Bluebird Theatre

This is from the Montana Standard, 10/13/39:

SMELTER CITY TO HAVE NEW THEATER

ANACONDA, Oct. 12.— The building formerly occupied by the Fuller Drug store at 415 East Park avenue Will be remodeled Into a modern theater, it was announced today by Joseph A. English, manager of the Washoe and Bluebird theaters here and purchaser of the East Park avenue building. Second-run pictures will be shown at the theater on its completion.

415 E. Park was the address of the third theater in Anaconda. The Bluebird must have had a different Park Avenue address.

Good research Ken. The Bluebird Theater had a Hall theater organ size 2/10 installed in 1916 so the theater being built in 1939 certainly wasn't the Bluebird. I wonder if it was the Highland Theater being built in 1939, or was there a fourth theater in Anaconda.

In 1914 the Anaconda Standard was advertising shows at the Alcazar and the Grand. Jumping ahead to 1958, the Montana Standard advertised several theaters in the Anaconda area. They were the Washoe, the Center, the West Valley Drive-In, the Rustic Drive-In and the In and Out Drive-In. The West Valley was showing "Far Horizons" with Fred MacMurray and "Charles" Heston.

I have no information for the Alcazar or the Grand. Since the Center Theater isn't listed in the 1951 FDYbook, it was probably built after that date which means the Center Theater isn't the theater being built in 1939. Right now, my prime candidate for the 1939 theater being built is the Highland Theater. If the Highland was built in 1939, it must have had a relatively short life. And if it was a second run theater as mentioned in the article, that could explain its short existence. Or maybe it just burned down.

Believe it or not, there were even more theaters in Anaconda. Not sure if they were movie theaters or not. I found the following on a history page for the Washoe Theater; Pre-dating the Washoe on this site was the Margaret Theater, named for Mrs. Marcus Daly in 1897. The Margaret was sold in 1926 and reopened in 1927 as the Sundial Theater. The Sundial was destroyed by fire in 1929. Not soon after the ‘Washoe Amusement Company’ formed to lobby local citizens for the reconstruction of the theater on the site, and the Washoe soon came into being. It cost $200,000 to build.

The local paper was advertising plays at the Margaret in 1912. They probably used it for movies later on, before it burned down.

The 1941 & 1943 editions of Film Daily Yearbook list:
Bluebird Theatre 750 seats
Highland Theatre 346 seats
Washoe Theatre 1,000 seats

The 1950 edition of Film Daily Yearbook lists':
Bluebird Theatre, Park Avenue 668 seats
Washoe Theatre, Main Street 988 seats

I Have to get a couple of those FDYs eventually. I only see one listed in the LA Library catalog, from 1932.

A photo of the Margaret Theater can be seen here. I can't tell from the photo if it was a movie theater.

There is a good chance that the Highland Theater was the theater being built in 1939. We need another source to confirm it. If it was a small second run theater, it might not be easy to find information for it.

Ken MC....You could post the article from the Montana Standard on the Highland Theater page if you want to.

I will, thanks.