Park I & II Theatre

My Grandfather Max Krofta owned the Capital Theater, he also owned the Granada on the north side of Racine I never met Max, he died before I was born. My mother had several boxes of photos she guarded like gold, some I remember are of the Capital and Granada. If anyone is interested I will go through them and post them. Max also owned or managed the Abby in Milwaukee and perhaps the Milwaukee Granada.

I own a cinema in north WI and would love to help get the park going again. I grew up in the town and watched many movies there but I dont get back to Racine much anymore but I would if I could help get it going again. Who is working on the theatre still? Does anyone have a number and name of a contact? I went thru the park years ago when I was looking at theatres to buy. Last I heard the upstairs apts were being fixed up to rent out. Someone must know something up to date about the theatre. LMK please

1983 Photo

The Capitol’s organ was relocated to a newer minimalist-styled playhouse built by a local amateur live-theater group on Northwestern Avenue.

A photo in the September 12th, 1987 Racine Journal Times shows the Capitol with the second, triangular Art Deco marquee and the original four-story vertical sign which was fully operational and in use until 1981. At the sign’s top was a capitol-like dome and twisted ropelike chasers down to the bottom, a real treat to see at night reminding all of the golden age of the great verticals.

The report said it was twinned in the fall of 1975 (270 seats/240 seats, each with a tiny screen) and was then sold to Milwaukee-based Marcus Corporation in 1981 for $50,000. Marcus, for reasons of its own, then renamed the Capitol the “Park I & II”, and that’s when the vertical ‘Capitol’ sign was removed.
Marcus closed the theatre on Labor Day, 1987, admitting to poor business.
For six years a second-run house, Marcus did experiment with some first-run fare there in its final summer.

I went to the movies at the Capitol when I was a kid. I think we saw Love Bug and Jungle Book when they first came out. I had worked at the Capitol during my high school days 1976-1977. The owner at the time was Frank? Carmichael – not sure on the spelling. He owned a theater in Kenosha and started publishing the Happenings magazine. I remember delivering those to various locations in West Racine. My main duty at the theater was janitor. I recall hauling the bags of popcorn and the soda canisters from Washington Ave up the entry way and then down the steep stairs into the basement. The projectionist once had me come upstairs and showed me the ornate lighting fixtures that were in between the original ceiling and the drop ceiling. Also, at one time, the fire marshall was about to shut down the operations because of all the junk “in the back”. Well, I was able to assist in cleaning out the area behind the twin screens …. what I saw back there was amazing. A stage area and rooms behind or under the stage. My dad later told me he had gone there as a boy to see vaudeville shows. I had been hoping someone would take on this project. I live in Houston, TX now but whenever I’m home I always stop by and peer into the windows. I did so this past July and it appeared work was going on in there but that it had been awhile. I’m sure there will be a good amount of interest in seeing this restored.

The Park was purchased in June of 2004 by the Westbury Group LLC, headed by a local man who is very much interested in theatre preservation. The theatre will be completely restored. Two store fronts adjoining the theatre will be incorporated into a much needed lobby and restroom expansion. The second floor apartments will become space for a new restaurant. When originally opened, the theatre was know as the Capitol, upon completion of the restoration it will be know as the “Capitol Theatre for the Performing Arts."
The reopening is scheduled for November 2005.