Concord Theatre

Conn’s Theatre was located on School Street in Concord. Unfortunately they tore down the beautiful building to make way for an ugly parking garage, I believe in the 70’s. As a child in the 60’s I used to walk by the building on my way to shop downtown in Concord. Theresa Cantin purchased the Concord Theatre at 18 ½ South Main Street from Mr. Charbonneau around 1945. Her father, a building contractor, had helped concert the Norris Bakery into the theatre in 1934. From around 1945 on she ran the theatre with her two sisters, Laurie (a projectionist) and Rene who worked the concession stand. Their brother Maurice helped out as a projectionist. At present the building is not very sound but there is federal money available to restore historic downtown theatres. I worked at the theatre off and on from 1967, when I was 15, until it closed in 1994. The last picture to play the theatre was “Andre”. Almost until the end the theatre continued to make money. A year before it closed it sold-out a number of performances of “The Crying Game” and among the biggest hits in the 1980’s to play there were “Moonstruck”, “Pretty in Pink”, “The Shining”, “The Last Emperor. To this day I recall the line-up from the first summer I worked there – "Caprice”, “Two for the Road”, “Welcome to Hard Times”, “The Sand Pebbles”, “Hawaii”, “Woman Times Two” and “Made in Italy”. My first experience with sell-outs came later that year with “Valley of the Dolls” which filled every seat for two shows a night for the first 12 days of the engagement. Some of the biggest hits that followed included “Rocky”, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, “10”, “Arthur”, “Superman” and “Planet of the Apes” to name but a few. Performances in the early years were usually scheduled for 6:25 and 8:25 but Theresa always accommodated her “public” and if someone called from out of town to say they were leaving their house and would be there in fifteen minutes, it was not unusual for her to hold the show for that patron. It was an amazing experience. Theresa, the last surviving sister passed away in 1998 while in the midst of putting together a really good deal to sell the theatre and get it reopened after extensive renovations.

Conn’s Theatre:
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Star Theatre:
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I have a postcard-photo of Conn’s Theatre in Concord, NH. Does anyone know if that still exists, was renamed? Built by Jacob Conn, perhaps in the 1920s, it was touted as America’s first fireproof house of entertainment. Conn built two theatres in Providence, the Metropolitan and the Olympia.

I wonder if the building is even sound at this point. I remember there used to be a marquee outside but it either fell down or was removed in the mid 90’s. Its a shame to see a building sit empty for so long.

Jim Kenison

My grandfather, Edward Charbonneau, owned the Concord Theater from about 1934 through, probably, the 1940s. My father, Hector “Pete” Charbonneau worked there. In fact, it’s where he met my mother, introduced to him by his twin sisters, Pauline and Jacqueline. My uncle Marcel may also have worked at the theater, but I never heard any stories about that.

Susan Charbonneau
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My friend & I used to go to the movies here in the 1950’s when we were in grammar school…saw the original King Kong there and lots of horror movies…I remember 2 of the women who ran the place (one was heavy set) and always sat on the right side of the long corridor leading from the street to the theatre…there was a drink machine across the hall from the snack stand…the place was always “seedy” but we had lots of fun times there eating “Pom Poms”!

I grew up in Concord in the 1970s when the Concord Theater was on the decline. Hence its contemporary nicknames “The Armpit” or “The Fine Arts.” One of the ladies mentioned above loomed in the front ticket booth and took your money. You then walked back a long tiled hallway to the popcorn stand (which always served stale popcorn). The seats were mostly broken, there were no lights to speak of in the auditorium, and the ladies who ran the place always seemed grumpy. It was sort of intimidating to my 10-year-old sensibilities but produced some very vivid memories.