What American films were shown in cinemas in Saudi Arabia before the ban of cinemas in 1983?
Original question: What American films were shown in cinemas in Saudi Arabia before the ban of cinemas in 1983?It’s very difficult to identify the titles of American movies that were shown in Saudi Arabia prior to the ban on cinemas in the Kingdom in 1983 because movies were shown not in formally, legally established theaters, but only in foreign embassies, private villas, sports clubs, and makeshift cinema houses with sub-standard amenities (if there were such), although funded by a few rich individuals.With this in mind, cinemas in pre-1983 Saudi Arabia practically operated outside the scope of the law. In other words, there were no government screenings, film classifications, business licenses, and other legal requirements in place for these cinemas. So, there was no official record-keeping of movie titles and ticket sales to speak of.One source said that inside these cinemas, American and European films were shown to the public for a fee. I can only guess that American movies shown could be any of the popular titles in the States at the time that featured such famous stars like Clark Gable, Fred Astaire, Bette Davis, John Wayne, Charlton Heston, Elizabeth Taylor, or Faye Dunaway. Their films must’ve found their way in Saudi Arabia through some enterprising individuals working in oil companies in the Kingdom.California-Arabian Standard Oil Company (later known as Arabian-American Oil Company, but now known as Saudi Aramco) was the first to introduce cinemas to Saudis. Aramco produced and launched a documentary film about the inauguration of the first petroleum well in the Kingdom. Between 1960s and 1970s, documentaries were shown mostly in Saudi cinemas.I guess, if not the commercially produced movies by Hollywood, the Aramco documentary on Saudi’s first petroleum well was the most “American film” that can be gleaned in the history of Saudi cinema.That’s my take.