The July 20, 1912, issue of The Moving Picture World had another item about the A-Muse-U Theatre:
“The Amuse-U, the new Henle photoplay house at Clinton, Iowa, is to have one of the largest mirror screens made, two pianos and a Victor autophone, an indirect lighting system and comfortable seats for 1,005 persons.”
The house was mentioned yet again in the August 12 issue:
“Menaced by a decaying elm tree in front of his A-Muse-U, now in course of construction, L. M. Henle went before the city council of Clinton. Iowa, and won consent for its removal by promising to
substitute a bubbling fountain.”
a later issue of the magazine said that before installing the picture machine in the A-Muse-U, Mr. Henle put it on display in a local store window for a time. Finally, the September 28 issue of TMPW carried this announcement of the opening of the house:
“E. M. Henle opened his new "A-Muse-U” theater on Sixth Avenue, at Clinton, Iowa. September 2. The house has a seating capacity of 1,000, an indirect lighting system, fireproof operating room, and is well ventilated. The walls of the auditorium are in red and green, with handsome salmon panels. The ceiling is paneled in cream and salmon.“
As the magazine used the form A-Muse-U for the theater’s name in three consecutive items, that must have been correct.
So, to recap, this house opened as the A-Muse-U Theatre on September 2, 1912, was renamed the Rialto Theatre in 1922, and became the Cinema I in 1965.
The 1955 article I cited in my previous comment might have gotten the opening year of the A-Muse-U Theatre wrong (and perhaps the form of its name as well.) The July 6, 1912, issue of The Moving Picture World had a brief article about Clinton’s movie theaters, listing them as the Colonial, Airdome, Lyric, Casino, Bright Spot, and Superba.
A Mr. Henle, the article said, “…will soon begin the building of an attractive and cozy moving picture theater on Sixth Avenue….” and this house was to be called the Amuse-U Theatre. Another theater, which was not yet named but would open as the Royal, was already under construction. The Amuse-U (or A-Muse-U) probably opened by the end of 1912, not in 1908.
A vaudeville house called the Family Theatre had recently been operated as a movie house as well, the article said. It didn’t mention the Clinton Theatre, a large legitimate house that had opened around 1897 as the Economic Theatre. I’ve been unable to discover if the Clinton Theatre ever ran movies, but it was apparently still in operation at least as late as 1930.
The July 6, 1912, issue of The Moving Picture World had this item about the house that became the Royal Theatre:
“CLINTON, IOWA.
“DR. LANGAN, a local capitalist, is erecting an up-to-date office building at the corner of Second Street and Fourth Avenue. The lower floor will be used for a moving picture theater. The lessee has not announced himself to date.”
A later paragraph in the same item listed the movie theaters then in operation at Clinton. They were the Colonial, Airdome, Lyric, Casino, Bright Spot, and Superba. Another theater besides the Royal was about to begin construction, and was to be called the Amuse-U.
The Royal Theatre might have opened before the end of 1912, but the earliest mention of it by name I’ve found in TMPW is from November 15, 1913. The Royal was renamed the Strand in 1916, according to the web page that CSWalczak linked to earlier.
There is a photo of The Parkside Theatre on the Facebook page Clinton Movie Theatres. The page also has a couple of ads for the Lyons Theatre, one dating from 1956 and the other from 1970.
This history of Clinton’s theaters from the Centennial Edition of the Clinton Herald, June 18, 1955, does not give Clinton Theatre as an aka for the former Orpheum. At some point the house was renamed the Capitol Theatre, which was the name it was operating under in 1955.
It was still being advertised as the Capitol Theatre as late as 1966. By 1970, it had been renamed the Capri Theatre, but was still operating as a single-screen house. The conversion of the balcony to two small auditoriums and the renaming as Capri III Theatre took place in the 1980s.
The Facebook page Clinton Movie Theatres has a few photos of the house as the Orpheum and the Capri, including a couple of interior shots. There are also some ads for the Capitol and Capri.
CEC Theatres bought the house prior to building the Clinton 8 Theatre in 2003. After the opening of the Clinton 8, CEC sold the Cinema I and Capri III buildings with the stipulation that they not be used as movie theaters, and they were demolished in 2004.
This history of Clinton’s theaters from the Centennial Edition of the Clinton Herald, June 18, 1955, says that this house opened in 1908 as the A-Muse-U Theatre and was renamed the Rialto in 1922. The Rialto was remodeled and renamed Cinema I in 1965.
The Facebook page Clinton Movie Theatres has several photos of and advertisements for the Rialto/Cinema I, and a 1986 ad for the Cinema I Video Movie Mart, so the theater housed a video rental store for a time.
This article from the November 30, 2003, issue of the Quad City Times tells of the sale of the Cinema I and Capri III buildings and the plans to have them demolished the following spring.
This article from the November 30, 2003, issue of the Quad City Times, about the end of Capri III, Clinton’s last remaining downtown theater, said that Cinema Entertainment Corporation had opened its replacement, the new Clinton 8 Theatre, in October, 2003.
Paul T. Hellmann’s Historical Gazetteer of the United States says that the Star Theatre at Mercersburg was built in 1904. I’ve been unable to find any mention of Mercersburg in early trade publications, or in any editions of Julius Cahn’s guide.
This article was posted at statesboroherald.com on January 17 this year. It says that restoration of the Tos Theatre is proceeding, but slowly due to limited funding. The front of the building has been restored (sans signage) and the roof has been repaired. The marquee has been removed. Most of the seats were not salvageable, and the ceiling of the auditorium is missing. Four photos, two of them vintage shots, accompany the article.
The article notes that the Italian Garden Theatre opened in 1927, and was renamed the Tos Theatre in 1940. It closed in November, 1976, having been operated by the Tos family throughout its history. Tos' grandson Gil Mincey donated the theater to the Evans County Recreation Commission in 2003. Goals for the project include enlarging the stage and installing a retractable movie screen. When renovated, the auditorium will seat 452, 312 on the main floor and 140 in the balcony.
The Metropolitan Theatre was listed at 513 N. Main Street in the 1911 city directory. In 1909, 513 was the address of a photography studio and 515 of a fruit vendor and a barber shop.
This web page attributes the design of the Martin Theatre in Opelika to the firm of Biggers & Associates. James J. W. Biggers was practicing at least as late as 1949.
A history of movie exhibition in Auburn from 1894 to 1928, written as a thesis by Auburn University student Danielle E. Williams, has information about the early years of the Tiger Theatre (PDF here.)
The Tiger Theatre was opened by F. A. Rogers on September 6, 1926. It was the first regular movie theater in Auburn, though movies had been shown in the college auditorium at lest twice a week (Friday and Saturday nights) under the auspices of the local YMCA since 1912.
The College Picture Show, as the YMCA program was called, continued to operate for two years after the Tiger Theatre opened, finally suspending operations in September, 1928.
A June 16, 1907, New York Times article mentions “…the Pier Theatre, at the foot of Vernon [sic] Avenue….” Another bit of complication. Was the 1907 Times article right about the location, or was the 1904 advertisement Lost Memory cited right?
But at least we have the approximate location, which was probably on the short block between Beach 66th and Beach 67th.
Although the County Tax Assessor says that the building the De Luxe Theatre was in dates from 1910, no theater is listed at 656 S. Alvarado Street in the 1911 city directory. In fact, in 1911 there are no listings for 650, 552, or 656 S. Alvarado, and 654 is listed as the home of Jennie M. Emory. This makes me suspect that the building is not quite as old as the Assessor’s office believes it to be.
I now suspect that the Theatre De Luxe was located in the proposed building described in this item from the September 27, 1913, issue of The American Contractor:
“Store & Moving Picture Theater: 1 sty. 80x130, $30,000. Alvarado, nr. Orange st. Archt. A. Lawrence Valk, 933 Union Oil bldg. Owner Henry Laub, 108 S. Broadway. Architect is taking bids.”
Orange Street was then the name of that section of what is now Wilshire Boulevard running east from Alvarado Street. It was renamed after the street was cut through Westlake Park.
In the 1911 city directory, 527 S. Spring Street is listed as the address of the Crown Theater. No theater is listed at this address in the 1915 directory.
Thanks, psefton. Changing the search terms to Maurice R. Rhoads brings up several results.
Also, there’s a typo in the first paragraph of my previous comment. I said that much of Chambersburg was destroyed by a fire in 1964. It should read 1864. Here is the story.
The caption of the second photo in this slide show at Rockaway Memories says that Gaston Avenue became Beach 67th Street. The caption of the fourth photo says that the renaming had taken place by 1920. The site of the Arverne Pier Theatre must have been very close to that of the Boardwalk Theatre.
Three articles by Lawrence Herzog mention the Rialto Theatre. The links to them on this web page are headed “Rialto Theatre – 10134 101 Street (opened as the New Bijou)” That’s the only mention of the New Bijou I can find, though Herzog mentions a house called the Bijou Theatre, in operation by 1910 at 10166 100 Street. Presumably the New Bijou at 10134 101 Street was its replacement, but Herzog doesn’t give the opening year for it.
Lawrence Herzog’s brief article on the Varscona Theatre (the last listing on this web page) says that it was opened on July 6, 1940, and was designed by the architectural firm of Rule, Wynn, & Rule (John Rule, Gordon Wynn, and Peter Rule) in a Streamline Modern style. The Varscona Theatre was demolished in 1987.
The 1912 remodeling project designed by architect Walter J. Saunders is mentioned in several issues of Southwest Contractor and Manufacturer. An entirely new stage house, measuring 43 x 74 feet, was built. Early reports mention the stage house and the rebuilding of the balcony in reinforced concrete, at an estimated total cost of $30,000, but the announcement of the letting of the contract, in the issue of July 13, 1912, mentions only the stage house and gives the cost as $16,800. It’s possible the balcony rebuilding was abandoned, but the seating capacity would still have increased when the original stage space was incorporated into the auditorium.
Though it gives the address of the proposed theater as 211 Wyoming Avenue, this item from The American Contractor of May 14, 1921, is probably about the State Theatre:
“Theater (M. P.): Abt. $75,000. 2 sty. 40x156. 211 Wyoming av., Scranton, Pa. Archt. Leon Lempert & Son, Cutler bldg., Rochester, N. Y. Owner Comerford Amusement Co.. M. E. Comerford, Regent Theater. Scranton. Gen. contr. let to Breig Bros., Scranton.”
Leon Lempert Jr. designed many theaters for Comerford Amusement Co. during this period.
Ken: Digital projection and sound equipment was installed in the Chalet Theatre in June, 2013.
Ken Kerr, who had operated the Chalet Theatre since 1977, passed away in December, 2012, and the theater is now operated by his nephew, Charles Kerr.
The July 20, 1912, issue of The Moving Picture World had another item about the A-Muse-U Theatre:
The house was mentioned yet again in the August 12 issue:a later issue of the magazine said that before installing the picture machine in the A-Muse-U, Mr. Henle put it on display in a local store window for a time. Finally, the September 28 issue of TMPW carried this announcement of the opening of the house:As the magazine used the form A-Muse-U for the theater’s name in three consecutive items, that must have been correct.So, to recap, this house opened as the A-Muse-U Theatre on September 2, 1912, was renamed the Rialto Theatre in 1922, and became the Cinema I in 1965.
The 1955 article I cited in my previous comment might have gotten the opening year of the A-Muse-U Theatre wrong (and perhaps the form of its name as well.) The July 6, 1912, issue of The Moving Picture World had a brief article about Clinton’s movie theaters, listing them as the Colonial, Airdome, Lyric, Casino, Bright Spot, and Superba.
A Mr. Henle, the article said, “…will soon begin the building of an attractive and cozy moving picture theater on Sixth Avenue….” and this house was to be called the Amuse-U Theatre. Another theater, which was not yet named but would open as the Royal, was already under construction. The Amuse-U (or A-Muse-U) probably opened by the end of 1912, not in 1908.
A vaudeville house called the Family Theatre had recently been operated as a movie house as well, the article said. It didn’t mention the Clinton Theatre, a large legitimate house that had opened around 1897 as the Economic Theatre. I’ve been unable to discover if the Clinton Theatre ever ran movies, but it was apparently still in operation at least as late as 1930.
The July 6, 1912, issue of The Moving Picture World had this item about the house that became the Royal Theatre:
A later paragraph in the same item listed the movie theaters then in operation at Clinton. They were the Colonial, Airdome, Lyric, Casino, Bright Spot, and Superba. Another theater besides the Royal was about to begin construction, and was to be called the Amuse-U.The Royal Theatre might have opened before the end of 1912, but the earliest mention of it by name I’ve found in TMPW is from November 15, 1913. The Royal was renamed the Strand in 1916, according to the web page that CSWalczak linked to earlier.
The Historic League of American Theatres says that the Star was built in 1921. The building certainly has the style of the early 1910s, though.
There is a photo of The Parkside Theatre on the Facebook page Clinton Movie Theatres. The page also has a couple of ads for the Lyons Theatre, one dating from 1956 and the other from 1970.
This history of Clinton’s theaters from the Centennial Edition of the Clinton Herald, June 18, 1955, does not give Clinton Theatre as an aka for the former Orpheum. At some point the house was renamed the Capitol Theatre, which was the name it was operating under in 1955.
It was still being advertised as the Capitol Theatre as late as 1966. By 1970, it had been renamed the Capri Theatre, but was still operating as a single-screen house. The conversion of the balcony to two small auditoriums and the renaming as Capri III Theatre took place in the 1980s.
The Facebook page Clinton Movie Theatres has a few photos of the house as the Orpheum and the Capri, including a couple of interior shots. There are also some ads for the Capitol and Capri.
CEC Theatres bought the house prior to building the Clinton 8 Theatre in 2003. After the opening of the Clinton 8, CEC sold the Cinema I and Capri III buildings with the stipulation that they not be used as movie theaters, and they were demolished in 2004.
This history of Clinton’s theaters from the Centennial Edition of the Clinton Herald, June 18, 1955, says that this house opened in 1908 as the A-Muse-U Theatre and was renamed the Rialto in 1922. The Rialto was remodeled and renamed Cinema I in 1965.
The Facebook page Clinton Movie Theatres has several photos of and advertisements for the Rialto/Cinema I, and a 1986 ad for the Cinema I Video Movie Mart, so the theater housed a video rental store for a time.
This article from the November 30, 2003, issue of the Quad City Times tells of the sale of the Cinema I and Capri III buildings and the plans to have them demolished the following spring.
This article from the November 30, 2003, issue of the Quad City Times, about the end of Capri III, Clinton’s last remaining downtown theater, said that Cinema Entertainment Corporation had opened its replacement, the new Clinton 8 Theatre, in October, 2003.
Paul T. Hellmann’s Historical Gazetteer of the United States says that the Star Theatre at Mercersburg was built in 1904. I’ve been unable to find any mention of Mercersburg in early trade publications, or in any editions of Julius Cahn’s guide.
This article was posted at statesboroherald.com on January 17 this year. It says that restoration of the Tos Theatre is proceeding, but slowly due to limited funding. The front of the building has been restored (sans signage) and the roof has been repaired. The marquee has been removed. Most of the seats were not salvageable, and the ceiling of the auditorium is missing. Four photos, two of them vintage shots, accompany the article.
The article notes that the Italian Garden Theatre opened in 1927, and was renamed the Tos Theatre in 1940. It closed in November, 1976, having been operated by the Tos family throughout its history. Tos' grandson Gil Mincey donated the theater to the Evans County Recreation Commission in 2003. Goals for the project include enlarging the stage and installing a retractable movie screen. When renovated, the auditorium will seat 452, 312 on the main floor and 140 in the balcony.
The Metropolitan Theatre was listed at 513 N. Main Street in the 1911 city directory. In 1909, 513 was the address of a photography studio and 515 of a fruit vendor and a barber shop.
This web page attributes the design of the Martin Theatre in Opelika to the firm of Biggers & Associates. James J. W. Biggers was practicing at least as late as 1949.
A history of movie exhibition in Auburn from 1894 to 1928, written as a thesis by Auburn University student Danielle E. Williams, has information about the early years of the Tiger Theatre (PDF here.)
The Tiger Theatre was opened by F. A. Rogers on September 6, 1926. It was the first regular movie theater in Auburn, though movies had been shown in the college auditorium at lest twice a week (Friday and Saturday nights) under the auspices of the local YMCA since 1912.
The College Picture Show, as the YMCA program was called, continued to operate for two years after the Tiger Theatre opened, finally suspending operations in September, 1928.
A June 16, 1907, New York Times article mentions “…the Pier Theatre, at the foot of Vernon [sic] Avenue….” Another bit of complication. Was the 1907 Times article right about the location, or was the 1904 advertisement Lost Memory cited right?
But at least we have the approximate location, which was probably on the short block between Beach 66th and Beach 67th.
Although the County Tax Assessor says that the building the De Luxe Theatre was in dates from 1910, no theater is listed at 656 S. Alvarado Street in the 1911 city directory. In fact, in 1911 there are no listings for 650, 552, or 656 S. Alvarado, and 654 is listed as the home of Jennie M. Emory. This makes me suspect that the building is not quite as old as the Assessor’s office believes it to be.
I now suspect that the Theatre De Luxe was located in the proposed building described in this item from the September 27, 1913, issue of The American Contractor:
Orange Street was then the name of that section of what is now Wilshire Boulevard running east from Alvarado Street. It was renamed after the street was cut through Westlake Park.The 1909 city directory reveals an even earlier aka for the Orchestrion/Crown Theatre. That year, 527 S. Spring was the location of the Odeon Theatre.
In the 1911 city directory, 527 S. Spring Street is listed as the address of the Crown Theater. No theater is listed at this address in the 1915 directory.
Thanks, psefton. Changing the search terms to Maurice R. Rhoads brings up several results.
Also, there’s a typo in the first paragraph of my previous comment. I said that much of Chambersburg was destroyed by a fire in 1964. It should read 1864. Here is the story.
The caption of the second photo in this slide show at Rockaway Memories says that Gaston Avenue became Beach 67th Street. The caption of the fourth photo says that the renaming had taken place by 1920. The site of the Arverne Pier Theatre must have been very close to that of the Boardwalk Theatre.
Three articles by Lawrence Herzog mention the Rialto Theatre. The links to them on this web page are headed “Rialto Theatre – 10134 101 Street (opened as the New Bijou)” That’s the only mention of the New Bijou I can find, though Herzog mentions a house called the Bijou Theatre, in operation by 1910 at 10166 100 Street. Presumably the New Bijou at 10134 101 Street was its replacement, but Herzog doesn’t give the opening year for it.
Lawrence Herzog’s brief article on the Varscona Theatre (the last listing on this web page) says that it was opened on July 6, 1940, and was designed by the architectural firm of Rule, Wynn, & Rule (John Rule, Gordon Wynn, and Peter Rule) in a Streamline Modern style. The Varscona Theatre was demolished in 1987.
The 1912 remodeling project designed by architect Walter J. Saunders is mentioned in several issues of Southwest Contractor and Manufacturer. An entirely new stage house, measuring 43 x 74 feet, was built. Early reports mention the stage house and the rebuilding of the balcony in reinforced concrete, at an estimated total cost of $30,000, but the announcement of the letting of the contract, in the issue of July 13, 1912, mentions only the stage house and gives the cost as $16,800. It’s possible the balcony rebuilding was abandoned, but the seating capacity would still have increased when the original stage space was incorporated into the auditorium.
Though it gives the address of the proposed theater as 211 Wyoming Avenue, this item from The American Contractor of May 14, 1921, is probably about the State Theatre:
Leon Lempert Jr. designed many theaters for Comerford Amusement Co. during this period.According to an item in The Film Daily of May 13, 1936, the Arverne Theatre then had considerably more than 300 seats: