Garmar Theater
2325 Whittier Boulevard,
Montebello,
CA
90640
2325 Whittier Boulevard,
Montebello,
CA
90640
2 people
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This S. Charles Lee-designed theater was built in the Quonset Hut style. The Garmar Theater opened on March 29, 1950.
Contributed by
BHousos
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Recent comments (view all 63 comments)
Hi Droog, my best friend found this message. I was the repair guy you talked to back then.
It was a running gag with me way back when about Robert being the owner. The Blake family actually had a more famous landmark in that his uncle Eddie Blake owns this restuarant in Los Angeles called Tail of the Pup. you can see it in the movie Body Double.
The arcade opened back in 1980 or 81. I do remember the Garmar, fave movie I saw was Rollercoaster, in full Senssuround glory.
Here is a 1983 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/d88avt
Here is a January 1959 ad from the LA Times:
http://tinyurl.com/qggsdl
So…I was cleaning out an old house here in Los Lunas,NM and found a well preserved, unopened bottle of ‘Private Stock’ Chablis from the Marcel & Jeanne French Cafe in Montebello. Before I opened it or tossed it, I Googled the Cafe and found the musings from all you ol' geezers trying to relive your childhoods in the old days of Montebello. If anyone might want this bottle of wine, and will pay the shipping, I will be glad to send it back to California where it came from..
A photo of the lobby of the Garmar was featured on the frontispiece of Boxoffice Magazine’s Modern Theatre section, December 2, 1950.
You can find many pictures of Montebello’s landmarks on this webpage:
View link
Picture at Boxoffice Vault 1950 08 05 p 1949 Boxoffice Vault
Correction: Page 194 not 1949
FYI, the Garmar got its name from the Olander’s two sons, GARy and MARk. It also was the only theatre I ever knew of that had two enclosed rooms for smoking. Each had a clear glass window, speakers for the sound, and each held about 25-30 seats.
Here is a fresh link to the photo of the Garmar’s lobby on the cover of the “Modern Theatre” section of Boxoffice, December 2, 1950.