Interest remains high in 'Harry Potter' as sixth movie comes out

The magic is still there for Harry Potter fans.

"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" opens in theaters on July 15, and Inland libraries have seen a spike in demand for the novel and the six other books in J.K. Rowling's series.

Mary Chartier, children's services librarian for the San Bernardino Public Library, said she is seeing teenagers going into the children's room to look for "Half-Blood Prince." She called it a testament to British author Rowling's skill as a storyteller.

"It's amazing that she's gotten kids and adults to read," Chartier said.

Chartier and other librarians contacted said that many of these people are repeat readers who want to refresh their memories before the movie comes out.

Bronwyn Macharelli, of Redlands' A.K. Smiley Public Library, said interest began about a month ago, following a pattern of almost every Potter movie that has come out.

The 672-page "Half-Blood Prince" came out in 2005, the sixth of seven novels published between 1998 and 2007.

The books and movies have been around long enough for Harry to become a constant in young people's shifting, high-tech world, along with iPhones, Facebook and file sharing.

The first book, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," was published in the United States on Sept. 1, 1998.

In the novel, Harry marks his 11th birthday. A youthful reader who shared Harry's birthday and picked it up back then would turn 22 on July 31.

That reader's existence would seem very low-tech and devoid of magic by today's standards. There were no skinny TVs hanging on walls, no iTunes, no YouTube, no BlackBerry, no Blu-Ray, and certainly no Twitter.

There was an Internet bubble but no housing bubble. The first "Harry Potter" movie premiered in November 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The movies became part of the fan ritual, and "Half-Blood Prince" looked like it might be this summer's biggest blockbuster until "Transformers" put a big iron fist through its chances.

Because "Transformers" has a lock on the nation's IMAX screens, "Harry Potter" won't be seen in large format or 3-D until July 29. There are three exceptions: New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

The AMC Century City 15 will have "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: The IMAX 3D Experience" at 12:01 a.m. July 15. At press time, tickets were available for $12 at www.movietickets.com

The theater, at 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., is in a Westfield mall.

One Inland theater, however, will have something special. D-Box Technologies announced in a press release that the UltraStar Apple Valley 14 will have 22 seats equipped with motion simulation for "Half-Blood Prince." The multiplex is at 22311 Bear Valley Road.

The Mann Chinese Six Theatre in Hollywood is also equipped for D-Box motion systems.

What audiences will see in "Half-Blood Prince" has been described as "darker" than the earlier movies. But the same was said about "Harry Potter" movies two through five. By the time No. 8, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II" comes out in 2011, the screen is apt to be pitch black.

Inland readers are already preparing. At Riverside main library, Anne Wesling said of six or seven copies of "Deathly Hallows," one is on the shelves. Demand is high for the other Potter books.

"They check out constantly, but normally will have a good inventory. Now we're down to nothing," Wesling said.