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Home » Theater Guide » Location » United States » Oklahoma » Guthrie » Pollard Theatre
Also known as Melba Theatre

Pollard Theatre

Guthrie, OK
118 West Harrison
, Guthrie, OK 72044 United States
(map)
Status: Open
Screens: Single Screen
Style: Unknown
Function: Live Performances
Seats: 600
Chain: Unknown
Architect: Joseph Foucart
Firm: Unknown
Add a photo for this theater!
Built in 1901 of brick and native stone it was originally the home to Patterson Furniture and a funeral parlor. In 1919 it was purchased by George Pollard and converted to a vaudeville house.

In 1926 Mr. Pollard leased the building to A.R. Powell who played vaudeville and silent films until 1929. In 1929 with the coming of talkies Mr. Powell remodeled the building adding a large stage, hand painted wall murals, equipped the theatre for sound pictures, and put seating in for 800. At this time it was given the new name Melba.

The Powell family operated the theatre until 1986. Then in 1986 it went through a $620,000 renovation enlarging the stage area, preserving and restoring the wall murals, installed new seats, a new stage hoist system and redoing the lobby and wrought iron chandeliers.

The Pollard Co. took over in 1987 and finished the restoration. It went back to its original name of the Pollard Theatre. It is now the home of the Pollard Co. and the home of live performances.

Related Websites

The Pollard Theatre (Official)
Contributed by Chuch Van Bibber

YOUR COMMENTS

 
The POLLARD Theatre has its own web site with color photos.
posted by ___ on Jun 18, 2005 at 11:41am
My husband and I frequently attend the Pollard Theatre. It is the only full time professional theater company in Oklahoma. The beautiful mural work features landscape scenes of mountains and trees. The lobby is clad in a peacock blue paint highlighted by magnificently colored iron chandeliers. The Powell family, who operated the Pollard as a movie theater, built and still own the Beacon Drive-In in Guthrie.
posted by cin on Jul 24, 2005 at 12:59pm
In this image the Pollard Theatre can be seen behind Harrison House Hotel-
http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~tammie/photo/harrison.htm
posted by ___ on May 6, 2006 at 3:38am
Shown here is a vintage snapshot of this theatre when it was known as MELBA. Film listed on marquee is "Adventures of the Wilderness Family".
http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/ok/ok0000/ok0015/photos/129321pv.jpg

From Library of Congress Photo Archives.
posted by Okie Medley on May 6, 2006 at 10:59am
Presented on Library of Congress Photo Archive site is a 1977 snapshot when this theatre was known as MELBA. Film title on marquee was "Adventures of the Wilderness Family".
http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/ok/ok0000/ok0015/photos/129321pv.jpg
posted by Okie Medley on May 6, 2006 at 11:53am
Here is another photo of the Pollard Theater.

posted by Lost Memory on May 6, 2006 at 3:27pm
Some one in the Pollard research department needs to review historical material presented on their official Pollard Theatre web site. On this site the vintage photograph showing a band playing atop the theatre marquee is clearly labled 1912, yet written passage claims the structure wasn't converted to theatre use until 1919. Which date is right?
posted by ___ on May 6, 2006 at 10:37pm
Check out these impressive pictures of other Guthrie auditoria-
http://guthriescottishrite.org/egypt.html
and
http://guthriescottishrite.org/auditorium.html
posted by ___ on May 13, 2006 at 5:52am
OVER 10 YEARS AGO, I WAS A MANAGER OF A VIDEO STORE. THE FATHER OF THE OWNERS WIFE WAS A FRIEND OF MR. POWELL WHO OWNED THE POLLARD. THE STORY THAT CAME BACK TO ME: THERE WAS A HUMPHREY BOGARD MOVIE PREMEIER AT THE POLLARD. I'VE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO FIND OUT IF THIS IS TRUE, AND IS SO, WHICH MOVIE IT MAY HAVE BEEN. I'VE OFTEN THOUGHT THAT IT MIGHT BE "THE OKLAHOMA KID" WHICH WAS A JAMES CAGNEY MOVIE WITH BOGART IN THE CAST. DOES ANYONE KNOW? RICK LOBBYLOVERS@SBCGLOBAL.NET
posted by LOBBYLOVER on Aug 26, 2006 at 5:44pm
Dear LL:
This Guthrie movie premiere story is true. Warner Bros brought their big stars to Guthrie to promote this picture. A horse drawn stage-coach picked celebrities up at the depot. It may have been "OKLAHOMA KID", but I'm not sure.

Contact Dr. Blackburn at the Oklahoma State Historical Society for further details, and photos of the event. Also, Guthrie Public Library Archives has material on this subject.

By the way, Republic Pictures built an entire western town set (portions still stand today) in Canadian, OK, in which scenes for "ROCK ISLAND TRAIL" were filmed. This John Wayne oater held a gala, star studded premiere at the Okla Theatre, McAlester, OK.

Tulsa's Ritz Theatre celebrated a world premiere of "TULSA", starring Susan Hayward, and Robert Preston.
posted by Okie Medley on Aug 26, 2006 at 8:47pm
In below link can be seen good early day photographs of Guthrie's Brooks Opera House, Highland Theatre, Opera House, and Pollard Theatre-
http://libraries.ou.edu/etc/westhist/holmes/business.html
and Hollywood stars at the Pollard-
http://libraries.ou.edu/etc/westhist/holmes/misc2.html
posted by Seymour Cox on Jan 20, 2007 at 1:31pm
Exterior of the Pollard Bldg was designed by Joseph Foucart, a renouned French architect from Paris. Foucart migrated to Indian Territory to get a fresh start, participated in the Great Land Run of 1889, and set up practice in Guthrie.
posted by Cosmic Ray on Jan 28, 2007 at 5:59am
November, 1988, issue of Oklahoma Today Magazine has a contemporary write-up about the Pollard, but no architectural photos.
http://digital.library.okstate.edu/oktoday/1980s/1988/oktdv38n6.pdf
posted by Seymour Cox on Jan 31, 2007 at 4:53am
This is a circa 1932 photo of the Pollard Theater. Near the top of the building it reads "Patterson" and not "Pollard" as it does today.

posted by Lost Memory on Aug 2, 2007 at 3:15pm
On this site are vintage exterior shots, and a rare view of the handsome auditorium ...
http://okhistory.cuadra.com/starweb3/b.archives/servlet.starweb3?path=b.archives/STARArchives.public.web
posted by Seymour Cox on Oct 8, 2007 at 11:13am
Oh yes, to view images on above post type in name "Melba"!
posted by Seymour Cox on Oct 8, 2007 at 11:14am
Here is a photo of the Pollard Theater.

posted by Lost Memory on Aug 29, 2008 at 4:03pm
1982 Photo of the Melba Theatre.
http://americanclassicimages.com/Default.aspx?tabid=141&txtSearch=CATAdvancedSearch1%2c36%2c3%2c-1&ProductID=32501
posted by Chuck1231 on Apr 8, 2009 at 9:39pm
Here is a 1985 photo. The marquee is gone.
http://tinyurl.com/lmrpa2
posted by ken mc on Aug 27, 2009 at 7:17pm
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