Ross: I would like to see the complete Carolina Theatre information included at the top of this page rather than the word ‘unknown’ as most or all of the background information is included in several posts particularly the ones from KenRoe and Charlie C.
I plan to get a personal tour of the Warner this coming summer as I will be in the Erie PA area and have recently emailed the general manager and a member of the Erie Philharmonic who is involved with the Warner.
“You can still tell where the box office used to sit and the receptionist desk is the concession stand but modified. The brilliant Art Deco curvatures in the ceiling exist as does the domed lobby and brass railings. To the right of the desk is a comissioned letter by, I believe Paramount Studios, that contains well over 50 autographs of then famous stars and directors. That is really all you can see from the lobby because you need security clearance to get to the back.” The interior sounds really unique and special, but if security clearance is needed to get to the back I may never see it! How did you get inside before it became a pass key bank?
You can still tell where the box office used to sit and the current receptionist desk is the concession stand but modified. The brilliant Art Deco curvatures in the ceiling exist as does the domed lobby and brass railings. To the right of the desk is a comissioned letter by, I believe Paramount Studios, that contains well over 50 autographs of then famous stars and directors.
That is really all you can see from the lobby because you need security clearance to get to the back.
Thanks guys! Thomas: How does one go about seeing the framed signatures if the bank is a pass key only building? I take it the seats, screen are gone, but what in the world do they use that huge auditorium area for? When we drove around to the back we could see the immense size of the building! Now that you have explained further we’ll return to check out the former theatre scene in Concord. We have a dear friend who lives on S. Union and so I plan to ask him if he and his late wife ever went to a movie in these theatres.
Thomas: I just spent some time in Concord and stopped to check out the now First Charter Bank/former Carrabus Theatre on Union. I see it sits between a Baptist Church and the Hotel Concord. We drove around to the back/side of the building and could see that it was a theatre due to its size and general structural design. It wasn’t quite 5:00 so I tried the front doors, but they were locked. I couldn’t see the framed piece (commissioned Paramount letter) with signatures so that must be within the second set of doors. Also wanted to find the other former Concord theatre, but didn’t print those comments for reference! Since we didn’t know where the police department was located we didn’t find the other theatre location. Does this location have regular business hours for anyone to enter the lobby and look around. I’d love to know if the theatre (seats, etc.) are still in the auditorium area or is it being used as some sort of storage as sometimes happens?
DITTOS DAWN! I, too, am so glad that our theatre paths have crossed and that I have the opportunity to speak to your Dad and hopefully meet your Dad this summer as we are into Erie often throughout the season. I think my memory connection to the Blatt name and theatres may be with drive-ins, though I thought the Grand/Blatt connection was there also. I think about the loss of the Grand often and it really makes me sad. My summer meeting with the last manager and another man who was a member of the demolition committee should prove to be quite interesting to say the least as will my conversations with Joe.
Thanks Hal! Valuable GPB and Fox website information that we all can benefit from if interested in the Fox documentaries that were done and personal stories contributions. The Fox/St. Louis is doing or did the same thing for their 75th….collecting personal stories!
A friend of mine has research the Grand through the town’s library, Patterson Library and he found that a man by the name of Theodore Blakely also owned the theatre so there must have been more than a few owners over the years and several different managers. When your father owned the Grand, was his manager, Tom Tetrault? He still lives in the town.
BTW, I don’t know how much communication was taking place on this cinema site before my name was added, but ever since I found it I think it seems to have explored! One thing for sure is that I’ve contributed many remarks about many theatres that I hope others have benefitted from as I have. There isn’t a day that I don’t check the site and look around so my hat is off to the founders! :–)
Dave: Yes, Cleveland does get a bum-rap as does Buffalo at times. Glad to read that Cleveland has restored a cluster of five and Buffalo has saved their downtown Shea’s! There were others, but they are gone today. And there is a book entitled CLASSIC BUFFALO that really shows off the wonderful architecture throughout Buffalo that has been SAVED!
Charles: Thanks for the additional Fox information. Charlotte is having First Night downtown tonight with a huge lighted dance floor at the intersection of Tryon and Trade Streets along with fireworks!
I just took a virtual tour of the Fox/St. Louis and it is breathtaking. I’ve been to St. Louis, but at the time didn’t know a thing about this theatre so only saw the arch and the ballpark. :–(
Charles: Decided to check out this other ‘fabulous Fox’ that is in St. Louis and remembered you say you are in that city and Hawaii…then read that you are a commercial pilot based out of St. Louis so now beginning to ‘connect the dots’! I figured I’d see some posts from you after I made the St. Louis/Fox connection to you so have been reading what you have to say about this other Fab Fox!Interesting that this other Fox was saved, too. So the Fox in Atlanta and the Fox in St. Louis are surely ‘soulmates’!
Anyone who posted here or plans to post here should also include their memories of the Fox on the Fox website as they are asking for everyone to share their stories and eventually they will post them all for everyone to read. Glad to know that GPB will make available in VHS or DVD the Fox documentaries. I attended the Fox 75th anniversary open house and posted my thoughts on the Fox site. I sent Larry Embury, organist in residence an email and he then posted his remarks below mine!
Glad to meet you Dawn! What is your father’s name so when I call him I can address him by his first name other than the official Mr. Steiner? If you haven’t gone back to Westfield, perhaps you should and see for yourself the lovely park that now stands in place of the lovely theatre that was torn down in the name of progress! If I sound a bit upset, frustrated and saddened….I am!
Also, when you have time please look up the Columbia Theatre, Brookville PA and see if you can find any further information! Thanks as it’s my husband’s hometown. Mine is the former Grand Theatre in Westfield NY, but I’ve been able to track down some good sources to help with my hometown cinema. There may be others so will advise as I think of them.
Charles: What a lucky break for us cinema treasure buffs having you as a contributor! Must be nice dividing your time between the mainland and HAWAII! ;–)
“The Folly Theater, my dad and his movie collectors, actually ran a movie there last year. Only the screen remains inside.” This quote taken from the Grand Theatre/Westfield NY site.
Roger: I’m sure Jlove is appreciative of your knowledge as I was reading it though was saddened to read about the drunks and bums who lived and slept in one of the former theatres, the Carter and that it “smelled worse than the city dump”! Sounds like Cleveland had many wonderful theatres, but not anymore. :–(
Sounds like we’re all in the Concord area so perhaps we all should think about meeting for coffee sometime and do some ‘cinema’ chattin! Then maybe tour Concord’s Union Street together! My contact email is provided on My Profile.
Ross: I would like to see the complete Carolina Theatre information included at the top of this page rather than the word ‘unknown’ as most or all of the background information is included in several posts particularly the ones from KenRoe and Charlie C.
I plan to get a personal tour of the Warner this coming summer as I will be in the Erie PA area and have recently emailed the general manager and a member of the Erie Philharmonic who is involved with the Warner.
Might be in CT next Octoberfor a wedding near Hartford so will check it out then! Where is Torrington?
“You can still tell where the box office used to sit and the receptionist desk is the concession stand but modified. The brilliant Art Deco curvatures in the ceiling exist as does the domed lobby and brass railings. To the right of the desk is a comissioned letter by, I believe Paramount Studios, that contains well over 50 autographs of then famous stars and directors. That is really all you can see from the lobby because you need security clearance to get to the back.” The interior sounds really unique and special, but if security clearance is needed to get to the back I may never see it! How did you get inside before it became a pass key bank?
You can still tell where the box office used to sit and the current receptionist desk is the concession stand but modified. The brilliant Art Deco curvatures in the ceiling exist as does the domed lobby and brass railings. To the right of the desk is a comissioned letter by, I believe Paramount Studios, that contains well over 50 autographs of then famous stars and directors.
That is really all you can see from the lobby because you need security clearance to get to the back.
Thanks guys! Thomas: How does one go about seeing the framed signatures if the bank is a pass key only building? I take it the seats, screen are gone, but what in the world do they use that huge auditorium area for? When we drove around to the back we could see the immense size of the building! Now that you have explained further we’ll return to check out the former theatre scene in Concord. We have a dear friend who lives on S. Union and so I plan to ask him if he and his late wife ever went to a movie in these theatres.
Thomas: I just spent some time in Concord and stopped to check out the now First Charter Bank/former Carrabus Theatre on Union. I see it sits between a Baptist Church and the Hotel Concord. We drove around to the back/side of the building and could see that it was a theatre due to its size and general structural design. It wasn’t quite 5:00 so I tried the front doors, but they were locked. I couldn’t see the framed piece (commissioned Paramount letter) with signatures so that must be within the second set of doors. Also wanted to find the other former Concord theatre, but didn’t print those comments for reference! Since we didn’t know where the police department was located we didn’t find the other theatre location. Does this location have regular business hours for anyone to enter the lobby and look around. I’d love to know if the theatre (seats, etc.) are still in the auditorium area or is it being used as some sort of storage as sometimes happens?
DITTOS DAWN! I, too, am so glad that our theatre paths have crossed and that I have the opportunity to speak to your Dad and hopefully meet your Dad this summer as we are into Erie often throughout the season. I think my memory connection to the Blatt name and theatres may be with drive-ins, though I thought the Grand/Blatt connection was there also. I think about the loss of the Grand often and it really makes me sad. My summer meeting with the last manager and another man who was a member of the demolition committee should prove to be quite interesting to say the least as will my conversations with Joe.
Thanks Hal! Valuable GPB and Fox website information that we all can benefit from if interested in the Fox documentaries that were done and personal stories contributions. The Fox/St. Louis is doing or did the same thing for their 75th….collecting personal stories!
A friend of mine has research the Grand through the town’s library, Patterson Library and he found that a man by the name of Theodore Blakely also owned the theatre so there must have been more than a few owners over the years and several different managers. When your father owned the Grand, was his manager, Tom Tetrault? He still lives in the town.
Thanks Dawn and so I’ll give your father a phone call in the near future.
BTW, I don’t know how much communication was taking place on this cinema site before my name was added, but ever since I found it I think it seems to have explored! One thing for sure is that I’ve contributed many remarks about many theatres that I hope others have benefitted from as I have. There isn’t a day that I don’t check the site and look around so my hat is off to the founders! :–)
Dave: Yes, Cleveland does get a bum-rap as does Buffalo at times. Glad to read that Cleveland has restored a cluster of five and Buffalo has saved their downtown Shea’s! There were others, but they are gone today. And there is a book entitled CLASSIC BUFFALO that really shows off the wonderful architecture throughout Buffalo that has been SAVED!
Roger: I still have that exit sign!
Charles: Thanks for the additional Fox information. Charlotte is having First Night downtown tonight with a huge lighted dance floor at the intersection of Tryon and Trade Streets along with fireworks!
I just took a virtual tour of the Fox/St. Louis and it is breathtaking. I’ve been to St. Louis, but at the time didn’t know a thing about this theatre so only saw the arch and the ballpark. :–(
Charles: Decided to check out this other ‘fabulous Fox’ that is in St. Louis and remembered you say you are in that city and Hawaii…then read that you are a commercial pilot based out of St. Louis so now beginning to ‘connect the dots’! I figured I’d see some posts from you after I made the St. Louis/Fox connection to you so have been reading what you have to say about this other Fab Fox!Interesting that this other Fox was saved, too. So the Fox in Atlanta and the Fox in St. Louis are surely ‘soulmates’!
Tried bringing up the foxflash.html site and the page could not be found. I have seen the 90 minute documentary, but not the 30 minute one!
Anyone who posted here or plans to post here should also include their memories of the Fox on the Fox website as they are asking for everyone to share their stories and eventually they will post them all for everyone to read. Glad to know that GPB will make available in VHS or DVD the Fox documentaries. I attended the Fox 75th anniversary open house and posted my thoughts on the Fox site. I sent Larry Embury, organist in residence an email and he then posted his remarks below mine!
Glad to meet you Dawn! What is your father’s name so when I call him I can address him by his first name other than the official Mr. Steiner? If you haven’t gone back to Westfield, perhaps you should and see for yourself the lovely park that now stands in place of the lovely theatre that was torn down in the name of progress! If I sound a bit upset, frustrated and saddened….I am!
Also, when you have time please look up the Columbia Theatre, Brookville PA and see if you can find any further information! Thanks as it’s my husband’s hometown. Mine is the former Grand Theatre in Westfield NY, but I’ve been able to track down some good sources to help with my hometown cinema. There may be others so will advise as I think of them.
Charles: What a lucky break for us cinema treasure buffs having you as a contributor! Must be nice dividing your time between the mainland and HAWAII! ;–)
“The Folly Theater, my dad and his movie collectors, actually ran a movie there last year. Only the screen remains inside.” This quote taken from the Grand Theatre/Westfield NY site.
Roger: I’m sure Jlove is appreciative of your knowledge as I was reading it though was saddened to read about the drunks and bums who lived and slept in one of the former theatres, the Carter and that it “smelled worse than the city dump”! Sounds like Cleveland had many wonderful theatres, but not anymore. :–(
Sounds like we’re all in the Concord area so perhaps we all should think about meeting for coffee sometime and do some ‘cinema’ chattin! Then maybe tour Concord’s Union Street together! My contact email is provided on My Profile.
Wow, that is my birthday also! Coincidence?