Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is honored to announce that on Friday, May 15, its Littleton location will be renamed The Pam Grier Cinema, a salute to the legendary performer and East High School graduate’s lasting impact on film, culture, and generations of movie lovers and artists inspired by her work. Grier joins a distinguished set of groundbreaking filmmakers and performers whose names adorn Alamo Drafthouse locations, a group that includes Spike Lee, John Hughes, Ivan Reitman and Bong Joon Ho.
“Alamo Drafthouse Cinema intentionally creates an emotional and sensory cinematic journey – one that invites us to pause, stop the clock, and let time come to us,” says Pam Grier. “Experiencing that in my hometown of Denver makes it all the more meaningful.”
The honor will be made official at a one night only special Pam Grier Celebration Event, anchored by a rare 35mm double feature of perhaps Pam Grier’s two most iconic films, 1974’s FOXY BROWN and 1997’s JACKIE BROWN. Between films, Grier will participate in a longform onstage conversation about her career and impact on the industry, moderated by Nina Henderson Moore, President of Griot Productions and former Chief Content Officer for Free Speech TV.
“Pam Grier is one of the most influential screen icons of our generation,” says Chaya Rosenthal, Alamo Drafthouse’s Chief Marketing Officer. “Renaming our Littleton theater in her honor celebrates not only her extraordinary cinematic legacy, but also the lasting influence she’s had on film culture, and the many performers and creators who continue to follow her lead.”
Widely recognized as one of cinema’s most influential screen legends, Pam Grier rose to prominence in the 1970s with defining performances in films including THE BIG DOLL HOUSE, COFFY, FOXY BROWN, SHEBA, BABY, and FRIDAY FOSTER. She returned to major acclaim with her starring role in Quentin Tarantino’s JACKIE BROWN, further cementing her status as a singular and enduring talent. Across her career, Grier has also appeared in acclaimed television series including MIAMI VICE, LAW & ORDER: SVU, and THE L WORD, and has earned Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, and NAACP Image Award nominations. Her lasting impact on film and popular culture has been recognized with numerous honors, including lifetime achievement recognition, and in 2010 she published her memoir, Foxy: My Life in Three Acts.
While the launch event centers on FOXY BROWN and JACKIE BROWN, the naming of the Pam Grier Cinema is intended as a broader tribute to Grier’s full body of work and to the influence she continues to have across generations of film fans and filmmakers. Additional screenings of Grier’s films, including encore 35mm showings of FOXY BROWN and JACKIE BROWN, are planned for the summer.
Alamo Drafthouse Littleton was the famed Austin-based cinema-eatery’s first location in Colorado when it opened in March of 2013 with, appropriately enough, a retrospective called An Evening with Pam Grier. Since then, the circuit’s footprint has grown to include a location in Denver at Sloans Lake and a location in Westminster. Over the past year, the Littleton location has also received major technology upgrades, including HDR by Barco projection capability and immersive Dolby Atmos sound, further strengthening its place as a premier destination for repertory programming and specialty cinema.
Tickets to the event are on sale now at: drafthouse.com/event/pam-grier-cinema-celebration-event
Additionally, commemorative Pam Grier Cinema items will be available at AlamoMart.com.
