Calumet Theatre
5622 Calumet Avenue,
Hammond,
IN
46320
5622 Calumet Avenue,
Hammond,
IN
46320
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A 2010 newspaper article said that the City of Hammond now owns the Calumet Theatre and intends to demolish it. The building’s cornerstone gives the construction date as 1930, and names the architect as Louis C. Hess. Local resident Debbie Thill petitioned the city to preserve the cornerstone to use as a headstone for Hess’s grave.
The article is here, for the time being. There are four photos and a three-minute video of Ms. Thill talking about Louis Hess.
Thanks for the info. If I were to own a theater such as The Calumet I would show public domain oldies movies and have a live show, perhaps a talent contest. If BMI and ASCAP were too expensive I would have a talent show with public domain songs and novelty acts. At $40,000 for a price tag I would imagine the taxes would be low.
Word is the building will be demolished – probably this year. Despite what Hammond wants you to think, nothing will be developed on this site.
From The Times:
View link
Tom,
It was for sale for the longest time. I think they’ve given up on it though. I looked into it myself as kind of a dream. The truth is, you make almost no money running a theatre – all of your money goes to the film studios for the rights to show the films.
I went to the Calumet often as a kid. I lived on Calumet AV for many years from shortly before the end of WWII until about 1951. I went to Lafayette Grade School at Sibley and Calumet across the street from my house. I saw at least one of the Ma and Pa Kettle movies there as a first run. African Queen played there when it came out. The Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow was at The Calumet, I believe. I think Song of the South was at The Calumet when it came out. Check out Bobby Driscoll’s story. Very sad. Also Mr Belvedere was a Calumet offering. The parthenon and Paramount on Hohman were for the Grade A movies, the Hohman and Orpheum were for kids with cowboy movies and serials. The Calumet would have been for the Charlie Chan and spy type and family films. I would love to go back there sometime and get that place going again.
RegionRat, I also would like to have an inside visit to this theatre. I drove by it a couple nights ago when I was attending a concert at the Horseshoe Casino. Unfortunally, I didnt have time to stop and check it over.The photos were great !! Please feel free to e mail me, thanks,,
RegionRat, great pictures ! The style inside the auditorium (ceiling) seems to be pretty unusual.
Like JRS40, can I ask you how you got access to it ? (just check my profile and send me an email via my website)
Thanks a lot !
RegionRat those are outstanding photos. As one who drives by the theater nearly every day I have always wondered what it looked like inside. How did you ever gain access to the theater? I can only think of two ways – posing as a potential buyer or less gentlemanly means.. lol. Did you find any good souveniers to sneak home? Plan on going back again? If you would prefer to not answer here feel free to email me at I would love to hear more about the adventure.
I was recently able to gain access to the Calumet Theatre. An amazing experience – if only those abandoned walls could talk. The inside of the theater looks rundown in sections; but overall there is definite potential for redevelopment for anyone who wants to clean up the messes of people who have tried to rehab the building in the past but then left without taking their stuff with them. It is like a giant time capsule – paraphernalia from the 70s practically leaping at you.
I have dozen of photos of this theater on my webshots site, http://travel.webshots.com/album/570553428XGRCVr
Please let me know what you think!
Does anyone have a price for the calumet theater?
My Family and I had gone to the Calumet Theatre when I was a kid in the early 1970’s, although we mostly went to drive in movies or The Parthanon & The Paramount in downtown Hammond. My best friend and I went to the Calumet Theatre in 1983/84 when it showed only pornographic movies. We were in the 12th grade. I wasn’t old enough to get in, but they didn’t ask for any ID. There was a Marilyn Monroe look-a-like porn feature presentation. The best part of that evening was when we spotted our gym teacher walking down the aisle.
Other than that, I do remember having the feeling that we were visiting a time capsule. The theatre was somewhat run down, but at the same time it was beautiful.
I have a ticket stub for a double feature dated SEPTEMBER 9TH 1939. the two movies were; “WIFE, HUSBAND AND FRIEND” with CORETTA YOUNG & WARNER BAXTER plus “THE KID FROM TEXAS” with DENNIS O'KEEFE. I am looking to sell this. I found it in an antique book that I was selling on eBay for an old-timer friend.
Hey CALUMET THEATER HAMMOND, please contact me at PANPIPES/WOWWAY/Com ,(with the appropriate corrections to the adddress)
Tnx, ChicagoPaul
Does anyone have any old photos of this theater when it was up and running? Any stories? Any history? Thanks.
I’m not even from Indiana and never heard of the Calumet theater, but through one of those website glitches I’ve wound up receiving update notices for this page. So I looked at the photo linked to at the top, and what I can’t understand is why the name Calumet Theater is only in movable letters on the marquee! What happened to the theater’s sign?
Here is a 1940 ad from the Hammond Times:
http://tinyurl.com/yc5x4a
Date of construction and architect are on the cornerstone, I’ll stop next time I’m going by, and post them here. I think the archi was a local fellow, of a Hammond founding family, Hess.
ChicagoPaul
I was in there briefly in about 1999, it was in solid condition,original, clean , smooth somewhat Deco style plaster, something about originally being a test theater built in cooperation with Western Electric for movie sound test, presentations in the 30’s. This would be an excellent accoustic “performance space”. Adjacent lots are now vacant for parking. Actually I’d like to install my little theater pipe organ in it as a studio organ.
ChicagoPaul
From the 70’s to the early 90’s the Calumet was a porno house. Then the theatre closed briefly and re-opened as a second run house. I can remember driving by there when “Toy Story” opened and was shocked to see a line waiting to get in. Sometime in 1999 the theatre was closed to remodel and has never opened again. It looked ready to open in 2001 when the theatre had posters for “Along Came A Spider” and the marquee announced the reopening date. When that day came the theatre was still closed and a sign was on the door from the health department which obviously found the theatre with code violations. For a long time the marquee (after 9/11) read: Please God Bless the USA. Then in 2003 the marquee was changed to: REOPENING SOON. Since early 2005 the marquee has read: FOR SALE but I doubt there is much interest. The theatre is located in a bad part of town plus there is little parking availability in the area which means customers would have to walk a few blocks. I’d love to see the inside of the theatre (the lobby looks cluttered with stuff) to see how the auditorium looks but doubt I will get the chance. The Calumet’s day has come and gone.