Lido Theater
300 S. First Street,
Mount Vernon,
WA
98273
300 S. First Street,
Mount Vernon,
WA
98273
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A two story building in downtown Mount Vernon. It is built of buff brick with concrete spires of a Gothic influence. The building currently houses offices and stores.
Contributed by
Allison Holloway
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
Old Lido Theater: Site of the elaborate wooden Down’s Opera House, built in 1892, with a huge stage and a gallery for traveling and local entertainment. Now retail stores and offices.
There is a small photo on this page, but the address is given as 520 S. Main:
http://tinyurl.com/2asqt5
Main Street is one block west of first Street. The picture is of the Mission Theatre built in 1923. The website got the name wrong.
Owned and operated by the Thompson family during the late ‘60s through the early '80s, The Lido Theater was the first theater in the Skagit Valley to install Dolby Sound gear. Seating 435 patrons with additional viewing from the owner’s office upstairs as well, it was a great place to grow up. My father ran the theater from the late '60s until his untimely death in 1975. From then, his father, also a theater man, ran it until it was sold in the early 80’s. I will always remember the very large and thick glass front doors, there were 9 of them I think, and the scary furnace in the basement area under the stage/screen. I had several birthday parties there and was always able to bring grade school class mates on a school field trip until the third grade. The old carbon arc projectors were always a fascination to me. Never did get the chance to actually run a show, but dad alwasy let me through at least one of the “cutover” switches if I was there with him.
According to the city directory the Lido was at one time named the Lyric
The Lyric name also moved to the former Mission Theater at some point in the past. At one time, all three theaters in town (The Lincoln, The Lido, and the Lyric) were under the same management. This had changed by the 1970’s when I worked as a relief projectionist for IA Local 351 in that area. All three had different owners by that time. In regards to the 2009 comment above about the Dolby install, it was unique but did sound great for the time. The installer re-used the tube amplifiers left over from the 1950’s mag stereo installation. 4 channels of Motiograph 100% vacuum tube amplification and Voice of the Theater speakers backstage. I think the original Superman was the first Dolby screening at this theater. First Dolby installation between Seattle and Vancouver, BC.