Dollhouse Cinema
Town Square,
Altus,
OK
73521
Town Square,
Altus,
OK
73521
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The original Wigwam Theatre was opened by H.K. Smith on the North side of the square on December 13, 1913. Due to ventilation issues, Smith launched the Wigwam Airdome on North Main Street for the warm summer months. On January 9, 1921 the “new” Wigwam launched likely in the same location.
No ads in the newspaper. Must had shown adult movies and the paper had an adult movie ban.
Empty space pictured above was the STATE THEATER, North side of city square. It burned down. The PLAZA is on the West side, The DELTA was on the South side and the RITZ was on the East. The ALTUS DRIVE-IN was just East of the city. i grew up there and worked at the PLAZA and the STATE during the 50s.
All I know is what Joe Vogel wrote last month about the Delta Theatre. He says that the Delta burned down in 1954, and was never rebuilt.
Oh my God, I made a mistake four years ago … BFD!
Go to link below and type in “altus paramount”. Compare the two buildings on either side of the Paramount Theatre photo, then you will see that the vacant lot seen above is the exact location of the Dollhouse (AKA-Wigwam, Paramount) Cinema.
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The recently demolished Dollhouse Cinema sat on the rightside of the five story structure on W. Commerce off Hudson.
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This link has clear vintage exterior/interior images of the RKO Delta -
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Research reveals that the Plaza and Dollhouse were not in the same location. The old Paramount was remodeled into the Dollhouse Cinema around 1970.
This was an adult cinema, wasn’t it?
Recently I crossed paths with an Altus citizen who said that locals always called this the Dollhouse, but actual formal name was Penthouse Cinema.
A theatre named Delta in a desert town? Go figure.
On below site can be seen a 1939 photo of the Dollhouse when it was still the Art Deco styled RKO Delta Theatre. In search field type in word “delta”, then hit enter.
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The theater at 107 N. Hudson has a marquee that reads “Plaza.” If memory serves, the structure at Commerce and Grady looked more like a civic center than a cinema.
Correct address for the Dollhouse Cinema is 107 N. Hudson, Altus, OK.
Also on Google Maps there is a large theatre visible on the corner of Commerce and Grady. Anyone know anything about it?
From the satellite view provided by Google maps the Dollhouse Cinema can clearly be seen on the Eastside of the town square, on S. Hudson just North of W. Broadway. Apparently the marquee is still in place, and the stagehouse is clearly visible.
From the early 1920’s thru the mid-1950’s Altus had four movie houses, one on each side of the town square. In 1970 one of these theatres was converted into the Dollhouse Cinema, but I don’t know the original name.