Family Theatre
345 Michigan Street NE,
Grand Rapids,
MI
49503
345 Michigan Street NE,
Grand Rapids,
MI
49503
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Closed 1958 and reopened as Cinema on October 21st, 1961, as an art cinema switching to an adult movie policy in 1967. Grand opening ad posted.
Closed in 1958. It may have been reopened in the 1960’s.
I worked at the Cinema for Earl Smith, who leased the old place. He tried to make a living running art films and we did some good business if the fil as a bit racy. Eventually, he started running nudist camp epics and later drifted into hard porn. Earl continued to operate the Cinema into the early 70’s.
Do we have a correct closing date? Description says 1959; the comment shows theatre operating in early 60s. And, is the 1930 year of opening correct?
345 Michigan N.E. Family Theater. Howard T. Reynolds, one of the sons-in-law of Joseph Poisson, owned this theater until he sold it, along with the Vogue and the Stocking, to Herbert R. Boshoven in early1946 for $135,000. The sale took place just after the theater suffered a devastating fire from a short circuit in the wiring at 6:38 p.m. on Tuesday, February 19, 1946. The extra alarm fire caused a loss of $26,745.43, while the theater’s total value was given as only $29,000. John Muzzal was listed as the occupant or operator of the theater at the time of the fire. It became a Boshoven-Busic theater, owned by Herbert Boshoven, Jr., and Joseph Busic. The 1941 seating capacity was 530. It was known as the Family from the time of its construction until the early 1960’s, when it became the Cinema. (Photo: G.R. Public Museum, in Lynn G. Mapes and Anthony Travis,