San Miguel Theatre
Mission Street,
San Miguel,
CA
93451
Mission Street,
San Miguel,
CA
93451
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This theatre, which still stands today, first appears in the 1942 Film Daily Year Book, and is listed as operating through 1946. It appears in the 1947 Film Daily Year Book, but is listed as “closed.” According to theatre historian Jack Tillmany, it was built to take advantage of the influx of wartime personnel at the nearby Army base, Camp Roberts. Camp Roberts itself had its own movie theatre, which also appears in the Film Daily Year Book (seating not listed). Its present status is unknown.
The San Miguel Theatre was built on what is today Mission Street, but was originally Highway 101, forming the main street of this little town, which grew Northward along the highway from the compound of the old Spanish Mission San Miguel.
Architecturally, the San Miguel Theatre building consists of a gable-roofed, cement block auditorium structure, fronted along the street by an entrance (once topped by a marquee), flanked by storefronts built as part of the same structure. Since this writer photographed the theatre in the early-1990’s, the entrance has been remodeled somewhat for a commercial establishment, making it harder to distinguish the building as a former theatre. The auditorium structure’s exterior remains unchanged.
San Miguel, today bypassed by the US 101 Freeway, is a very sleepy settlement–its only significant attraction today being the historic Mission basilica and compound, and a large adobe house nearby.
Contributed by
Gary Parks
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
Found an early 1900s photo of what appears to be a theatre next to a garage in San Miguel. Cannot find any record of another theatre however.