Art Theatre
3143 Olive Street,
St. Louis,
MO
63103
3143 Olive Street,
St. Louis,
MO
63103
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The date of the assault/robbery was May 27, 1952. The perpetrators made off with all of $1.75. The theatre closed on May 30th “for the summer”, but with art film competition from the Shady Oak, Pageant and the Lyn, the venue did not reopen in the fall, reverting to strictly a screening room operation.
The strange name of “S'Renco” came from the theater’s manager, Ruby S. Renco. I wish I had the date of the newspaper I saw it in to back me up, but I’m pretty sure I read that this cinema closed to the public shortly after the projectionist was mugged IN THE PROJECTION BOOTH DURING A MOVIE. Must’ve been a rough neighborhood! The apparent age of the building now on the site, the Barnard Rubber Stamp Company, suggests that it’s the same building that housed the theater.
Sounds a lot like Augusta’s Art Theatre,guess a lot of these theatres were the same.
Theatre did not have an AKA of Movies. There was a venue with the Movies name, on Market street just east of Jefferson.
This operation is not to be confused with the theatre on St. Charles Rock Road in St. John which opened as the GEM and was renamed the ART by Mid-America in 1970.
Years of operation were 1938 to 1952. Seating capacity of 115.
The Art Theatre the first “art-film” venue in St. Louis. It was, in reality, the S'Renco Screening Room which was located in the RKO Radio building on Olive Street along “film-row”.
Facility closed for public attendance in 1952.