Here is part of an 8/1/85 article from the Elyria Chronicle Telegram:
FAIRVIEW PARK â€" A couple of days ago, residents and merchants near the Fairview Theater were scratching their heads in amazement at the signs proclaiming the 38-year-old theater had been closed. The ink was hardly dry on the signs on the theater doors at 21655 Lorain Rd. when businessman Morrie Zryl replaced them with signs that told of the next attraction-“Will Reopen Soon.” “We’ll be opening sometime in August – the 23rd at the latest,” Zryl said. “We’re going to turn it back into a first-run theater.”
Zryl, who owns the Colony Theater on Shaker Square, said he knew more than a month ago about plans by National Theatre Corp. to close the double-screen theater because of sagging profits. He said he considered the purchase of the theater as a chance to offer the same kind of good movies on the west side that he now offers on the east side at the Colony. In recent months, Fairview had been showing sub-run movies, which are usually films four to eight weeks old. “We will offer mostly firstruns, but we won’t turn down showing quality sub-runs, Zryl said. "Fairview Park fits in nicely to my plans.”
Russ Winter, vice-president of National Theatre Corp. in Lyndhurst. said his decision to close the theater was in line with a growing trend in metropolitan areas away from single screen and double-screen “neighborhood” theaters. He said multiple screen movie houses were much more profitable. “There’s something neat about a single service theater, but they’re not making business,” Wintner said. “The industry has changed. Per capita, we do a better business in multiple theaters.†Zryl, who has operated the single-screen Colony Theatre for the past four years, vehemently disagreed that people do not want to go neighborhood-type theaters anymore.
This is part of an article dated 1/20/06 in the Elyria Chronicle Telegram:
For nearly 20 years, residents of western Cuyahoga County suburbs and eastern Lorain County were entertained by movies at a six-screen multiplex adjacent to Westgate Mall in Fairview Park. The theater’s screens went dark for the last time earlier this week. Although the closing may have appeared abrupt to some, it was tied to the long-range major redevelopment of the former Westgate Mall property into an upscale open-air shopping center.
Opened in the late 1980s and operated by the Boston-based General Cinema Corporation, the six-screen, 1,700-seat theater was located next to the former Higbee’s home store. It was acquired by the Kansas City-based AMC Theater Corporation in the late 1990s when that firm purchased the majority of operations from the financially-troubled General Cinema Corp. The theater officially closed after the final screenings of movies Monday night, according to Melanie Bell, AMC’s director of public communications. While she was unable to provide details relating to the Westgate closing, Bell said the company has a “long-term business strategy of continuously upgrading theaters, which includes closure of different theaters.”
When asked if the Westgate theater had done good business in recent years, Bell said she had no specifics about the location, but indicated that older theaters in general would not fare as well as newer, much larger theaters sporting amenities including stadium seats, cup holders, digital sound systems and high-tech ticket booths. AMC owns and operates approximately 3,475 screens in 220 theaters located in 28 states.
Here is part of a lawsuit from the early 1980s. Plaintiff lost.
On March 24, 1979, Jocelyn Vargas attended a movie, “Boulevard Nights,” at the Alhambra Theatre on Polk Street in San Francisco. After leaving the theater, as she and her friends were walking down the street to catch a bus, she was shot by someone who, it is alleged, was a “member of the general public prone to violence … who had been attracted to said Alhambra Theatre by the showing of said violent movie … .” Through her mother, as guardian, she has sued various defendants, including petitioners, who are alleged to be the producers of the movie. Her mother, alleging damage for medical treatment and loss of services, is also a plaintiff. Their complaint, as relevant here, is that petitioners “knew, or should have known, that said movie was a violent movie and would attract certain members of the public to view said movie who were prone to violence and who carried weapons … [and] would, or were likely to cause grave bodily injury upon other members of the general public at or near the showing of said movie,” but that petitioners “negligently failed to warn” Jocelyn of these facts, and “negligently failed to take sufficient steps to protect patrons,” such as herself, “at and near said Alhambra Theatre.” In a second cause of action, plaintiffs allege in addition that petitioners “willfully allowed the showing of said movie to the general public, knowing and thereby impliedly representing to members of the general public … that said movie could be viewed in safety,” that they “intended that patrons, such as Jocelyn Vargas, should rely on their representations,” and she did so rely, to her detriment.
The Laurel Theater is being purchased by Bahri Yilmaz. Mr. Yilmaz owns the BridgeWater Pub in Bridgeton and the Green Olive Restaurant in Hopewell. Plans for the Laurel Theater include renovating the existing building and connecting it with the BridgeWater Pub in order to expand the Pub to do weddings and other large banquets. Mr. Yilmaz will create a garden environment on the property in order to hold outdoor events.
This May 1979 article from the Winnipeg Free Press calls the theater Colony Cinema:
A robber armed with a pistol held up the Colony Cinema on Portage Avenue and Colony Street just before midnight yesterday. Police refused to release other details early this morning, but it is believed an arrest has been made.
The theatre manager said a man entered through a secondary entrance and held up the cashier. The manager refused, however, to say how much cash, if any, was taken. This is the second robbery to happen at the Colony in the last two years. During the first robbery, the assistant manager was held up and bound. The manager said he was tempted to lock all the doors in the theatre to prevent future robberies, but he said that would be against fire regulations.
Here is part of a 1946 case decided by the Michigan Supreme Court:
The Esquire Theatre Corporation, a Michigan corporation, was the owner of the Esquire Theatre Building including a small adjacent store in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan. The Bankers Trust Company was appointed trustee of the Theatre Corporation January 7, 1944, for certain purposes including liquidation of the corporation. On January 14, 1941, the theater corporation entered into a lease under which plaintiff became its tenant. The lease was for a period of five years and covered the east store and the lobby concessions of the theater, the latter being a small space in the lobby. Plaintiff carried on the business of vending confections, cigars, novelties, operating a delicatessen, soda fountain, et cetera. The lease provided for rental of $100 per month. It also provided that upon its expiration the lessee shall have the right to renewal for a like term “at such rental as these parties shall agree upon.” It is conceded in defendant’s answer that plaintiff is entitled to a five-year renewal at a fair and reasonable rental. The parties were unable to agree on the rental to be provided in the renewal lease, and thereupon plaintiff lessee filed a petition in the circuit court of Wayne county wherein the court was asked to determine what would be a fair and reasonable rental to be provided in the renewal lease. The petition recited that the lessor was demanding that the renewal rental should be $350 per month. Plaintiff asserted such demand was unreasonable and excessive and claimed $125 per month would be a reasonable rental. Defendant appeared and answered, in effect alleging that its demand of $350 monthly rental was not unreasonable or excessive, but on the contrary was fair and reasonable. After hearing in open court an order was entered fixing the rental for the renewal period at $275 per month. Both parties have appealed.
The fair rate of rental fixed by the trial judge at $275 per month is affirmed, but the decree will be amended by extending to 30 days after decree in this Court the time within which plaintiff shall vacate the premises in event he does not elect to renew his lease. The decree to be entered in this Court will also remand the case to the circuit court for any further proceedings therein. Defendant will have costs of this Court.
If you look at the drive-ins.com site, they give a slightly different chronology than in the introduction. According to them, the theater was closed in 1984 and then re-opened in 1985, which was its last season.
This June 1983 article from the Paris (TX) News gives a different address:
An amplifier valued at $450, a $300 pressure pump, and a $200 tape deck have been stolen in a burglary of the 271 Drive-In, 1995 N. Main St., police said. The burglary occurred between June 12 and June 17.
An air conditioner was removed from a window to gain entry to the projection room, where the amplifier and tape deck were stolen, reports indicated. The pressure pump was removed from a pickup truck parked behind the concession stand.
If you look at the 1938 photo from March 2008, you see the same portholes as the Vern in Los Angeles and the American in Newhall. All three are S. Charles Lee theaters, of course.
That’s a pretty horrendous remodel by the church. It looks like they covered the marquee with tin and painted it brown. Also some kind of false brick front. I’m sure the theater looked better than this in its day.
There is no trace of this theater or any of its adjacent buildings on E. Michigan today. This site also mentions that the theater was razed for a parking lot. Status should be changed to closed/demolished. http://tinyurl.com/cwu7tk
Here is part of an 8/1/85 article from the Elyria Chronicle Telegram:
FAIRVIEW PARK â€" A couple of days ago, residents and merchants near the Fairview Theater were scratching their heads in amazement at the signs proclaiming the 38-year-old theater had been closed. The ink was hardly dry on the signs on the theater doors at 21655 Lorain Rd. when businessman Morrie Zryl replaced them with signs that told of the next attraction-“Will Reopen Soon.” “We’ll be opening sometime in August – the 23rd at the latest,” Zryl said. “We’re going to turn it back into a first-run theater.”
Zryl, who owns the Colony Theater on Shaker Square, said he knew more than a month ago about plans by National Theatre Corp. to close the double-screen theater because of sagging profits. He said he considered the purchase of the theater as a chance to offer the same kind of good movies on the west side that he now offers on the east side at the Colony. In recent months, Fairview had been showing sub-run movies, which are usually films four to eight weeks old. “We will offer mostly firstruns, but we won’t turn down showing quality sub-runs, Zryl said. "Fairview Park fits in nicely to my plans.”
Russ Winter, vice-president of National Theatre Corp. in Lyndhurst. said his decision to close the theater was in line with a growing trend in metropolitan areas away from single screen and double-screen “neighborhood” theaters. He said multiple screen movie houses were much more profitable. “There’s something neat about a single service theater, but they’re not making business,” Wintner said. “The industry has changed. Per capita, we do a better business in multiple theaters.†Zryl, who has operated the single-screen Colony Theatre for the past four years, vehemently disagreed that people do not want to go neighborhood-type theaters anymore.
This is part of an article dated 1/20/06 in the Elyria Chronicle Telegram:
For nearly 20 years, residents of western Cuyahoga County suburbs and eastern Lorain County were entertained by movies at a six-screen multiplex adjacent to Westgate Mall in Fairview Park. The theater’s screens went dark for the last time earlier this week. Although the closing may have appeared abrupt to some, it was tied to the long-range major redevelopment of the former Westgate Mall property into an upscale open-air shopping center.
Opened in the late 1980s and operated by the Boston-based General Cinema Corporation, the six-screen, 1,700-seat theater was located next to the former Higbee’s home store. It was acquired by the Kansas City-based AMC Theater Corporation in the late 1990s when that firm purchased the majority of operations from the financially-troubled General Cinema Corp. The theater officially closed after the final screenings of movies Monday night, according to Melanie Bell, AMC’s director of public communications. While she was unable to provide details relating to the Westgate closing, Bell said the company has a “long-term business strategy of continuously upgrading theaters, which includes closure of different theaters.”
When asked if the Westgate theater had done good business in recent years, Bell said she had no specifics about the location, but indicated that older theaters in general would not fare as well as newer, much larger theaters sporting amenities including stadium seats, cup holders, digital sound systems and high-tech ticket booths. AMC owns and operates approximately 3,475 screens in 220 theaters located in 28 states.
Here is part of a lawsuit from the early 1980s. Plaintiff lost.
On March 24, 1979, Jocelyn Vargas attended a movie, “Boulevard Nights,” at the Alhambra Theatre on Polk Street in San Francisco. After leaving the theater, as she and her friends were walking down the street to catch a bus, she was shot by someone who, it is alleged, was a “member of the general public prone to violence … who had been attracted to said Alhambra Theatre by the showing of said violent movie … .” Through her mother, as guardian, she has sued various defendants, including petitioners, who are alleged to be the producers of the movie. Her mother, alleging damage for medical treatment and loss of services, is also a plaintiff. Their complaint, as relevant here, is that petitioners “knew, or should have known, that said movie was a violent movie and would attract certain members of the public to view said movie who were prone to violence and who carried weapons … [and] would, or were likely to cause grave bodily injury upon other members of the general public at or near the showing of said movie,” but that petitioners “negligently failed to warn” Jocelyn of these facts, and “negligently failed to take sufficient steps to protect patrons,” such as herself, “at and near said Alhambra Theatre.” In a second cause of action, plaintiffs allege in addition that petitioners “willfully allowed the showing of said movie to the general public, knowing and thereby impliedly representing to members of the general public … that said movie could be viewed in safety,” that they “intended that patrons, such as Jocelyn Vargas, should rely on their representations,” and she did so rely, to her detriment.
Here are some interior photos:
http://www.houstondeco.org/1920s/metro.html
This is from a city progress report in February 2008:
Laurel Theater, Laurel Street, Downtown Bridgeton:
The Laurel Theater is being purchased by Bahri Yilmaz. Mr. Yilmaz owns the BridgeWater Pub in Bridgeton and the Green Olive Restaurant in Hopewell. Plans for the Laurel Theater include renovating the existing building and connecting it with the BridgeWater Pub in order to expand the Pub to do weddings and other large banquets. Mr. Yilmaz will create a garden environment on the property in order to hold outdoor events.
More demolition news:
http://tinyurl.com/9cnrcf
Here is a March 2009 article about some renovations at the Shattuck:
http://tinyurl.com/74n29l
This May 1979 article from the Winnipeg Free Press calls the theater Colony Cinema:
A robber armed with a pistol held up the Colony Cinema on Portage Avenue and Colony Street just before midnight yesterday. Police refused to release other details early this morning, but it is believed an arrest has been made.
The theatre manager said a man entered through a secondary entrance and held up the cashier. The manager refused, however, to say how much cash, if any, was taken. This is the second robbery to happen at the Colony in the last two years. During the first robbery, the assistant manager was held up and bound. The manager said he was tempted to lock all the doors in the theatre to prevent future robberies, but he said that would be against fire regulations.
It looks like it has quite a few tenants. I think it’s now called “Franklin Center”.
Here is part of a 1946 case decided by the Michigan Supreme Court:
The Esquire Theatre Corporation, a Michigan corporation, was the owner of the Esquire Theatre Building including a small adjacent store in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan. The Bankers Trust Company was appointed trustee of the Theatre Corporation January 7, 1944, for certain purposes including liquidation of the corporation. On January 14, 1941, the theater corporation entered into a lease under which plaintiff became its tenant. The lease was for a period of five years and covered the east store and the lobby concessions of the theater, the latter being a small space in the lobby. Plaintiff carried on the business of vending confections, cigars, novelties, operating a delicatessen, soda fountain, et cetera. The lease provided for rental of $100 per month. It also provided that upon its expiration the lessee shall have the right to renewal for a like term “at such rental as these parties shall agree upon.” It is conceded in defendant’s answer that plaintiff is entitled to a five-year renewal at a fair and reasonable rental. The parties were unable to agree on the rental to be provided in the renewal lease, and thereupon plaintiff lessee filed a petition in the circuit court of Wayne county wherein the court was asked to determine what would be a fair and reasonable rental to be provided in the renewal lease. The petition recited that the lessor was demanding that the renewal rental should be $350 per month. Plaintiff asserted such demand was unreasonable and excessive and claimed $125 per month would be a reasonable rental. Defendant appeared and answered, in effect alleging that its demand of $350 monthly rental was not unreasonable or excessive, but on the contrary was fair and reasonable. After hearing in open court an order was entered fixing the rental for the renewal period at $275 per month. Both parties have appealed.
The fair rate of rental fixed by the trial judge at $275 per month is affirmed, but the decree will be amended by extending to 30 days after decree in this Court the time within which plaintiff shall vacate the premises in event he does not elect to renew his lease. The decree to be entered in this Court will also remand the case to the circuit court for any further proceedings therein. Defendant will have costs of this Court.
What is the building at 510 Franklin that is seen in the Google photo? It looks to be in good shape. Is that the theater, or a new building?
Here is a photo taken last night:
http://tinyurl.com/cmv9l3
If you look at the drive-ins.com site, they give a slightly different chronology than in the introduction. According to them, the theater was closed in 1984 and then re-opened in 1985, which was its last season.
This June 1983 article from the Paris (TX) News gives a different address:
An amplifier valued at $450, a $300 pressure pump, and a $200 tape deck have been stolen in a burglary of the 271 Drive-In, 1995 N. Main St., police said. The burglary occurred between June 12 and June 17.
An air conditioner was removed from a window to gain entry to the projection room, where the amplifier and tape deck were stolen, reports indicated. The pressure pump was removed from a pickup truck parked behind the concession stand.
If you look at the 1938 photo from March 2008, you see the same portholes as the Vern in Los Angeles and the American in Newhall. All three are S. Charles Lee theaters, of course.
Some photos here:
http://tinyurl.com/as7fbr
Didn’t theaters during the Depression give away plates and silverware? I’ve seen some ads to that effect from the thirties.
Bookstar has also taken over the Studio City theater in Southern CA. I wonder if they target old theaters, or if it’s just coincidental.
Here is a history of the mall and its eventual demise:
http://tinyurl.com/dfmhp6
That’s a pretty horrendous remodel by the church. It looks like they covered the marquee with tin and painted it brown. Also some kind of false brick front. I’m sure the theater looked better than this in its day.
There is no trace of this theater or any of its adjacent buildings on E. Michigan today. This site also mentions that the theater was razed for a parking lot. Status should be changed to closed/demolished.
http://tinyurl.com/cwu7tk
Photo of the Adams here:
http://tinyurl.com/bljkm5
Here is another photo of the Jewel:
http://tinyurl.com/cjdtpx
There is a photo on the church site:
http://tinyurl.com/b38ake
Is there any part of the theater left on the property? If not, the status should be closed/demolished.