I’ve got this one. I left out on this key part of the Gem entry:
In 1936, the New Orleans Circuit that was headed by Joy Houck took on the former Evangeline calling it the Joy Theatre. On January 1, 1937, Houck bought out the Opera House and moved the Joy Theatre to the Opera House location. That became the “A” house and was called the Joy Theatre. In 1941, the local manager of the Joy bought the former Evangline/Joy renaming it the Gem Theatre running as a discount house.
Bruce Theatre will get an entirely new entry which I had already researched. It had a opened in the Valverde Hotel building which had been gutted by a fire decades earlier. It was bought out by the Joy Circuit and retired.
I also have the Opera House entry ready as well. It’s a bit confusing but well documented by the local paper.
Charles Schnell opened Harrisonville’s second silent theatre in June of 1916 in the former Sherpy Hardware store which had moved to the East Side of the town’s square. The theatre appears to have had an 60-plus year run with some sporadic closures along the way.
After Harrisonville’s first silent theatre had gone out of business in 1914, local merchants – liking the uptick in business caused by the theater – equipped the Wirt Opera House housing the Briles Theatre in 1914 for free films. The matinee show was designed to attract “country people” from rural neighboring areas who would shop in the town square. The evening show was for the town’s people. Word of 700 patrons attending some shows probably spurred Schnell to lease the former Sherpy Hardware Store in 1915 likely on a twenty-year lease establishing Harrisonville’s Schnell Theatre.
The building’s brick exterior was reinforced with steel and fire-proof booth with 628 seats. The gutting of the original structure allowed large double doors on the front and back to create cross ventilation with ten 60" ceiling fans. In 1922, Arthur T. Perkins took over the Schnell Theatre and the following year installed a $4,000 electronic orchestral organ. In 1928, Perkins installed Synchrophone technology moving the Schnell into the sound era.
In 1935, as the lease was likely coming to termination, Perkins updated the theatre with new signage, a new name and reduces count to 500 new seats in his Perkins Theatre likely on a new 20-year lease. The theatre became part of the Commonwealth Theatres Inc. circuit. A year later he sold the theatre taking an industry job. Lee T. Chamberlin was the manager of the Perkins.
Early in 1949, Commonwealth Circuit closed the theatre for remodeling. The refurbished venue reopened the theatre as the Lee Theatre in May of 1949 one would hope in memory of Commonwealth’s popular Harrisonville showman, Lee Chamberlin though more than likely not. The next year, the circuit added the Cass County Drive-In as another film option for the townspeople. Commonwealth closed the Lee but was reopened in 1956 undoubtedly on a new lease and under new ownership. The local theatre lasted into the video age but appears to have closed in 1988 for upgrades that backfired. The building was demolished.
The Acadia Theatre’s first film was “My Pal Trigger” when it opened on November 16, 1946. The architects were Diboll, Kessels & Associates in New Orleans. In October of 1953 it was converted to widescreen for CinemaScope feature presentations.
Regular films were discontinued in 1974. In 1975, it was used for weekly jamborees which proved unsuccessful. In 1976, the marquee popped and then it was converted for other purposes.
The Village Mall opened at 300 Main Street with 31 stores in May of 1974 as the key retail concept in East Rochester’s urban renewal. The Jerry Lewis Village Cinema opened in the Village Mall on May 22, 1974 with “Newman’s Law.” But the mall was a disaster quickly running into financial difficulties. In 1975, the mall owners declared bankruptcy which likely gave lease holders an opportunity to bail.
The Jerry Lewis Cinema left at the end of August of 1975 followed by the A&P Grocery Store in 1976 and Neisner’s in 1977 leaving the mall without traditional anchor stores. New mall owners came in during 1977 and gave the mall hope. The cinema opened as the rebranded Box 5 Cinema specializing in repertory and foreign film. It launched September 16, 1978 and had Gloria Swanson and Esther Ralston at the opening. It also tried a subscription concept to get regular patrons. But the Box 5 ended just months later on December 31, 1978 when the Box 5 – noting the half-empty mall – closed.
On February 9, 1979, the Waring Theater chain relaunched the venue as the Village Cinema as a sub-run dollar house. The opening of the Henrietta Mall in 1982 negatively impacted the Village Mall. The shopping center changed names to the Techniplex in December of 1982 to attract technology and service related lessees. The Techniplex retained the cinema which kept its original name and signage. The theatre closed on February 28, 1984 with “The Man Who Love Women” as the lease was terminated.
This location opened as B.F. Keith’s Theatre playing vaudeville on September 25, 1911. The venue mixed film content for periods of its operation but was primarily known for the Keith vaudeville shows. Shea Theatres Circuit took on the theatre. becoming the newest location for sound films in downtown Toledo, the Cameo Theatre on November 16, 1929.
The Cameo Theatre failed and closed in 1932. Under new operators, the theatre was rebranded on September 22, 1932 as the Granada Theatre with “Blessed Event.” The venue closed as the Granada and was later razed.
Based on little information, the Overland Theatre appears to have opened in 1913 at 840 West Central Avenue in Toledo by August Nex. It was named for the Overland car which was being manufactured less than a mile away at the Willys-Overland Motor Company factory. (John Willys had changed the name of the company from Willys to Willys-Overland in 1912 four years after purchasing the Overland Motor Company.)
The theater changed hands several times likely fulfilling a 20-year lease cycle closing in the early 1930s under its final operator listed as H. Marsh. The location became home to a long running radio and hi-fi store named Jamieson’s Hi-Fidelity. The building was demolished and its diminutive space became a used car lot. That parcel of land was sold for just $500 in 2008 according to Toledo property records.
Martin Smith and J. A. Beidler, the operators of East Side Amusements chain of neighborhood houses in Toledo, did what they claimed was a major renovation of the Hart theatre in 1927 reopening it as the rebranded Summit Theatre that year. It appears to not have made the conversion to sound and Smith and listings conclude during 1930.
The Loop Theatre was a new-build theatre replacing a previous retail structure which was razed. Jack O'Connell launched the Loop on October 21, 1938 according to trade publications. Virginia O'Connell took over the theatre upon Mr. O'Connell’s death in 1955 and ran it until its closure at the end of 1960. In an article, Mrs. O'Connell said that hoodlums had negatively impacted the theatre’s business in its latter years.
The Carmel Drive-In Theatre launched on June 23, 1950 with “Sitting Pretty.” The $75,000 facility had a 38' by 50' screen image on its 60' high tower. The Carmel had a playground and a miniature golf course to keep patrons entertained. It also hosted a weekend flea market during the daylight hours. The Carmel Drive-In closed on Halloween Night of 1982 in style with a triple feature of “Son of the Blob,” “Banana Monster” and “The Werewolf v. Vampire Woman.” The Carmel Church of Christ purchased the drive-in property for other purposes.
he Uptown Theatre launched on May 31, 1937 at 332-4 North Market Street in downtown Mount Carmel with “I Met Him in Paris.” It replaced Rogers' Cafe and Roberts' Barber Shop. In 1960, the Frisina Amusement Circuit bought the theatre. The Uptown was refurbished in 1976 in time for its 30th anniversary. It closed just after its fiftieth anniversary in August of 1987 as a dollar house but was reopened in 1988 and closed permanently in January of 1989. The theatre was demolished in January of 2000.
The Joy Theatre was opened on June 5, 1915. In 1916, Theodore Coleman took over the the Joy Theatre. The silent era theatre ended after five years of operation closing with the film, “What Every Woman Learns” on July 30, 1920. Coleman launched the American Theatre two days later in 1920 which effectively ended the Joy.
The American Theatre was launched by Theodore Coleman on August 2, 1920 with the films, “Excuse My Dust” and “His Last False Step.” Coleman closed the five-year old Joy Theatre upon the opening of the American. The $45,000 theatre moved to the sound era installing Movie Phone equipment and the film, “Alias Jimmy Valentine” on Valentine’s Day 1929.
A fire destroyed the lobby and gutted the auditorium on March 5, 1939. The fire took out adjoining businesses including an auto battery store and a cafe. The American was completely rebuilt with the possible exception of the auditorium’s back wall relaunching September 2, 1939 as the New American Theatre with “Stanley and Livingstone.” The theatre closed on December 20, 1957 and was used sporadically for live events. It was torn down in June of 1963.
Grand opening of the Roxy Theatre was March 27, 1947 with “Wake up and Dream.” It replaced the previous Roxy that was destroyed on December 16. 1945. Ad in photos. At relaunch, the new Roxy had taken over an adjoining building to reach its new seat count of 920. Martin Theatres Circuit closed the Roxy in 1980. Locals took over the theatre relaunching it for live theatre on November 3, 1983.
April 30, 1936 opening ad with “Small Town Girl” in photos. As noted above, the Capitol Theatre replaced the burned out previous Capitol across the street. Architectural plan was by Marr and Holman of Nashville with Joseph W. Holman. The theatre closed on October 17, 1974 with “Chinatown.” It was ostensibly replaced by the opening of the Martin Twin. The Capitol Theatre was razed after being vacant late in 1983.
The title of this entry should be the Martin Four Cinema and formerly the Martin Twin Theatre. The Capri is already listed as the Carmike 8.
This theatre opened as the Martin Twin Theatre adjacent to the Clarksville Square Shopping Center on October 17, 1974 with “The Great Gatsby” and a twin bill of “The Shaggy Dog” and “The Bears and I.” Two identical 370-seat auditoriums seated 740 total patrons. The twin became a quad on June 12, 1981 called the Martin Four Cinema. When Carmike took on both of the Martin theatres in town, it converted the Capri to an 8-screen facility. It eventually decided to close the Martin Four which would become a place of worship.
AMC announced it would close March 22, 2018 as the Vallco Fashion Park Mall has gone into greyfield status losing all of its anchor stores and the vast majority of its interior stores.
Launched as the Thorley Theatre in 1914. On June 15, 1939, the Thorley Theatre became the Avalon Theatre. In 1940, the name was changed again to the Utah Theatre. After closing for remodeling in 1946, the theatre relaunched as the Cedar Theatre which it retained until it was twinned.
The second Texas Theatre appears to have closed on June 4, 1972. When Val Verde Theatres refurbished the property in 1959, it showed its commitment to Spanish language films with a statuette of Cantinflas at the box office. Spanish language films were programmed from 1943 to 1972 (full time 1959-1972 and two days a week beginning in 1943).
he Rita Theatre’s grand opening was September 20, 1943 with the patriotic film, “Fight for Freedom.” The theatre operated for 35 years continuously closing in 1978. Despite the closure, locals raised funds for years to renovate the showplace. The Rita re-launched on December 16, 1983 named after the theatre’s creator Paul Poag as the Paul Poag Theatre for the Perofroming Arts.
The previous Rita and former Strand Theatre which had opened in December of 1931 was destroyed by fire in February of 1943. This venue was built in the same spot.
I’ve got this one. I left out on this key part of the Gem entry:
In 1936, the New Orleans Circuit that was headed by Joy Houck took on the former Evangeline calling it the Joy Theatre. On January 1, 1937, Houck bought out the Opera House and moved the Joy Theatre to the Opera House location. That became the “A” house and was called the Joy Theatre. In 1941, the local manager of the Joy bought the former Evangline/Joy renaming it the Gem Theatre running as a discount house.
Bruce Theatre will get an entirely new entry which I had already researched. It had a opened in the Valverde Hotel building which had been gutted by a fire decades earlier. It was bought out by the Joy Circuit and retired.
I also have the Opera House entry ready as well. It’s a bit confusing but well documented by the local paper.
Frank’s Theatre was in Abbeville.
Charles Schnell opened Harrisonville’s second silent theatre in June of 1916 in the former Sherpy Hardware store which had moved to the East Side of the town’s square. The theatre appears to have had an 60-plus year run with some sporadic closures along the way.
After Harrisonville’s first silent theatre had gone out of business in 1914, local merchants – liking the uptick in business caused by the theater – equipped the Wirt Opera House housing the Briles Theatre in 1914 for free films. The matinee show was designed to attract “country people” from rural neighboring areas who would shop in the town square. The evening show was for the town’s people. Word of 700 patrons attending some shows probably spurred Schnell to lease the former Sherpy Hardware Store in 1915 likely on a twenty-year lease establishing Harrisonville’s Schnell Theatre.
The building’s brick exterior was reinforced with steel and fire-proof booth with 628 seats. The gutting of the original structure allowed large double doors on the front and back to create cross ventilation with ten 60" ceiling fans. In 1922, Arthur T. Perkins took over the Schnell Theatre and the following year installed a $4,000 electronic orchestral organ. In 1928, Perkins installed Synchrophone technology moving the Schnell into the sound era.
In 1935, as the lease was likely coming to termination, Perkins updated the theatre with new signage, a new name and reduces count to 500 new seats in his Perkins Theatre likely on a new 20-year lease. The theatre became part of the Commonwealth Theatres Inc. circuit. A year later he sold the theatre taking an industry job. Lee T. Chamberlin was the manager of the Perkins.
Early in 1949, Commonwealth Circuit closed the theatre for remodeling. The refurbished venue reopened the theatre as the Lee Theatre in May of 1949 one would hope in memory of Commonwealth’s popular Harrisonville showman, Lee Chamberlin though more than likely not. The next year, the circuit added the Cass County Drive-In as another film option for the townspeople. Commonwealth closed the Lee but was reopened in 1956 undoubtedly on a new lease and under new ownership. The local theatre lasted into the video age but appears to have closed in 1988 for upgrades that backfired. The building was demolished.
The Acadia Theatre’s first film was “My Pal Trigger” when it opened on November 16, 1946. The architects were Diboll, Kessels & Associates in New Orleans. In October of 1953 it was converted to widescreen for CinemaScope feature presentations.
Regular films were discontinued in 1974. In 1975, it was used for weekly jamborees which proved unsuccessful. In 1976, the marquee popped and then it was converted for other purposes.
Renamed due to the mall name change: Cinemark 15 Music City Mall
The Village Mall opened at 300 Main Street with 31 stores in May of 1974 as the key retail concept in East Rochester’s urban renewal. The Jerry Lewis Village Cinema opened in the Village Mall on May 22, 1974 with “Newman’s Law.” But the mall was a disaster quickly running into financial difficulties. In 1975, the mall owners declared bankruptcy which likely gave lease holders an opportunity to bail.
The Jerry Lewis Cinema left at the end of August of 1975 followed by the A&P Grocery Store in 1976 and Neisner’s in 1977 leaving the mall without traditional anchor stores. New mall owners came in during 1977 and gave the mall hope. The cinema opened as the rebranded Box 5 Cinema specializing in repertory and foreign film. It launched September 16, 1978 and had Gloria Swanson and Esther Ralston at the opening. It also tried a subscription concept to get regular patrons. But the Box 5 ended just months later on December 31, 1978 when the Box 5 – noting the half-empty mall – closed.
On February 9, 1979, the Waring Theater chain relaunched the venue as the Village Cinema as a sub-run dollar house. The opening of the Henrietta Mall in 1982 negatively impacted the Village Mall. The shopping center changed names to the Techniplex in December of 1982 to attract technology and service related lessees. The Techniplex retained the cinema which kept its original name and signage. The theatre closed on February 28, 1984 with “The Man Who Love Women” as the lease was terminated.
This location opened as B.F. Keith’s Theatre playing vaudeville on September 25, 1911. The venue mixed film content for periods of its operation but was primarily known for the Keith vaudeville shows. Shea Theatres Circuit took on the theatre. becoming the newest location for sound films in downtown Toledo, the Cameo Theatre on November 16, 1929.
The Cameo Theatre failed and closed in 1932. Under new operators, the theatre was rebranded on September 22, 1932 as the Granada Theatre with “Blessed Event.” The venue closed as the Granada and was later razed.
Grand opening ad for B.F Keith’s Theatre on September 25, 1911 in downtown Toledo
Based on little information, the Overland Theatre appears to have opened in 1913 at 840 West Central Avenue in Toledo by August Nex. It was named for the Overland car which was being manufactured less than a mile away at the Willys-Overland Motor Company factory. (John Willys had changed the name of the company from Willys to Willys-Overland in 1912 four years after purchasing the Overland Motor Company.)
The theater changed hands several times likely fulfilling a 20-year lease cycle closing in the early 1930s under its final operator listed as H. Marsh. The location became home to a long running radio and hi-fi store named Jamieson’s Hi-Fidelity. The building was demolished and its diminutive space became a used car lot. That parcel of land was sold for just $500 in 2008 according to Toledo property records.
Martin Smith and J. A. Beidler, the operators of East Side Amusements chain of neighborhood houses in Toledo, did what they claimed was a major renovation of the Hart theatre in 1927 reopening it as the rebranded Summit Theatre that year. It appears to not have made the conversion to sound and Smith and listings conclude during 1930.
The Loop Theatre was a new-build theatre replacing a previous retail structure which was razed. Jack O'Connell launched the Loop on October 21, 1938 according to trade publications. Virginia O'Connell took over the theatre upon Mr. O'Connell’s death in 1955 and ran it until its closure at the end of 1960. In an article, Mrs. O'Connell said that hoodlums had negatively impacted the theatre’s business in its latter years.
The Carmel Drive-In Theatre launched on June 23, 1950 with “Sitting Pretty.” The $75,000 facility had a 38' by 50' screen image on its 60' high tower. The Carmel had a playground and a miniature golf course to keep patrons entertained. It also hosted a weekend flea market during the daylight hours. The Carmel Drive-In closed on Halloween Night of 1982 in style with a triple feature of “Son of the Blob,” “Banana Monster” and “The Werewolf v. Vampire Woman.” The Carmel Church of Christ purchased the drive-in property for other purposes.
he Uptown Theatre launched on May 31, 1937 at 332-4 North Market Street in downtown Mount Carmel with “I Met Him in Paris.” It replaced Rogers' Cafe and Roberts' Barber Shop. In 1960, the Frisina Amusement Circuit bought the theatre. The Uptown was refurbished in 1976 in time for its 30th anniversary. It closed just after its fiftieth anniversary in August of 1987 as a dollar house but was reopened in 1988 and closed permanently in January of 1989. The theatre was demolished in January of 2000.
Its grand opening was July 28, 1949 with Mayor Ed Williams on hand to help launch the $100,000 venue.
The Joy Theatre was opened on June 5, 1915. In 1916, Theodore Coleman took over the the Joy Theatre. The silent era theatre ended after five years of operation closing with the film, “What Every Woman Learns” on July 30, 1920. Coleman launched the American Theatre two days later in 1920 which effectively ended the Joy.
The American Theatre was launched by Theodore Coleman on August 2, 1920 with the films, “Excuse My Dust” and “His Last False Step.” Coleman closed the five-year old Joy Theatre upon the opening of the American. The $45,000 theatre moved to the sound era installing Movie Phone equipment and the film, “Alias Jimmy Valentine” on Valentine’s Day 1929.
A fire destroyed the lobby and gutted the auditorium on March 5, 1939. The fire took out adjoining businesses including an auto battery store and a cafe. The American was completely rebuilt with the possible exception of the auditorium’s back wall relaunching September 2, 1939 as the New American Theatre with “Stanley and Livingstone.” The theatre closed on December 20, 1957 and was used sporadically for live events. It was torn down in June of 1963.
Grand opening of the Roxy Theatre was March 27, 1947 with “Wake up and Dream.” It replaced the previous Roxy that was destroyed on December 16. 1945. Ad in photos. At relaunch, the new Roxy had taken over an adjoining building to reach its new seat count of 920. Martin Theatres Circuit closed the Roxy in 1980. Locals took over the theatre relaunching it for live theatre on November 3, 1983.
April 30, 1936 opening ad with “Small Town Girl” in photos. As noted above, the Capitol Theatre replaced the burned out previous Capitol across the street. Architectural plan was by Marr and Holman of Nashville with Joseph W. Holman. The theatre closed on October 17, 1974 with “Chinatown.” It was ostensibly replaced by the opening of the Martin Twin. The Capitol Theatre was razed after being vacant late in 1983.
The title of this entry should be the Martin Four Cinema and formerly the Martin Twin Theatre. The Capri is already listed as the Carmike 8.
This theatre opened as the Martin Twin Theatre adjacent to the Clarksville Square Shopping Center on October 17, 1974 with “The Great Gatsby” and a twin bill of “The Shaggy Dog” and “The Bears and I.” Two identical 370-seat auditoriums seated 740 total patrons. The twin became a quad on June 12, 1981 called the Martin Four Cinema. When Carmike took on both of the Martin theatres in town, it converted the Capri to an 8-screen facility. It eventually decided to close the Martin Four which would become a place of worship.
AMC Classic announced that “Black Panther” will be the final feature as the theatre closes March 15, 2018.
AMC announced it would close March 22, 2018 as the Vallco Fashion Park Mall has gone into greyfield status losing all of its anchor stores and the vast majority of its interior stores.
1931 co-op ad for the LaRoy Theatre in Portsmouth.
Correction: December 11, 1916 was the soft launch with Anita Stewart in “The Juggernaut”. The official grand opening took place on February 2, 1917.
Launched as the Thorley Theatre in 1914. On June 15, 1939, the Thorley Theatre became the Avalon Theatre. In 1940, the name was changed again to the Utah Theatre. After closing for remodeling in 1946, the theatre relaunched as the Cedar Theatre which it retained until it was twinned.
The second Texas Theatre appears to have closed on June 4, 1972. When Val Verde Theatres refurbished the property in 1959, it showed its commitment to Spanish language films with a statuette of Cantinflas at the box office. Spanish language films were programmed from 1943 to 1972 (full time 1959-1972 and two days a week beginning in 1943).
he Rita Theatre’s grand opening was September 20, 1943 with the patriotic film, “Fight for Freedom.” The theatre operated for 35 years continuously closing in 1978. Despite the closure, locals raised funds for years to renovate the showplace. The Rita re-launched on December 16, 1983 named after the theatre’s creator Paul Poag as the Paul Poag Theatre for the Perofroming Arts.
The previous Rita and former Strand Theatre which had opened in December of 1931 was destroyed by fire in February of 1943. This venue was built in the same spot.