El Lago Theatre
3506 E. Lake Street,
Minneapolis,
MN
55406
3506 E. Lake Street,
Minneapolis,
MN
55406
3 people
favorited this theater
This Moorish style cinema is one of the few surviving cinema buildings along Minneapolis' Lake Street, once a hub of second run nabes.
Contributed by
Kirk J. Besse
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Recent comments (view all 8 comments)
Small photos and some history can be found here.
Correction: This theater was known as the “El Lago.”
Lago means lake in Spanish.
Interesting. Thanks.
My mother managed The Oaks Bar, which was then located two or three storefronts to the left of the theater, from the late 1930s through 1940 or 1941.
1982 photo of the El Lago Theatre from American Classics.
View link
According to this page from the University of Minnesota’s web site, the El Lago Theatre was built in 1927 and was designed by Ekman, Holm & Company. It underwent some remodeling in 1931, done by the same architectural firm.
The El Lago was operated by Henry Greene’s Lake Amusement Company, which also operated the Lake and East Lake theaters nearby.
The El Lago was owned by Lake Amusement Co. and closed in 1969.