Bay Theatre
340 Main Street,
Seal Beach,
CA
90740
340 Main Street,
Seal Beach,
CA
90740
20 people
favorited this theater
The Bay Theatre was built in 1947, with 662 seats. At one time a Fox West Coast theater, was purchased by Richard Loderhose in 1975.
After removing some of the seats, he installed a 1928-built Wurlitzer organ that he had purchased in the early 1960’s from New York City’s Paramount Theatre. It is called “the largest Wurlitzer pipe organ in any operating theater in the world today”.
The theater shows independent, foreign, classic and silent films with organ accompaniment. Seal Beach, with a population of 25,100, is mentioned in an unauthorized biography of Steven Spielberg as being his favorite place to see foreign movies while he was enrolled at nearby Cal State Long Beach in the mid-1960’s.
The theater is well maintained, with excellent projection and the vintage seating is very comfortable.
Contributed by
Ron Pierce, Ray Martinez
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Recent comments (view all 20 comments)
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.
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[quote]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.â€
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.[/quote]
Here is a 2009 photo.
2008 Photo of the Bay Theatre.
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Some photos of the Bay Theatre.
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Auditorium shots… Auditorium shots!!!
Too many facade shots from the same position.
Thanks Chuck1231 for the pictures.
Here’s a June 2010 exterior photograph (sorry, Simon!):
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Contact for information on sale/operation of Bay Theatre is Rena L. Singer, 913-786-7772 or
CORRECTION…Contact for information on sale/operation of Bay Theatre, Seal Beach, CA is Rena L. Singer, 813-786-7772 or