Anthony Theater

There is a photo of the Anthony Theater here:
http://members.cox.net/ksregphotos/Anthony_Theater_Anthony.htm

Added to the National Register of Historical Places in 1991

Anthony Theater (added 1991 - Building - #91000464)
220 W. Main St., Anthony
Historic Significance: Architecture/Engineering
Architect, builder, or engineer: Voigt,S.S., Fisher,A.N.
Architectural Style: Art Deco
Area of Significance: Architecture
Period of Significance: 1925-1949
Owner: Private
Historic Function: Recreation And Culture
Historic Sub-function: Theater
Current Function: Recreation And Culture
Current Sub-function: Theater

This is a 2007 photo of the Anthony Theater.

I don't know how recent this, but this committee is soliciting donations for renovation of the theater:
http://tinyurl.com/3tntvu

Here is another photo.

Here is a September 2008 photo. It looks closed.

The Anthony Theatre is currently closed, but was recently purchased from the private owner by a local non-profit group who is helping Anthony and Harper citizens restore it to its former glory. As an artistic gem, it will be carefully restored as we also add back an asset for our community members to enjoy. You can follow our efforts at our website, www.anthony-theatre.com .
A recent news article:
http://cjonline.com/life/2009-03-28/anthony_to_restore_movie_palace

Wow! Considering how long this theater has been closed the interior shots seem to be pretty decent. You guys deserve a lot of credit for your foresight and dedication to bring this little gem back to life. Please keep Theatre Historical Society posted on your progress!

Karen Colizzi Noonan,President
Theatre Historical Society
www.historictheatres.org

The attribution of the architect above is wrong. A.N. Fisher was the builder of the Anthony Theatre. The architect was S.S. Voigt, of Wichita.

The Anthony Theatre was partly owned by Charles Barron, operator of the Barron and Kansas theaters in Pratt, Kansas. His business partner at Anthony was Hazel Droz. Barron sold the Pratt theaters in 1943 and retired to California, but continued the partnership in Anthony until his death in 1952. He also held part ownership of the Star-Vue Drive-In at Anthony, opened by Mrs. Droz in 1950. After Mr. Barron's death Mrs. Barron remained a partner in the Anthony operations for some time. Mrs. Droz sold the theater and the drive-in in 1970.

Also, a house called the Palace Theatre opened in Anthony on October 9, 1925, according to the notice in the October 17 issue of The Reel Journal. It was operated by L.W. Conner, an Oklahoma exhibitor. The Palace is mentioned a couple of times in 1926, and after that I can't find anything about it. Does anybody know what became of it?

Just to set the record straight I didn't give any architects name when I submitted this theater. There was no choice for an A.N. Fisher or an S.S. Voigt on the list of architects. Someone misread the information from the National Register of Historical Places and added the architects name. I added this theater in 2005 and the National Register information wasn't posted until 2007. It's good that you caught this error.

It's unfortunate that the nomination doesn't include any information about S.S. Voigt. There are only a few references to him on the Internet, leading to a photo of building he designed in 1927, and it makes me wonder if perhaps he designed the Barron Theatre as well. (Search Voigt on this page to reach a page about the 1927 Midian Shrine Temple.)

I also found that he designed a drug store at the northeast corner of Douglas and Hillside in Wichita which is still standing and can be seen in Google Street View (search 3200 E. Douglas Ave., Wichita.) All these buildings, including the Anthony Theatre, have the same attention to subtle detail that the Barron's facade has, and the 1927 Shrine Temple even features the sort of Solomonic column details on the windows that the Barron sports.

Somehow the beginning of my comment above got lost in posting. Here it is:

The respective functions of Fisher and Voigt were noted on the nomination submitted to the NRHP. It includes an extensive description of the theater and its history. A .pdf of it is linked from this page for anybody who might want to read it.

The nomination form also says that Floyd and Hazel Droz entered the theater business when they purchased the Novelty Theatre in Anthony in 1934. I've been unable to find the Novelty (or Floyd Droz) mentioned in Boxoffice.

This is a 2009 marquee photo.