Bay Theatre

This was MY hometown theatre from about age 4 until 10.

The theatre is a product of the Skouras era of the Fox West Coast chain, and still remained with that charming Moderne look when I was a kid.

In later years, a Wurlitzer pipe organ was installed, an instrument which I understand to be a very fine one, though I have yet to hear it. Unfortunately at around this same time--mid 1980s, a heavy remodeling of the facade was undertaken, removing most neon and converting what was once a colorful building into something like an earth-toned pueblo, definitely an aesthetic hangover from the "natural" 1970s. A return to the facade's original look would be physically feasible, if someone ever had the money.

The last major chain to operate the Bay theatre was Mann Theatres in the late 70's.

The Bay is always a joy to visit. It is rather small and unimpressive, but the films and presentation are always first rate. I encourage anyone in the area to pay a visit to see one of the classic films here. I have seen The Shining, The Exorcist, Citizen Kane, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and others at the bay and it is always a great evening. Main St. Seal Beach has a wonderful small town feel and has numerous bars and restaurants to visit before or after the movie. Please support this theatre! I have been many times when the screenings have only been attended by 10-15 people. It would be a shame if it closed!

Forgot to mention one crucial element: they still have a curtain, and they still open it before the movie. Cool huh? Also, most of the shows I have been to recently have had increasingly larger audiences. Still not enough in my opinion, but encouraging nonetheless.

It's great to hear the Bay has a curtain once again! I saw "Searching for Bobby Fisher" there in the mid-1990s after having not been to the Bay since 1973, and the screen at the time was bare, masked by black fabric (the organ is behind). I thought at the time that the organ was a wonderful addition, but I missed the double curtain I remembered from my childhood (one was a waterfall curtain and the other parted), as well as the curved walls on either side with their softly polychromed murals of stylized foliage in the so-called Skouras Style. I'm so glad to hear that a curtain of some sort has returned to the Bay! Now if there'd be a return to the original facade color scheme next time it's time to repaint, and at the very least a repairing of the surviving pink, green and yellow animated neon display at the center of the marquee--I'd truly be thrilled! Nevertheless, if I were a resident of Seal Beach or the surrounding communities, this would still be a theatre I would attend often.

The Bay theater is like an escape from the crazy movie going scene. It is such a great place to see a movie. Like the other commenters said, down town Seal Beach is a quaint town. The reastaurants are great and taking a walk on the pier is a treat. If you have the chance to go, go. Take your friends too!

Update: The Bay Theatre organ has been removed, and either donated or sold to a religious school. Though I always am disappointed to see an organ removed from a theatre, maybe this will allow the original murals flanking the original screen area to once again be seen, if they've survived the intervening years.

Here are some March 2008 photos:
http://tinyurl.com/2vzxsg
http://tinyurl.com/2wsq6y
http://tinyurl.com/2jv227
http://tinyurl.com/3dxrxk
http://tinyurl.com/2vlm7c
http://tinyurl.com/34dav2

This is another photo of the Bay Theater.

A local friend has just called me to mention the Bay Theatre is on the "for sale" market at $3m plus.

who would I speak to re; the theatre for sale? It is such a great place.

Paul

The links in the article are worth checking out as well.

http://sealbeachdaily.com/2009/05/11/main-street-scene-bay-theatre-for-sale/

Main Street scene: Bay Theatre for sale

Seal Beach’s landmark movie house, the Bay Theatre, is on the market for $3.3 million, Jeff Collins reports in the Orange County Register. He says the theater is being marketed as a potential site for a market-savvy movie buff, but also could be converted into a restaurant, office or retail space. “It’s irreplaceable, one-of-a-kind real estate,” says CB Richard Ellis agent Joe Miller. “If someone has a vision, they can do something with it.”

Keep reading here.

Since 1947, the Bay has stood near the corner of Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway, an old-fashioned movie house with vintage seating and just one screen. The theater shows independent and foreign films and weekly screenings of classic films.

Glue magnate Richard Loderhose purchased the Bay in 1975 and installed his prized 1928-built Wurlitzer organ there. The final pipe organ concert at the Bay drew a packed house in 2007, when the owner’s family donated the organ to a retirement center in Phoenix. The Register says the theater has been on the market for three months.

Here is a 2009 photo.