My favorite seat in the Palace was the lower box stage right. It was glorious. The seats in the boxes were wider than the rest, and I felt special.
The Palace indeed was a very special place that can never again be duplicated. The history of this theater was not as extensive as the Park which as I said was the theater that put Yougstown on the map, but in terms of shear beauty, it could not hold a candle to the Palace.
I’ve seen thousands of photos of other grand old theaters here at Cinema Treasures, and I wouldn’t trade any of them for the Palace.
Even the Manager’s office was a thing of beauty; the dressig rooms were shere luxury for the performers, and the projection booth was a joy for the projectionists … roomy, clean and cool as opposed to the cramped conditions in other theaters.
As patrons went up to the Mezzanine (sp) it was like walking through an art gallery with all the beautiful paintings that hung there. The theater really lived up to its name.
Don’t get me wrong, the Warner Theater was and still is beautiful, but it could not compare to the Palace, and while it always was equipped for stage shows, it wasn’t until it became Powers Auditorium that they were used. The Warner has dressing rooms both stage left and right as well as under stage along with a green room, but they are anything but plush.
Fred was a good friend of mine, and I agree that he was a great writer.
I don’t recall a pizza shop being next to the Strand, but on one side was an Isaly Dairy store, and on the other a drug store that was part of the Tod Hotel.
I also knew Jack Heinz and Ed Princeton quite well. They were long time family friends.
After leaving the Paramount, Jack became the first General Manager of Powers Auditorium and saw it through its restoration. His work saw the preservation of the old Warner Theater.
As for Fred, he saw to it that I got passes to many first run films at both the Palace and Warner, and would give me the press kits to all the movies that came to town.
In his later years, before he retired from The Vindicator, he was an Editorial Writer, and I really looked forward to his writings and aved them all.
You are right in saying that origionally the Strand concentrated on newsreels, but they also featured cowboy pictures and B detective films. It never was a first run house,so it couldn’t compete with the larger houses such as the Palace, the Warner, the Park, the Hippodrome, the Paramount or the State.
The Palace and the Park besides showing first run films brought in large stage shows that drew large crowds, and the Strand’s size was so small that none of the distributers wanted to bother with it.
Also, you’re absolutely right about the quality of the theater management in the good old days. Jack Heinz use to tell about all the famous actors and actresses he knew over his long career, and in his office was a wall full of pictures of all the show people he personally knew. It’s a shame that the Paramount was not equipped for stage shows because he could have brought in some really great shows.
The State Theater had two curved staircases in their lobby and it was built around the same time. The effect was a U shape.
The State Lobby was small compared to the Palace so that there was only two levels compared to the Palace and Warner which had three.
Also the State had a long narrow Foyer that led into the lobby from West Federal Street.
Like the Palace and Warner, the State was a first run house and in the later years, owned by the same company that owned the Palace and showed the major pictures like The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady on extended runs. In it’s final two years it went back to second and third runs and finally closed after showing I Am Curious Yellow running afoul of the City censors.
In it’s second life it became a nite club.
The other downtown theaters were built earlier than the 1920’s.
The Strand as far as I know did not have a balcony since it was the smallest.
No, it had a very grand staircase in the center of the lobby, and another set of stairs off to the right of the lobby. On the mezzanine there were stairs on either side that led to the upper balcony.
This was truely a very splended theater and the black and white photos do not do it justice.
Right up to the very end, the Palace was well kept, and there was really no excuse for tearing it down.
This theater lived up to it’s name in every respect. In fact, it was by far the most beautiful theater in Ohio.
As for sound the accustics were the very best, and there was nowhere that you couldn’t hear the performances during those occasions when they had Broadway plays, or Big Bands.
As I said before, my favorite place to watch shows was in one of the box seats at stage right. Those box seats were larger than the seats elsewhere in the auditorium and extremely comfortable.
It’s beyond all human comprehension. The State Theater had a large stage dressing rooms, andwould have been an ideal candidate for restoration. In point of fact a local community theater did at one point consider relocating there, but did not have the cash to do all the work that needed to be done.
Anyone on the other hand that would consider investing in the Paramount would be throwing their money away period … end of discussion.
As it now stands, the roof of the State is shot and the water damage precludes trying to save it.
It’s beyond all human comprehension. The State Theater had a large stage dressing rooms, andwould have been an ideal candidate for restoration. In point of fact a local community theater did at one point consider relocating there, but did not have the cash to do all the work that needed to be done.
Anyone on the other hand that would consider investing in the Paramount would be throwing their money away period … end of discussion.
As it now stands, the roof of the State is shot and the water damage precludes trying to save it.
I was just a little girl when I lived in Clearfield … we moved when I was 10 so any teater was large to me. I do recall though that the Lyric had live stage shows as well as movies and I had the opportunity to see a couple of them as well as my Mother’s last radio broadcast which as I said was done from the stage of the Lyric.
The Lyric was set up for stage shows and had dressing rooms back stage.
I’m sorry to hear that Leitzingers closed because the station that Mother worked at did shows from their record department every Saturday morning.
We moved from Clearfield in 1950 so I’d probably not recognize the town now.
That is the old Liberty/Paramount Theater you are referring to.
The Warner is now known as DeYor Center For The Performing Arts, and is the home of the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra. This magnificant theater has added a second auditorium for smaller productions – mostly musical.
The rich folks here are already supporting the arts. Who do you think is supporting the Youngstown Symphony .. Stambaugh Auditorium .. Youngstown Playhouse etc. As for the “aveage bloke on the street who is trying to keep a roof over his family’s head his first priority is high utility bills, taxes, upkeep on his house, not the arts.
Has the arts community ever sat down with such people as the Cafaro family and presented them with a well developed plan that had meat on it’s bones?
There are a number of abandoned churches in the immediate downtown area that could be turned into performing arts venues. The Victorian Players did just this with some degree of success.
My gripe is that the arts community spent the last 20 years talking about restoring the State Theater but nothing ever came of it. The same with the Paramount, and now it seems that we might see that theater restored, but it took an outsider to do it.
By the way, it was revealed today that the city is in talks with a national hotel chain as well as a national resturant chain to locate downtown.
Lastly you said “i just feel that there is much revinue to be made in the downtown area by rejuvinating these former theaters…”. How many times do we have to tell you that the State Theater is going to be demolished by the city that owns it, and as for the Paramount, a developer is already working on bringing it back to life with the city’s blessings. That is why I suggest that you look at some of the empty churches in the downtown area.
Considering the fact that we have Powers/DeYor; Youngstown Playhouse/Ballet Western Reserve/ Victorian Players/ Oakland Center For The Arts/ Easy Street Productions/ Youngstown Symphony Orchestra and Chorus an amiture opera company and Two major Art Gallerys, as well as an artist colony in the old Ward Bakery building I dare say that there’s great support for the arts here. When are those who complain going to start reaching into their own pockets to help finance new facilities instead of expecting tax payers to shell out the money?
Yes. I don’t have any details, but I do know from articles that I read that it drew in a number of museums and art galleries as well as individuals with deep pockets.
I too enjoyed the debate, and hope that whatever happens concerning the Paramount happens sooner than later because that building isn’t getting any better, and with winter coming on the problems will only increase.
Visited your website and like it. We need more people putting forward a positive image of the city. It has a lot to offer so far as the arts are concerned.
FYI – I was on the EDATA CAB in the 1970’s. If you go to their web site, there are on-line reports free to download that deal with historic preservation that you would be interested in downloading. One of the reports references the Liberty/Paramount Theater. Just go to their search engine and type in Liberty/Paramount. The first report is huge 57 mg but woth reading.
Yes, just one more thing. When and if the Paramount does get off the ground, I hope that you will NOT place ads in the media that you dislike so much, but will simply rely on word of mouth to get the word out about events. There’s a shop on North Phelps that could use your business.
With that, good day, I have more important things to occupy my time than quibble about a project that will go nowhere.
If as you say you’ve been here for 30 years, you would have known that in the past the banks did take risks on projects only to be on the losing end.
Again, IF the Paramount project is being funded with private funds absent any money from the City, State or Federal governments, and we can have that i writing noterized in the presence of the City Law Director, then go for it, but I assure you that the very minute an application comes through EDATA for the Paramount project (and all applications for such funding have to go through EDATA) I for one will oppose it.
And might I point out to you on very important fact. If you expect to get the support you need, you will have to have the support of the city’s two newspapers and local talk shows on WKBN whether you like it or not.
Finally if you are involved in the Paramount project, you better believe that your credentials will become public knowledge, and a matter of public record for everyone to examine in great detail. Full disclosure is the law.
You seem to have a problem with the local powers that be and CIC. Could it possibly be the attitude that you brought to the table?
The so called powers that be are fed up with folks coming in with grand schemes that go nowhere, and they have made that perfectly clear on more than one occassion. Obviously they didn’t like what you brought to the table if indeed you did bring something.
By the way, I go downtown on a regular basis … and you are simply dead wrong about the crime problems on the South and East sides of the city that keep so many people from going downtown. DEAD WRONG!
On all the local call in shows this is one of the most important topics.
“brainwashed minds of our community” — With an attitude like that it’s no wonder you’re experiencing problems.
Would you mind listing some of your projects?
If indeed the shell of the Paramount can be saved and recycled to some other use great! BUT DON’T EXPECT THE TAX PAYERS OF THE MAHONING VALLEY TO FOOT THE BILL!
A start from scratch saving the outside walls would be an idea worth considering. The city needs a new police station desperately and this would be a good location, but as a 2 screen theater, my Lord, can Youngstown support another theater?
Youngstown has huge problems that need to be solved just to make it safe.
Not long ago, a man was murdered in front of over 800 people at a youth football game, our South Side is a war zone … over 20 killings so far this year … our police force is understaffed because the city doesn’t have the money to hire more … the theaters that already exist are having a hard time drawing crowds because people outside the city are fearful of coming into the city.
The entertainment district is safe, but in order to get there, people living south of Youngstown have to drive through an area that is literally a war zone.
When I see with my own eyes serious work being done on the Paramount, then and only then will I be a believer. We’ve (the people of Youngstown) have had too many pie in the sky promises made, only to have the folks that made the promises walk away with pockets stuffed with our hard earned money, leaving absolutrely nothing behind. The list is endless, and my file cabnets are full of articles about these grand illusions that date al the way back to “Black Monday”.
You keep illuding to five years … where do you arrive at that time line?, and who is the “Youngstown Developer” that is pouring bucketfulls of money into city development?
There are out of town developers that are taking over buildings and doing something tangable with them – the National City Bank building and the Reality Building —– these are going to benefit everyone.
Why didn’t the people that want to save the Paramount look to saving the State Theater? It was available for the longest time, yet no one wanted to develope it even when there was the chance that it could be used as a new home for the Youngstown Playhouse. There was even the chance that Easy Street Productions could use it as well as Ballet Western Reserve.
The stage at the State was much larger, and there were dressing rooms back stage, and judging from what photos I saw of the interior it would have been a better candidate for restoration.
My favorite seat in the Palace was the lower box stage right. It was glorious. The seats in the boxes were wider than the rest, and I felt special.
The Palace indeed was a very special place that can never again be duplicated. The history of this theater was not as extensive as the Park which as I said was the theater that put Yougstown on the map, but in terms of shear beauty, it could not hold a candle to the Palace.
I’ve seen thousands of photos of other grand old theaters here at Cinema Treasures, and I wouldn’t trade any of them for the Palace.
Even the Manager’s office was a thing of beauty; the dressig rooms were shere luxury for the performers, and the projection booth was a joy for the projectionists … roomy, clean and cool as opposed to the cramped conditions in other theaters.
As patrons went up to the Mezzanine (sp) it was like walking through an art gallery with all the beautiful paintings that hung there. The theater really lived up to its name.
Don’t get me wrong, the Warner Theater was and still is beautiful, but it could not compare to the Palace, and while it always was equipped for stage shows, it wasn’t until it became Powers Auditorium that they were used. The Warner has dressing rooms both stage left and right as well as under stage along with a green room, but they are anything but plush.
Fred was a good friend of mine, and I agree that he was a great writer.
I don’t recall a pizza shop being next to the Strand, but on one side was an Isaly Dairy store, and on the other a drug store that was part of the Tod Hotel.
I also knew Jack Heinz and Ed Princeton quite well. They were long time family friends.
After leaving the Paramount, Jack became the first General Manager of Powers Auditorium and saw it through its restoration. His work saw the preservation of the old Warner Theater.
As for Fred, he saw to it that I got passes to many first run films at both the Palace and Warner, and would give me the press kits to all the movies that came to town.
In his later years, before he retired from The Vindicator, he was an Editorial Writer, and I really looked forward to his writings and aved them all.
You are right in saying that origionally the Strand concentrated on newsreels, but they also featured cowboy pictures and B detective films. It never was a first run house,so it couldn’t compete with the larger houses such as the Palace, the Warner, the Park, the Hippodrome, the Paramount or the State.
The Palace and the Park besides showing first run films brought in large stage shows that drew large crowds, and the Strand’s size was so small that none of the distributers wanted to bother with it.
Also, you’re absolutely right about the quality of the theater management in the good old days. Jack Heinz use to tell about all the famous actors and actresses he knew over his long career, and in his office was a wall full of pictures of all the show people he personally knew. It’s a shame that the Paramount was not equipped for stage shows because he could have brought in some really great shows.
The State Theater had two curved staircases in their lobby and it was built around the same time. The effect was a U shape.
The State Lobby was small compared to the Palace so that there was only two levels compared to the Palace and Warner which had three.
Also the State had a long narrow Foyer that led into the lobby from West Federal Street.
Like the Palace and Warner, the State was a first run house and in the later years, owned by the same company that owned the Palace and showed the major pictures like The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady on extended runs. In it’s final two years it went back to second and third runs and finally closed after showing I Am Curious Yellow running afoul of the City censors.
In it’s second life it became a nite club.
The other downtown theaters were built earlier than the 1920’s.
The Strand as far as I know did not have a balcony since it was the smallest.
No, it had a very grand staircase in the center of the lobby, and another set of stairs off to the right of the lobby. On the mezzanine there were stairs on either side that led to the upper balcony.
The Grand Staircase was white marble as you can see from the photos at http://community.webshots.com/user/ladynews500
This was truely a very splended theater and the black and white photos do not do it justice.
Right up to the very end, the Palace was well kept, and there was really no excuse for tearing it down.
This theater lived up to it’s name in every respect. In fact, it was by far the most beautiful theater in Ohio.
As for sound the accustics were the very best, and there was nowhere that you couldn’t hear the performances during those occasions when they had Broadway plays, or Big Bands.
As I said before, my favorite place to watch shows was in one of the box seats at stage right. Those box seats were larger than the seats elsewhere in the auditorium and extremely comfortable.
The Ritz didn’t have a balcony. It just had the main floor which means that a wall now goes down the center isle and most likely seats were removed.
In a town of under 9000 that wouldn’t matter much though except for purests.
For a small town though the Ritz was a really nice theater as were the others that were there when I was a child.
Every Saturday afternoon I would either go to the Lyric or Ritz, and once the Roxy which was also a nice theater in it’s day.
For a small town like Clearfield to have 3 theaters was something special.
My cousin owned the Rex Theater in Curvinsville but I never saw it so if anyone has pictures of that theater I sure would like to see them.
It’s beyond all human comprehension. The State Theater had a large stage dressing rooms, andwould have been an ideal candidate for restoration. In point of fact a local community theater did at one point consider relocating there, but did not have the cash to do all the work that needed to be done.
Anyone on the other hand that would consider investing in the Paramount would be throwing their money away period … end of discussion.
As it now stands, the roof of the State is shot and the water damage precludes trying to save it.
It’s beyond all human comprehension. The State Theater had a large stage dressing rooms, andwould have been an ideal candidate for restoration. In point of fact a local community theater did at one point consider relocating there, but did not have the cash to do all the work that needed to be done.
Anyone on the other hand that would consider investing in the Paramount would be throwing their money away period … end of discussion.
As it now stands, the roof of the State is shot and the water damage precludes trying to save it.
I was just a little girl when I lived in Clearfield … we moved when I was 10 so any teater was large to me. I do recall though that the Lyric had live stage shows as well as movies and I had the opportunity to see a couple of them as well as my Mother’s last radio broadcast which as I said was done from the stage of the Lyric.
The Lyric was set up for stage shows and had dressing rooms back stage.
I’m sorry to hear that Leitzingers closed because the station that Mother worked at did shows from their record department every Saturday morning.
We moved from Clearfield in 1950 so I’d probably not recognize the town now.
That is the old Liberty/Paramount Theater you are referring to.
The Warner is now known as DeYor Center For The Performing Arts, and is the home of the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra. This magnificant theater has added a second auditorium for smaller productions – mostly musical.
The rich folks here are already supporting the arts. Who do you think is supporting the Youngstown Symphony .. Stambaugh Auditorium .. Youngstown Playhouse etc. As for the “aveage bloke on the street who is trying to keep a roof over his family’s head his first priority is high utility bills, taxes, upkeep on his house, not the arts.
Has the arts community ever sat down with such people as the Cafaro family and presented them with a well developed plan that had meat on it’s bones?
There are a number of abandoned churches in the immediate downtown area that could be turned into performing arts venues. The Victorian Players did just this with some degree of success.
My gripe is that the arts community spent the last 20 years talking about restoring the State Theater but nothing ever came of it. The same with the Paramount, and now it seems that we might see that theater restored, but it took an outsider to do it.
By the way, it was revealed today that the city is in talks with a national hotel chain as well as a national resturant chain to locate downtown.
Lastly you said “i just feel that there is much revinue to be made in the downtown area by rejuvinating these former theaters…”. How many times do we have to tell you that the State Theater is going to be demolished by the city that owns it, and as for the Paramount, a developer is already working on bringing it back to life with the city’s blessings. That is why I suggest that you look at some of the empty churches in the downtown area.
Considering the fact that we have Powers/DeYor; Youngstown Playhouse/Ballet Western Reserve/ Victorian Players/ Oakland Center For The Arts/ Easy Street Productions/ Youngstown Symphony Orchestra and Chorus an amiture opera company and Two major Art Gallerys, as well as an artist colony in the old Ward Bakery building I dare say that there’s great support for the arts here. When are those who complain going to start reaching into their own pockets to help finance new facilities instead of expecting tax payers to shell out the money?
There is no chance. The city has already announced that it will be demolished soon and turned into a parking lot for the city.
Yes. I don’t have any details, but I do know from articles that I read that it drew in a number of museums and art galleries as well as individuals with deep pockets.
The pictures were taken 2 years ago.
Clearfield once had three theaters – The Ritz – The Lyric and The Roxy.
Does anyone happen to have any pictures of the Lyric and the Roxy?
My mother did her last broadcast from the stage of the Lyric to a full house.
When I was little, the Ritz was a very nice theater that my family attended often.
Smaller than the Lyric which was Clearfield’s largest theater that often had stage shows along with movies, the Ritz was considered the town’s best.
If you go to:
http://community.webshots.com/user/aorto
you will see a set of photos of the interior of the Paramount as it is today
My web site is http://farrell-report.tripod.com
I too enjoyed the debate, and hope that whatever happens concerning the Paramount happens sooner than later because that building isn’t getting any better, and with winter coming on the problems will only increase.
Visited your website and like it. We need more people putting forward a positive image of the city. It has a lot to offer so far as the arts are concerned.
Dwarf Dog:
FYI – I was on the EDATA CAB in the 1970’s. If you go to their web site, there are on-line reports free to download that deal with historic preservation that you would be interested in downloading. One of the reports references the Liberty/Paramount Theater. Just go to their search engine and type in Liberty/Paramount. The first report is huge 57 mg but woth reading.
Yes. Jim’s a great guy that has done a lot for the arts and needs all the help he can get.
As to “free press” my main web site champions a free press, as witnessed by the fact that it’s become the largest all news web site on the internet.
Yes, just one more thing. When and if the Paramount does get off the ground, I hope that you will NOT place ads in the media that you dislike so much, but will simply rely on word of mouth to get the word out about events. There’s a shop on North Phelps that could use your business.
With that, good day, I have more important things to occupy my time than quibble about a project that will go nowhere.
If as you say you’ve been here for 30 years, you would have known that in the past the banks did take risks on projects only to be on the losing end.
Again, IF the Paramount project is being funded with private funds absent any money from the City, State or Federal governments, and we can have that i writing noterized in the presence of the City Law Director, then go for it, but I assure you that the very minute an application comes through EDATA for the Paramount project (and all applications for such funding have to go through EDATA) I for one will oppose it.
And might I point out to you on very important fact. If you expect to get the support you need, you will have to have the support of the city’s two newspapers and local talk shows on WKBN whether you like it or not.
Finally if you are involved in the Paramount project, you better believe that your credentials will become public knowledge, and a matter of public record for everyone to examine in great detail. Full disclosure is the law.
Yes. Learn how to spell and type.
You seem to have a problem with the local powers that be and CIC. Could it possibly be the attitude that you brought to the table?
The so called powers that be are fed up with folks coming in with grand schemes that go nowhere, and they have made that perfectly clear on more than one occassion. Obviously they didn’t like what you brought to the table if indeed you did bring something.
By the way, I go downtown on a regular basis … and you are simply dead wrong about the crime problems on the South and East sides of the city that keep so many people from going downtown. DEAD WRONG!
On all the local call in shows this is one of the most important topics.
“brainwashed minds of our community” — With an attitude like that it’s no wonder you’re experiencing problems.
Would you mind listing some of your projects?
If indeed the shell of the Paramount can be saved and recycled to some other use great! BUT DON’T EXPECT THE TAX PAYERS OF THE MAHONING VALLEY TO FOOT THE BILL!
A start from scratch saving the outside walls would be an idea worth considering. The city needs a new police station desperately and this would be a good location, but as a 2 screen theater, my Lord, can Youngstown support another theater?
Youngstown has huge problems that need to be solved just to make it safe.
Not long ago, a man was murdered in front of over 800 people at a youth football game, our South Side is a war zone … over 20 killings so far this year … our police force is understaffed because the city doesn’t have the money to hire more … the theaters that already exist are having a hard time drawing crowds because people outside the city are fearful of coming into the city.
The entertainment district is safe, but in order to get there, people living south of Youngstown have to drive through an area that is literally a war zone.
When I see with my own eyes serious work being done on the Paramount, then and only then will I be a believer. We’ve (the people of Youngstown) have had too many pie in the sky promises made, only to have the folks that made the promises walk away with pockets stuffed with our hard earned money, leaving absolutrely nothing behind. The list is endless, and my file cabnets are full of articles about these grand illusions that date al the way back to “Black Monday”.
You keep illuding to five years … where do you arrive at that time line?, and who is the “Youngstown Developer” that is pouring bucketfulls of money into city development?
There are out of town developers that are taking over buildings and doing something tangable with them – the National City Bank building and the Reality Building —– these are going to benefit everyone.
Why didn’t the people that want to save the Paramount look to saving the State Theater? It was available for the longest time, yet no one wanted to develope it even when there was the chance that it could be used as a new home for the Youngstown Playhouse. There was even the chance that Easy Street Productions could use it as well as Ballet Western Reserve.
The stage at the State was much larger, and there were dressing rooms back stage, and judging from what photos I saw of the interior it would have been a better candidate for restoration.