In the photos linked above, the letters are mostly hidden by the theater’s name on the newer marquee, but the building has the name Grand Opera House in what is probably terra cotta above the theater entrance. Marion’s original Grand Opera House was gutted by a fire on December 6, 1910, and the roof collapsed, as can be seen in this photo at the Gen Disasters web site.
A 1910, pre-fire postcard view (unlinked as it’s at an unstable e-Bay URL) shows that most of the original facade of the Grand Opera House survived. Other than the loss of an ornate cornice, parapet, and pediment, and the ground floor detail that was covered up or removed in a later remodeling, it is still substantially the same facade today. The Grand Opera House was rebuilt at the same time that a new Elks Lodge was built on an adjacent lot. Here is a paragraph from a history of the Marion Elks Lodge (that page includes a small photo showing part of the original marquee of the theater) on the BPOE web site:
“In 1910, the Grand Opera House on South State Street suffered a major fire. As Marion Lodge 32 had previously purchased the adjacent lot, it was decided to purchase the burned theater building, renovate it, and erect a new building beside it to house business rental properties on the first floor, a Club Room on the second floor, and a Lodge Room on the third floor. This, the current home of the Marion Elks Lodge 32, was completed in 1914 at a cost of $60,000.”
This page at the Marion Elks Lodge web site has a photo of the Lodge building and the adjacent theater building, and a link to another more recent photo showing the theater without the Ohio marquee. The theater entrance has been closed in. None of the web sites say what the auditorium is being used for, or whether or not it is even intact.
The part of the Elks' project that included the theater is probably the one listed in the construction news section of the August, 1912, issue of The Lather, the trade journal of the Wood, Wire, and Metal Lathers' International Union. The item reads: “Marion, O.— Store, Theatre and Lodge Hall. $35,000. Archt., Frank L. Packard, 1212 New Haydn Bldg., Columbus, O.”
If this theater was indeed designed by Frank Packard, it would be a good candidate for inclusion on the NRHP. Not only does the building appear to be in good condition, but Packard was probably Ohio’s leading architect in his day. Here’s a web page with photos of some of his other buildings (scroll down for photos— no theaters among them that I can see.) Click on Packard’s photo near the top of the page to read a brief biography.
The surviving pre-fire facade would have to be attributed to the original architect, of course, who might or might not have been Packard himself. I’ve been unable to discover when the building was built, but the Grand Opera House was listed in the 1897-1898 issue of Julius Cahn’s Official Theatrical Guide. Packard began practicing in Columbus in 1892, originally in partnership with Joseph W. Yost, who had practiced in Columbus since 1882. Packard became sole owner of the firm in 1899.
A history of Indiana published in 1922 contains a brief biography of Terre Haute architect M. H. Johnson, Jr., and the Orpheum Theatre is included in a list of buildings designed by him and his firm, Johnson, Miller & Miller.
The February, 1921, issue of a trade journal called The Clay-Worker said that the new Pantages Theatre then under construction in Memphis would be opened “…within a few weeks.”
The February, 1921, issue of trade journal The Clay Worker said that the new Palace Theatre in Memphis had opened to the public on Saturday, January 15.
I can’t find anything about the colors of the interior of the Granada, but the facade was certainly colorful according to a rather effusive report in the trade Journal Brick and Clay Record, issue of December 13, 1921:[quote]“BEAUTIFUL TILE WORK IN ‘MOVIE’ THEATRE
“What is probably the most luxurious picture theater west of Chicago was opened in San Francisco, Cal., November 17. It is happily named the Granada and represents an investment of more than $1,000,000. The building is in Spanish-Colonial style and equipped throughout like a king’s palace. One of the most distinctive features of the Granada is the work in colored tiling in the facade around the great windows. This work was done by Eri H. Richardson of San Francisco, who has scored a triumph which has caused most favorable comment among architects of this city. Some go as far as to say that the facade tiling is not unworthy of some of the great masterpieces of the fifteenth century, the materials being translucent, turquoise blue, golden luster, rose and iridescent hues. The tiles mere made by Richardson from original designs, the motif being California fruits and flowers. The original suggestions were offered by a Moorish pattern of a design in the Alhambra and these were supplemented by color ideas obtained from the workings of a kaleidoscope. The two fine towers of the facade are distinctively characteristic of the Spanish-Colonial churches in Mexico, and are laid in a herringbone scheme of yellow enameled tiles with blue dots, and offer a brilliant bit of color to crown the rich polychrome beauty of the whole design.”[/quote]I’d love to see color photos of the facade before the tile work was lost (as it apparently was by the time the 1965 photos were made.)
Does anyone have information on a Liberty Theatre in Hamilton? It was under construction when mentioned in the trade journal Brick and Clay Record, issue of December 13, 1921. The side walls of the new theater were being built of brick salvaged from the town’s Rivoli Hotel, which had burned two years earlier.
The Roxy’s building looks about old enough to have been the Liberty, and Hamilton is quite a small town and might never have supported two theaters. Perhaps Liberty is an aka? A theater predating the original Roxy in New York would certainly have opened with a different name.
The Arcadia Press book “Around Pottstown” (Google Books preview here) has a photo of the Hippodrome dating from ca.1917, though I think it might be a bit earlier. There’s a horse and carriage on the street, but no cars. The book also has a ca.1949 photo of the Hipp, which by then sported a moderne front.
Flickr user Liatris displays this colorized version of the ca.1917 picture. Adjacent in the photostream is a cropped close-up of the theater entrance.
There was a Boz Theatre in Boise, so the local source saying that this house once had that name could be true. A history of Idaho published in 1914 said that W. Fred Bossner arrived in Boise in 1909 and began operating his first Boz Theatre.
In 1910 he opened the New Boz Theatre, which was exclusively a movie house and considered the leading such enterprise in the state. No address is given, so I can’t be sure it was the same theater that later became the Granada. The only other mention of the New Boz Theatre I’ve found on the Internet is one saying that, in 1911, noted feminist and radical Emma Goldman gave a speech there.
If the theater was also once the Strand then, assuming PSTOS is correct, it was also once called the Majestic.
The stage house roof is intact on the bird’s-eye view of the theater at Bing Maps, too. In the bird’s-eye, the structure on the roof that resembles a skylight looks more like it might have been part of the building’s ventilation system. It looks like it is partly covered with sheet metal, but some of the metal is missing, exposing an underlying framework.
In the 2008 photo, note the shadows falling from the two beams that cross the missing stage floor. The one on the left extends almost straight down, while the one on the right is at more of an angle. These shadows are consistent with light falling from the left section of the stage house roof, where that skylight-like structure is.
From the bird’s-eye view it doesn’t look like there’s any glass in the structure where the light gets in. If that’s the case, then it doesn’t bode well for the building. If it’s entirely open, then water can get in. Maybe the hole has been plugged since the various photos were taken, but if it hasn’t, water will soon destroy the building’s integrity. The Majestic could soon be unsalvageable— if it isn’t already.
This theater opened in 1998. It was designed for Signature Theatres by San Francisco architects Uesugi & Associates, principals Daniel T. Uesugi (founder, 1978) and (since 1994) Erin K. Uesugi.
There’s a small photos of the Signature Theatres Visalia 10 with its original signage on this page of the Uesugi & Associates web site.
The Platinum Theatres Dinuba 6 was designed by the San Francisco architectural firm Uesugi & Associates. The firm was founded by Daniel T. Uesugi, AIA, in 1978. His daughter, Erin K. Uesugi, AIA, joined the firm in 1994. Uesugi & Associates has designed or remodeled more than 80 cinemas in the western United States, Hawaii, and Asia.
An October 1, 1989, article in the Oakland Tribune indicated that United Artists' 10-screen Emery Bay Theatre complex had been open for some time. The shopping center in which it was located had been launched the previous year.
The article gave the seating capacity as 3,600, but it might be a bit lower now. Currently, Regal lists this house as the Emery Bay Stadium 10, and I’m not sure it had stadium seating when it opened. The Tribune article didn’t mention it. If it has been renovated for stadium seating it’s likely the capacity was reduced a bit.
This multiplex is one of several designed for UA during that period by San Francisco architect Daniel T. Uesugi, of Uesugi & Associates. The firm has designed or remodeled more than 80 cinemas since its founding in 1978.
CWalczak: It was the drawing you linked to that made me realize that this theater was probably a Vincent Raney design. That’s his drawing style. The attribution in the AIA Directory then came up immediately in a Google search. I don’t know how I missed it before.
There are two photos of this theater on the web site of TK Architects, the designers of the project (click on links reading “Cinemas” then “Traditonal” then “Commercial Revitalization”). The caption gives the seating capacity as 2300.
One large and two small photos of the Signature Stadium 14 can be seen in this album at the theater’s Facebook page.
The Kalispell project, like many Signature multiplexes, was designed by the San Francisco architectural firm Uesugi & Associates. The firm has designed or remodeled more than 80 cinemas in the western United States, Hawaii, and Asia. The firm was founded by Daniel T. Uesugi in 1978. His daughter, Erin K. Uesugi, joined the firm in 1994.
The architect of the Marketplace 6 was Daniel T. Uesugi, of San Francisco-based Uesugi Associates. The firm designed several projects for the United Artists circuit.
This building originally housed an automobile dealership. The conversion into a theater was designed by San Francisco architect Daniel T. Uesugi, Uesugi & Associates. It was one of a number of projects Uesugi designed for the United Artists circuit.
A history of Fort Wayne published in 1917 says that the Majestic Theatre opened on October 24, 1904. The postcard Don Lewis linked to above also shows the Airdome theater that was tucked into the “L” of the Majestic’s auditorium and entrance buildings.
The facade of the Majestic had been altered by the time this photo was made, perhaps in the 1920s.
Here is an aerial view of downtown Fort Wayne about 1950, showing the Majestic building at left. The caption identifies it as the Civic Theatre, but Civic was an aka for the Palace Theatre, so the caption is probably in error, unless both the Palace and the Majestic used the name Civic at different times. They probably meant to write Capitol Theatre, though.
The Lyric was built in 1908, according to a history of Fort Wayne published in 1917. Originally a vaudeville house, it had been converted to a movie theater by the time the book was written.
The Historic Hawaii Foundation has this information on their web page about the local newspaper, the Honolulu Advertiser:
“Although not its first home, the Advertiser was located in the W.W. Dimond building on King Street, between Fort and Bethel Streets, until 1913. (W.W. Dimond & Co. sold home furnishings. In 1936, the King Theatre was built on the site, now a multi-story parking garage).”
A 1916 magazine ad for W.W. Dimond Co. gives its address as 53-65 S. King Street, so the address of the King Theatre must have been somewhere in that range (it probably didn’t occupy the entire footprint of the former furniture store buildings.)
That’s a grim replacement for the pleasant building that housed the Filmarte. The new building is probably bad for the mental health of people who have to look at it every day.
The theater’s name comes from the SModcast, a weekly podcast by Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier. They replaced the p in podcast with the initials of their surnames and came up with SModcast, and thus SModcastle.
Here are two photos of the Isis from a 1913 issue of the trade Journal The Moving Picture World. The pictures are rather small, but the interior photo gives an idea of just how big this theater really was. For such an early movie house the place was vast.
In the photos linked above, the letters are mostly hidden by the theater’s name on the newer marquee, but the building has the name Grand Opera House in what is probably terra cotta above the theater entrance. Marion’s original Grand Opera House was gutted by a fire on December 6, 1910, and the roof collapsed, as can be seen in this photo at the Gen Disasters web site.
A 1910, pre-fire postcard view (unlinked as it’s at an unstable e-Bay URL) shows that most of the original facade of the Grand Opera House survived. Other than the loss of an ornate cornice, parapet, and pediment, and the ground floor detail that was covered up or removed in a later remodeling, it is still substantially the same facade today. The Grand Opera House was rebuilt at the same time that a new Elks Lodge was built on an adjacent lot. Here is a paragraph from a history of the Marion Elks Lodge (that page includes a small photo showing part of the original marquee of the theater) on the BPOE web site:
This page at the Marion Elks Lodge web site has a photo of the Lodge building and the adjacent theater building, and a link to another more recent photo showing the theater without the Ohio marquee. The theater entrance has been closed in. None of the web sites say what the auditorium is being used for, or whether or not it is even intact.The part of the Elks' project that included the theater is probably the one listed in the construction news section of the August, 1912, issue of The Lather, the trade journal of the Wood, Wire, and Metal Lathers' International Union. The item reads: “Marion, O.— Store, Theatre and Lodge Hall. $35,000. Archt., Frank L. Packard, 1212 New Haydn Bldg., Columbus, O.”
If this theater was indeed designed by Frank Packard, it would be a good candidate for inclusion on the NRHP. Not only does the building appear to be in good condition, but Packard was probably Ohio’s leading architect in his day. Here’s a web page with photos of some of his other buildings (scroll down for photos— no theaters among them that I can see.) Click on Packard’s photo near the top of the page to read a brief biography.
The surviving pre-fire facade would have to be attributed to the original architect, of course, who might or might not have been Packard himself. I’ve been unable to discover when the building was built, but the Grand Opera House was listed in the 1897-1898 issue of Julius Cahn’s Official Theatrical Guide. Packard began practicing in Columbus in 1892, originally in partnership with Joseph W. Yost, who had practiced in Columbus since 1882. Packard became sole owner of the firm in 1899.
A history of Indiana published in 1922 contains a brief biography of Terre Haute architect M. H. Johnson, Jr., and the Orpheum Theatre is included in a list of buildings designed by him and his firm, Johnson, Miller & Miller.
The February, 1921, issue of a trade journal called The Clay-Worker said that the new Pantages Theatre then under construction in Memphis would be opened “…within a few weeks.”
The February, 1921, issue of trade journal The Clay Worker said that the new Palace Theatre in Memphis had opened to the public on Saturday, January 15.
I can’t find anything about the colors of the interior of the Granada, but the facade was certainly colorful according to a rather effusive report in the trade Journal Brick and Clay Record, issue of December 13, 1921:[quote]“BEAUTIFUL TILE WORK IN ‘MOVIE’ THEATRE
“What is probably the most luxurious picture theater west of Chicago was opened in San Francisco, Cal., November 17. It is happily named the Granada and represents an investment of more than $1,000,000. The building is in Spanish-Colonial style and equipped throughout like a king’s palace. One of the most distinctive features of the Granada is the work in colored tiling in the facade around the great windows. This work was done by Eri H. Richardson of San Francisco, who has scored a triumph which has caused most favorable comment among architects of this city. Some go as far as to say that the facade tiling is not unworthy of some of the great masterpieces of the fifteenth century, the materials being translucent, turquoise blue, golden luster, rose and iridescent hues. The tiles mere made by Richardson from original designs, the motif being California fruits and flowers. The original suggestions were offered by a Moorish pattern of a design in the Alhambra and these were supplemented by color ideas obtained from the workings of a kaleidoscope. The two fine towers of the facade are distinctively characteristic of the Spanish-Colonial churches in Mexico, and are laid in a herringbone scheme of yellow enameled tiles with blue dots, and offer a brilliant bit of color to crown the rich polychrome beauty of the whole design.”[/quote]I’d love to see color photos of the facade before the tile work was lost (as it apparently was by the time the 1965 photos were made.)
Does anyone have information on a Liberty Theatre in Hamilton? It was under construction when mentioned in the trade journal Brick and Clay Record, issue of December 13, 1921. The side walls of the new theater were being built of brick salvaged from the town’s Rivoli Hotel, which had burned two years earlier.
The Roxy’s building looks about old enough to have been the Liberty, and Hamilton is quite a small town and might never have supported two theaters. Perhaps Liberty is an aka? A theater predating the original Roxy in New York would certainly have opened with a different name.
The Arcadia Press book “Around Pottstown” (Google Books preview here) has a photo of the Hippodrome dating from ca.1917, though I think it might be a bit earlier. There’s a horse and carriage on the street, but no cars. The book also has a ca.1949 photo of the Hipp, which by then sported a moderne front.
Flickr user Liatris displays this colorized version of the ca.1917 picture. Adjacent in the photostream is a cropped close-up of the theater entrance.
There was a Boz Theatre in Boise, so the local source saying that this house once had that name could be true. A history of Idaho published in 1914 said that W. Fred Bossner arrived in Boise in 1909 and began operating his first Boz Theatre.
In 1910 he opened the New Boz Theatre, which was exclusively a movie house and considered the leading such enterprise in the state. No address is given, so I can’t be sure it was the same theater that later became the Granada. The only other mention of the New Boz Theatre I’ve found on the Internet is one saying that, in 1911, noted feminist and radical Emma Goldman gave a speech there.
If the theater was also once the Strand then, assuming PSTOS is correct, it was also once called the Majestic.
The stage house roof is intact on the bird’s-eye view of the theater at Bing Maps, too. In the bird’s-eye, the structure on the roof that resembles a skylight looks more like it might have been part of the building’s ventilation system. It looks like it is partly covered with sheet metal, but some of the metal is missing, exposing an underlying framework.
In the 2008 photo, note the shadows falling from the two beams that cross the missing stage floor. The one on the left extends almost straight down, while the one on the right is at more of an angle. These shadows are consistent with light falling from the left section of the stage house roof, where that skylight-like structure is.
From the bird’s-eye view it doesn’t look like there’s any glass in the structure where the light gets in. If that’s the case, then it doesn’t bode well for the building. If it’s entirely open, then water can get in. Maybe the hole has been plugged since the various photos were taken, but if it hasn’t, water will soon destroy the building’s integrity. The Majestic could soon be unsalvageable— if it isn’t already.
This theater opened in 1998. It was designed for Signature Theatres by San Francisco architects Uesugi & Associates, principals Daniel T. Uesugi (founder, 1978) and (since 1994) Erin K. Uesugi.
There’s a small photos of the Signature Theatres Visalia 10 with its original signage on this page of the Uesugi & Associates web site.
The Platinum Theatres Dinuba 6 was designed by the San Francisco architectural firm Uesugi & Associates. The firm was founded by Daniel T. Uesugi, AIA, in 1978. His daughter, Erin K. Uesugi, AIA, joined the firm in 1994. Uesugi & Associates has designed or remodeled more than 80 cinemas in the western United States, Hawaii, and Asia.
An October 1, 1989, article in the Oakland Tribune indicated that United Artists' 10-screen Emery Bay Theatre complex had been open for some time. The shopping center in which it was located had been launched the previous year.
The article gave the seating capacity as 3,600, but it might be a bit lower now. Currently, Regal lists this house as the Emery Bay Stadium 10, and I’m not sure it had stadium seating when it opened. The Tribune article didn’t mention it. If it has been renovated for stadium seating it’s likely the capacity was reduced a bit.
This multiplex is one of several designed for UA during that period by San Francisco architect Daniel T. Uesugi, of Uesugi & Associates. The firm has designed or remodeled more than 80 cinemas since its founding in 1978.
CWalczak: It was the drawing you linked to that made me realize that this theater was probably a Vincent Raney design. That’s his drawing style. The attribution in the AIA Directory then came up immediately in a Google search. I don’t know how I missed it before.
There are two photos of this theater on the web site of TK Architects, the designers of the project (click on links reading “Cinemas” then “Traditonal” then “Commercial Revitalization”). The caption gives the seating capacity as 2300.
Here is an early interior photo of the Empress Theatre.
One large and two small photos of the Signature Stadium 14 can be seen in this album at the theater’s Facebook page.
The Kalispell project, like many Signature multiplexes, was designed by the San Francisco architectural firm Uesugi & Associates. The firm has designed or remodeled more than 80 cinemas in the western United States, Hawaii, and Asia. The firm was founded by Daniel T. Uesugi in 1978. His daughter, Erin K. Uesugi, joined the firm in 1994.
The architect of the Marketplace 6 was Daniel T. Uesugi, of San Francisco-based Uesugi Associates. The firm designed several projects for the United Artists circuit.
This building originally housed an automobile dealership. The conversion into a theater was designed by San Francisco architect Daniel T. Uesugi, Uesugi & Associates. It was one of a number of projects Uesugi designed for the United Artists circuit.
The design of this theater is credited to architect Vincent G. Raney in his listing in an edition of the AIA’s American Archtiects Directory.
A history of Fort Wayne published in 1917 says that the Majestic Theatre opened on October 24, 1904. The postcard Don Lewis linked to above also shows the Airdome theater that was tucked into the “L” of the Majestic’s auditorium and entrance buildings.
The facade of the Majestic had been altered by the time this photo was made, perhaps in the 1920s.
The Allen County Public Library also has this interior shot from 1906.
Here is an aerial view of downtown Fort Wayne about 1950, showing the Majestic building at left. The caption identifies it as the Civic Theatre, but Civic was an aka for the Palace Theatre, so the caption is probably in error, unless both the Palace and the Majestic used the name Civic at different times. They probably meant to write Capitol Theatre, though.
The Lyric was built in 1908, according to a history of Fort Wayne published in 1917. Originally a vaudeville house, it had been converted to a movie theater by the time the book was written.
The Historic Hawaii Foundation has this information on their web page about the local newspaper, the Honolulu Advertiser:
A 1916 magazine ad for W.W. Dimond Co. gives its address as 53-65 S. King Street, so the address of the King Theatre must have been somewhere in that range (it probably didn’t occupy the entire footprint of the former furniture store buildings.)That’s a grim replacement for the pleasant building that housed the Filmarte. The new building is probably bad for the mental health of people who have to look at it every day.
The theater’s name comes from the SModcast, a weekly podcast by Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier. They replaced the p in podcast with the initials of their surnames and came up with SModcast, and thus SModcastle.
Here are two photos of the Isis from a 1913 issue of the trade Journal The Moving Picture World. The pictures are rather small, but the interior photo gives an idea of just how big this theater really was. For such an early movie house the place was vast.