Esquire Theatre

LouRugani on December 4, 2020 at 3:44 pm

Bobby Tanzilo, Senior Editor/Writer, OnMilwaukee, Sep. 29, 2020) - When we think of vintage movie theaters, I think we all tend to think of them as having had a long life, but some were built later in the cinema boom and fell victim to urban landscape changes relatively quickly. One Milwaukee example was the Telenews Theater, a streamline moderne (late art deco) venue designed by architect Richard Philipp (who designed The American Club in Kohler, among other works) that was built at 310 W. Wisconsin Ave. in 1946-7. Of 80 cinemas in the city in 1950, just three were built between 1945 and 1950, and the Telenews was one of them. (The others were the Fox Bay and the Airway on Howell, now gone.) The theater – developed by the Ticonic Investment Co. and part of a chain owned by Hearst news that included theaters in other cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Oakland, San Francisco and Seattle – opened in 1947. The biggest of them all, it seems, was in Chicago. It wasn’t terribly big, with just 470 seats. But it was air conditioned and only cost 33 cents (plus tax) to get in to see the one-hour mix of news stories and sporting events footage. On the lower level was the WFOX radio Theater Radio Lounge, where patrons could watch broadcasts taking place in person. The theaters typically built in the 1940s and focusing on newsreels were a bit late to the game. As television took over, the theaters soon converted to showing feature films. According to Encyclopedia.com, in 1947, Americans had 16,000 television sets. Two years later, they had 4 million. In 1950, 11 million. According to Larry Widen and Judi Anderson’s book, “Silver Screens,” the Telenews began showing features just a year after opening. Milwaukee’s Telenews became the Esquire when Marcus Theatres purchased it in 1965 and heavily remodeled it. The change came a few years after employees bought the Milwaukee Sentinel newspapers from Hearst, which had controlled the morning paper since 1924. According to Mark Zimmermann, who worked at the Esquire from 1971 to 1973, “The studio where the broadcast was originated was in the back with a glass window and door. By 1971 it was a storage room and it still had soundproofing materials on the walls. The outdoor cafe look was still there, but was looking ragged. There was a working fountain that was used for donations for charities, but by 1973 the fountain was broken and lay empty after that.” Zimmermann also recalled on Cinema Treasures that the Esquire was where cult classics like John Waters' “Pink Flamingos” and “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” made their Milwaukee debuts. “When Marcus Theatres bought it, the Esquire started showing prestige foreign films like Ingmar Bergman and Bridget Bardot. Then they had the exclusive Milwaukee showing of ‘The Graduate’ for 68 weeks. Other movies that they had for runs of four months or more were ’MAS*H,‘ 'Romeo & Juliet,’ ‘Love Story,’ ‘Harold & Maude’ and ‘Slaughterhouse 5.’ By the 1970’s things started going downhill. We stopped getting exclusive premieres and started sharing playdates with Southgate and Mayfair Mall theaters. Then we started running double-bills along with second-run neighborhood houses, and then started showing Swedish X-rated movies. The one thing we did start at the Esquire that was ahead of its time was Midnight Flicks. We first aired the infamous John Waters film ‘Pink Flamingos.’ The Milwaukee police shut the theater down after the second Saturday showing. After three weeks of debate in the Common Council they allowed us to show it again. Next we played ‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ for about six Saturdays before it moved to its permanent home, the Oriental.” Even though the theater was built without a balcony, Zimmermann remembered a small one with 52 seats that must have been added at a later date, perhaps when it was remodeled by Marcus. The Milwaukee theater, like most of the entire square block, fell in 1981 when it was replaced by the Henry Reuss Federal Building, which has been rebranded as the 310W. The block had also been home to the Alhambra, Vaudette (Magnet), Whitehouse, Miller (Towne) and New Star (Saxe/Orpheum/Gayety/Empress) theaters. These photos (qv) showing the construction progress of the Telenews Theater were taken by James B. Murdoch. They are from the archive of the Dahlman Construction Company, founded in Milwaukee in 1908 and still active.

DaveT on February 21, 2016 at 8:31 pm

I worked for Mr. Luedtke in the early seventies at the Esquire. A truly old-school man with customer service sensibilities that are missing today. He would stand by the entrance (I was an usher) and tell the patrons as they entered that there was ‘good seating on the left or the right" We had two entrances to the theatre. He enjoyed customer interaction and when he stood in the lobby he would rock on his feet, from the balls of his feet to the heels. He was also full of what might seem dated witticisms like “There’s no sense hitting your head against the wall because it feels so good to stop” when a task seemed particularly onerous. Mr. Luedtke expected that every available seat in the house would be filled with patrons when a movie like “The Graduate” was shown, and thus he would make sure that the ushers went into the theatre and asked people to move over to create added space. He kept tabs on ticket sales from the cashier. Cleanliness was important to Mr. Luedtke and so the usher spent a portion of his time cleaning the theatre between shows, vacuuming the lobby and picking up debris in the waiting area in the basement. The usher was expected to perform light maintenance as part of his job duties, which included but was not limited to standing on a twelve foot ladder in the lobby to change lights in the ceiling, or shoveling the sidewalk in front of the theatre(not much of a job with the marquee awning). Perhaps the best job was changing the marquee sign when movies changed. As noted in previous comments, the marquee was accessed from a small door on the second floor. Getting out on the marquee was a treat in that it offered a unique perspective on Wisconsin Ave. There was more than one occasion during the year and a half I worked there when Marquette University’s basketball team would win a big game, the dorms would empty, and a flood of students would come down the avenue, chanting and blocking traffic while they inexorably moved to the lakefront. I will add comments as I think of them. As with the best times in life, the camaraderie of the employees and the firm but friendly guidance of Mr. Luedtke are a great memory. All for $1.75 an hour. Yeah, I still have a pay stub.

rivest266 on October 16, 2010 at 3:49 pm

October 22nd, 1965 opening as Esquire ad is at View link
larger ad from October 21
View link

Joe Vogel on February 12, 2010 at 2:37 am

I think there might be an error in the architect field. Boxoffice of February 2, 1946, attributes the design of the Telenews Theatre, then about to begin construction, to Milwaukee architect Richard Philipp (though the item misspells his name as Richard Philip.) Richard Philipp (1874-1959) was a well-known Milwaukee architect who, from 1906 until about 1938, practiced in partnership with the even better-known architect Peter Brust.

I’ve been unable to find any other source confirming the attribution in Boxoffice, but a thorough Internet search fails to turn up an architect named Ralph Phillips at all. There might have been a transcription error of some sort in Jim Rankin’s notes, turning Richard Philipp into Ralph Phillips.

kencmcintyre on June 15, 2007 at 8:44 am

Thanks for the info.

kencmcintyre on February 17, 2007 at 7:53 am

This is a 1940 photo, but it does not identify the city in which the Esquire was located:
http://tinyurl.com/2ewk9r

markzim on February 14, 2006 at 3:55 am

Hi. My name is Mark Zimmermann, and I wanted to share some information on the Telenews/Esquire Theatre in downtown Milwaukee. I worked at the Esquire from 1971-1973. I was trained and had the good fortune of working with Mr. Elroy Luedtke, the
Manager at that time. He was very experienced, having started working on opening day at the Modjeska Theatre back in 1927. Also our cashier, Ms. Elinor Scheinbien had been working at the Modjeska in 1927. Both loved to talk about the good old days, ballyhoo, and showmanship and I was an avid listener. Previous management had saved photos and ad copy from opening day and I was able to see it.
Here’s the text of the opening day ad copy they sent to the Milwaukee Journal for Friday, July, 11, 1947.

“Opens Today at 9:45 AM. Continuous to Midnight. America’s Finest Newsreel Theater Presenting Milwaukee’s Fastest Moving Program. A New Form of Entertainment! Our programs consist of one hour of the LATEST NEWS events gathered by leading newsreel companies throughout the world… Edited by experts and augmented with the FINEST SHORT SUBJECTS, providing Milwaukee with UNEXCELLED, DIVERSIFIED ENTERTAINMENT. It keeps you abreast of the times…HISTORY IN THE MAKING! Inaugural Program! 40 World News Events 40
Actual Films! Jap War Criminal Executed in China! Truman Rebukes Russia! Latest Flood Disasters! Texas City Rebuilds! Hunger in Germany! Circus in Moscow! First Showing! Telenewshorts: Radio’s Famed ‘Answer Man’ in ‘Storm Warning’ Sportscope! Track Expose ‘Racing Sleuth’ Milwaukee’s Greatest Entertainment Value! ANY SEAT 33 Cents plus tax Anytime. EXTRA! ‘Salute to Milwaukee’ Relax in Milwaukee’s only Theater Radio Lounge and see actual broadcasts by radio station WFOX! The New Air-Conditioned TELENEWS NEWSREEL THEATER Wisconsin at 3rd.”

I saw several pictures of the radio station downstairs in the basement lounge area. The studio where the broadcast was originated was in the back with a glass window and door. By 1971 it was a storage room and it still had soundproofing materials on the walls. The outdoor café look was still there, but was looking ragged. There was a working fountain
that was used for donations for charities, but by 1973 the fountain was broken and lay empty after that.

I don’t know how long the newsreel format ran, but I do have a 1952 newspaper page of Milwaukee movie theater listings that had a display ad showing the Telenews had the
Milwaukee premiere of “Les Miserables” starring Michael Rennie. So the newsreel concept must have discontinued just as television news became popular. Also while I worked there I talked to customers who told me for a couple of years in the mid-50’s
played double-bill B-Westerns like Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, and Lash LaRue. By the mid-60’s when Marcus Theatres bought it, the Esquire started showing prestige foreign films like Ingmar Bergman and Bridget Bardot. Then they had the Exclusive Milwaukee
showing of “The Graduate” for 68 weeks. Other movies that they had for runs of 4 months or more were MAS*H, Romeo & Juliet, Love Story, Harold & Maude, and
Slaughterhouse 5. By the 1970’s things started going down hill. We stopped getting exclusive premieres and started sharing playdates with Southgate & Mayfair mall theatres. Then we started running double-bills along with second-run neighborhood
houses and then started showing Swedish X-rated movies. The one thing we did start at the Esquire that was ahead of it’s time was Midnight Flicks. We first aired the infamous
John Waters film “Pink Flamingos”. The Milwaukee Police shut the theater down after the second Saturday showing. After 3 weeks of debate in the Common Council they allowed us to show it again. Next we played “Rocky Horror Picture Show” for about 6
Saturdays before it moved to it’s permanent home the Oriental.

Another thing I wanted to mention was that the Esquire did have a small balcony of 52 seats. I’m not sure when they added it, but we did use it on the weekends.