Avalon Theater
1500 East Lake Street,
Minneapolis,
MN
55407
1500 East Lake Street,
Minneapolis,
MN
55407
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If anyone has any stories about going to/ working at this threatre in its adult days, I would love to hear them. I am chronicling the histories of adult theatres in the US. Please contact me at Thanks!
The early name was ROSEBUD, believe it or not, long before Orson Welles came along. There was also a late 1920’s name, RENO, but this is unverified. Yes, there was a theatre on this site 1909-24 then the renovation in 1924 and then the art deco Crosier makeover in 1937 to a much larger theatre. The puppet company took it over in 1988. Porn lasted to 1985. The “Fine Arts” name was really just because the name Avalon fell off the marquee. It was always referred to as the “Avalon Fine Arts” in its porn days and advertised as such. The move to “Fine Arts” in 1955, starting with a run of Welles' “Othello” and migrating to an art/foreign policy which soon gave away to sex pictures and porn. Some of Russ Meyer’s early films were here, as well the usual nudist colony pictures, etc. “And God Created Woman” played at least 3 months in the summer of 1958 after the downtown run at the World. There would occasionally be a sex/horror type of film, for example Mario Bava’s Blood and Black Lace played as their Christmas attraction in 1965. “La Notte” played here too, and sometimes these “arty” films were double billed with a late-run Hollywood film, with the Hollywood film usually on the lower half of the bill. The theatre had an artesian well and a keystone problem that projectionists had to grapple with.
Exterior pictured in this trade ad: Boxoffice
The Avalon was an adult theater in 1982 known as the Fine Arts. Here are some photos:
Photo1
Photo2
Photo3
I don’t know anything about the 1909 theater either. The 1935 Film Daily lists a 300 seat Avalon Theater for Minneapolis. The location given is Bloomington and Lake. That maps pretty close to the location of this Avalon Theater. If it is the same theater, both theaters were named Avalon.
I’ve been unable to find out anything about the 1909 theater. It was probably demolished to make way for the 1924 building.
Click on the link that I posted on Jun 24, 2007. It gives similar information and claims that “The western half of the Avalon’s site has been a movie theater since 1909, first with silent films, then showing “talkies†after 1927”. Was there another theater at this location in 1909?
The “AIA Guide to the Twin Cities” by Larry Millett, published in 2007 by the Minnesota Historical Society, has more information on this theater. It was originally a smaller theater built in 1924 and designed by Ekman, Holm & Company. It was enlarged in 1937, and redesigned in the Art Moderne style by Perry Crosier. A 1997 renovation and restoration for the In the Heart of the Beast Puppet Theatre was done by Vincent James Associates Architects.
I’ve been unable to discover if the 1924 theater that was incorporated into Perry Crosier’s Avalon had the same name or not. The Avalon was owned by Bill Frank and Oscar Woempner, operators of about a dozen theaters in the area at the time of the 1937 rebuilding.
Another photo is here.
Here is a new link for the “Heart of the Beast” website.
This website has small photos and some history of the Avalon Theater.
I’ve gone through the Minneapolis theaters and have found that the American, Vogue and East Lake are not listed. The Vogue was at Lake and Blaisdell, the American was on Nicollet and Lake and the East Lake was on 1537 East Lake Avenue, apparently across the street from the Avalon. If I’ve failed to account for any of the three under another listing, please let me know. Otherwise, I will add them as new theaters.
The Avalon Theatre seated around 1000 people.
Current picture of the theater-
http://www.phototour.minneapolis.mn.us/1853