorothy-charter membership in any Film Exhibitors Hall of Fame. Their Quo Vadis Entertainment Center boasts three theaters under one roof and a 1,486-car drive-in. The Algiers, plus a cock- tail lounger from which the imbiding patron, wearing earphones, may view the film on the drive-in screen through a "picture window wall". THE COMPLEX, LOCATED on a 25-acre site across from J.L. Hudson's Westland Shopping Center, at Warren and Wayne roads, did not materialize out of a long-cherished dream. The Shafers agree that, like Topsy, it "just growed." And how it grew! Once the area was swampland and considered useless scrub acerage. The surrounding country was equally barren of people when the Shafers bought the land in 1956, filled it in with topsoil and gravel and planted their Algiers Drive-In there. Other movie exhibitors scoffed, but the Algiers took root and blossomed into a popular drive-in and started to yeild a golden harvest of boxoffice dollars. By 1965 it had become the third biggest grosser among drive-ins in the metropolitian Detroit area. ENCOURAGED, the Shafers built the beautiful 1,200-seat Quo Vadis Theater on the same site and decorator Dorothy and designer Martin helped make it a movie showcase. The inside decor has a Roman motif. Lifesize statues of the Four Seasons adorn the circular lobby. Tile imported from Italy covers the outside walls. The tile was lost in transit and "a crew of workers did a five-week job in one," Martin recalled "to meet the opening deadline." The Shafers originally intended the second floor of the Quo Vadis to be a lavish resturant costing $200,000 but the eager- ness of movie ticket buyers in the area caused them to change their plans. SOON WORK was started on two back-to-back theaters on the second floor of the theater building, each seating 400 patrons. These twin theaters, Penthouse I and II, opened last April. A projection booth suspended from the ceiling, with twin pro- jectors facing in opposite direction serves both theaters. Martin said the theatersare completely wired for automa- tion, but hte projectionists union would not agree to a push- button operation. The most unusual innivation of the theater complex, and the most recent is the "Over 21 Club" a plush resturant and cocktail lounge where the patron may sit at a huge picture win- dow and view the attraction on the Algiers screen. SMALL INNER earphones are supplied the ladies and large over-the-eaer padded phones tha tblock out all extranoeous sounds are supplied for their male escorts. "On saturday nights business is really big out there" Mar- tin said. "It takes Charlie and me and five managers to run [at right side: a photo of Martin and Charlie Shafer] {heading} Entertainment World Sunday, Sept. 1, 1968-THE DETROIT NEWS-5.E the center. In addition, we have five cashiers, 17 ushers, three projectionists, nine candy counter girls, three ticket takers, two dormen and three unifromed policemen to handle the theater parking lot which can accomodate more than 1,000 cars." "Sometimes it's a pretty confusing operation" M a r t i n said. "Trying to get our patrons to the right theater and the film they want to see is quite a job. But everyhing seems to move along in a carnival spirit and we get as many laughs out of the confusion as the customers." "BUT THE THEATER complex is often a great boon to the filmgoers by giving them a multiple choice in movie fare" Martin said. "The other night a man and his wife solved the problem the easy way. The man wanted to see 'Hang'Em High,' his wife preferred 'The Secret Life of an American Wife.' So they went their separate ways, after agreeing to meet later in the cocktail lounge. If they had a child, they could even have had a third choice." Martin laughed. The tide is running high for the shafers who were first in- troduced to the theater business by their father back in the 1920s. He was the maanger of the old Fox-Washington theater on teh site at Washington Boulevard and Clifford where a Stouf- iers resturant now stands. THEIR FUTURE plans call for: - A five-story 206-room hotel to be built soon on the corner of Warren and Wayne in front of the drive-in theater, again to be designed and decorated by Dorothy and Martin Shafer. The hotel will have underground parking and be joined to the Quo Vadis complex by an enclosed mall housing 24 stores. - A large twin drive-in at Wayne with a two sided screen in the center serving both drive ins but showing different film at- tractions. Refreshment stands will be located under the huge screen. - Eventually a drive in which could be operated during day- light hours, which would be an especially potent lure for the Saturday matinee children's trade (Eastman Kodak predicts this developement will be ready in about three year, Martin said. - And someday fully automated theaters. [at right, bottom a picture of The 'Over 21' Cocktail Lounge]