The famous “mother†Wurlitzer as it was dubbed by the redoubtable Ben M. Hall, has been reinstalled in Kansas City, MO, as brought by this listing at: www.TheatreOrgans.org :
State/City: KS, Wichita USA Location: Century II Center Street Address: Exhibition Hall, 225 W. Douglas Instrument: 4/39 Wurlitzer Status: EXISTING Notes: This organ is opus 1458 from the New York Paramount theatre
Regular Schedule: 98-99 SCHEDULE POSTED AT http://www.vornado.com/98-99_season.html Special Events: Primary Web Page: http://www.vornado.com/mother.html Alternate Web Page: Contact Name, Phone and Email: Michael Coup -316.838.3127
Further information can be found via the American Theatre Organ Society at: www.atos.org
Many recordings of this organ were made, and no doubt several to the organ specialists writing on this site can direct you to vendors of those recordings, and the LINKS lists on the organ sites will take you to yet more. Likely the very album you refer to is to be found as a CD or DVD on those lists.
The KINGS has a full fly system and large stage, though I do not have the statistics at hand. Likely there are or were several traps in the stage since that was usual construction back then. Even the MODJESKA, a neighborhood house here in Milwaukee had 20 traps!
Radio City has long been a try-out house for the film industry, and we must not forget that the studios are eager to implement digital if for no other reason than to forestall counterfeiting of their movies. The hope is to send encrypted movies digitally to cinemas via optical fiber cables, thus eliminating the black market in pirated films, they hope. We can only hope they succeed, else ultimately there will be less product for the screens of fewer theatres.
You’re right, of course, Ziggy, since from about 900 miles away my acquaintance with NYC geography is sketchy. Maybe someday I will get there to see things firsthand.
Bob’s comment about the PITKIN now being an ‘atmospheric’ of the original kind, is too well taken, of course. There were lots of open air theatres in the early years aside from drive-ins, but they were designed that way!
The edition Benjamin is looking at is indeed the most recent reprint (from 1987) and the pages were renumbered as he surmises, due to the fact that the latter-day publisher, the DeCapo Press, did not reproduce the 5 color plates of the first edition of 1961. The edition of 1975 did not either, but both the latter day editions did retain the caption to four missing pages (bottom of page 136 of the first edition), the frontice piece being the fifth one! On their back of title page is this paragraph: “This DeCapo Press paperback edition [of 1987] of ‘The Best Remaining Seats’ is a republication of the revised edition published in New York in 1975 and issued under the title: ‘The Golden Age of the Movie Palace.’ The present edition has been updated through 1987 and is supplemented with a new preface by B. Andrew Corsini. It is reprinted by arrangement with Crown Publishers, Inc.†They did update the theatre captions where needed, but not the text of the book.
The mentioning of the JERSEY as one of the 5 Loew’s Wonder theatres in that original page 205 caption reprinted as on page 201 in the ‘87 edition, is an interpolation by a latter day editor, and not Ben Hall’s original text. So, Mr. Hall felt that the PITKIN was one of the ‘Wonder Theatres’ originally, but someone else thought to replace it with the JERSEY in the latter editions. This may be because the PITKIN was demolished by the time the reprints were made, and latter day editors may have thought it would make the book more ‘relevant’ as was the by-word of those days for the sake of sales, and to get new listings in library card catalogs of the day.
Ben M. Hall was murdered on Dec. 15th, 1970 according to the article about it in the New York Times of Dec. 16th, 1970, page 54 at bottom: “Writer Found Slain in Village Roomsâ€. The dust jackets and other reproductions of such text and photo are just simple photo reproductions, and do not attempt to be updated, though one would hope that a new bio note there would have mentioned his death. All this shows the cheapness of latter day publishers who will not even take the time to remove irrelevant captions for the color plates they are too cheap to print, as well as update the dust jacket. I guess that their attitude is that we should be happy that they reprinted a 16-year-old book at all.
Possibly it was a mistake of Mr. Hall’s in regard to the actual architect/designer of the 172nd St.’s auditorium, but as Benjamin graciously admits, most anyone can make a mistake, or be upstaged by latter day research. The 1961 first edition of the book is definitive, but probably does have an error or two.
For those who might be going to Los Angeles this summer to see theatres, you might as well join the Conclave tour of the Theatre Historical Society, details of which are on their site at: www.HistoricTheatres.org You don’t have to be a member, but you must register by the dates shown. On the tour, youy will some 20 theatres both inside and out, top to bottom in most cases! Bon Voyage!
“Sensurround” never did pose any real threat to any theatre anywbere, and that fact is brought out by my comments about it, of Dec. 29, 2004 at: /theaters/1/ It was just a gimmick, though some innocent souls were apparently freightened by it. There is even a web site devoted to it today where false claims are made about its supposed ability to damage theatres (URL given in comments following mine).
Does anyone know if it is true that various celebrities' names in concrete in the forecort have been removed to allow room for latter day stars' imprints? If so, which?
As was brought out above, the usual course nowadays is to put unit heaters/air conditioners on the roof of a cinema to heat/cool it individually which is much more flexible should an auditorium not be used or a unit malfunction. It is the advent of natural gas that made this technique possible since it can be easily piped up there, unlike oil. While it may seem a waste to abandon the boiler, the cost of heating oil is now much greater than gas, and the cost to you to replace the oil tanks, which the city will probably require you to put in your basement, may be much more than you would imagine, given the difficult access and large size of new tanks. If you must go this route, look on the blueprints which may be kept on microfilm by the city, to find any dashed lines drawn over any pavement areas on the prints which might indicate a removable slab (probably below layers of latter day asphalt) for access to the boiler room. Oftentimes, such were removable for access specifically to replace boilers which have a limited life span, like everything else. Sometimes such ‘hatches’ were over the old coal bins then under a sidewalk or alley.
If the whole matter is giving you headaches, try to approach the professor/instructor of HVAC at any nearby college who might be willing to asign a survey of the situation to his classes and they may end up designing your whole new system themselves at no cost to you. Bring your blueprints and specifications/cost analysis along with you to show that you are looking for cooperation and not just trying to dump this in his lap; also make clear that you are looking for design advice, and not legal agreement for him to be responsible for your situation and the advice he/they give. Such an approach also avoids the old problem of ‘having the fertilizer salesman tell you how much fertilizer to use!’ An impartial source that has nothing to gain from recommending any approach or equipment is always the best advice to get. Best Wishes.
The term “atmospheric” for a ‘stars-and-clouds’ movie palace, was, according to the late authority on the subject: Ben M.Hall, author of that landmark 1961 book: The Best Remaining Seats: The Story of the Golden Age of the Movie Palace", the original inspiration of architect John Eberson when he premiered it at the MAJESTIC in Dallas in 1923 (though the COURT theatre in Chicago and others with hints of a sky long predated it). Thus, ‘atmospherics’ were by no means original to New York City, and while they were cheaper to build, the chains had to contend with the competition of what was already in an area in deciding upon what type and style to build. If there were an atmospheric anywhere nearby, they would naturally go for a ‘hard top’ of some style so as to be different, a major factor in their competitive world.
The “Wonder Theatres” were really just advertising gimick slogans, as Mr. Hall points out. They weren’t inherently any more wonderful than any number of other palaces in the nation, though they were among the largest and best. As far as I have been able to discern, the slogan was not copyrighted, if only for the reason that what is a ‘wonder’ to one person certainly may not be to another. Copyright is often refused for simple straight English words that anyone might use, else much of our language would long ago have been preempted by those seeking to make money on it.
The UPTOWN is among the very last of the nation’s grand movie palaces, and as such should be seen as a virtual museum of the high point of this art form. Chicago has a fine opportunity to preserve this monument to a glorious day and age of our collective past. True, such enormous structures are not cheap to restore and maintain, but we can only hope that soemone with both foresight and resources will step forward to rescue this cinema treasure. I have signed the petition mentioned above to this effect, but I am realistic in knowing that it will take much more than a petition to focus the public’s attention upon the irretrieveable loss that we would all suffer were the venerable UPTOWN to be lost to us all. Sad to say, the same can be said for the KINGS in Brooklyn, the LOS ANGELES, the WARNER/GRAND in Milwaukee, and so many others elsewhere that still stand for the time being as memories of the once graceful era that colored our cities. Chicago had the finest assortment of palaces nationwide; let us hope that it now preserves the last of its once enviable array of such beauties for posterity. The likes of these will not be built again.
David kindly gives me more credit there than may be due, since my article there focuses on Landmarking and Preservation, which can be different matters than operating a cinema today. For advice on that aspect, one could do no better than to read through the Archives of the FORUMS of the site: www.BigScreenBiz.com where present day operators of cinemas across the nation have shared their achievements and frustrations. Be sure to read their FAQs first.
According to this news item: View link
Milwaukee’s long-closed AVALON theatre of 1929 “may” become a combination movie house/book store.
Let us hope that this is a breath of real hope for our beloved AVALON THEATRE. There have been many hopes dashed and failures noted in the past, we can only hope that it will be different this time. The owner has played disingenuously with potential buyers in the past, according to sources, but perhaps he is now realizing a combined purchasing power that may be able to meet his reportedly stiff price. The owner of the ROSEBUD cinema did approach Mr. Ellsworth to purchase, but the reported one million plus price was out of his reach, and that of most others. This is the reason that he is opening a block farther south in the old Kohl’s food store and will share that space with a new branch of Outpost Foods. We all wish him well there, I’m sure.
Several people have wondered why the people of Bay View don’t reach out and collectively buy the theatre. That sounds like a nice idea, but it requires sound business sense and experience to run it as a movie house in a day when few single screen cinemas succeed. No one with that experience has stepped forward to offer to run the place assuming it is bought by someone intent on runnint it as a movie house. The current owner, architect Craig Ellsworth, did try to change it to a live performance venue, providing that the city granted him a beer/liquor license, but that was refused 3 times already, partially due to the concerns of neighbors that it would become a hangout for ‘DODs’ (Drunk and Disorderlies, as the cops put it). Could a new owner get the license? Possibly, but that does not solve the parking question that filling the thousand plus seats would bring. Yes, people elsewhere are accustomed to walking a distance from their cars, but not so in Milw. For this reason, the neighborhood merchants must largely rely upon locals for patronage. Is there enough there to keep a movie house afloat? Let’s hope the new ROSEBUD SOUTH proves so.
For those who ask about the former WARNER (now the closed GRAND) downtown, the situation is that the Symphony cannot now afford to purchase and rehab it as needed. Marcus theatres has almost 20 years remaining on the lease which requires them to maintain it in good condition. The owners of the land under the theatre are keeping a close eye on the situation, and have shown the site to several prospects that would use it in an entertainment vein, but as a “Business Journal” article of July 1st, 1995 brought out after the then double cinemas closed, said, it is really too big for most groups, yet too small for other developments. It was an ideal size in 1931 when this beautiful movie palace was created, but times have changed, and even with two screens (and no parking) it could not pay its way. Marcus must pay about $30,000 a year in combined taxes, not including some heat and power, so it is not cheap to let it sit idle, but one wonders what will become of it years from now when they no longer pay those bills. This lesson is not lost on prospective buyers of the AVALON, since they can’t and don’t want to end up paying upkeep for a relic, no matter how attractive or nostalgic it may be. Our PABST, RIVERSIDE and ORIENTAL appear to be ‘saved,’ but in fact they also skid by on thin ice. Most people give words of encouragement to potential owners/operators of these former movie palaces, but will they also contribute their funds in the form of REGULAR patronage, or is it easier to stay home and pop in a DVD?
Vincent here hits upon the old dilemma which confronts all owners and builders/designers of theatres: at what point are more seats facing the law of diminishing returns? As more seats are added the owner may get greater income, but the audience will see less of the performance since they must be seated farther from the stage. The old opera houses of the previous centuries were galleries not only because they did not have the steel to create cantilevered balconies, but because the stacks of galleries kept the audience closer to the stage so that one could see the performers in some reality of size. And the human voice can only project so far. With the advent of motion pictures, the scale of image and the force of sound were much larger and it was then possible to cram lots more people into roughly the same foot print of land, thus making the potential profit on greater attendance much greater. This is why Radio City M.H. and a few other ‘pageantoriums’ like it cannot really be called ‘theatres’ in the traditional meaning of the word; they are beyond the size of realistic use of the human voice without amplification, and seeing someone on the stage —as opposed to one the screen— means looking at dwarfed images that make the experience a parody of the real thing. With these concerns, RCMH faced a unique situation in that it was more of a civic auditorium than a traditional theatre or opera house, so one can easily see why special photos were made to enhance the performers rather than the hall.
This has happened to me on a lot of other pages here too, and yes it is annoying. Maybe Pat Crowley will read these words and offer an explaination, if not a cure. :)
Whether or not a theatre was “sunken” (having a rake to the floor) was often determined by local ordinances especially if they adopted the IFPA standardized building code into law. Obviously, the two primary criteria for an auditorium is that the audience be able to see the performance, and that the traffic patterns therein be swift and safe especially in an emergency. The best means to accomplish these objectives in a theatre of a single level of seating was to ‘dish’ the floor so that it sloped to some permissible extent, sometimes in the front as well as the rear. This also allowed the patrons to enter from grade at the sidewalk elevation, and gradually descend into the auditorium to preserve the sightlines for the audience. In many photos of theatres one can see the ramps or steps going up to grade in those exits at the front of the auditorium. In those auditoria with the ‘stadium’ plan of seating with a bank of seats on risers at the rear, the depth of the curve was even more important to allow access and good sightlines for all. Much of this is diagrammed on page 4 of the 1927 book “American Theatres of Today”, sometimes still available as the 1977 reprint in one volume. While most theatres had stairs to some extent, every architect knows that they are a hazard, especially to the young and the elderly, so are to be avoided if possible, thus the impetus to avoid them at grade, and only employ them as an option for those who prefer the balconies. While wheelchair access was not usually thought of in early years, it turns out that the use of slopped (raked) floors was very beneficial to wheelchair users to this day.
As to the apparently odd photos that Benjamin mentions earlier, I wonder if he wasn’t looking at skillful process prints which where there to promote the stage attraction, not the theatre. We visitors here are primarily theatres buffs, but the management of a theatre usually is not. They are businessmen charged with the task of turning a profit, and whether they manage a great theatre or a grocery store is often immaterial to them, since they are usually MBA types that see the same business principles as applying to both. So no, the theatre did not figure large in the viewpoints of such men, and if one wanted to see the theatre, then they expected one to buy a ticket for that privilege and not get a ‘freebie’ by viewing large photos of it. Also, if an outside producer were involved, you can bet that he didn’t want his production to be dwarfed in the photos by the immensity of the Music Hall. He would therefore supply agreed photos to the theatre that he probably had made specifically to emphasize his people, and not the Hall. Process photography and expert retouching were commonplace even before the age of computer manipulation of images, so distorted views having a preferred, or ‘enhanced’ image were not unusual.
Many people have wondered if the theatre building shown in the MAJESTIC film were actual theatres dressed for the sake of the movie, and the answer to this is ‘no’; both the exterior and the interiors were very elaborate sets actually crafted to “give homage” to Hollywood’s EGYPTIAN theatre (hence the strange mixture of Art Deco, Baroque, and Egyptian decor) and because the director spent part of his youth as an usher in movie palaces. From the extraordinary details one can, when viewing stills on the DVD of the film, notice e
That is indeed our RIVIERA not long after opening in 1920, back in the days when promotion was part of the art. The university has a number of photos of it in the Kwasniewski collection of the Urban Archives.
Yes, Lostmemory, the last two images you link to are indeed the second MODJESKA. Incidentally, Milwaukee also named more than one theatre/cinema for a man, and a Polish man also: KOSCIUSZKO, General Thaddaeus of Revolutionary War fame. MOZART and CHOPIN are to others that come to mind. Also WAGNER, WASHINGTON, POLA NEGRI, VICTORIA, and in Milw. of course, the PABST.
“Lostmemory’s” link to a photo is of the 1910 original MODJESKA, not the 1924 version still standing today. The 1124 address is to the offices upstairs over the stores on the ground level; 1134 is the theatre entreance.
The famous “mother†Wurlitzer as it was dubbed by the redoubtable Ben M. Hall, has been reinstalled in Kansas City, MO, as brought by this listing at: www.TheatreOrgans.org :
State/City: KS, Wichita USA Location: Century II Center Street Address: Exhibition Hall, 225 W. Douglas Instrument: 4/39 Wurlitzer Status: EXISTING Notes: This organ is opus 1458 from the New York Paramount theatre
Regular Schedule: 98-99 SCHEDULE POSTED AT http://www.vornado.com/98-99_season.html Special Events: Primary Web Page: http://www.vornado.com/mother.html Alternate Web Page: Contact Name, Phone and Email: Michael Coup -316.838.3127
Further information can be found via the American Theatre Organ Society at: www.atos.org
Many recordings of this organ were made, and no doubt several to the organ specialists writing on this site can direct you to vendors of those recordings, and the LINKS lists on the organ sites will take you to yet more. Likely the very album you refer to is to be found as a CD or DVD on those lists.
The KINGS has a full fly system and large stage, though I do not have the statistics at hand. Likely there are or were several traps in the stage since that was usual construction back then. Even the MODJESKA, a neighborhood house here in Milwaukee had 20 traps!
Radio City has long been a try-out house for the film industry, and we must not forget that the studios are eager to implement digital if for no other reason than to forestall counterfeiting of their movies. The hope is to send encrypted movies digitally to cinemas via optical fiber cables, thus eliminating the black market in pirated films, they hope. We can only hope they succeed, else ultimately there will be less product for the screens of fewer theatres.
You’re right, of course, Ziggy, since from about 900 miles away my acquaintance with NYC geography is sketchy. Maybe someday I will get there to see things firsthand.
Bob’s comment about the PITKIN now being an ‘atmospheric’ of the original kind, is too well taken, of course. There were lots of open air theatres in the early years aside from drive-ins, but they were designed that way!
Ooops, I didn’t mean to say that the PITKIN was demolished, but was apparently thinking of the 172nd STREET.
The edition Benjamin is looking at is indeed the most recent reprint (from 1987) and the pages were renumbered as he surmises, due to the fact that the latter-day publisher, the DeCapo Press, did not reproduce the 5 color plates of the first edition of 1961. The edition of 1975 did not either, but both the latter day editions did retain the caption to four missing pages (bottom of page 136 of the first edition), the frontice piece being the fifth one! On their back of title page is this paragraph: “This DeCapo Press paperback edition [of 1987] of ‘The Best Remaining Seats’ is a republication of the revised edition published in New York in 1975 and issued under the title: ‘The Golden Age of the Movie Palace.’ The present edition has been updated through 1987 and is supplemented with a new preface by B. Andrew Corsini. It is reprinted by arrangement with Crown Publishers, Inc.†They did update the theatre captions where needed, but not the text of the book.
The mentioning of the JERSEY as one of the 5 Loew’s Wonder theatres in that original page 205 caption reprinted as on page 201 in the ‘87 edition, is an interpolation by a latter day editor, and not Ben Hall’s original text. So, Mr. Hall felt that the PITKIN was one of the ‘Wonder Theatres’ originally, but someone else thought to replace it with the JERSEY in the latter editions. This may be because the PITKIN was demolished by the time the reprints were made, and latter day editors may have thought it would make the book more ‘relevant’ as was the by-word of those days for the sake of sales, and to get new listings in library card catalogs of the day.
Ben M. Hall was murdered on Dec. 15th, 1970 according to the article about it in the New York Times of Dec. 16th, 1970, page 54 at bottom: “Writer Found Slain in Village Roomsâ€. The dust jackets and other reproductions of such text and photo are just simple photo reproductions, and do not attempt to be updated, though one would hope that a new bio note there would have mentioned his death. All this shows the cheapness of latter day publishers who will not even take the time to remove irrelevant captions for the color plates they are too cheap to print, as well as update the dust jacket. I guess that their attitude is that we should be happy that they reprinted a 16-year-old book at all.
Possibly it was a mistake of Mr. Hall’s in regard to the actual architect/designer of the 172nd St.’s auditorium, but as Benjamin graciously admits, most anyone can make a mistake, or be upstaged by latter day research. The 1961 first edition of the book is definitive, but probably does have an error or two.
For those who might be going to Los Angeles this summer to see theatres, you might as well join the Conclave tour of the Theatre Historical Society, details of which are on their site at: www.HistoricTheatres.org You don’t have to be a member, but you must register by the dates shown. On the tour, youy will some 20 theatres both inside and out, top to bottom in most cases! Bon Voyage!
“Sensurround” never did pose any real threat to any theatre anywbere, and that fact is brought out by my comments about it, of Dec. 29, 2004 at: /theaters/1/ It was just a gimmick, though some innocent souls were apparently freightened by it. There is even a web site devoted to it today where false claims are made about its supposed ability to damage theatres (URL given in comments following mine).
This theatre was also notable for displaying some of the then new cast plastic grillework innovation called “Sculpta-Grille†of the now defunct Harvey Design Workshop of Lynbrook, L.I. New York. Their pattern shown backing one of their concession stands here was called “Persian-Latticed†but the designs of sculptor Richard Harvey disappeared with coming of huge increases in the price of the raw material for plastics, oil, in the 1970s. A photo of the grillework is at David Wodeyla’s site: View link and he also has a number of other photos of this and other nearby theatres.
Grillework was often the only real ornament left to theatres after the advent of modernism after the Second World War, and this unusually attractive heavy plastic was made in any color, even metallic or wood grained, but here was in basic matte white. I wrote an award-winning article on the subject of just how grillework adds to the décor of theatres in the Second Qtr. 2004 issue of MARQUEE magazine of the Theatre Historical Society of America: www.HistoricTheatres.org The Society has samples of this and other grilles of that maker.
Does anyone know if it is true that various celebrities' names in concrete in the forecort have been removed to allow room for latter day stars' imprints? If so, which?
As was brought out above, the usual course nowadays is to put unit heaters/air conditioners on the roof of a cinema to heat/cool it individually which is much more flexible should an auditorium not be used or a unit malfunction. It is the advent of natural gas that made this technique possible since it can be easily piped up there, unlike oil. While it may seem a waste to abandon the boiler, the cost of heating oil is now much greater than gas, and the cost to you to replace the oil tanks, which the city will probably require you to put in your basement, may be much more than you would imagine, given the difficult access and large size of new tanks. If you must go this route, look on the blueprints which may be kept on microfilm by the city, to find any dashed lines drawn over any pavement areas on the prints which might indicate a removable slab (probably below layers of latter day asphalt) for access to the boiler room. Oftentimes, such were removable for access specifically to replace boilers which have a limited life span, like everything else. Sometimes such ‘hatches’ were over the old coal bins then under a sidewalk or alley.
If the whole matter is giving you headaches, try to approach the professor/instructor of HVAC at any nearby college who might be willing to asign a survey of the situation to his classes and they may end up designing your whole new system themselves at no cost to you. Bring your blueprints and specifications/cost analysis along with you to show that you are looking for cooperation and not just trying to dump this in his lap; also make clear that you are looking for design advice, and not legal agreement for him to be responsible for your situation and the advice he/they give. Such an approach also avoids the old problem of ‘having the fertilizer salesman tell you how much fertilizer to use!’ An impartial source that has nothing to gain from recommending any approach or equipment is always the best advice to get. Best Wishes.
The term “atmospheric” for a ‘stars-and-clouds’ movie palace, was, according to the late authority on the subject: Ben M.Hall, author of that landmark 1961 book: The Best Remaining Seats: The Story of the Golden Age of the Movie Palace", the original inspiration of architect John Eberson when he premiered it at the MAJESTIC in Dallas in 1923 (though the COURT theatre in Chicago and others with hints of a sky long predated it). Thus, ‘atmospherics’ were by no means original to New York City, and while they were cheaper to build, the chains had to contend with the competition of what was already in an area in deciding upon what type and style to build. If there were an atmospheric anywhere nearby, they would naturally go for a ‘hard top’ of some style so as to be different, a major factor in their competitive world.
The “Wonder Theatres” were really just advertising gimick slogans, as Mr. Hall points out. They weren’t inherently any more wonderful than any number of other palaces in the nation, though they were among the largest and best. As far as I have been able to discern, the slogan was not copyrighted, if only for the reason that what is a ‘wonder’ to one person certainly may not be to another. Copyright is often refused for simple straight English words that anyone might use, else much of our language would long ago have been preempted by those seeking to make money on it.
The UPTOWN is among the very last of the nation’s grand movie palaces, and as such should be seen as a virtual museum of the high point of this art form. Chicago has a fine opportunity to preserve this monument to a glorious day and age of our collective past. True, such enormous structures are not cheap to restore and maintain, but we can only hope that soemone with both foresight and resources will step forward to rescue this cinema treasure. I have signed the petition mentioned above to this effect, but I am realistic in knowing that it will take much more than a petition to focus the public’s attention upon the irretrieveable loss that we would all suffer were the venerable UPTOWN to be lost to us all. Sad to say, the same can be said for the KINGS in Brooklyn, the LOS ANGELES, the WARNER/GRAND in Milwaukee, and so many others elsewhere that still stand for the time being as memories of the once graceful era that colored our cities. Chicago had the finest assortment of palaces nationwide; let us hope that it now preserves the last of its once enviable array of such beauties for posterity. The likes of these will not be built again.
David kindly gives me more credit there than may be due, since my article there focuses on Landmarking and Preservation, which can be different matters than operating a cinema today. For advice on that aspect, one could do no better than to read through the Archives of the FORUMS of the site: www.BigScreenBiz.com where present day operators of cinemas across the nation have shared their achievements and frustrations. Be sure to read their FAQs first.
A BREATH OF HOPE FOR THE AVALON?
According to this news item:
View link
Milwaukee’s long-closed AVALON theatre of 1929 “may” become a combination movie house/book store.
Let us hope that this is a breath of real hope for our beloved AVALON THEATRE. There have been many hopes dashed and failures noted in the past, we can only hope that it will be different this time. The owner has played disingenuously with potential buyers in the past, according to sources, but perhaps he is now realizing a combined purchasing power that may be able to meet his reportedly stiff price. The owner of the ROSEBUD cinema did approach Mr. Ellsworth to purchase, but the reported one million plus price was out of his reach, and that of most others. This is the reason that he is opening a block farther south in the old Kohl’s food store and will share that space with a new branch of Outpost Foods. We all wish him well there, I’m sure.
Several people have wondered why the people of Bay View don’t reach out and collectively buy the theatre. That sounds like a nice idea, but it requires sound business sense and experience to run it as a movie house in a day when few single screen cinemas succeed. No one with that experience has stepped forward to offer to run the place assuming it is bought by someone intent on runnint it as a movie house. The current owner, architect Craig Ellsworth, did try to change it to a live performance venue, providing that the city granted him a beer/liquor license, but that was refused 3 times already, partially due to the concerns of neighbors that it would become a hangout for ‘DODs’ (Drunk and Disorderlies, as the cops put it). Could a new owner get the license? Possibly, but that does not solve the parking question that filling the thousand plus seats would bring. Yes, people elsewhere are accustomed to walking a distance from their cars, but not so in Milw. For this reason, the neighborhood merchants must largely rely upon locals for patronage. Is there enough there to keep a movie house afloat? Let’s hope the new ROSEBUD SOUTH proves so.
For those who ask about the former WARNER (now the closed GRAND) downtown, the situation is that the Symphony cannot now afford to purchase and rehab it as needed. Marcus theatres has almost 20 years remaining on the lease which requires them to maintain it in good condition. The owners of the land under the theatre are keeping a close eye on the situation, and have shown the site to several prospects that would use it in an entertainment vein, but as a “Business Journal” article of July 1st, 1995 brought out after the then double cinemas closed, said, it is really too big for most groups, yet too small for other developments. It was an ideal size in 1931 when this beautiful movie palace was created, but times have changed, and even with two screens (and no parking) it could not pay its way. Marcus must pay about $30,000 a year in combined taxes, not including some heat and power, so it is not cheap to let it sit idle, but one wonders what will become of it years from now when they no longer pay those bills. This lesson is not lost on prospective buyers of the AVALON, since they can’t and don’t want to end up paying upkeep for a relic, no matter how attractive or nostalgic it may be. Our PABST, RIVERSIDE and ORIENTAL appear to be ‘saved,’ but in fact they also skid by on thin ice. Most people give words of encouragement to potential owners/operators of these former movie palaces, but will they also contribute their funds in the form of REGULAR patronage, or is it easier to stay home and pop in a DVD?
THSA = Theatre Historical Soc. of America
LHAT = The League of Historic Am. Theatres
NTHP = National Trust for Historic Preservation
Just thought I might help, since our national alphabet ‘soup’ of acronyms and abbreviations is always growing.
I have no idea of where Lee Burgess lives, but you might try to find him through such as www.peoplepages.com
You might also try to contact the reporter who wrote the story through her E-mail given there.
Vincent here hits upon the old dilemma which confronts all owners and builders/designers of theatres: at what point are more seats facing the law of diminishing returns? As more seats are added the owner may get greater income, but the audience will see less of the performance since they must be seated farther from the stage. The old opera houses of the previous centuries were galleries not only because they did not have the steel to create cantilevered balconies, but because the stacks of galleries kept the audience closer to the stage so that one could see the performers in some reality of size. And the human voice can only project so far. With the advent of motion pictures, the scale of image and the force of sound were much larger and it was then possible to cram lots more people into roughly the same foot print of land, thus making the potential profit on greater attendance much greater. This is why Radio City M.H. and a few other ‘pageantoriums’ like it cannot really be called ‘theatres’ in the traditional meaning of the word; they are beyond the size of realistic use of the human voice without amplification, and seeing someone on the stage —as opposed to one the screen— means looking at dwarfed images that make the experience a parody of the real thing. With these concerns, RCMH faced a unique situation in that it was more of a civic auditorium than a traditional theatre or opera house, so one can easily see why special photos were made to enhance the performers rather than the hall.
This has happened to me on a lot of other pages here too, and yes it is annoying. Maybe Pat Crowley will read these words and offer an explaination, if not a cure. :)
Whether or not a theatre was “sunken” (having a rake to the floor) was often determined by local ordinances especially if they adopted the IFPA standardized building code into law. Obviously, the two primary criteria for an auditorium is that the audience be able to see the performance, and that the traffic patterns therein be swift and safe especially in an emergency. The best means to accomplish these objectives in a theatre of a single level of seating was to ‘dish’ the floor so that it sloped to some permissible extent, sometimes in the front as well as the rear. This also allowed the patrons to enter from grade at the sidewalk elevation, and gradually descend into the auditorium to preserve the sightlines for the audience. In many photos of theatres one can see the ramps or steps going up to grade in those exits at the front of the auditorium. In those auditoria with the ‘stadium’ plan of seating with a bank of seats on risers at the rear, the depth of the curve was even more important to allow access and good sightlines for all. Much of this is diagrammed on page 4 of the 1927 book “American Theatres of Today”, sometimes still available as the 1977 reprint in one volume. While most theatres had stairs to some extent, every architect knows that they are a hazard, especially to the young and the elderly, so are to be avoided if possible, thus the impetus to avoid them at grade, and only employ them as an option for those who prefer the balconies. While wheelchair access was not usually thought of in early years, it turns out that the use of slopped (raked) floors was very beneficial to wheelchair users to this day.
As to the apparently odd photos that Benjamin mentions earlier, I wonder if he wasn’t looking at skillful process prints which where there to promote the stage attraction, not the theatre. We visitors here are primarily theatres buffs, but the management of a theatre usually is not. They are businessmen charged with the task of turning a profit, and whether they manage a great theatre or a grocery store is often immaterial to them, since they are usually MBA types that see the same business principles as applying to both. So no, the theatre did not figure large in the viewpoints of such men, and if one wanted to see the theatre, then they expected one to buy a ticket for that privilege and not get a ‘freebie’ by viewing large photos of it. Also, if an outside producer were involved, you can bet that he didn’t want his production to be dwarfed in the photos by the immensity of the Music Hall. He would therefore supply agreed photos to the theatre that he probably had made specifically to emphasize his people, and not the Hall. Process photography and expert retouching were commonplace even before the age of computer manipulation of images, so distorted views having a preferred, or ‘enhanced’ image were not unusual.
It’s too bad Milwaukee’s ORIENTAL couldn’t be in this year’s list, but I understand that you can hardly publish the same list every time. :)
Many people have wondered if the theatre building shown in the MAJESTIC film were actual theatres dressed for the sake of the movie, and the answer to this is ‘no’; both the exterior and the interiors were very elaborate sets actually crafted to “give homage” to Hollywood’s EGYPTIAN theatre (hence the strange mixture of Art Deco, Baroque, and Egyptian decor) and because the director spent part of his youth as an usher in movie palaces. From the extraordinary details one can, when viewing stills on the DVD of the film, notice e
That is indeed our RIVIERA not long after opening in 1920, back in the days when promotion was part of the art. The university has a number of photos of it in the Kwasniewski collection of the Urban Archives.
Yes, Lostmemory, the last two images you link to are indeed the second MODJESKA. Incidentally, Milwaukee also named more than one theatre/cinema for a man, and a Polish man also: KOSCIUSZKO, General Thaddaeus of Revolutionary War fame. MOZART and CHOPIN are to others that come to mind. Also WAGNER, WASHINGTON, POLA NEGRI, VICTORIA, and in Milw. of course, the PABST.
“Lostmemory’s” link to a photo is of the 1910 original MODJESKA, not the 1924 version still standing today. The 1124 address is to the offices upstairs over the stores on the ground level; 1134 is the theatre entreance.