Circuit Playhouse
51 S. Cooper Street,
Memphis,
TN
38104
51 S. Cooper Street,
Memphis,
TN
38104
3 people
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Closed in 1978 by Malco and reopened by Movies, Inc. On August 29th, 1980. Grand opening ad and article opened.
This reopened as Malco on December 20th, 1929. Grand opening ad posted.
Per Joe V Lowry on the Historic Memphis Facebook page: “February 9, 1947 4 Alarm Fire At 2:21 am a fire was reported at the Memphian Theater located at 51 S. Cooper Street. A 2nd alarm at 2:25, a 3rd Alarm at 2:30, a Special Call at 2:33 and a 4th alarm at 2:35. A neighbor living behind the theater heard an explosion. The entire inside, chairs and curtains were destroyed. $40,000 Loss.”
The premiere of the film “This Is Elvis” was held at the Memphian Theatre on Friday April 3, 1981.
So nice to know this theatre has been preserved as it will always have a personal connection to Elvis.
New photo uploaded of the Memphian as Circuit Playhouse.
As an employee of the company for many years, I wanted to let Elvis fans know that during Elvis week in the summers, we offer modest and fun tours of the building, formerly the Memphian Theatre (a favorite hang-out of Elvis'). If you or a group is interested, contact Courtney Oliver at It’s a fabulous building and wonderful landmark for Midtown Memphis!
Very nice I will have to drive over and check it out.
The old Memphian Movie Theatre from the Joe Walsh album. Really nice!
Some photos from November 2006:
Original theatre doors.
Marquee Close-Up
Looking down the street.
If you want to see a really nice photo of the Memphian Theatre before it was Playhouse On the Square, look for an album by Joe Walsh called “Got Any Gum?”. It dates from 1987 but the front cover is a very nice shot of the theatre when it was still the Memphian.
(Just Google the info and you should easily find a pic.)
Here are a couple of recent photos of the Playhouse on the Square/Memphian Theater in Memphis.
The Playhouse management can’t be complemented highly enough for the extraordinary adaptation of the old Memphian. The seating capacity was reduced by half or more. The original stage was big enough only to hold the speaker cabinet. The lobby barely held a popcorn popper. Both lobby and stage were enlarged, the seats re-aligned, offices and dressing rooms inserted. The result is a wonderfully intimate and charming live stage theatre with the street presence of a 1930’s neighborhood cinema. The interior looks better now than it ever did. Likewise the talent, on stage and behind the scenes, is as good as any New York theatre’s. I have seen many shows at Playhouse On The Square and NEVER been disappointed in a performance. This has been a total success story – both for saving the old Memphian and creating a space for the finest in live theatre.
I went to the Memphian many times while attending Southwestern at Memphis in the 1960s. Used to walk across Overton Park and then back to campus in the middle of the night. It was still the Memphian into the late-1970s.
When the Memphian Theatre was a movie theatre it seated 867 people.