State-Lake Theater
190 N. State Street,
Chicago,
IL
60601
190 N. State Street,
Chicago,
IL
60601
26 people
favorited this theater
Built in 1919 as a vaudeville house for the Orpheum circuit, the State-Lake Theater opened on March 17, 1919 with Trixie Friganza topping the bill. It later became the major venue for the RKO theater chain in Chicago (along with the Palace Theatre on Randolph Street). The theater is named for its location on the corner of State Street and Lake Street, across the street from the State and Lake “El” Station.
It was built a couple years before the Chicago Theatre, which sits just across the street from the State-Lake Theater, by the same architects, Rapp & Rapp, who designed it in a similar style as the French Renaissance style Chicago, though the State-Lake Theater was nowhere near as grandiose as its cousin across the street. The theater became part of the Balaban & Katz chain in 1938, which continued a policy of live acts and movies until 1941, when the State-Lake Theater switched to movies-only.
After closing in 1985, the State-Lake Theater’s interior was gutted and converted into studios and offices for the ABC network’s Chicago affiliate, WLS-TV.
The exterior was restored to it’s 1920s appearance (except for its marquee and ticket booth) and is still quite an impressive bookend to the Chicago Theatre across State Street.
Contributed by
Bryan Krefft
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Recent comments (view all 142 comments)
Thanks for the posted photographs of the State-Lake Theater in Chicago, IL. The one and only time I was in the State-Lake Theater was when a friend and I decided to see “Saturday Night Fever” on a cold winter’s day. That was quite a visit. The theater was in sad shape by the late 1970’s (I seem to remember a rip in the screen; I also remember never seeing the place with the lights full up) and I think served that day as shelter for street and other vulnerable people, not a bad idea, just kind of unsettling. The usual stinky popcorn machine was in the lobby. I wish we had seen it in its prime.
I can’t believe there are no interior photos of the State-Lake? I’ve looked everywhere for them. Anyone have access to any?
Theatre Historical Society in Elmhurst.
for btkrefft: Confirming photograph is interior of State-Lake. Verified from B'hend and Kaufmann Collection at AMPAS Margaret Herrick Library
i saw the world premeire of ‘I WANT TO LIVE’ there nov 11th 1958. it starred SUSAN HAYWARD, and she won an oscar for her role! in the true story of barbara graham,
Here http://gallery.bustalk.info/displayimage.php?album=83&pos=66 is a 1982 photo.
Hi all, I hope you can help out here.
When “DR. NO” opened at the State Lake in 1963, was it a first run exclusive at the theater? Or was it released in a showcase / saturation style across Chicago?
Thanks!
It opened exclusively at the State-Lake through June 26, then went wide the next week.
Thank you Broan, much appreciated.
Jeez, Louise! I SAW Cleopatra at the State-Late Theater! (We teenagers called it the “State and Lake”)