Palace Theatre

I attended this theatre in the 50's and 60's. And have kept track of it over the years. Very sadly, it is a mess. The city of Gary tried to fix up the marquee at one time, but it is again looking very shabby. The city also padlocked the front doors at least several times, but every time the lock was broken off. As of 14 September 2002 the balcony rear exit fire door to escape stairs has been forced open, and on ground level the exit door off auditorium totally broken away. One can clearly see inside the huge auditorium, though very dark.

There is debris covering all the decaying seats, though most are still there.
The auditorium is HUGE, and to my understanding, including very large balcony, there were 3,000 seats.
A giant pipe organ was used at least into the early 60's, and there were special stage shows from time to time in addition to the movies. During kids morning shows I remember glass slide sing-a-longs with organ music played live.
The Palace was the only theatre in Gary to be equipped with 4 track mag sound.
Operated by the chain Y&W (Young & Wolfe).
If anyone can shed more light on the Palace and/or Y&W chain, please contact me at filmkr@hotmail.com

The Palace specialized in first run films for the Northwest Indiana area after they played their engagements in Chicago. Usually the first run film was doubled with a second, more grade b movie. I can remember a science fiction grade z film playing on a double bill with "Bonnie and Clyde". As the area declined in the 60's the theater became less safe and the crowds stopped coming. In 1972 a young woman was attacked in the ladies room and the Palace closed its doors that night. It seems to me they tried to reopen it in the early 80's to little success. The theatre still stands on Broadway decaying away.

Pictures:
http://www.uer.ca/locations/viewgal.asp?locid=21499&galid=12910
This place looks like it feel into bad disrepair, such a shame.

I believe it is slated for demolition

What a sad end, this place must have been great at one time. The painted curtain actually looks in good shape is it? Also what was Jeckyl and Hyde on the marquee referring to?

Robert, the marquee reads Jackson Five Tonight. That was put up there at least 23 years ago and never removed.

I was there last Sunday. Very bad condition and cant be saved. The buiklding is beyond renovation sadley almost all the plaster is gone and many years of decay have taken a toll. I have video I took in Gary that includes the Palace theater posted on my website forum
www.northville-tunnels.com
also have pictures posted in my forum as well
Click for large video

WCCDC -- we had to remove your photos due to their excessive width.

If you wish to include photos in your comments, please make sure the images are less than 565 pixels wide or we will have to remove them again.

Alternately, if you'd prefer not to resize the images, just add direct links to your photos.

Sorry about that Ill keep that in mind for future postings :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v195/wccdc/gary/g18.jpg
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are the cops bad? I want to go befor it is gone.

Perhaps the only solution would be to gut and renovate.The remaining ornamentation in the theater could be removed and restored while the mural, and any other significant pieces including historic photographs could be put on display in the new lobby which could be used as a gallery.

No cops in Gary I was there all day in several buildings. I dont recommend anything ileagle the risk is yours. Gary is a wonderful town for UE.

Wccdc,
I saw your video and cant help but wonder what happened to that town. It doesnt appear to be an urban slum covered in grafitti and garbage. The community seems to have been abandoned like a ghost town. Why did everyone leave? Where did they go?
The ruins are fascinating. I am almost inspired to pack my things up and explore them. How does one find this place? Is it safe?

It was cool the south shore train from chicago stops right in the middle of Gary. For me it was like an amusement park. I had a good host so no time was wasted gogin to the wrong places. Glad you liked the video. plenty more where that came from.

To All Those Who Might be Interested:

There are several organizations working with the City of Gary to get the Palace Theater renovated. We have temporarily gotten the demolition order stopped to work on a stabilization and feasibility plan for the theater and the 600 -700 block of Broadway in downtown Gary. We recently in the building, and unfortunately there is not much left minus some decorative plaster here and there that the water infiltration has not knocked to the ground.

While all of this is happening we are looking to try and find the original Eberson blueprints, interior and exterior photographs from the buildings heyday. If anyone can help us locate these things, please let me know at calumet@historiclandmarks.org

We really want to save this important architectural treasure and would welcome any an all support that we can get. The City of Gary is not the best bastion for historic preservation and a "save" of such importance could really turn the tide in a postivie way

Further information on and an exterior view of the Palace can be seen here.

The opening date of the Palace Theatre was 26th November 1925.

http://northville-tunnels.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1527

There are some nice interiors in the middle of this discussion thread.

I went back last week. I took a good look around and would have to say that preserving that building would be a waste of time. I hate to see a landmark go down but there is not one thing left inthere all the plaster is gone. All thats left is the shell and its it bad shape from water damage.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v517/ktownpics/Gpalace006.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v167/aaargh/Palace%20Theater/1165/242a4efd.jpg

A friend that was in the area this week said that the Palace is boarded up tight now

I live in L.A. and the film "Original Gangstas" was on TV yesterday. At the beginning of the film the town is described as having been deserted after the steel mill pulled out and that Gary (at that time) had the highest murder rate in the country due to gang activity. There is a shot of the exterior of the Palace and it is described as the last movie theater remaining in town. The narrator also said the last film to play was "Star Wars". I wonder how much of that is actually true? I bet the Chamber of Commerce didn't endorse THAT film.

It closed before Star Wars came out.

I am goign to make a point of watching that movie now. Thanks.

Here's a great shot of the Palace today

Really shows how far the place is beyond saving sadly

Nice Photo. Looks like this theater needs some spackle and paint. Okay, alot of spackle and paint. :)

Here is another photo of the Palace Theater.

You have all taken some awesome and heartbreaking images. I would love to be able to do some urban exploration in Gary, the Palace and the Sheraton especially. Any advice or groups to look up?

I have seen a few mentions of support for restoration of the Palace on the Internet. My question is, what is left to restore?

http://www.urbanadventure.org/2005/2002trip/palacetheatre/index.html

You might be able to fashion a modern auditorium within the building's structure. But my next question is, what does Gary need with an auditorium?

This is a recent 2006 photo of the Palace theater.

This website has photos of the Palace Theater.

Of all the theaters, I think I miss the Palace the Most. This was my introduction to the BIG SCREEN. I remember going to see the Three Stooges. Nothing like the Stooges on the silver screen! Then there was Ben Hur and some of the epics of that time. Jerry Lewis Movies at the Palace! How about "House on Haunted Hill?" Sadly, the last movie we saw at the Palace was "Bonnie and Clyde" and there was more crime going on in the seats than in the movie. We were robbed for our bus money. Never went back.

Violence at the Palace in 1968 (from the Chicago Tribune, April 15, 1968)...

400 SEE YOUTH SLAIN IN GARY MOVIE HOUSE

Four hundred persons, many of them youngsters, looked on in horror last night as a 15 year old youth was stabbed to death in the crowded lobby of a downtown Gary movie theater.
The stabbing took place as the audience was leaving the Palace theater, 791 Broadway, after a showing of "Bonnie and Clyde", a violence-ridden movie about Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, Depression era gangsters.
The stabbing victim was Aldrid Black, the son of Mrs. Anna Black of 2189 Nichols pl., Gary, and a student at Gary's Roosevelt high school.

Police Seek Youth

Police were also seeking a youth about 18, who fled onto Broadway, Gary's main street, after the stabbing. Police said he was lost in the crowd outside the theater waiting to attend the show.
Witnesses told police that the fight began when the older youth shoved Aldrid and called him an insulting name.
Witnesses said the two began to fight in the crowded lobby when the older youth pulled out a knife and stabbed Aldrid in the neck.

4 Cops on Duty

Four special policemen were on duty in the theater to keep order but were unable to get to the lobby until the fight was over.
The incident was the latest in a series of acts of violence that have taken place in downtown Gary.

Here is a 2007 photo of the Palace Theater.

This is a March 3, 2007 article about the Palace Theater.

How sad that these lobby details were illegally stolen to sell for hundreds of dollars:
http://www.urbanremainschicago.com/item.aspx?itemID=83

This company should be charged for theft. I have seen this happen with too many buildings in Detroit that have had details stolen to be found at salvage shops. Get the Indiana Historical Society on the case...

If you are right about this it is truly a pitiful course of action SNWEB. I very much agree wtih you.

again, not to be redundant, but "snweb" and his claims against our company are unfounded. we are not sure what the motives are here...perhaps an intentional ploy to boost his ego and/or website and/or so-called "decay" photography? we bought the coffered ceiling fragment from a reputable chicago dealer, who sold several of these items across the country to a number of salvage companies. please step forward and contact us "snweb". your accusations are rather unprofessional yeah? what does that say about yourself? perhaps you should be charged w/ defamation of character?

concerning the consequences of "snweb.org" and/or his accusatory commentary

Defamation is an injury to the reputation or character of someone resulting from the false statements or actions of another. Defamation is a false attack on your good name. Your good name is regarded as a proprietary interest, not a personal interest. Defamation is an improper and unlawful attack against your proprietary right to your good name, your reputation.

A legal claim based on defamation entitles the victim to recover against the defamer for his or her emotional damages. In addition, the victim will be entitled to sue for punitive, or punishment, damages.

we have a very solid and reputable business involved in preserving and/or saving architectural artifacts representing buildings undergoing demolition. although (and like other dealers) we buy from estate sales, other dealers, etc., nearly 90% of our inventory comes from demolition sites that we actively engage in regarding relic removal. if you are so concerned about saving structure x or structure y mr. snweb, then try being a bit more proactive yeah? what have you done personally to either save a building in it's entirety and/or rescue remains from an unstoppable demolition? at this point, you simply are a blogger who clearly screams out unprofessionalism, and your commentary is a direct and wonderful represenation of that!

Hey Urban Remains: I think you should cool it a little. I can understand why you might be out of joint. But threatening legal action and taking multiple shots at SNWEB only makes you look like a jerk in my eyes, and I would guess the eyes of other users. SNWEB is a dedicated preservationist who has volunteered his time to keep this web site running, among other things. I don't like to see you drag his name through the mud. In fact, I imagine he could throw the same sort of law suit at you that you are discussing after this rash of posts. If SNWEB is missing some information here, why don't you engage him in a level-headed conversation. This way you can show him, and the rest of us, where you are coming from.

I have probable cause to call you out on this urbanremains. Defamation this, defamation that, I am not trying to give you a bad name, I am merely pointing out that you have a piece of a building that was never allowed to be salavaged legally.

Stop dodging the issue at hand, and tell me more of how you and the other company aquired the piece. It's all about being a good business.

These personal attacks show your unprofessionalism. I simply point out that a plaster has been wrongfully taken, and you search out my entire online activity for defamation. What have I done to save a building? Lets see, off the top of my head, I am in 3 preservation groups, have been on the team nominating downtown Detroit for the 11 most endangered historic places (in which it was successful on the list), created a website and petition to save a hotel, preservation via documenting interiors before they are demolished, and just now I am trying to save an historic theater in the town of Gary that has been raped of her interior lobby plaster.

Please tell me how stealing plaster from a theater illegally is preservation in your eyes.

Please end the plaster discussion, guys. It's off-topic.

A special note to urbanremains: legal threats have no place on Cinema Treasures. If you threaten one of our users again, you will be banned.

as stated earlier, i've put that topic to rest...snweb.org is more than welcome to contact me regarding the plaster issue...i'll address any and all your concerns in a professional manner. i apologize for making public, an argument between myself and another user.

Thank you, urbanremains. That's the best way to handle this sort of thing. :)

It is sad to see an Eberson Design fall to such a bad end. I've just been watching a theater of a similar design that was in about the same shape as the Palace taken down not far from me. It had started down it's final journey many years ago and met it's end now. Looking at the photos that were linked to, about all one could hope for is to extract elements of it that can be salvaged. Sad.

Another recent photo of the Palace Theater can be seen here.

A Kilgen theater organ opus 3431 size 3/9 was installed in the Palace Theater in 1925.

Photos of this theater are HERE

Wow: I've never seen such clear images of the interior. Now that I have, I kind of wish I hadn't.

This is a set of photos for the Palace Theater. There are some recent interior photos but there are also some vintage photos in the set.

Here is a 1956 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/23fbqm

Hey BWChicago and Lost Memory,
You sure took some striking photos of the theater for us to see. Very sad place. I hope you weren't hassled to much, but even I wouldn't venture inside or out there without a Police escort! Even if the four walls are sturdy, the politics of Gary are too corupt to care about saving the building. Hight crime rate, lack of jobs (except the casinos)and the white flight to the suburbs in the 60's doesn't help the matter either. If they built one of the casinos close by, maybe. That didn't stop Elgin, IL from tearing down the Crocker Theater just walking distance from the Grand Victoria Casino. Guess they didn't want any competition taking away their dollars!

Well, to be fair I don't think the Crocker Theatre was anything but a shell when they tore it down. Certainly they could have saved the exterior. But my understanding is that the building was almost completely gutted many years before demolition.

Yeah, The Palace in Gary is the same right now, I just read that the Garden Theater in East Chgo was torn down, SO...in NorthWest Indiana...if/when the Palace Theater in Gary is torn down.....NO MORE VINTAGE THEATERS IN ALL OF NORTHWEST INDIANA.......Sad for the region? PATHETIC that NO ONE, be it a politician who just wanted some culture, or even the whole town....would want to save a bit of culture from the past......No wonder small towns are DEAD...or dying......

It's sad to see what was once likely a BEAUTIFUL theatre reduced to a shaky shell waiting to take her final bow into herself.

Unfortunately, not much is left there to save and structurally she grows increasingly unsafe. What's left of the once impressive plaster details around the stage's curtain is fire-scorched and crumbling away. The backdrops that hang there are mold-ridden and the lake of orange ooze underneath the stage isn't doing the stage itself or anything else around it any good.

It's not only a sad loss for the region, it's a sad loss for those charming old theatres everywhere.

Here are a couple of photos of what she looks like now. Poor old girl...a few VERY well-hidden hints of her former glory still sit in silent blackness.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f378/cyberdomlady/Exploration%20Images/Palace/Palace3-1816.jpg6.jpg
http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f378/cyberdomlady/Exploration%20Images/Palace/Gary191.jpg

Isnt the Hoosier still running film in Whiting ?

New photos taken on Aug 30, 2008.
This should take you to photo link.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/twistr54/sets/72157607042507413/

Yes the Hoosier is still running movies and usually first run movies at that.

This website shows nice pictures of the theater form 2005 -> http://www.forbidden-places.net/urban-exploration-gary-indiana-ghost-town (photo gallery: Jackson Five Theater).

This is a 1983 photo.

They just featured this theater on History Channel's "Life Without People" series, in which Gary was a part of tonight's show. The interior of the theater appears to be on the verge of a total shambles, and there doesn't seem to be much left that wasn't destroyed by time and neglect.
Is this entire town abandoned? They also showed the Gary Methodist Church which is also a substantial structure on the verge of collapse. The whole downtown appears abandoned.

I saw that episode and immediately knew that it was the Palace, having previously read the above threads and done some research. From what I can tell, there is virtually no hope for Gary. It is about on par with East St. Louis which has a similar incredible palace (The Majestic) sitting in ruins.

Camden, Detroit, Cleveland and Paterson are also basket cases. Alone among them, Detroit is the only one to have restored palaces.

Here is a recent photo. With the passing of Michael, the marquee could be changed to the "Jackson Four".

Ooops! My mistake. Of course, Cleveland has restored palaces as well! I don't know what I was thinking.

This is another 2009 photo.

Sean who has been a long time contributor to CT has a series of photos of the Palace Theatre. Here is the link to that series.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/snweb/534025794/in/set-72157600226507427/

Did the Jackson 5 perform there, or did someone just stick that on the marquee at some point?

The Jackson Five are from Gary, Indiana but I don't know if they ever performed at this theater.

Here is a July 2009 photo.

Another 2009 photo is here.

Looks like everything is out of business in that area

Very sad! Very handsome building just sitting there rotting, like the city as a whole. Funny how the fancy street lamp looks brand new. It reminds me of the old saying....."you can put lipstick on a pig.....but it's still a pig!"