Bijou Movie Theater
123 2nd Street SE,
Mt. Vernon,
IA
52314
123 2nd Street SE,
Mt. Vernon,
IA
52314
1 person
favorited this theater
This wonderful little theater was constructed in 1975, opening in December 1975 as the Odeum Theatre, after the towns' Strand Theatre located on 1st Avenue burned down. Their first show was, appropriately, “The Towering Inferno”.
It is currently owned by Jerry and Cheryl Sheehy of Lisbon, Iowa. The Sheehy’s two kids help customers carry their concessions to their chairs and clean between shows.
Contributed by
Gerald Sheehy
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Recent comments (view all 3 comments)
The name is Bijou Movie Theater. “The” is not necessary. A photo can be seen here.
As mention in the intro this theatre was built to replace the Strand that was detroyed by fire in April 1975. The Bijou opened as the Odeum Theatre in December 1975. The Odeum went through various owners in the next six years. There was a naming contest and the new name of Bijou came about. The Bijou closed in 1998 when Dr. George stepped in and reopened it in 1999. Cheryl Sheey Took over the operations on August 1, 2002 and has operated the theatre ever since. Need to add Odeum to the AKA’s.
The official spelling is “Mount Vernon”.
Cornell College had two “movie theaters” circa 1988: The main stage in the then-decrepit Armstrong Hall, and a small theater in the basement of Cole Library, accessible from the back of the library.