Rialto Theatre
177 Cotton Avenue,
Macon,
GA
31201
177 Cotton Avenue,
Macon,
GA
31201
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The Rialto Theatre opened in August 1921, with seating listed at 739. By 1941 it was operated by Paramount Pictures Inc. through their subsidiary Lucas & Jenkins. This theatre became part of the Georgia Theatre Co. chain.
The Rialto Theatre closed in 1962 and the auditorium has since been demolished, for use as a parking lot. The façade survives and is used as a drive-though to the parking lot. Any further information on this theatre would be appreciated.
Contributed by
Chuck
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Recent comments (view all 4 comments)
The Rialto Theatre was at the other end of this block of Cotton Avenue, demolished yes, however now a parking lot, but you can tell where it was located by the drop off from the street level. My understanding is there was also a movie theatre in about the same spot as this photo in what is now Bibb Music, the second floor still has a ticket window.
Rialto Theatre, Macon, Georgia in 1930. View link
The big tyre in the front was being used as a promotional tool for the Maurice Chevalier film “The Love Parade”. It was at the time claimed to be the largest tyre in the world!
The Theatre Organ Database says that Macon’s Rialto had a tiny Robert Morton pipe organ (II/3) installed in 1921. CT lists an opening date of 1925. Any supporting documents for either date?
The Rialto Theatre opened in August of 1921. The theatre organ was mentioned in an article about the Rialto Theatre published in the Macon Telegraph on July 31, 1921.
A $20,000 pipe organ has been installed. This organ was bought from the Robert Morton Organ Company of Los Angles, California, and is the first organ to be shipped to an Atlantic port via the Panama Canal. The organ is a reproduction of the instrument that is now in the Howard Theatre, Atlanta.
The organ will be played by Miss Myrtle McGowen, a Wesleyan graduate. Miss McGowen will arrive from Atlanta today to take charge of the instrument. She graduated from the Methodist college in 1898.
Either the trip through the Panama Canal was very expensive, or the newspaper might have exaggerated the price of the organ.