Fine Arts Theater

My fondest memory of this theatre is when, during the mid 90's my wife (then girlfriend) and I snuck up into the empty balcony with slices of cheesecake and watched the movie Emma.

This is truly a wonderful theatre, and I hope it can be saved and used again in the future for it's intended purpose, live performances and unique films.

In the 1960's, the World Playhouse was a great place to see "ADULT ONLY" films. Some classy, some pure exploitation, and some just plain silly. Many films by director Radley Metzger were shown, known for his classy and stylish foreign movies. Before Russ Meyer became famous for VIXEN in 1969, I caught a double feature of "FASTER, PUSSYCAT... KILL! KILL!" and "MOTOR PSYCHO" , around 1966. For pure exploitation, a double bill with Mamie van Doren "3 NUTS IN SEARCH OF A BOLT" and Jayne Mansfield "PROMISES...PROMISES...PROMISES". And just plain silly...I'm not kidding... "SINDERELLA AND THE GOLDEN BRA". Lots of wild and fun memories in my high school/college days. Admission was $2.00; features played from 12 noon to midnight.

Ken, I have a copy of the movie listings from the Chicago Tribune from the day I was born (6/25/69) and adult movies seemed to be abounding in Chicago theaters at that time. The World for instance was playing "The Taming" (with "X-Adults Only!" under a picture of a woman's face in lettering almost as big as the film's title), Russ Meyer's "Vixen" playing at the Loop, "Felicia" at the Town (today's Park West) and "The Ecstasies of Women" playing at the Capri, which was at Van Buren near Michigan Avenue.

A great theatre in its time. I used to see movies there when I came home from college at ISU, and then I managed it for a few months way back on 1990 (and a friend of mine continued to manage it for many years). It was a very tough place to make money, unless there was an artistic hit there, like "Stop Making Sense" or "The Cook, the Thief...Lover". There are/were few venues like aud. #1 for size and faded grandeur--think of the Music Box on a grander scale. I'll miss it.

"Stop Making Sense" - The Taking Heads movie played for two years at the Fine Arts (1984 - 1986) with midnight showings on Friday and Saturday.

Actually when the theater opened as the Fine Arts on Christmas Day in 1982 there were only 2 theaters. It's premiere attractions were "Moonlighting" with Jeremy Irons and Fassbinder's "Veronika Voss". The two smaller theaters didn't open until 1987 or so. My favorite memory is going to the Warner Brothers anniversary celebration in 1997. Each day the Fine Arts showed a series of Warner Bros. films from a certain decade. I had the pleasure of attending the 1960's which showed "Days of Wine and Roses", "Bullitt", "Bonnie and Clyde" and "The Wild Bunch" and then the 70's which showed "All the President's Men", "Superman", "Dog Day Afternoon", "Blazing Saddles", "The Exorcist" and "A Clockwork Orange". What a day that was! Sadly Loews let the theater get run down as seems to be the case with many of their theaters. Homeless people just outside the entrance were allowed to beg for money and not chased off. It's a real shame a true movie lovers house was treated so shoddily.

I'd guess that the Fine Arts actually closed its doors in 2000, as 'Red Planet' was released in theatres that fall. From anyone who's in the know, what condition does the Fine Arts appear to be in at present?

Is this theater being used now or is it just sitting empty?

It is currently vacant. There was some talk about restoring the Fine Arts as a live venue, but nothing has come of it.

Some interior views can be seen at http://www.midnightmadness.org/sfa-jja00-i.htm I'm surprised nobody's reopened this place. You'd think there would be an audience for SOME film in the loop, besides the Siskel. Obviously there once was...

A 1915 Chicago Daily News photo shows The Wide Awake Club in front of the Studebaker Theatre. I'm not sure how to explain that name at that time.

To Mr. Bryan Krefft,
how does one go about finding more (and helpful and relevant) information on existing and operating gem theaters in Chicago. I just recently discovered the Music Box theater, and subsequently just recently discovered the wonderful world of art house film and independent theaters. Is there a website or something that is the definitive authority of reference for this culture?

Joseph,
A great place to start to find current and useful information on the still-operating movie houses of Chicago would be the Chicago Reader, which has a great movie section.

Yep, Chcicago Reader's gonna be your best bet. That said, there's not many operating ornate theaters besides the Music Box. In the suburbs you have the tivoli, the catlow, the york, the pickwick. In the city, the Vic still shows movies, but it's rather run down since it operates as a concert venue primarily. Beyond that there are some still operating but not in their original form- the Chicago, Palace, and Oriental are the old palaces that now show live shows, the Biograph just closed for good a few days ago, the Riviera is a live venue, the Lakeshore is legitimate, the Park West was once a neighborhood theater, the Portage is closed, twinned, and modernized, the Central Park, one of the first proper palaces, is a church, the Davis, Village and Logan were quadded, the Admiral is a gentleman's club, the Esquire had a six-screen built where the original house was, the Century now is a mall featuring 7 new screens showing mainly art and indie movies, the Logan Square is a discount mall/flea market, then there's the closed ones, like the Uptown, Patio, Ramova, New Regal, or last 'movie palace' in the city, the McClurg Court... not too many old theaters still playing movies.

Brian, the Gateway Theatre in Jefferson Park has silent film festivals once or twice a year hosted by the Silent Film Society of Chicago with live organ accompaniment, as well as hosting events during the rest of the year held by the Copernicus Society which owns this great old Rapp & Rapp movie palace (still a single screen, too, and the only atmospheric style theater the Rapps designed for the B & K circuit). It's also one of the three movie houses I went to as little kid with my parents and/or grandparents growing up in Portage Park/Six Corners (the Patio and Portage were the other two).

Ah, yeah, I knew I was forgetting a couple. I saw Steamboat Bill Jr. there. Wonderful hidden treasure, that one.

I'm not as concerned about the theaters themselves, but rather the types of movies they show. The type of lineup at Century is what I'm looking for. The art-house, independent film, foreign film genre. I didn't think about the Reader, although now that you mention it, it's the obvious choice. I know about the Reader and its catering to the artsy-culture in Chicago. It is the paper I use to check out new music concerts and the like. Thanks for the info about the old theaters though. I'd like to check those out.

Glad to help. Check out the Facets and Siskel too, they play the really obscure stuff.

Here is a photo of the Fine Arts as the Studebaker/World Playhouse from the Charles Cushman collection, May 26, 1963

In the '80s, I attended an Alfred Hitchcock film festival and the Black Film Festival at the Fine Arts.

Here is a 1940 photo of the Fine Arts Building on Michigan Avenue:
http://www.h-net.org/~urban/teach/syllabi/ebner2001field1.htm

According to the Yahoo uptownadviser list (quoting the Chicago Tribune of March 16), the Fine Arts Building has been sold for $10.4 million to real estate investor Robert Berger. No word on future plans for the building.

The message says that there are two auditoriums in the building. Were the Studebaker Theatre and World Playhouse two names for the same hall, or were they two separate venues under one roof?

They were two halls under one roof.

http://patsabin.com/illinois/MichAveBldgs.htm Here is a postcard view of the Fine Arts building shortly after its renovation.

The scant lobby space can be seen here: http://www.ci.chi.il.us/Landmarks/F/FineArts.html

Also, here's an interesting quote I came across: "The first American performances of George Bernard Shaw and Henrik Ibsen took place in the Fine Arts Building theater which some claimed was Chicago's equivalent of Carnegie Hall."

A comparison of the building's original facade, as the studebaker building, and after its remodeling as the fine arts building can be seen at http://www.ci.chi.il.us/Landmarks/F/FineArts2.html

I was one of the managers of the Fine Arts Theatre before its demise in 2003. I really loved this theatre and was probably the only one on the staff that did.

I tried to get the company (Loews Cineplex) to put money into the theatre but the best I could do was get them to agree to letting employees collect overtime to help rip down the awful orange carpeting that covered the lobby walls and paint the place.

Unfortunately it was like the proverbial “rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.” The problems were way too numerous.

The 1000 seat main theatre had beautiful crystal florets that lit up all around the proscenium. Unfortunately the electrical system was from the 1930s and would constantly blow out the lighting.

The plasterwork on the ceiling, which was done in lovely baroque swirls, would come down in chunks every day. Fortunately there was never any more than one person in the 1000 seater so the law of averages was with us.

The fire doors to the theatre were the old metal doors from the 1920’s and homeless people could easily get in and would fall asleep, have sex etc. in the theatre balcony. Not to mention that they all knew how to get into the theatre through the intricate tunnels and passageways that ran underneath the building. The pickpockets knew these ways as well and crime in the theatre got to be unmanageable.

Lastly were THE RATS. I swear to you, the rats actually mugged a patron and stole their popcorn. We tried everything and knew the exterminator by his first name, how many kids he had and what his dreams and aspirations were and nothing helped.

When the place closed I was invited to a last shebang at the theatre. I managed to get away with the actual number sign for the theatre that caused me the most problems.

Right now it sits dark and it will need a LOT of work to reopen.

The place was a fleapit but I loved it. Oh well.

A while after it had opened in New York in August of 1947, Vittorio De Sica's film "Shoe Shine" played at the World Playhouse for several weeks. That shattering neo-realist movie about the aftermath of World War II and life in a boys' prison was distributed at the time by Lopert Films, Inc.

It was a nice place to see foreign and art films. The main theater was very nice. I got to go up in the balcony a couple of times and it was very large. Great selection of films...I saw Blue Velvet, Hamlet in 70mm, Gone with the Wind, Prospero's Books here. Did watch and kill a large cockroach crawling on a pillar next to me. (Never, thank God, did I see the rats that J. Bitznick talks about. And--caution sensitive readers!--I saw a man enjoying himself while watching a movie. This was weird since the movie was fairly mainstream....)

The theater seems to have existed prior to 1917, as contemporary reports say that it was being rebuilt at that time for the Shubert and Erlanger organizations. Architect for the "new main floor, balcony, gallery, stage, and proscenium arch" was A.N. Rebori. The stage was also enlarged, new lighting installed, and it was reseated. Other corrections: Both the Studebaker and Playhouse existed when the building became the Fine Arts in 1899. The Playhouse was the first to become a cinema, for the 1933 Worlds Fair, thus the addition of World to its name. The Studebaker itself did not become a cinema for any long period until 1982. The other 2 screens were created in former stage space.

i work at this theater in the mid 90's as a part time job while in school. having also worked at a run down 70's suburban box in my home town, i was in love with this theater, and am disgusted that it is left to ruin by the loews/sony people. although it's 3rd and 4th screens were out of place afterthoughts and the 2nd screen was a sad comparison to the main hall, i just love watching movies from the first or second balcony of the main theater.

there are many great theaters in chicago, but the Fine Arts main hall was just plain BIG. the few times we opened up the balconies for a special event, it really made it feel magical. if i remember right, even in the 90's it was the largest capacity hall in the city. with the McClurg Court Cinema a close second or about the same, but now i see that is closed too! shame on you Chicago, and shame on you Loews!

i'd say a highlight for me was seeing gene siskel and al pacino do a discussion for some teachers group. i still have a blurry polaroid of them on stage =)

i'll always remember my cramped little dressing room behind theater 3's screen plastered with crappy left over movie posters like Escape from LA. watching movies from behind the screen, and making spooky sounds to scare co-workers while they cleaned.

There's a chapter missing from this history. In the mid 1920's the building housed a live stage theatre called simply "The Playhouse" and it was run by Lester Bryant. I have a couple of theatre programs attesting to this fact. The Playhouse may have been a smaller thatre than the main one. I'm not sure. But it did have a balcony, according to the seating and fire exit diagram in the back of the programs. Thought I would add this tidbit to your information.

As the Fine Arts Building, the Playhouse was always there. The Studebaker was the larger house, and the Playhouse or alternately World Playhouse was the smaller. Additionally there would have been performances and recitals throughout the building.

The entrance to the World Playhouse is now the entrance to the cafe that is the bulding.
And it also gives entrance to the bulding.

Actually, the entrances are accessed from the building's lobby, at either end of the building. The signs saying "world" and "studebker" are still visible, and sometimes you can faintly see into the theaters.

Russell Phillips Photo:

World Playhouse

Here is a 1910 postcard view of the then much cleaner Fine Arts Building.

Anyone interested in trying to resurrect this theatre?

I remember seeing the Big Lebowski in the big hall's balcony. I made the trip to see it BECAUSE it was playing at the fine arts later in it's run.(I had already seen the film opening weekend)
I needed a LOT of work even in 1998.
There's no reason why this facility cant reopen, even as a live theatre.

Name one Chicagoland Talking Heads fan that didn't see STOP MAKING SENSE here during that film's two-year run!

Now, can anybody name the OTHER 1980s film which featured the Talking Heads? It ran here too for quite awhile.

Catherine - Might that be "True Stories?"

One reason it might not reopen is that there is already a ton of theatre capacity in the Loop. The same goes for Chicagoland in general.

However, the fact that it has been sitting there asleep all this time is interesting.

That brings to mind this Tribune article from September 2006, about the Loop potentially running out of good theater space later this year.

Give JRS 40 a seegar!

David Byrne was "The Narrator" in TRUE STORIES. Jerry Harrison, Chris Frantz, and Tina Weymouth appeared in the "Wild Wild Life" and "Love For Sale" sequences. They also appeared in various "crowd shots", I believe. TRUE STORIES also featured John Goodman.

Wow! I did not realize Broadway in Chicago had come so far. My mind was still back in the days they mention at the end of that article. That is exciting!

This place was, in the 1970s, a playhouse and it was called The Studebaker. I remember my parents dragging me to some b-o-r-i-n-g play on Emily Dickinson. When it re-opened as the Fine Arts, M&R had it. It eventually passed thru Sony Theatres (aka M&R Leows, Sony-Loews, et al) and on to Loews.

I attended Columbia College two blocks to the south between 1984 and 1987. I remember when this was Chicago's "art house." I and my classmates would go here if we had a few hours between classes (at that time Columbia was a "commuter college"--no dorms). M&R always gave student discounts. I remember such fare as THE BROTHER FROM ANOTHER PLANET, REPO MAN, METROPOLIS (the 1984 re-release which was restored and had a soundtrack from Georgio Morodor added), THREE MEN AND A CRADLE (the French version of THREE MEN AND A BABY), and CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS. I had graduated by the time that last film was out and that was the last time I ever went there.

And yes, Catherine DiM, I did see STOP MAKING SENSE and TRUE STORIES here. Despite being Chicago's "art house", I always thought that this place was a little bit of a dive--it always seemed so musty inside. Still, what great films played here! As a previous poster stated, as time went on, more mainstream movies played here, particularly in the late 90s and early 2000s. I guess I really wasn't surprised when it closed.

Is Artist's Snack Shop still in business?

As far as i know the Artist`s Snack Shop is still open i used to work at the Auditorium Theatre and we would go their all the time.

This website has a 1916 ad for "God's Country and the Woman" playing at the Fine Arts Theater.

For the two years I lived in Chicago, attending Columbia College (1993-1995), this was my favourite place to watch films. Perhaps it was the fine old building it was in or the romance of its crumbling interior (even then), but I liked it even better than the very fine Music Box. Plus, it was much closer.

Among the films that made an impact on me there, my fondness for them being inextricably tied in with my fondness for the place itself, were Jane Campion's "The Piano" and Krzysztof Kieślowski's "Blue." Whenever I reflect on those films, I also vividly recall the comfort and satisfaction of watching them from my favourite perch in the front row of the balcony. It was just the right distance from the screen for my tastes and allowed plenty of space for all the contortions necessary to sustain good circulation, stave off a bathroom break, and maintain intense focus on the film itself.

Recent nostalgia for the Fine Arts building itself led me to find photographs which suggested that the theatre might be gone and now, tonight, I find that that is sadly the case. Lousy deal.

It may have been a crumbling relic, even in 1993, but it is still my favourite theatre yet.

I saw the Queen-enhanced version of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" at this lovely theater. I was really impressed with the interior and exterior design.

The last movie I saw there was the restored "Rear Window." It was a late-evening showing, and there couldn't have been more than a dozen people in the theater. About midway through the movie, I caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of my eye--something had shot across the aisle close to the front row. "No. That couldn't have been..." I stopped watching the movie and stared at the aisle. Sure enough, a couple of minutes later, a rat darted back across the aisle. I held my popcorn close for the rest of "Rear Window" and never went back again.

How sad to discover here that the Fine Arts is no more! While an undergrad at U of Chicago (82-86), I had my first experience of "art" film here...Wenders Paris Texas, Lynch Blue Velvet, and of course the Talking Heads! If not mistaken, I saw Ghost Dog here during a visit sometime in 2000. Is that possible?
As a fourth grader, I took piano lessons at the American Conservatory upstairs. Is it still there?

The American Conservatory is gone now. I hadn't known that they were in the Fine Arts building at one time. I took piano lessons there in grade school. But they were a little further north on Michigan at that point in time in a very narrow, old, white terracotta office building roughly across from the Art Institute. After that home they moved into the Charles Stevens building (early 90's). Several years into that location the Conservatory closed down.

This article from today's Chicago Tribune talks about the Fine Arts Building and its new owner's plans for the building. Regarding the two theaters in the building, he talks about hoping to reopen them in the next five years "for big shows and maybe even a boxing match or two". Boxing at the Fine Arts? Does that sound as out of place there to anyone else as it does to me? In any case, it would be nice to see these theaters reopened and used again after sitting vacant for years.

Ballet at Madison Square Garden.

I lived in Chicago from 1983-91 and just discovered this week that the Fine Arts had closed, years ago. So sad. Though I worked in a number of theatres, from Water Tower Place to McClurg Court while in college, my favorite to actually see films was the Fine Arts. I befriended one of the managers and we'd let each other into screenings at our respective film houses. I still remember seeing everything there from Stop Making Sense (after I moved to NY, I lived two blocks away from David Byrne and would see him regularly riding a bike with his kids and always thought of him in that film) to Sid and Nancy to Manon of the Spring. Would take ballet classes upstairs, catch a flick on my way out, then a quick bite and cup of coffee to perk me up for a night out at Exit (when it was still on Wells), Smart Bar or 950. Damn fine memories.

I think Smart Bar and the Artists Snack Shop are the only two places from that story that remain open, maybe the ballet studio too.

Life's too short: thanks for the itinerary of the American Conservatory. How sad to hear that it is no more. I wonder if my piano teacher Charlotte Berguson is still alive.

Serious overwhelm of nostalgia for me when contemplating this area of S. Michigan Ave.

January 15, 2008 New life for the Studebaker and the Playhouse?.

Here that with a picture.

http://leisureblogs.chicagotribune.com/the_theater_loop/2008/08/historic-studeb.html#more

http://www.dpcaltd.com/projects/individual/fine_arts_theatre.html A recent interior shot of the Studebaker is shown on a project website.

I wonder if the theatre will be called The Studebaker or renamed. I regret never going there when it was showing films. I remember when it was showing "Hilary and Jackie," but for some reason I chose not to see the film there.

The Fine Arts building is really a treasure. I used to take music lessons there when I was a kid. I love the old elevators, which still require manual operation and a live operator. I still go to The Artists Cafe sometimes before or after classes at Roosevelt University.

I think downtown Chicago needs a smaller theater for showing more intimate dramas and comedies. The Oriental is perfect for musicals and extravagant entertainment.

I can't believe there is still an elevator operator. I remember seeing that ten years ago and thinking it wouldn't last much longer.

I'll bet there can't be more than 100 elevator operators left in the entire U.S.

I'd completely forgotten about the Studebaker Theatre.
For some reason I remember seeing Pearl Baily perform there, in about 1969 or 70 with my family. We then met her backstage and I shook her hand. Being all of 10, I wore a glove on the one hand at school the next day so I could tell the story. So I guess Michael Jackson owes me something for intellectual property.

The last film I saw there was maybe 1992 or so, a John Sayles film set in Texas or something. Kris Kristofferson was a sheriff & Elizabeth Pena a waitress maybe.

I also helped move some drafting tables & equipment out of The Fine Arts building around 2000 when the Harrington Design school vacated their space.
The elevator operator was still there, and they had a plaque on the wall about his 50+ years of service, etc.
There was also a freight elevator behind the theatre space at the alley.
The floor of the passenger elevator was concave it was so worn.

My mother had several singing coaches & pianists that rented space there as well. There were some small performance type rooms on upper floors that faced Michigan Ave.

I thought that The Art Institute had bought it at one time.

David,

FYI - The Sayles film you are referring to is "Lone Star," a terrific film. I saw it there as well.

Another Chicago tragedy....
Granada - RIP
Nortown - RIP
Adelphi - RIP
400 - RIP
Uptown - RIP
Howard - RIP
United Artists - RIP
Oriental - RIP
State & Lake - RIP
Michael Todd - RIP
Woods - RIP
Studebaker - RIP
Playboy - RIP
the list goes on and on.........

Does anyone know where to find good pictures of these theaters in their heyday?

any information on the renovation project? They had said they were looking for a New Years Eve 2008 reopening?

Another photo here. Says architect is Solon S. Berman, as opposed to Beman in the description.
http://tinyurl.com/5erfqx

Typo.

Google photo shows "George Mitchell's Snack Shop" on the first floor, as best as I can make out. Some of those photos are a few years old, though.

Yes, it's been there since 1961.

This is from Boxoffice magazine, May 1960:

Superior Court Judge Grover Niemeyer has ordered the sale of the Fine Arts building, which houses the World Playhouse, at 400 S. Michigan Ave., and the proceeds divided among the owners, Bessie Simon and Arnold Schwartz. Mrs. Simon brought the court action. The building is valued at about $1,300,000, by Mrs. Simon's attorney.

Reactivate Notification Status.

Charles Teitel, who operated the World Playhouse until it closed in 1971, died on April 4, according to the Los Angeles Times. The obituary says that he succeeded his father, Abraham Teitel, who opened the cinema in 1933, and that he fought many battles with Chicago's film censorship board, culminating in a victory in the U.S. Supreme Court in 1968. Full obit (including a picture with Russ Meyer and Roger Ebert) here.

FYI. There's a 1983 picture of the Fine Arts facade on the American Classic Images site, should anyone want to post it that is able.

Here is a 1983 photo.

My guess is that nothing will be happening here for a while, given the economic climate out there.

This is a 1914 ad for the Studebaker Theater.

Hello, my name is Tim O'Neill. I worked as usher at the M&R Fine Arts Theatres from 1983-1985. I have to correct some information that is reported on this page. Now keep in mind, I would have to take a leave of abscence from my job in order to conduct a thourough research on the 111 year-old history of the two individual theaters located on the first floor of the Fine Arts Building. This information that I have comes from people who worked at the Fine Arts Building while I was an M&R employee. Okay, what I've been told or I have read about: The theater on the left opened as the Studebaker in 1898; the smaller theater on the right opened in 1901, according to THS. The smaller theater had various different names during it's existence. I can't remember in which order but the smaller theater has been known as the Fine Arts Theater, Orchestra Hall, the Playhouse Theater, the World Playhouse Theater, the World Theatre, and finally M&R Fine Arts 2 (later Loews, Sony, and Loews Cineplex). The Studebaker orginally opened as a concert hall. In the 1920s the interior was gutted and the auditorium was completely re-done. The only thing that survives from 1898 is the ceiling. The smaller theater has undergone changes as well and became a movie house in 1933. The Studebaker showed some movies during the silent era as well. Throughout the 30s through the 70s, the Studebaker was mainly a live stage house, while the World Playhouse was a movie house. I had heard that the World Playouse was used as a church after it closed as a movie house. In 1982, M&R Amusements took over the Studebaker and World Playhouse and began operating the two theatres as the Fine Arts 1&2. It opened on Christmas Day with MOONLIGHTING in Theatre 1 (Studebaker) and VERONIKA VOSS in Theatre 2 (World Playhouse). One year later, M&R closed Theatre 1 down for a few days and built a wall on the stage. Behind that wall they built Theatre 3 on the Studebaker stage. They converted one of the orginal dressing rooms into a projection booth. In the summer of 1984, M&R literally turned Theatre 3 around by placing the screen on the south end of the auditorium and re-sloping the floor. They built a twin booth and then built Theatre 4 on the stage of the World Playhouse. They had to build a wall on the stage of the World Playhouse. Now the Fine Arts had 4 auditorioums. Theatre 1 approx. 1200 seats; Theatre 2 approx. 550 seats; Theatre 3 240 seats; Theatre 4 158 seats. The theatres remained in business until November 2000.

1985 picture of the Studebaker auditorium:
http://www.russellphillipsphotography.com/gallery_art/movie_theatre/pages/67%20Ffine%20Arts%20Auditorium.htm

Website
http://www.fineartsbuilding.tv/

Well now that's some good news. Thanks for posting.

Is the fine arts opening or not?

According to the website you just posted, both theatres are to be restored. I guess we'll have to wait and see what comes out of their upcoming event.

Thanks David

I'm hearing rumors that if the fine arts/world playhouse reopens, its going to be named the studebaker/world playhouse

jwballer, The Studebaker was the original name of the 1200 seat theatre. It was called the Fine Arts Theatre #1 from December, 1982 until November, 2000. The smaller theatre had several different names; it was called the World Playhouse beginning in the early 1930s until December, 1982 when it was known as the Fine Arts #2 until it closed in November, 2000. When M&R Theatres re-opened these two theatres on Christmas Day, 1982, the newspaper ads had the new theatres advertised as "Fine Arts" but underneath that term, in parenthesis, it said "Studebaker/World Playhouse."

Thanks

http://www.nightatthefab.com/

I went by the the building today and there doing some sort of work to the front and back of the building.