Monroe Theater

Here is an item about this theater from the March 8, 1919, issue of Chicago’s regional business magazine, The Economist:

“Architects Postle & Fischer, 140 South Dearborn street, have completed plans and are receiving bids on the general work for remodeling the former three-story Inter Ocean building, 69x190, Nos. 55 to 59 West Monroe street, into a thoroughly modern motion-picture theater for Harry C. Moir and Wm. S. Barbee. The entire rear portion will be wrecked, and the building reconstructed up from grade, with brick walls and reinforced concrete floor and roof. It will have a seating capacity of 1,000 persons, all on one floor. The design of the interior will be an adaptation of the Spanish renaissance style. The lobby, foyer and spectatorium will be finished in tile, twenty feet high, surmounted by ornamental plaster cornice and ceiling. Special attention has been paid to the color scheme and light effect, which will be unique. An air washing ventilation system and a costly pipe organ will be installed. The improvements are estimated to cost $115,000 to $125,000.”

Thanks for posting the vintage photo Bryan.

Never got into the Monroe Theatre – again, it must have been the bookings = but worked at the Xerox Centre for a while.

Yes!, exactly. But with much less obvious parking signage. I remember the one on Monroe had just small neon arrows for In & Out. Hikers took the cars from patrons once inside.

Gone by early 1982 sounds right.
I walked up Monroe St. from State to Wacker, every evening from Sept.82-March83 for work at the old USG building. And I would have remembered a closed or boarded up theatre along my route, had it still been standing.

There was however along Monroe St., one of those old multi-level indoor parking garages, built to look from the outside like every other office building in the 1920’s.
The entrance & exit driveway doors were arched. And the upper floors had textured chicken-wire glass windows, to mask from the street that it housed cars. I believe it had an auto elevator inside too.

Sometimes I would come up early from the subway near the Chicago Theatre, and zig zag my way S/W past all the other theatres that were still standing in late `82.

This is from Boxoffice magazine, July 1957:

CHICAGO-According to James Jovan, owner and operator of the Monroe, even oldtime showmen who think they have all the answers for the type of films that go over with moviegoers have a struggle in meeting public taste. After running a series of old and new films, with a wide range of subject matter, his experiment with “Bride of the Monster” and “Fire Maidens from Outer Space” made the box office jingle louder than it has in many weeks.

The Monroe was by the 1970s the ultimate grind house – because of union rules, they needed to open at 9 am like other downtown theatres. They usually ran double features (New World, Crown, other indie exploitation distributors). They worked their schedule backward from the evening, and it usually meant that when they opened their doors at 9, they began in the middle of the first movie!

Bryan…guess I was mistaken again. I didn’t see “FLESH GORDON” in 1973 or 1979, but in late January 1975. That means there were two crackdowns of downtown movie theatres in the 70s. I’m sure in 1979- Spring or Summer- Mayor Jane Byrne ordered a number of theatres closed (perhaps not the Monroe) but for sure the Oriental and the State-Lake, because of a rodent problem. I remember a quote from a city inspector re: the Oriental’s filthy conditions: when a dead mouse was found on a staircase, he said (I’m paraphrasing) “Gee, they don’t even bother to sweep the stairs”. To RickB: I suspect you’re right; highly doubtful the Monroe lasted into 1981 or early 82. On Wed. April 14, 1976, the Monroe was playing “BLAZING STEWARDESSES” plus “SWITCHBLADE SISTERS”. After that , the Monroe disappeared from the movie listings (at least in the Sun-Times; not sure of the Tribune). It may have stayed open a while longer…maybe even to 1978-79. But I know that even in 1974-75, business was way down; a once crowded and clean theatre(1958 through 1969 when I went) was dirty and not well patronized. Perhaps the arrests Bryan mentioned in his post of 3-4-07 also contibuted to the Monroe’s demise, whenever it occured. One more memory of the Monroe: there was NEVER an intermission; ALWAYS something on the screen. The theatre sold hot dogs. In between the double features a colorful ad for the hot dogs played. A voice said “YUM….YUM… IT’S A MEAL IN ITSELF” as a bright red hot dog (with eyes and a mouth)slid into a bun, splashed mustard and relish on itself, and said something like “enjoy a treat…have one now” or something like that. Those were the days when you could buy a ticket at ,say, 11a.m. and stay to 5p.m. or 7p.m. if you so desired. Continuous performances, food, and sexy, unusual movies encouraged a few people to watch the movies more than once. The films would generally start at 9a.m. and run to midnight.

For what it’s worth, several web pages give the completion date of the Xerox Center as 1980—meaning that the Monroe would have been gone some time before then.

Bryan: The Monroe was never a gay porn theatre. The adult films were all soft core and straight. I think the theatre was too close to City Hall to play the hard core stuff. I’m not surprised by the article you posted. In the 60s, I went there often.As a teenager, I loved the off beat and wild, daring (for the time)films.Not many theatres played “CONFESSIONS OF AN OPIUM EATER”, “ANGEL, ANGEL DOWN WE GO”, but the Monroe did. But didn’t like using the washroom. Down a VERY narrow staircase(across the aisle next to the concession stand)and making two right turns, you got to the mens room. Very similar to the washroom at the Logan, only smaller.Black and white tiles,three or four urinals,and a very low ceiling.Guys hanging around, leaning against the wall, many smoking. CLAUSTROPHOBIA! More than a few times I was surrounded- literally- and stared at. Guess this went on til the theatre closed. By the way, I was wrong in my first post… I did see “FLESH GORDON”, but not in 1973, but 1979. I mixed up the release year with the year I saw it at the Monroe. In 1979, Jane Byrne was elected mayor. In one of her early press conferences, she took a question from a woman who complained about the filthy conditions of some of the downtown movie theatres. Within a day or two, action was taken! The State-Lake, Oriental(a dead mouse was found on a staircase), and the Monroe(and perhaps a few others)were closed by the city.By a week or two, they all reopened; the Monroe featuring “FLESH GORDON”. But that big rat was there…as big as a cat. I never went back. One more memory of the Monroe(on a lighter note): the titles of the double features, when seen on the marquee, would sometimes cause one to do a double take,and smile. Jack Mabley, a columnist at the old Chicago Daily News(or was it Chicago Today?)wrote about passing the Monroe and seeing on the marquee: “SOMETHING’S HAPPENING” “INSIDE A GIRL’S DORMITORY”.Well, I guess any number of things would-could be happening inside! My own experience…outside the theatre, looking at the posters and the stills of “CANNIBAL GIRLS” plus “RAW MEAT”.

This 1928 ad suggests that Fox Films may have sub-leased the Monroe as a showcase for its new Movietone process. Note that the soundtrack to “Street Angel” featured music performed by the renowned symphony orchestra of NYC’s Roxy Theatre:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/chimonroe.jpg

Here is a profile from the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency’s HAARGIS system. It includes a small picture.