RIP: Charles Aidikoff dies at 101


Charles Aidikoff, Screening Room Operator, Dies at 101

His rooms, at two Hollywood-area locations, offered private film screenings for industry insiders and stars for more than five decades.

Charles Aidikoff, who owned and operated the Charles Aidikoff Screening Room for a half-century, has died, family members told The Hollywood Reporter. He was 101.
Aidikoff died at home in his sleep of natural causes.

In 1966, Aidikoff opened the first Charles Aidikoff Screening Room at 9255 Sunset Blvd., where it remained until moving to 150 South Rodeo Drive in 1990. He sold it in 2010 to an outside consortium but continued to come into work every day until it closed in August 2015.

For decades, few passed through Hollywood who didn't know Aidikoff and his conveniently located room. He always greeted visitors in a lobby famous for its candy basket and the countless photos of him with celebrities who had been there. Director Judd Apatow called it "one of the great places; it's like a great deli."

Aidikoff came from a family of projectionists dating back four generations. He saw thousands of films over the years and said his favorite was Citizen Kane — which happens to feature a screening room and a projectionist.

Aidikoff was predeceased by his wife of 67 years, Evelyn, who died in September 2014. He is survived by his sons, Beverly Hills attorney Phil Aidikoff and Thailand-based businessman Gregg Aidikoff, as well as grandchildren Jeffrey Aidikoff, Joshua Aidikoff and Zev Aidikoff.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/charles-aidikoff-legendary-screening-room-operator-dies-at-101-958667

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