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The missing Niza cinema was located in Plaza de la Sagrada Familia 12 and Calle Rosellón 372. It was built in the 1940s, taking advantage of the boom in movie theater openings.
Luis Cabezas Puzo, film businessman, owner of the Montecarlo plot and cinema, wanted to build a new cinema in an area lacking film venues and close to the Sagrada Familia, which attracted Barcelona residents.
Cabezas asked Josep Maria i Aixelà and Miquel Ángel i Tàrrega for a project to create a dance hall and a premiere cinema. With the project completed and approved, he hired the architect Antoni Moragas i Gallisà, with experience in the construction of other cinemas, such as the Fémina and the Atenas.
The façade of the premises would be in a neoclassical style. The interior was made up of a large lobby from which two different areas started, one dedicated to a cinema with an audience and amphitheater and other rooms for developing cinematography, with a capacity of 1,300 spectators.
A place with great elegance where the architectural part stood out, with spacious and comfortable seats and hot and cold air installations. It had projection equipment with modern advances, equipped for Technicolor projection and a Supersound sound system, the latest model.
The area dedicated to the ballroom and the rooms to house dressing rooms and services was inaugurated later.
The cinema, which was initially dedicated to preferential re-release, was inaugurated on October 19, 1946, with two special sessions.
In the afternoon, a private session was held, dedicated to the authorities, press and film world, who highlighted the conditions of the premises that were far superior to those of most premiere cinemas.
At night, with a special session at 10 to benefit the District Welfare Works. The films that were presented were Gallopa Muchacho (Ride 'Em Cowboy) with Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, and Sangre sobre el Sol (Blood on the Sun), with James Cagney, Sylvia Sidney.
On Monday, November 27, 1950, it became a premiere cinema, programming for the first time together with another of its owner's cinemas, the Monte Carlo. The movie they released was The Inspector General, starring Danny Kaye and Barbara Bates. Completed the Afterlife program.
On July 5, 1953, a premiere took place that, when I was only 11 years old, I attended with my parents: the documentary film about the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II of England. Back then there was no television and its premiere was a huge success, especially among female audiences.
On Thursday, September 19, 1967, it once again became a re-release theater. While the Monte Carlo Cinema premiered La Strada, the Nice Cinema continued with the old program that it had screened until the previous day with the Monte Carlo, The Last Cuplé and Seria by Day and Coquette by Night.
With the arrival of democracy, political rallies once again populated the cinemas because they were places with large capacity, therefore, on May 20, 1977, at 10 at night, the PSC – Congrés held a rally with the intervention of Josep Andreu i Abelló, Juan Alamillo, Marta Mata and Joan Raventós.
At the end of 1979, it was acquired by Pedro Balañá, who, with the aim of returning it to a first-run cinema, carried out a major remodeling directed by his personal architect Antoni Bonamussa, which left the cinema with a capacity of 1,255 spectators.
It reopened on July 24, 1980 as a premiere cinema, showing the film The Fog, which was presented as "a film that will overwhelm you from the first frame."
On October 24, 1980, another popular success was released, Xanadu, with Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly, which despite the public success was nominated in 1980 for the Razzie Awards: worst "musical", worst director and other nominations, including worst film and script.
During that time it screened in conjunction with several cinemas, although the most popular programming was the Monte Carlo, Nice and Aristos era. Later he did it first with Petit Pelayo and then he did it with the Capitol Club and the Pedro IV Club.
The lack of agreement between the owners and Pedro Balañá's company in the renewal of the rental contract of the premises caused the Niza to close its doors on February 21, 2005. The last film that was screened was Milion Dollar Baby, directed and performed by Clint Eastwood.
For many years the store remained closed, since the neighbors wanted the building to become a space for neighborhood facilities. But there was no agreement between the City Council and the property over the price.
