I spoke to a very old gentleman at the hardware store in Pascoag today. He pointed out exactly where the Music Hall used to be, a spot that is now a vacant lot since the theatre’s destruction by fire. He remembered going there to see movies as a youth in the 1940s and enjoying the westerns that were often shown there. He recalled a barber shop and ice cream store in the building. The auditorium was on the second floor.
I spoke to an old gentleman in Pascoag today at the hardware store and he said that the Star was located at or very near the spot where the current Subway sandwich shop is located at 130 Main Street.
This is now a Douglas Wine and Spirits superstore. The interior is, of course, gutted. The exterior of the building is pretty much intact, including the marquee, which is used to promote liquor specials, and the external ticket booth protuberance is still evident. The place could be called Cumberland Alcohol Cinemas.
From the Historical Society of Cheshire Contry website:
“Charles C. Baldwin opened his Colonial Theatre on January 29, 1924, and celebrated the event by entertaining 6,000 people free in the new facility. The new theater caught on as a popular meeting place, as the Woman’s Club held their Washington’s Birthday celebration there in February.”
The Empire had served for a time as a rollerskating rink. In 2003 when I saw Freaky Friday here to a packed house of all ages, this place gave me the feeling, lost for so long, of what it had been like going to a local single-screen movie theatre as part of a community. With the almost Draconian restrictions against “development” rightfully promulgated by conservationists, here’s the last place in the world you will ever see a multiplex, and I say whoopee to that!
The “Images of America” volume The Lower Blackstone Valley says that, after the fire of November 10, 1919 had destroyed nearby St. James Church, this theatre and the Bijou were both used for services.
The “Images of America” volume The Lower Blackstone Valley says that, after the fire of November 10, 1919 had destroyed nearby St. James Church, this theatre and the Manville Opera House were both used for services.
The spoof of Ingmar Bergman movies called “The Dove” or “De Düva” in fake Swedish, is utterly hilarious, especially if you’ve seen Bergman films, particularly of the 1950s and 1960s. It is one of the legendary great shorts, and there are lots of comments on IMDb pertaining to it. There is the bit about a cigar referred to a “phällica symbolë” and one particular line I’ve never forgotten in forty years: “I häve a hërnia.”
From 1959, after the Hollywood on Taunton Avenue closed, until around 1965, when the Four Seasons opened, this was East Providence’s only active movie theatre. Today the Patriot Cinemas 10 (formerly Four Seasons) is the only one.
This entry from 1995 volume Historic and Architectural Resources of Jamestown Rhode, Island gives a capsule history of the place. It omits the 1960s name Jamestown Theatre, which I know was used for part of that decade when Mario Votolato ran summer films here. And I am uncertain, as I mentioned above, that it was called the Bomes Theatre, rather than just being a Bomes Theatre like Samuel Bomes' Hollywood in East Providence and Liberty in Providence:
“THE PALACE/BOMES THEATRE/BOMES THEATRE MALL (1922, 1946, 1986): This 1-story, masonry structure, with a commercial façade containing two pairs of double, multi-paned doors at the center, is sited on the sidewalk. It was built as a movie theatre for Jamestowners LeRoy Meredith, Aaron Richardson, and Ferdinand Armbrust by Ralph G.P. Hull. Ambrust conceived the idea for the theatre based on his experience using a movie projector at the Red Cross at Fort Wetherill during World War I. The place was known for some time as the Palace. Samuel Bomes purchased the building in 1946 and gave it his name. The building was used as a theatre for many years, then was closed for a while. In 1979 architect William Burgin directed the restoration of the theater for Jamestown Theater, Inc., to be operated for movies and special events. The venture proved unsuccessful, and in 1986 conversion also changed the exterior: the old brick façade was covered with clapboards laid both diagonally and horizontally, and the false front parapet was eliminated.”
In 1921 Mr. Edward M. Fay bought the McKinley Square Theatre and gave it his name. He was also associated with a group of theatres he owned in Providence, Rhode Island, where he was born. One of them, Fays Theatre, also bore his name and was a famous vaudeville house in that city. He had also managed the National Theatre in Rochester and acquired the Knickerbocker Theatre in Philadelphia. This information comes from a biographical entry for Fay in the volume Rhode Island – Three Centuries of Democracy.
In 1919 Mr. Edward M. Fay bought the Knickerbocker Theatre and gave it his name. He was also associated with a group of theatres he owned in Providence, Rhode Island, where he was born. One of them, Fays Theatre, also bore his name and was a famous vaudeville house in that city. He had also managed the National Theatre in Rochester and acquired the McKinley Square Theater in Manhattan. This information comes from a biographical entry for Fay in the volume Rhode Island – Three Centuries of Democracy.
This thumbnail entry appears in the 1990 volume History and Architectural Resources of Bristol, Rhode Island:
“PASTIME THEATER/BRISTOL CINEMA (1934): A 1-story, flat-roofed, Moderne style building of cast concrete, with its original marquee. It stands on the site of the 1784 Congregational Meetinghouse, which had been converted into a theater. Proprietor Lon Vail built the present structure after a fire destroyed the old meetinghouse/theater in 1934.”
There is a book out dedicated to this theatre: The Music Hall: Portsmouth, by authors Zhana Morris, Trevor F. Bartlett & Friends of the Music Hall. It is published by Arcadia and is part of the “Images of America” series.
About the most obscure film I ever saw at Cinema II was the 1963 Ladybug Ladybug, about a rural school that believes there is a about to be a nuclear attack. It was directed by Frank Perry, of David and Lisa fame, but it bombed at the boxoffice and was hardly seen much again.
I spoke to a very old gentleman at the hardware store in Pascoag today. He pointed out exactly where the Music Hall used to be, a spot that is now a vacant lot since the theatre’s destruction by fire. He remembered going there to see movies as a youth in the 1940s and enjoying the westerns that were often shown there. He recalled a barber shop and ice cream store in the building. The auditorium was on the second floor.
I spoke to an old gentleman in Pascoag today at the hardware store and he said that the Star was located at or very near the spot where the current Subway sandwich shop is located at 130 Main Street.
This web page has a small picture of the Majestic Theatre in the 1920s, I believe.
This is now a Douglas Wine and Spirits superstore. The interior is, of course, gutted. The exterior of the building is pretty much intact, including the marquee, which is used to promote liquor specials, and the external ticket booth protuberance is still evident. The place could be called Cumberland Alcohol Cinemas.
From the Historical Society of Cheshire Contry website:
“Charles C. Baldwin opened his Colonial Theatre on January 29, 1924, and celebrated the event by entertaining 6,000 people free in the new facility. The new theater caught on as a popular meeting place, as the Woman’s Club held their Washington’s Birthday celebration there in February.”
The Empire had served for a time as a rollerskating rink. In 2003 when I saw Freaky Friday here to a packed house of all ages, this place gave me the feeling, lost for so long, of what it had been like going to a local single-screen movie theatre as part of a community. With the almost Draconian restrictions against “development” rightfully promulgated by conservationists, here’s the last place in the world you will ever see a multiplex, and I say whoopee to that!
The “Images of America” volume The Lower Blackstone Valley says that, after the fire of November 10, 1919 had destroyed nearby St. James Church, this theatre and the Bijou were both used for services.
The “Images of America” volume The Lower Blackstone Valley says that, after the fire of November 10, 1919 had destroyed nearby St. James Church, this theatre and the Manville Opera House were both used for services.
The spoof of Ingmar Bergman movies called “The Dove” or “De Düva” in fake Swedish, is utterly hilarious, especially if you’ve seen Bergman films, particularly of the 1950s and 1960s. It is one of the legendary great shorts, and there are lots of comments on IMDb pertaining to it. There is the bit about a cigar referred to a “phällica symbolë” and one particular line I’ve never forgotten in forty years: “I häve a hërnia.”
In 1901 singer/actor Nelson Eddy was born in this neighborhood of Olneyville.
In 1901 singer/actor Nelson Eddy was born in this neighborhood of Olneyville.
In 1901 singer/actor Nelson Eddy was born in this neighborhood of Olneyville.
In 1901 singer/actor Nelson Eddy was born in this neighborhood of Olneyville.
From 1959, after the Hollywood on Taunton Avenue closed, until around 1965, when the Four Seasons opened, this was East Providence’s only active movie theatre. Today the Patriot Cinemas 10 (formerly Four Seasons) is the only one.
Here is a 1926 photo of Huntington Avenue with the Strand Theatre evident.
I saw a 1938 photo of a Playhouse Theatre in Montpelier. Was that used for films at all?
I saw a 1938 reference to a Playhouse Theatre in Montpelier. Was that used for films at all?
Was there a theatre in Keene named the Scenic?
Patsy’s Hall is a large brick building with some Colonial Revival details. It is also the largest building in the village area.
This entry from 1995 volume Historic and Architectural Resources of Jamestown Rhode, Island gives a capsule history of the place. It omits the 1960s name Jamestown Theatre, which I know was used for part of that decade when Mario Votolato ran summer films here. And I am uncertain, as I mentioned above, that it was called the Bomes Theatre, rather than just being a Bomes Theatre like Samuel Bomes' Hollywood in East Providence and Liberty in Providence:
“THE PALACE/BOMES THEATRE/BOMES THEATRE MALL (1922, 1946, 1986): This 1-story, masonry structure, with a commercial façade containing two pairs of double, multi-paned doors at the center, is sited on the sidewalk. It was built as a movie theatre for Jamestowners LeRoy Meredith, Aaron Richardson, and Ferdinand Armbrust by Ralph G.P. Hull. Ambrust conceived the idea for the theatre based on his experience using a movie projector at the Red Cross at Fort Wetherill during World War I. The place was known for some time as the Palace. Samuel Bomes purchased the building in 1946 and gave it his name. The building was used as a theatre for many years, then was closed for a while. In 1979 architect William Burgin directed the restoration of the theater for Jamestown Theater, Inc., to be operated for movies and special events. The venture proved unsuccessful, and in 1986 conversion also changed the exterior: the old brick façade was covered with clapboards laid both diagonally and horizontally, and the false front parapet was eliminated.”
In 1921 Mr. Edward M. Fay bought the McKinley Square Theatre and gave it his name. He was also associated with a group of theatres he owned in Providence, Rhode Island, where he was born. One of them, Fays Theatre, also bore his name and was a famous vaudeville house in that city. He had also managed the National Theatre in Rochester and acquired the Knickerbocker Theatre in Philadelphia. This information comes from a biographical entry for Fay in the volume Rhode Island – Three Centuries of Democracy.
In 1919 Mr. Edward M. Fay bought the Knickerbocker Theatre and gave it his name. He was also associated with a group of theatres he owned in Providence, Rhode Island, where he was born. One of them, Fays Theatre, also bore his name and was a famous vaudeville house in that city. He had also managed the National Theatre in Rochester and acquired the McKinley Square Theater in Manhattan. This information comes from a biographical entry for Fay in the volume Rhode Island – Three Centuries of Democracy.
This thumbnail entry appears in the 1990 volume History and Architectural Resources of Bristol, Rhode Island:
“PASTIME THEATER/BRISTOL CINEMA (1934): A 1-story, flat-roofed, Moderne style building of cast concrete, with its original marquee. It stands on the site of the 1784 Congregational Meetinghouse, which had been converted into a theater. Proprietor Lon Vail built the present structure after a fire destroyed the old meetinghouse/theater in 1934.”
There is a book out dedicated to this theatre: The Music Hall: Portsmouth, by authors Zhana Morris, Trevor F. Bartlett & Friends of the Music Hall. It is published by Arcadia and is part of the “Images of America” series.
About the most obscure film I ever saw at Cinema II was the 1963 Ladybug Ladybug, about a rural school that believes there is a about to be a nuclear attack. It was directed by Frank Perry, of David and Lisa fame, but it bombed at the boxoffice and was hardly seen much again.