The December 25, 1926, issue of The Reel Journalhad a story about the fire at the Marvel Theatre:
“TO INVESTIGATE SHOW FIRE IN
CARLINVILLE
“The Illinois State Fire Marshall’s office will probably conduct an investigation into the fire which destroyed the Marvel Theatre in Carlinville, Ill., on December 18. The loss was placed at $60,000.
“It is suspected that the fire was of incendiary origin. Three years ago an attempt was made to set a fire to the theatre but the blaze was discovered before it could do serious damage.
“The Marvel owned and operated by Mrs. Freda Paul was supposedly of fireproof construction and was one of the finest theatres in that section of Illinois. It seated about 900 persons.
“Mrs. Paul plans to re-open her Grand Theatre until such time as the Marvel can be reconstructed.”
The current home of the Franklin Institute (its third) opened in 1934 and was designed by architect John T. Windrim, who died that same year. I haven’t been able to find any details specifically about the Stearns Science Auditorium, but that it was renovated in 2003, and the name Franklin Theatre was adopted some time after that. Judging from the photo of the auditorium on the Franklin Institute’s web site, I’d guess the seating capacity to be no more than 250, all stadium style.
A promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago has a photo of the auditorium of the Metropolitan Theatre in Denver under construction at center left on this page. The caption attributes the design to architect William N. Bowman. He apparently designed the building the theater was in, while Rapp & Rapp designed the theater interior.
Broan’s link to the drawing of the Lerner Theatre is dead, so here is a fresh link. A photo of the Lerner appears at the bottom of this page of a promotional booklet published in the late 1920s by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago.
Photos of the Colonial are apparently scarce, but one corner of the auditorium is shown at upper left on this page of a promotional booklet published in the late 1920s by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago.
A photo of the Michigan Theatre can be seen at the bottom of this page of a promotional booklet published in the late 1920s by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago. The Michigan Theatre was designed by architect Otto J. Kreig.
This web page says that the Capri opened in 1927 as the Logan Theatre and was renamed the Paradise after a renovation in 1933.
The Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago published a promotional booklet in the 1920s featuring photos of theaters that had roofs made of the company’s materials. The caption for the photo of this house (bottom of this page) calls it the Logan Theatre.
The Radio was one of the theaters featured in a promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago in the 1920s. A photo of it can be seen at the bottom of this page. The Radio Theatre was designed by architect James C. Niemeyer.
There is an early photo of the Regent Theatre on this page of a promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Company of Chicago in the 1920s.
The principals of the architectural firm were William B. Stratton and Dalton J. Von Schneider.
The original architect of the Aubert Theatre was Paul Klingensmith. The Aubert was on a list of theaters in a booklet published by the Federal Concrete Tile Company, which features a photo of it at the bottom of this page.
An item in the November 28, 1925, issue of Motion Picture News listed the Midwest Theatre as one of three recently opened houses that had been designed by the firm of R. Levine & Co. Edward Rupert was one of the firm’s architects. The company was very active. One source I came across said that R. Levine & Co. built 27 theaters in 1926.
An item in the November 28, 1925, issue of Motion Picture News listed the Milo Theatre as one of three houses recently opened that had been designed by R. Levine & Co.
This item appeared in the November 28, 1925, issue of Motion Picture News:
“Detroit — Plans are being prepared by E. J. Knopke, 1101 Lafayette Bldg., for erection of theatre bldg., stores and offices at Gratiot and 7 Mile Rd.”
This web page features an ad for Flamingo Hall, a ballroom and event center that occupied the building some time after the 1952 closing of the theater.
The November 28, 1925, issue of The Film Daily also notes DeFoe & Besecke as architects for a theater to be built on this block, though it gives the locations as 39th and Main Streets and the Madrid is closer to 38th Street. Original plans also called for more seats:
“Kansas City — DeFoe & Besecke, Archts., have completed plans for erection of theatre bldg. at 39th & Main Sts. on site 65 x 165. Seat. Cap. 3,000. Approx. Cost $200,000. Owner— R. L. Willis, 3804-06 Main St.”
I still don’t know if the Gem Theatre that Roy Jones sold to L. H. Chamberlain in 1930 was demolished, or merely expanded to accommodate the Masonic Lodge upstairs, or if the lodge and new theater were actually on a different site than the original theater, but the Gem could have been the house that was the subject of this item from the November 28, 1925, issue of The Film Daily:
“Des Moines — Plans are being drawn by W. D. Holtzman, 406 Flynn Bldg.. Archt., for erection of theatre bldg. and stores (2) on site 100 x 50 ft. to be erected on Beaver St. nr. Sheridan. Owner — R. G. Jones, c/o Archt.”
I don’t see the Gem listed in the 1927 FDY, but it’s possible that it opened under a different name.
This Rootsweb page about Delos R. Bly has his obituary, published in 1944, which says that he had owned the Ohio Theatre in Conneaut since 1929. As the Ohio is not listed in the 1929 FDY, it must have opened too late that year to be included.
D. R. Bly also owned the State Theatre at the time it opened in late 1925.
The 1929 FDY lists the 350-seat Main Theatre in Conneaut, but no Academy Theatre. I think the Academy might have been renamed the Main in late 1927. The January 28, 1928 issue of The Film Daily said that M. A. Shae had bought an interest in the Main and La Grande Theatres in Conneaut.
The November 28, 1925, issue of The Film Daily had this item:
“Columbus.— J. E. Outcalt, 186 E. Broad St., is drawing plans for erection of theatre bldg. to be erected at Cleveland Ave. & Myrtle Ave., on site 50 x 100. Aprox. Cost $20,000. Owner— New Linden Amusement Co.”
J. Edgar Outcalt was practicing architecture in Columbus at least as early as 1915. In 1926 he was secretary and treasurer of the Columbus chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
A letter dated January 11, 1916, from the Academy Theatre in Conneaut was displayed in an ad from the Gold King Screen Company that was published in the February 5, 1916, issue of The Moving Picture World. The letter said that a Gold King screen had been in use at the Academy for about two years.
The Capitol Theatre was designed by architect William Harold Lee, and opened on December 21, 1925. This information is from an article in a 1965 issue of The Journal of the Lancaster County Historical Society (PDF here) about the Lancaster theaters operated by the Krupa family in the early 20th century, written by George and Elsie Krupa’s daughter, Catherine Krupa.
The article reveals that the Hippodrome Theatre, which the Krupas began operating in 1912, was destroyed by a fire on December 29, 1924. The house was only days from reopening after undergoing a major remodeling, and was to have been renamed the Aldine Theatre, when it burned to the ground. The Capitol was an entirely new theater built on the Hippodrome’s site.
One notable feature of the new Capitol was a four-rank Robert Morton organ. Ms. Krupa devotes a considerable part of the article to this instrument, having been one of the theater’s organists herself. In 1926, the Krupas sold the Capitol, and the nearby Hamilton Theatre, which they had acquired in 1916, to the Stanley Company.
Here is a March, 1985, photo of the Capitol Theatre from American Classic Images.
The December 25, 1926, issue of The Reel Journalhad a story about the fire at the Marvel Theatre:
The current home of the Franklin Institute (its third) opened in 1934 and was designed by architect John T. Windrim, who died that same year. I haven’t been able to find any details specifically about the Stearns Science Auditorium, but that it was renovated in 2003, and the name Franklin Theatre was adopted some time after that. Judging from the photo of the auditorium on the Franklin Institute’s web site, I’d guess the seating capacity to be no more than 250, all stadium style.
A promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago has a photo of the auditorium of the Metropolitan Theatre in Denver under construction at center left on this page. The caption attributes the design to architect William N. Bowman. He apparently designed the building the theater was in, while Rapp & Rapp designed the theater interior.
Broan’s link to the drawing of the Lerner Theatre is dead, so here is a fresh link. A photo of the Lerner appears at the bottom of this page of a promotional booklet published in the late 1920s by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago.
Photos of the Colonial are apparently scarce, but one corner of the auditorium is shown at upper left on this page of a promotional booklet published in the late 1920s by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago.
A drawing of Toltz, King & Day’s Tower Theatre can be seen on this page of a promotional booklet from the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago.
A photo of the Michigan Theatre can be seen at the bottom of this page of a promotional booklet published in the late 1920s by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago. The Michigan Theatre was designed by architect Otto J. Kreig.
A 1923 photo of the Tivoli can be seen at the top of this page of a promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Co. in the late 1920s.
This web page says that the Capri opened in 1927 as the Logan Theatre and was renamed the Paradise after a renovation in 1933.
The Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago published a promotional booklet in the 1920s featuring photos of theaters that had roofs made of the company’s materials. The caption for the photo of this house (bottom of this page) calls it the Logan Theatre.
The Radio was one of the theaters featured in a promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Co. of Chicago in the 1920s. A photo of it can be seen at the bottom of this page. The Radio Theatre was designed by architect James C. Niemeyer.
There is an early photo of the Regent Theatre on this page of a promotional booklet published by the Federal Cement Tile Company of Chicago in the 1920s.
The principals of the architectural firm were William B. Stratton and Dalton J. Von Schneider.
The original architect of the Aubert Theatre was Paul Klingensmith. The Aubert was on a list of theaters in a booklet published by the Federal Concrete Tile Company, which features a photo of it at the bottom of this page.
An item in the November 28, 1925, issue of Motion Picture News listed the Midwest Theatre as one of three recently opened houses that had been designed by the firm of R. Levine & Co. Edward Rupert was one of the firm’s architects. The company was very active. One source I came across said that R. Levine & Co. built 27 theaters in 1926.
An item in the November 28, 1925, issue of Motion Picture News listed the Milo Theatre as one of three houses recently opened that had been designed by R. Levine & Co.
This item appeared in the November 28, 1925, issue of Motion Picture News:
This web page features an ad for Flamingo Hall, a ballroom and event center that occupied the building some time after the 1952 closing of the theater.The November 28, 1925, issue of The Film Daily also notes DeFoe & Besecke as architects for a theater to be built on this block, though it gives the locations as 39th and Main Streets and the Madrid is closer to 38th Street. Original plans also called for more seats:
I still don’t know if the Gem Theatre that Roy Jones sold to L. H. Chamberlain in 1930 was demolished, or merely expanded to accommodate the Masonic Lodge upstairs, or if the lodge and new theater were actually on a different site than the original theater, but the Gem could have been the house that was the subject of this item from the November 28, 1925, issue of The Film Daily:
I don’t see the Gem listed in the 1927 FDY, but it’s possible that it opened under a different name.This Rootsweb page about Delos R. Bly has his obituary, published in 1944, which says that he had owned the Ohio Theatre in Conneaut since 1929. As the Ohio is not listed in the 1929 FDY, it must have opened too late that year to be included.
D. R. Bly also owned the State Theatre at the time it opened in late 1925.
The 1929 FDY lists the 350-seat Main Theatre in Conneaut, but no Academy Theatre. I think the Academy might have been renamed the Main in late 1927. The January 28, 1928 issue of The Film Daily said that M. A. Shae had bought an interest in the Main and La Grande Theatres in Conneaut.
The November 28, 1925, issue of The Film Daily had this item:
J. Edgar Outcalt was practicing architecture in Columbus at least as early as 1915. In 1926 he was secretary and treasurer of the Columbus chapter of the American Institute of Architects.A letter dated January 11, 1916, from the Academy Theatre in Conneaut was displayed in an ad from the Gold King Screen Company that was published in the February 5, 1916, issue of The Moving Picture World. The letter said that a Gold King screen had been in use at the Academy for about two years.
The 1927 FDY lists the Academy with 350 seats.
The January 5, 1926, issue of The Film Daily said that the State Theatre in Conneaut had opened.
The Graphic Theatre in Bangor was mentioned in the August 28, 1915, issue of The Moving Picture World.
The Capitol Theatre was designed by architect William Harold Lee, and opened on December 21, 1925. This information is from an article in a 1965 issue of The Journal of the Lancaster County Historical Society (PDF here) about the Lancaster theaters operated by the Krupa family in the early 20th century, written by George and Elsie Krupa’s daughter, Catherine Krupa.
The article reveals that the Hippodrome Theatre, which the Krupas began operating in 1912, was destroyed by a fire on December 29, 1924. The house was only days from reopening after undergoing a major remodeling, and was to have been renamed the Aldine Theatre, when it burned to the ground. The Capitol was an entirely new theater built on the Hippodrome’s site.
One notable feature of the new Capitol was a four-rank Robert Morton organ. Ms. Krupa devotes a considerable part of the article to this instrument, having been one of the theater’s organists herself. In 1926, the Krupas sold the Capitol, and the nearby Hamilton Theatre, which they had acquired in 1916, to the Stanley Company.